Ryan and Sam have quite the modern romance: a true Tinder love story. When they finally met in person on October 24th, 2020, they had their first date at a park in Seattle’s Capitol Hill. When the world was at its most uncertain, and people had barely begun to find ways to see each other again amidst the pandemic, Ryan and Sam were lucky enough to find each other first. And they’ve never looked back.

What was meant to be a belated birthday dinner for Ryan turned out to be the night they got engaged. Leading up to it, Ryan was sneakily planning something perfect right under Sam’s nose. They had a lovely dinner at a local Seattle sushi restaurant, and at the end they ordered a slice of cheesecake to share. As they began to eat away at the cake, Ryan suddenly said, “I think there’s something in there.” He was right. Inside the cheesecake was a little rolled up note that read, “Will you marry me?” Sam was absolutely blindsided. She didn’t see it coming in the slightest. By this point, they had already decided to move across the country together from Seattle to Chicago. This move was only possible after comparing of all the grad schools Ryan wanted to apply to and cities with flying trapeze schools that Sam could work at. They were already building their lives around each other and never wanted to stop. It didn’t take thinking for much longer before Sam said, “Yes!”