We caught up with the reality TV star at LAX, where Nick touched on the extensive vetting process contestants undergo to get onto the show ... suggesting some are just luckier than others when it comes to finding "The One."

Here's where Nick appeared to slip up, though ... when asked why he selected "Love Is Blind" over another dating series, like "The Bachelor," ND made it clear he's still open to competing on the ABC dating competition.

Nick later clarified to us he was joking about the Bachelor comment and said he had just gotten off a 6 hour flight and a 8 hour work day so he was having fun with it.

He noted ... "That's next. Come on America. Vote me in."

However, he soon realized his mistake when our photog confronted him about his relationship status ... scrambling for a reply and declaring he is "married."

As fans of the show well know, the outcome of Nick and Hannah's engagement has yet to be revealed ... with the pair getting engaged in the pods, before heading to Mexico to see if their connection will work without a wall between them.

The duo has already hit a rough patch on the show -- Hannah's pros and cons list left Nick feeling insecure about their relationship. It doesn't help that Nick was living in his parents' basement before linking up with Hannah on the show.

Yet, as Nick tells us, he's since flown the coop, having purchased his own home ... saying his prior failure to launch was actually a money-saving strategy.