Hello and welcome to our wedding story page. At least for the moment, I (Mark) have been left unsupervised with the responsibility and power to convey to you our story. (Stop me anytime if you've already heard this.)

While working to fix broken hearts in the Cardiovascular ICU, I too felt a tug on my heart strings one day. Was it a ruptured papillary muscle leading to a flail leaflet of my mitral valve? No! It was actually the sight of a nurse who was new to the unit and whom I was charged with precepting for the last few weeks of her orientation. Of all the units, in all the world, she walked into mine. (Justina won't get that reference as she is uncultured in classic movies)

I was instantly captivated, so naturally I waited two and half years to ask her out. But once the opportunity presented itself, as nervous as I was to take such a large chance by asking a question that could potentially ruin, not only a friendship but also a professional relationship, I knew that I would regret more having never asked. And the rest is clichéd history. As they say "when you know, you know", blah, blah, she is everything that complements my soul in ways that I didn't know were possible, blah, blah, she is an amazingly kind, compassionate, intelligent and adventurous person and more than anything I had ever dreamed of. And that is why I need to lock her down before she catches on! So come help us celebrate.

Well, I guess she caught us. If you thought any part of my retelling was cheesy, wait for...

Our Story (Justina's Version)

What do you get when you mix dashingly good looks, the intelligence of Einstein, the sweetness of an angel, and the cooking skills of Gordon Ramsey? Why, Mark Rustin of course! When I first met Mark, I knew he was way out of my league; but it didn’t stop me from admiring his beauty as he precepted me on my new unit (I learned a little bit about pacemakers and a lot about how handsome he was!). I wished that I myself had an ICD to ATP me out of the extreme tachycardia that his good looks were constantly putting me into (just kidding about the ICD but not about his ridiculous good looks).

After 2.5 years of working together, Mark made all of my dreams come true by asking me out on a date! He took us out for bubble tea (capturing my heart right then and there) and has proved to be the most amazing man I could have ever asked for ever since. Not only is he beautiful on the outside, he truly has a heart of gold and is one of the kindest, warmest, most loving people I have ever met. He is incredibly intelligent, but is always so humble and encouraging to others.

Besides all of this, he is a master at whipping up a creamy tomato soup, a delicious pumpkin spice latte, and other Michelin-level recipes at a whim! I consider myself lucky enough to be in his presence, but the fact that I get to marry him? A real-life fairytale come true!! To quote another famous movie, (which I am sure that Mark will get the reference to, as he is very cultured): “Wherever you are in the world, that's where I belong.”