Cal and Marlo first met on September 29, 2022 – not long after Cal moved to Omaha. They were assigned to the same story: Omaha’s Mayor was trying to remove a protected bike lane and bicyclists were gathering to protest the proposed removal. Having known of each other previously, thanks to social media, Marlo was being friendly and social and approached Cal to ask how he liked Omaha so far. After seconds of small talk Cal had to cut it short to do an upcoming TV appearance.

Later that evening Cal messaged Marlo on Twitter with his number saying it was nice catching up and they should do it over drinks soon. Cal swears he was doing it because he wanted a friend in Omaha, being new to the area. Marlo is convinced he was making a move. Regardless, Marlo decided to “play it cool” and hold off on messaging Cal for nearly three months. Marlo thought it didn’t make much sense to message Cal because they had opposite schedules.

After some gentle nudging from a colleague Marlo eventually sent Cal a text asking to get drinks. The two first got together on December 23, 2022. Not long after, Cal messaged Marlo and told her that while he had a nice time with her he was in no position to date and the two should be friends.

A month or so went by and Cal was on a trip visiting friends. While he was gone Marlo watched Cal’s dog, Leo, for him.

During the trip Cal found himself talking about her more, showing his friends pictures of her, texting her more, and even asking to FaceTime over the weekend.

Eventually Cal came to his senses and asked if she’d be open to having a conversation about dating when he returned. On March 9, 2023, Cal officially asked Marlo to be his girlfriend.