Dallas Hakes and Dallas House first crossed paths in 2014 at Portland State University—she was a local Oregonian, and he was there on a full-ride football scholarship from California. Through mutual friends, they discovered both were saved in some phones as “Dallas H,” leading to more than a few accidental calls to the “wrong” Dallas. Intrigued by the coincidence of sharing the same name, initials, similar age, and some overlapping friend circles, they followed each other on social media but remained friendly acquaintances, as they were both in other relationships at the time.

A few years later, fate intervened. They both became single within months of each other, and a perfectly timed Bible quote on his Instagram story—followed by another post featuring her favorite Jacquees song—caught her eye. One photo “like” led to another, and soon they were chatting back and forth while FaceTime calls became the norm. Not long after, he flew to Portland to visit her; a week later, she flew down to see him. Their long-distance adventure had officially begun.

Around that time, she was accepted to PA school in Boston, but one campus visit left her feeling homesick—unsure if she could move that far from family—and also convinced their relationship had serious potential. Taking a leap of faith, she forfeited her deposit and moved to California just as COVID arrived in January 2020. From then on, they were inseparable, facing everything together: new jobs, PA school applications and interviews, and multiple moves—from Riverside and Palm Springs to Santa Maria and even Stigler, Oklahoma—before ultimately planting their roots in Dallas, Texas.

After Dallas Hakes’s PA school graduation, Dallas House proposed, surrounded by their loved ones—one of the most unforgettable moments of their journey so far. Now, they’re counting down to September 12th, when they’ll say “I do” as Dallas House and Dallas House…in Dallas, Texas. Because, apparently, the only thing better than sharing a name is sharing it in a city that shares it, too—and no, they never get tired of explaining that story (and watching everyone’s face when they finally connect the dots).