#RollercoasterOfLove2022

When we met, we were both completely content being single and focusing on our own lives. I don't think either of us expected to get into a relationship when we did, but we immediately clicked and have been pretty much inseparable since day one. We are great friends, and we're even better partners. We keep each other sane in a crazy world.

Michelle: "I had seen him at a lot of events and thought he was incredibly handsome. I told our friend Savanna that he seemed like someone I could spend time with. Little did I know, she messaged him and said, 'Are you friends with Michelle Pearson? You should be friends with Michelle Pearson.' The next day, I got a Facebook friend request and a message from him that said, 'Hi, new friend.' We talked for hours that first night about everything under the sun, including video games, pets, families... Everyone told me he was so shy, but I still have never really seen that side of him. Jon is the funniest and most outgoing person I know, and I'm glad I get to be one of the few people who sees that." Jon: "I saw Michelle pop up on my friends' Facebook posts all the time, and I was like, 'Who is this person?' I went to ValleyCon, and I actually met her there, but we didn't really become friends or anything like that. I just finally met Michelle Pearson. She saw me at the bar for Toby's birthday and said I looked good in a suit. [Michelle Edit: He totally does.] Then Savanna messaged me and told me if I didn't know who Michelle Pearson, I needed to. Then we started talking."

Michelle: "Oh man, it was a disaster. He had tried so hard to convince me that he wasn't proposing that he went overboard and convinced me we were breaking up. I developed massive anxiety and started crying and hyperventilating. He threw away all his planning and proposed right then and there. It was mortifying. But I think it's also a perfectly "us" way to get engaged. He cared so much about making sure I knew he loved me that he was willing to undo all of his planning to show it." Jon: "I planned the proposal for a year, and I started being really cold to throw her off. She thought I didn't want to be with her. The afternoon before the day I was going to propose and had planned for a year, she broke down and thought I didn't even care. I couldn't let her be sad anymore. She needed to know. So I proposed. It was awkward, but she said 'Yes' and that's all that matters." Michelle: "We joke about it now, but it was a really weird time. I asked him why he tried so hard to throw me off the trail to the extent that he did, and he said, 'I dunno. I had never gotten engaged before. I didn't know what I was doing.'"

After making the decision to postpone the wedding, we had to make a decision on whether we would postpone our marriage. We've been together so long that the legality of our marriage wasn't going to change the lifelong commitment we made to one another years ago. However, becoming spouses has benefits that aren't recognized for unmarried partners. [Caution: Michelle has very passionate opinions about this.] In the midst of a pandemic, we wanted to get our affairs in order, and we opted not to wait. Getting married without any of the fuss had one very awesome benefit: We could pick any date we wanted. Being the people we are, we chose April 1st. We had already agreed that our "dating anniversary" in November would be the one we considered the most special and would celebrate each year. Getting married on April Fools' Day had the potential for fun anniversary gifts. This theory was confirmed when we exchanged gifts in 2022. Getting married early also had one very not-awesome benefit: We couldn't invite everyone who wanted to attend, and we knew several people would be sad to miss it. To try and mitigate our loved ones' FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), we treated our marriage day as "not a big deal." A handful of people came over, some of whom were just on a lunch break before getting back to work. We said our vows in our backyard while one of our cats screamed at us through our open bedroom window. Our first "officially married couple" picture was a selfie in our kitchen. Everyone left shortly after. Some may find our nonchalance about our marriage a little sad, but we promise that it was perfect. Later in the evening, we celebrated as just the two of us, which is exactly how we wanted it. Our photographer friend, Cierra Abell, took pictures of us in a park and around downtown Fargo. Then we had dinner at the place where our first date happened, Doolitle's. That night was really special to both of us, not because of the papers we signed earlier in the day, but because of the love we already had for one another. We have made it clear to everyone that April 1st, 2021 was not our wedding day. This was our marriage day. The wedding part is yet to come, and we can't wait.