<![CDATA[Ben Higgins and Jessica Clarke Mark 2 Years Since They Met Via Instagram DM]]>

Bachelor Nation first met Higgins when he competed for Kaitlyn Bristowe’s heart on season 11 of The Bachelorette. After finishing in third place, ABC named the Colorado native the season 20 Bachelor.

Higgins subsequently got down on one knee and proposed to Bushnell during the March 2016 finale. The duo, who landed their own spinoff, Ben and Lauren: Happily Ever After?, called it quits in May 2017.

“I would say the joy that we felt toward our relationship at the beginning was — for some reason — slipping away,” Higgins revealed on his “Almost Famous” podcast at the time. “And we were both working very hard to bring that joy back. And it just never seemed to get there. So it was a long time coming but it wasn’t necessarily like we dragged it out. … It’s hard to say goodbye to somebody that you spent so much time with and it’s hard to say goodbye to somebody that you really did believe was The One.”

While Higgins returned to reality TV to compete on The Bachelor: Winter Games in 2018, he quit the spinoff without a love connection. By the end of that year, however, Higgins met Clarke through Instagram.

“She’s a very kind, pure, emphatic and supportive person in general. And she’s not only like that to me. I’m part of that, but she’s like that to everybody around her,” Higgins gushed to Us in April 2019. “She challenges me to be more empathetic, more loving, more caring, more kind as well. So I’m very happy.”

“We’re great. It’s fun. It’s just healthy … I think she would say the same. Our relationship is healthy,” Higgins told Us in January 2020. “I’m a better version of myself, a more free version of myself than I’ve been in a while.”

“From my first date in life to the moments in between they all led me to getting down on one knee in front of you @jessclarke_,” he wrote at the time via Instagram. “This weekend I asked Jessica to give me the honor of being her partner for life. She said YES! I now officially have the most beautiful, kind-hearted, supportive, well-intentioned person to spend life with! Our adventurous ride through life together is just starting.”

Credit: Courtesy Jess Clarke/Instagram

March 2019

The pair were in a long-distance relationship when they first started dating.

“Long-distance isn’t ideal, I don’t love it. I want to be around her more and we don’t get to be around each other a ton, so that’s not something I want to keep doing,” Higgins told Us in March 2019. “But I think there’s a good compromise, and that’s giving up more of my time to go see her. And I’m ready for that. … She’s just an incredible person.”

Credit: RP Imagery

March 2020

Higgins put a ring on it in March 2020. Us broke the news of their engagement.

Credit: Shutterstock

April 2020

The couple made headlines in April 2020 after Higgins revealed that they were waiting to have sex until they tied the knot.

“It’s just something that we both felt comfortable talking to each other about. I forget the exact scenario that it came up,” Higgins told Us at the time. “We didn’t know at that point — who knew where it was going, but like, you know, [I said], ‘Let’s just make this commitment now.’ We had talked about it and agreed to it. Oftentimes that we bring it up. Like, we still have the desires and we still have the emotions and the physical desires to love each other.”

Credit: Courtesy of Ben Higgins/Instagram/Shutterstock

May 2020

The twosome wasted no time planning their nuptials.

“All I want is our reception to be in a huge tent with twinkly lights. That’s the only dream I’ve ever had of a wedding,” Clarke told Us in May 2020.

Credit: Courtesy Ben Higgins/Instagram

June 2020

When Higgins’ season of The Bachelor re-aired as part of The Bachelor: The Greatest Seasons — Ever! in June 2020, he told Us that Clarke wouldn’t be tuning in.

“She is my partner, and I want her to know that I don’t want her to feel any sort of heartbreak or sadness from that. So she’ll make an appearance on the show, but she will not be watching it,” Higgins told Us about The Bachelor: GOAT. “She’s going to get through that day, and probably the week afterward, with all the comments about my season, and then we’ll move on. But it’s not healthy, I don’t think, for her to probably watch it.”

Clarke took to Instagram to show Higgins support, however. “Cheering you on from afar tonight,” she wrote. “I’m so proud of who you are and happy for all of the steps that led me to you! You make me smile so big it smushes my face.”

Credit: Courtesy of Jessica Clarke/Instagram

November 2020

Clarke shared a photo on Instagram of Higgins kissing her and marked a special anniversary. "Every Thanksgiving from now on, I’ll remember the first message you sent me!" she wrote of receiving a message from her future husband on Instagram. "Waking up 2 years ago and seeing a DM from a random stranger, I never imagined I’d be marrying him."

"Thank you for supporting me in following my dreams, loving me on my most tired days, making me a better person, and always making me feel like I am good enough just as I am," Clarke continued. "This photo is from last year when we were traveling all of the time. I remember being so worried that one day life would slow down and we wouldn’t know what to do with one another, but this year I’ve learned that those slow days are my favorite."