Our Story

Every couple has a story. Ours just happens to include Tinder, a realtor playing matchmaker, a two hour hike that felt like twenty minutes, an ABBA cover band, and a wedding celebration that somehow brings everything full circle.

In February 2018, we matched on Tinder. After exchanging messages for about a week, we made plans for our first date: a hike once Paul returned from a work trip to the Detroit Auto Show.

Before that first date could happen, fate decided to get involved.

On the Friday before Paul’s return, Nick received an early morning phone call from his real estate mentor, Tracy Hauser. She was excited because she had found a newly single gay man she thought Nick absolutely needed to meet. She began describing him: tall, dark, handsome, and named Paul.

Nick immediately stopped her. “Paul? What’s his last name?”

“Calvillo,” she replied.

The coincidence was almost too much to believe.

As it turned out, Tracy’s client was Paul’s sister, Lark. Even more surprising, Tracy’s husband Lloyd had grown up with Paul’s dad, Carlos. What seemed like a random Tinder match suddenly felt a lot less random.

Naturally, Nick immediately messaged Paul:

“Guess who just called me?”

When Paul returned from his trip, we finally met for our first date at Towsley Canyon. We spent two hours hiking, although it felt more like twenty minutes. Neither of us wanted the day to end, so we grabbed brunch at Egg Plantation.

Still not ready to say goodbye, we made plans to meet up again that evening.

What followed was a very typical Santa Clarita night for two gay men in their mid twenties: dancing, bar hopping, and talking for hours. By the end of the night, something felt different. We both knew this wasn’t just another first date.

That magical Saturday became the beginning of an almost eight year adventure.

Over the years, we’ve shared countless experiences, moved cities, built a home together, and created memories with our friends, family, and dogs. We’ve celebrated life’s highs, weathered difficult seasons, and learned that love isn’t just about finding the right person. It’s about choosing each other again and again.

Then came the summer of 2023.

After moving back to Santa Clarita from the South Bay, we found ourselves looking for something fun to do on a warm summer night. Along with our friends Mel and Anna, we headed to Central Park for Concerts in the Park.

The band performing that night was FABBA.

If you know the song Fernando, you already know.

We danced the night away, sang every word to Dancing Queen, and somehow found ourselves partying with half the moms of Santa Clarita on the dance floor. It was one of those perfect summer nights that seemed like it would never end. The kind of night you wish you could bottle up and keep forever.

A free concert. A cover band. Absolutely magical.

Fast forward to May 17, 2026.

After nearly eight years together, and after a few challenging years that ultimately strengthened our relationship, we found ourselves preparing for a new chapter. We had just taken a leap of faith together by purchasing our first home and investment property, and it was clear that the future we had spent years building was finally becoming reality.

So, inside what would soon become our future home, Nick got down on one knee and proposed.

Paul said yes.

A family heirloom wedding band found its new home on Paul’s finger, and just like that, our next chapter began.

If you’ve made it this far, you’ve probably realized something.

Yes, we’re a little crazy.

Less than two months after getting engaged, we’ll be exchanging vows during a small private elopement ceremony with our immediate families at sunset on July 17, 2026, among the beautiful landscapes of Vasquez Rocks.

And in true Nick and Paul fashion, we’ve somehow managed to bring our story completely full circle.

The very next day, July 18, we’ll be celebrating our marriage with all of you at Santa Clarita’s Concert in the Park.

And yes…

FABBA is performing.

A Tinder match, a realtor playing matchmaker, a hike, a dance floor, a proposal, an intimate elopement, and a wedding celebration with ABBA music under the stars.

As Alanis Morissette might say:

Isn’t it ironic?

Thank you for being part of our story. We can’t wait to celebrate this next chapter with all of you.

Love,

Nick & Paul