Yewww we're getting married!

Once upon a time in the vast and unromantic realm of dating apps, where bios are carefully curated and photos are filtered like artisanal coffee, Ryan and Kate matched on Hinge. Kate’s Hinge profile was a masterpiece to Ryan's eye. She claimed to love hiking, fishing (minus holding the fish part) and she even surfed. Ryan swiped right with the confidence of a man who hadn’t been friend-zoned in at least 3 weeks. They matched. They went to Jake's for drinks. Sparks didn’t exactly fly, but flickered. Like a damp matchbook in a windy forest, but still—it was something. After a few Jake's mai tais and an unsolicited goodnight kiss, they parted ways. The next morning Kate hastily told Ryan that she was just looking to be friends. Ryan knew he had to play the long game. For months, Ryan played the dutiful "tell-me-about-your-crushes" friend. The "sure-I'll-help-you-move-your-couch" friend. His heart took more hits than a piñata at a toddler’s birthday party. But he persisted, he listened intently and he even tolerated her inexplicable love for dry peanut butter sandwiches. After a few build ups and let downs, Kate's indecisiveness finally got the best of Ryan and he threw in the towel. He firmly let her know that he had enough friends that were girls and he was not interested in adding another. This meant goodbye. Kate shrugged it off, or so she thought. As the night passed she couldn't sleep, shocker. She realized she'd lost her hiking buddy, surfing buddy, steak cooking chef, and her best friend. Soon the tears started flooding. She told a few of her close friends about her predicament and they all said, "You're an idiot! Do you not realize you're meant to marry him?" And she thought, "No that can't be!" Long story short, Kate had Ryan's board shorts in her car and texted him to drop them off. His response: "Front door's great (thumbs up emoji)." Zeesh she thought, she'd really done it this time. The shorts drop off progressed into a long chat as they both realized how upset each other was. Eventually, the universe threw Ryan a bone. His friend conveniently bailed on their weekend hiking trip so naturally, Kate invited herself on his "cruisy" weekends hikes. A 14 mile Saturday, led to a sleepless night in bear country. Despite no sleep, Sunday's hike started like a dream. The scenery was stunning, the air crisp, and Kate was radiant. Ryan, however, was sweating buckets knowing this was his last chance to impress her. As they climbed higher, the altitude started playing dirty tricks. Kate slowed down after the summit. Her usual chipper voice grew faint, her speed slowed, she looked less like a nature goddess and more like a contestant on Survivor: Sierras Edition. “I think I’m dying,” she muttered, collapsing onto a rock. “You’re just dehydrated,” he said, handing her water. “And maybe a little altitude sick. Here, eat your sub.” In a daze she replied, “I can't eat or drink anything right now.” 14000ft above sea and 12 miles from the car, Ryan knew they had a tall order ahead. They paused several times for Kate to rest. In exchange for Ryan's dude wipes, for unforeseen circumstances, Kate rewarded him with the rest of her Jersey Mikes sub. At that moment, he knew it was love. All of the sudden, things shifted. The friend zone evaporated like morning mist in the mountains. As they got closer to the car, Kate held Ryan's hand—mostly for balance, but still, it counted. He went into full hero mode. He got her back to the car safely, 25 "cruisy" miles later. They drove away into the sunset...not really actually, she painted the 395 highway with her vomit and he ended up taking her to the Ridgecrest ER where she got 3 IV bags. Ryan comforted her and told her he booked them a motel for the night. From this point forward, she knew she couldn't live without him. The unrelenting Sierras tested us, dehydrated us, nearly broke us—but brought us together. Forever. And yes, we still love to tell this story.