Jake was born and raised in Laurel, MS. He and Luke even went to the same high school. However, they had not formally met each other until Luke moved back home in July of 2021.


Jake graduated high school in 2018 and immediately began working toward his nursing degree. While doing so, he was introduced to several of his now close friends, Terra, Breanna, Courtney, and Madison. Being a full-time employee and student, Jake did not have time for many hobbies or adventures, but when he did, hiking and kayaking were at the the top of the list. During his freshman year of college, Jake built a tiny house with the help of his stepdad. The house was about 650 sqft, the perfect size for him and his golden retriever son, Hank. This naturally became the gathering place for many late night study shenanigans with his classmates, Callie and Alyssa. Legend has it that the tiny house still smells like freshly brewed Maxwell House coffee. In May of 2021, Jake graduated from Jones College as a Registered Nurse and began working in the ICU of his hometown hospital with his two close friends. The day that Jake took his NCELX was actually Lukes first day at work in the ICU.

After graduating nursing school and having a little more time in his hands, it was known that his niece, Sadie, would definitely be filling that void. A trip to the zoo here, a drive-thru to get snow cones there - The stories and memories go on and on! But what Jake didn’t realize is how much Sadie would love Luke as well. The two typically take turns being her “favorite Luke” or “favorite Jake” depending on the day of the week.

Though Luke and Jake went to the same high school and Luke grew up as a close friend of Jake’s brother-in-law, July 12th 2021 was the first day the two officially met as coworkers in the ICU at SCRMC. It didn’t take long for them to hit it off and start hanging out on their days off. During this time, the Delta variant of Covid-19 ran rampant through Mississippi and surrounding states. Before they knew it, their facility entered a state of emergency and their 12hr shifts became dark, gloomy, and contagious. Luke and Jake both used this quarantine time as an excuse to escape on many excursions together such as hiking and remodeling Jake’s tiny house. They continued being each other’s best friend until October 9th; Jake talked Luke into going with him to his first drag show the night of his birthday - but little did they know they were actually on their first date. That night on the drive home, Luke asked Jake to “go out” with him and the rest was history!

As Jake continued remodeling his tiny house, Luke disclosed that he had been accepted for Season 6 of Hometown and his first fixer-upper was going to be remodeled into a studious bachelor pad. This did present a challenge as Luke had to move in to his mother’s house for 6 weeks during his house remodel. During this time, their favorite affections came in the form of racing to buy the other his favorite coffee, stealing sticky notes from the nurses station to leave each other a little love note at work, and Luke sneaking away while filming with Hometown to meet Jake at the park for lunch. Soon enough, Luke got to see his new and improved home on December 15th, 2021 and the first people to get a tour was Jake and Allie! Jake helped Luke rush to move back in so the two of them could exchange gifts during their first Christmas at Luke’s new home.

Jake began staying over later, coming over more often, and winning over the cute and quirky Gryffin boy (We would mention Piper here, but Piper was immediately won over by Jake’s cuddles). Jake eventually began staying over after long movie nights until he actually began sleeping at Luke’s house more than his own. However, he made it known he was not yet officially moving in with Luke at that time. Of course that did not last long - Luke gave Jake his own house key in February of 2022 with Jake having only 1 condition. His best boy, Hank, was moving in too! Hank took several months to warm up to Luke without immediately looking for Jake, but Luke got there! Gryffin, Piper, and Hank loved to play in the yard together, but did not really interact with each other at home. Today they are completely inseparable, and Piper even shared her toys with Hank!

Luke and Jake were still working in the ICU in Laurel at that time, but they both were getting a bad case of cabin fever. They had both voiced interest in leaving home to travel nurse together after Jake completed his first year as a registered nurse, so the two did what anyone else would do - they adopted a cat! Luke saw a picture of a tiny kitten found in a neighboring town and was in desperate need of a home. That evening, Jake and Luke drove to pick up their first joint child, Zucchini. Weighing less than a pound when he was adopted, Zucchini has grown up to be a the sassiest middle-class feline in Jones county.

In September of 2022, Luke and Jake packed their bags and their 4 fur babies to head to Roanoke, VA for their first travel nursing contract together. The two were able to reconnect with old friends and also make new friends and acquaintances during their stay. Many hikes and Mountain View’s later, the two finished their contract and headed home for Christmas on December 17th. They both squeezed in as much family time as possible before hitting the road right after New Years 2023 to New Orleans, LA.

This travel assignment proved to be a little more of a struggle. Jake’s grandfather was diagnosed with Myasthenia Gravis and many mystery symptoms that caused a rapid decline in health. Luke supported Jake’s decision to end their travel contracts early and move home to be with his family. The two say that this was a blessing in disguise - As both Jake and Luke began looking for jobs back home, Luke landed his dream job as a remote nurse case manager!

Jake and Luke have been home in Laurel, Ms since March of 2023. Though they both love a good trip out of state to visit friends or a weekend camping trip in the mountains, they both enjoy curating Luke’s house into their home the most. After moving home, Luke was able to pursue his dream of owning a plant shop! The Laurel Plant Parlor was born with Jake being Luke and Allie’s number 1 supporter and errand boy.

July 21st, 2023, Jake and Luke headed to Nashville, TN for a friend’s wedding. They decided to leave home a little early and stop in at their favorite vineyard just outside of the city before settling in for the evening. Little did Jake know, Luke had this trip planned for a while. The two ordered a flight of wine and both had the best time eating dinner while listening to a live band play on the hill of the vineyard. Just before the sun went down, Luke asked Jake to go take a picture with him in the rows of the vineyard - and just as the kind lady taking our picture told us to smile, Luke pulled out a ring and asked Jake to marry him.

The rest to come in 2024…