Fernando and Nani met freshman year of high school at a mutual friend’s Quinceañera, however, she would soon start dating someone else, and he would move to study abroad. They didn’t reconnect again until senior year, when he moved back and sent her a Facebook message after she liked one of his posts.
They were both immediately drawn to each other’s smiles, and that remains their favorite thing about each other.
They both did not have cars and relied on their friends to hangout, but after a month of talking nonstop, he couldn’t wait any longer and asked Nani to be his girlfriend through Facebook chat. They continued their relationship long-distance throughout college and would use every opportunity to visit each other.
Fernando had the ring custom-made by John Dickinson and his team at Dickinson by Design in Houston, TX. A close friend recommended the small company, and they couldn’t have made a more perfect piece for Nani.
Fernando chose to propose on top of Mount Bonnell in Austin. He felt that the city of Austin was where their relationship was finally allowed to develop into what it is today. They had been long-distance almost their entire relationship and, even though she was at Texas State about 30 min. away, it was closer than they had ever been and enabled them to have the opportunity to spend time together.