By_Suraj Karowa/ANW November 1, 2025
Brooklyn, Halloween .
Amid twinkling fairy lights and pulsing music in a historic brownstone, Parisian entrepreneur Claire Chabaud-Tropéano locked eyes with LA musician David Redd.
She was a galaxy in a black catsuit sewn with glowing LEDs; he was a low-effort villain from Austin Powers, complete with eyepatch.
What started as playful banter—”Your outfit is very lame,” she teased—ignited an instant, undeniable spark.
Claire, then in her mid-20s, had fled to New York on a whim, chasing an entrepreneurial dream and escaping a recent breakup. “I felt like I’d stepped into a movie,” she recalls, wandering Brooklyn’s autumn streets, hoping the night might pivot her life. David, late 20s and fresh off recording his debut album, was visiting old friends, seeking a reset from unrequited feelings. Neither expected the other.
They circled each other all evening—glimpses across rooms, staircases—before finally connecting on the dance floor. “It was love at first sight,” Claire says. “When he was in a room, my body stopped.” They talked until dawn, collapsing on a couch without even kissing. “I don’t want to if it’s important,” she insisted. By morning, intimacy felt inevitable. David demanded her number; Claire flirtatiously suggested “letting destiny decide.” He persisted.
The Wrong Number Hurdle. Back in Paris, Claire waited anxiously. Three days of silence shattered her—until day four, when David slid into her Instagram DMs: “I don’t know if the wrong number was intentional, but just in case… hi, it’s me.” Relief flooded in. Sporadic texts and FaceTimes followed, but distance loomed. Claire, burned by a prior long-distance breakup, tried dating locally. “There was no intensity,” she admits.
Emboldened, she casually invited David to Paris: “It’s beautiful this time of year.” He hesitated—$300 round-trip flights on budget airline Norwegian Air tempted him. Consulting his risk-averse mom, he got unexpected encouragement: “Worst case, you’re in Paris.” He booked it.
Paris Reunion and Early Tests. Their chemistry reignited over cocktails, drag shows in Montmartre, and nights with Claire’s friends. No labels yet—Claire anxious, David avoidant—but emotions surged. He whispered “I love you”; she pushed for clarity. By his departure, tensions peaked: “What is this?”
November turned to December. Claire flew to San Francisco for New Year’s, assuming David would greet her. He didn’t, misreading signals in avoidant self-sabotage. “I felt crazy,” she says, picked up by a friend instead.
Confrontation followed: “If I’m taking a 12-hour flight, put a label on this.” David admitted fears of a “FaceTime relationship” but committed. January 2020: They were official.
Pandemic Curveballs. Early bliss—meetups in London, New York (where Claire met David’s family)—shattered in March. Covid repatriated Claire to France; borders slammed shut. Quarantined apart for four months, they bonded deeply over video: board games, dance parties, drunken poetry. “We saw each other’s vulnerabilities,” David says.
Summer 2020: David exploited loopholes—quarantining in London, then training to Claire’s grandparents in southern France. Language barriers? Claire’s non-English-speaking elders bonded anyway. Her solitary grandpa shared war stories over wine; David laughed in the right spots.
Three surreal months followed: cozy afternoons, family dinners. “We went from glamorous cities to quarantining with grandparents,” Claire laughs. Tragically, her grandpa passed in 2025, but those months forged unbreakable ties.
Fall: Another loophole to Mexico City—hiking, camping with new local friends—then Claire’s three-month US stint. Separations persisted into 2021, but restrictions eased.
Marriage and Stability. Hardships clarified compatibility. “Traveling in stress tests you,” David notes. Practicality trumped romance: Marriage for legal security amid border chaos. Summer 2022, they wed simply in Claire’s childhood village, Tourrettes-sur-Loup, then beach-dined in Juan-les-Pins. “Feet in the sand” was Claire’s must; emotions surprised them both. Families mingled amid cultural mishaps—David’s grandma’s mic-drop speech stole the show.
Post-wedding, they settled in LA, fulfilling Claire’s American dream. She launches “smart bras” tracking hormones; David pursues music, releasing “Slowly Straight to You” about their pandemic love. French fluent now, he jokes it’s for future kids’ “secret language” with mom.
Six years on, Halloween remains sacred. They seek autumn escapes, epic costumes (Bowie duo one year), and reflect gratefully. “He’s everything I hoped for but thought I didn’t deserve,” Claire says. David: “It restored faith—trust the ride.”
From chance encounter to resilient team, Claire and David prove love thrives on faith, persistence, and a little destiny.
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