Stonewall Golf Club

Wedding Day

Wedding

Reception

What started as a desperate journey into the unknown abyss of online dating, the couple matched on OkCupid with a 98% compatibility score.&nbsp; 

'Sounds promising,'&nbsp;Jessica thought to herself, scrolling down to the bio section of Alex C.'s dating profile page. 

He had a job as a teacher; a music teacher at that. And he likes to sing Disney songs in the car. Along with a shared interest in Legend of Zelda, he sounded even more promising. 

She checked the message he sent... two weeks ago.&nbsp; Oops. It's been a while, he might not be interested anymore. But it's worth a shot to at least respond. 

The message was telling of where his priorities lay in the foundations of a strong relationship: 

"What is your favorite Disney movie and why?" 

Jessica rubbed her hands together, fingers itching to type out the perfect response. After crafting the carefully worded answer about why Tangled is clearly one of the best films that Disney has produced because of Alan Menken's &nbsp;fun&nbsp;and melodious score and duets,&nbsp;the breathtaking intricacy of the scenery and animation, and the three-dimensional, relatable characters, Jessica thought it was a worthy and intelligent response; knowledgeable yet not too fangirly to scare him off. Tangled is, after all, a freakin' masterpiece. 

But Alex saw right through it. Even with such a concise answer, he knew exactly what he was dealing with. And with foolish bravery, he pursued further. She was such a dork... and this intrigued him.

Part 1: The Message

Sisters Thai was the agreed upon location for the first 'date'. Located in downtown Fairfax near George Mason University, Jessica's recent theatrical stomping grounds, it was well-populated and familiar; the perfect location for a first meeting with some stranger she had met online. She knew how those stories went. She didn't need a reason for her mother to say to her dead corpse, "I told you so!"&nbsp; 





After talking to her theater&nbsp;friend, Josh, on the phone and telling him where she was going and who she was meeting as a precaution, she parked in a&nbsp;lot next to the public library a short couple of blocks away from the restaurant. She was halfway there when a wave of paranoia&nbsp;hit her.&nbsp;





She couldn't remember if she locked her car.&nbsp;





Spoiler alert: she did.&nbsp;





But it didn't stop her from turning around and walking back to the street across from&nbsp;the lot to honk the car a safe three times for good measure. Satisfied,&nbsp;she turned around and scurried back towards the restaurant.





It turns out that flash of paranoia was the universe's way of setting up what happened next.&nbsp;





At the final&nbsp;crosswalk, the destination in sight, Jessica turned towards the Fairfax County Courthouse across the street next to her and saw a familiar face. Clad in a plaid button-up shirt and jeans,&nbsp;a neatly trimmed short-stubble&nbsp;beard accenting his friendly face, a spiritual charge surrounded her. It narrowed in on him crossing the street towards her, everything else blurring around them. She was certain if she focused hard enough, there would have been sparkles.





Deep within her old soul, a voice spoke to her. This is him. No matter what happens next, he will be in your life. In the best way possible.&nbsp;





When Alex said her name to confirm her identity, relief and joy filled her. She decided she would trust that voice in her soul, and a thought floated through her mind.





'Aww yisssss, he's a freaking&nbsp;lumberjack.'







This hadn't been Alex's first date through the app. Enough failed attempts at finding love had hardened him to the point where he was about to give up. This was another shot, perhaps the last. He didn't know what to expect when he saw the petite girl with glasses, her&nbsp;hair even shorter than his own, standing on the street corner waiting to cross towards the restaurant. But by the end of the lunch date, he knew he liked her well enough to ask her on a second date, and&nbsp;even get her phone number; a rare occurrence with his streak of online dating on-and-off for two years.





She was cool and fun. He was looking forward to getting to know her more.

Part 2: The Meeting

This was it. The date that could decide everything. How he handled this could make or break their entire future of exclusivity. She had warned him beforehand when they had set the date up, she wouldn't be holding back. This was what she had been waiting for for so long. 



The&nbsp;Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them&nbsp;film.



Harry Potter wasn't just an interest; it was a lifestyle. One that Jessica was committed to.



The night before Thanksgiving of 2016 after about a month and a half of late-night&nbsp;texts&nbsp;about a mouse under the sink in her home, hanging out at the mall to&nbsp;buy&nbsp;Pikachu slippers from Hot Topic, and introducing Hocus Pocus into his life well after Halloween, they knew they were about to take the next step in their relationship: becoming official. But there was one thing that needed to happen.



He needed to witness the extent of Jessica's fangirling.



Alex had caught bursts of this powerful, if not frightening, side of the girl he wanted to call his girlfriend. How he handled this would cement everything.



She didn't hold back. Almost everything she wore was Hufflepuff or Harry Potter&nbsp;themed, aside from her hoodie dress and shoes. Her scarf, leggings, earrings, heck, even the colors of her eyeshadow was fit to identify&nbsp;her as a devoted fan in the eyes of the public.



Where he would be seen with her.



And what's more: she brought her wand.



But not just any wand. She brought her Cedric Diggory wand. She was proud to be part of such an honorable, though underrepresented,&nbsp;house, and she wanted to show it. She left the house, her parents shaking their heads and asking, "Why? Just ...why?"



Seeing her was enough to warrant a good-hearted laugh, one that she loved to hear especially if it was because of her.



But the real experience was during the movie. No one was&nbsp;more animated&nbsp;during a film than this dork. Watching her was sometimes more entertaining than watching the film itself.&nbsp;



And he loved it.



And she loved that he loved it.



The two had found someone they could be weird with.&nbsp;

Part 3: The Test

She knows.

She had&nbsp;spent the entire morning primping, going above and beyond her normal routine of makeup and dressing.&nbsp;



She put on lotion. LOTION. And her Chanel No. 5 perfume. She ONLY puts it on for special occasions.



She just had&nbsp;to know. Otherwise, why go through all of this effort.



Almost a year and a half of being together, getting an apartment, going through job changes, failing at cooking rice, and cutting poop caught in their cat's fur, and she KNEW what he was going to do that day. The surprise was a total bust.



Calm down, he thought to himself, everything will go according to plan.



Her best friend, McKenzie, was going to come over, pick up Jessica, and take her to a nice brunch&nbsp;in Historic Fairfax to celebrate her new job. This was&nbsp;just a small little get together between two friends, there's no way for her to know. For all Jessica knew, I was just going to stay home and play video games.&nbsp;

How was she going to react? Will McKenzie get her to the right place on time? Will she see me lying in wait somewhere? HOW&nbsp;MUCH&nbsp;DOES&nbsp;SHE&nbsp;KNOW?

I acted as casually as I could up until she closed the door to the apartment, leaving me alone.&nbsp;

Thank God she's gone!

I gave myself a moment or two to calm down, slow my breathing and ease the racing thoughts in my head. I had some time to sit and relax. I had a couple of hours until I needed to be there. Let McKenzie lull her into a sense of obliviousness. Let her drink some rosé. Let 3 o'clock come as a complete surprise.

I didn't even wait thirty minutes. I fussed over my suit and appearance. I had picked out my outfit well ahead of time, but that didn't stop me from second guessing everything.

By the time I left the apartment an&nbsp;hour later, I had already calmed down from my fourth panic attack. This was only the most important question I was going to ask in my entire life.

I arrived thirty minutes early, still paranoid out of my mind. I made sure to park somewhere inconspicuous so she had no chance of recognizing my car.&nbsp;

Holy freaking cow, it's really windy! Why is it so windy?!

I studied the immediate surrounding area.&nbsp;

Where to hide, where to hide.

I needed a clear view of the street corner. The street corner. That was crucial in the whole plan.&nbsp;The Old Town Square&nbsp;park next to the town hall&nbsp;was fine. I could wait there, go through what I was going to say, and wait for them to get into position.

I paced for several minutes, rolling over every word in my mind. Glancing across the street, I saw them.&nbsp;

Crud, crud, crud! Gotta hide!

Behind the pillars of the canopy structure I went. I peeked around to keep them in sight. It was almost funny watching them struggle up the sidewalk against the wind. There was still time, so McKenzie was leading her to the comic book shop up the street to stall. Everything was still going according to plan. They disappeared.

I watched the clock on my phone, every minute passing by at a painful pace. So close now!

I saw them again, coming back down the street. While Jessica was turned away to watch McKenzie 'fix' her shoe and look at her phone 'texting her mom', I crossed the street, the same crosswalk where I first saw her in person, on our very first date.&nbsp;

I was right behind her. "Jessica?"

She spun around, confusion wrought in her features. "What are YOU doing here?!"

"You told me once that on this very corner on the day we first met that you felt something..." I continued.&nbsp;

That was when she realized what was happening. And she began to ugly cry.

"It's been a while since we first met each other, but today is an auspicious day," I said as she cried.&nbsp;

The rest was all a blur&nbsp;up until I pulled out the small crimson box from inside my jacket pocket and opened it.

Settling onto one knee in front of her, I poured my heart out to her. On the third day of the third month at 3 o'clock I asked the most important question I would ever ask in my life.

"Jess, will you marry me?"

 

&nbsp;

Part 4: The Question

Our Story

Details

Our Wedding

Photos

Honeymoon

Our Registry

<a href="http://www.zola.com/registry/caramanicaduet" target="_blank">View Our Registry</a>!

Zola Registry

Jay is from Richmond, VA but currently resides and works in Arlington, VA. Right after he was born, he met Alex, and his life has never been the same. From Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to Pokémon Go, Jay has always admired Alex’s dedication to fictional animals. As a cousin that lived somewhat nearby, Jay would see Alex on occasion, and each occasion was a new adventure. No two Alex sightings were ever the same. After Alex refused to visit Jay at UVA, he took matters into his own hands and decided to move in with Alex’s family in Fairfax while working various DC jobs and internships. From various fast food runs to admiring Alex’s commitment to driving stick shift in horrible Northern Virginia traffic, he enjoyed getting closer to his only older cousin. He can’t wait to see the future for Alex and Jess together.

Jay Boyd

The whole basis of my friendship with Jessica started with Harry Potter movie night and the following conversation: 

"You like Harry Potter?""Yes. You like Harry Potter?""Yes.""Let's be friends."

Nerdy friends ever since!!!

McKenzie Stack

My name is Justin Caramanica (aka Smartass, Brat, Pain in the Neck). I am a 21-year-old college student at NVCC from Fairfax, Virginia. I like to write poetry and stories, watch science fiction and horror movies, playing video games, and studies math and science. I am the shortest of my entire family. I shall leave it up to the reader of this very short bio to discern the truth from the lies.

Justin Caramanica

Treva Thrush is a Florida native who has a passion for cats, guacamole, and riveting crime podcasts. She had the honor of spending every weekday with Jess at the their shared workplace, where they shared an office and bonded over tea, essential oils, less than delightful clients, and strange paranormal stories. You'll likely find her on the wedding reception dance floor aggressively dancing like an aerobics instructor and getting way too excited when anything by Taylor Swift comes on.

Treva Thrush

Ashley met Jessica freshman year at George Mason University. They immediately bonded over their love of music (particularly Phantom of the Opera), and were both involved in the Music Productions Club at GMU. One of Ashley's fondest memories of her friendship with Jessica is writing and performing, "Bless the Angel" at one of the MPC events.

Ashley Markson

I met Alex in high school marching band, and we've been nerding it up every since. I just recently moved back to the Northern Virginia area, and fly satellites for a living. I couldn't be happier for Alex and Jess!

Justin Cook

Kimmi Manning&nbsp;is delighted to be making her wedding party debut for the production of Alex and Jess's marriage. Last season, Kimmi starred in her own marriage production alongside her husband Colin. She has previously appeared in Alex's life as Awkward Middle School Classmate 28, Bus Rider 3, Friend, Ranger, Fighter, and Cleric. In Jess's life, she has played the parts of Alex's Friend Who Has a Dog, Cleric, and Friend. Kimmi wishes the happy couple a lifetime of breaking a leg and natural 20s.

Kimmi Manning

I met Alex back in High School Marching Band. Became friends after learning of our similar interests and it just grew from there. Kept in contact after High School ended, because we both knew we wanted to be friends for life.  As our lives took us down different paths, we made sure to maintain contact and stay good friends. It's great to see Alex so happy with Jess, as they are clearly a great match for each other. I wish nothing but the best for them, and hope they know I'll be here till the end. Oh, also fun fact, I once thought Alex was in a coma. He wasn't. He just went to Oklahoma.

Jon Snow

I first met Alex in about 6th grade, and I like to think I've been the little voice in the back of his head saying "that sounds like a terrible idea, DO IT!" ever since. We've stayed friends since we met, through high school, marching band, his college years, and more than a few drunken game nights, so I'm pretty sure I'll get to annoy him for a long time to come.

Andrew Crews

Rachelle is Jessica's older sister. Growing up, it was Phantom of the Opera this and Phantom of the Opera that. EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. It drove Rachelle out of&nbsp;her mind. To this day, Rachelle receives messages from Jess of Youtube links and different versions of Phantom of the Opera. But that's ok. Rachelle now understands obsessions. cough History Channel's Vikings cough. And Phantom isn't really that bad.

Rachelle Holloway

Janet met Jessica during her first year at George Mason University, where they roomed together and battled the evil spirits and roommates that haunted their dorm! Quickly becoming both favorite-roommates and friends, they bonded over their shared love of all things nerdy and spooky! Five years later, Janet is proud to bend the knee in service as Jessica’s bridesmaid, offering her many talents to the bride-to-be, such as the ability to pair bond with any cat she meets, her uncanny eye for neo-surrealism (thanks to a bachelors degree in fine art), or her avid love of hiking!

Janet Kidd

Alex and David have been friends since David met him in high school. Through the years, there has been probably a single constant&nbsp;-&nbsp;One of them loves to sing 1000 miles.&nbsp;The other though, is getting married, and we're all so happy for him.

Jessica & Alex

Jessica & Alex

Photos