Turns out college is good for more than just getting a degree you will never use; sometimes you meet the love of your life. Olivia (they/them) and Jared (he/they) first crossed paths when Olivia was called in at the last minute to cover for an absent crew member for a film project Jared was Director of Photography for. At the time, Olivia was distracted by witnessing a real life cryptid, but they did offer Jared a ride home at the end of the shoot. (Olivia still misses that car.) They met each other more formally the next semester when they took the same cinematography class and worked in the same group. Jared took great pleasure in tormenting Olivia by doing unspeakable things to Oreos to get them to laugh when Olivia was supposed to be sitting perfectly still for a homework assignment – and fell a little bit in love the moment he succeeded. Olivia initially thought Jared was a bit of an arrogant jerk with his shitty jokes, but grew to like him as a friend over time. It wasn’t until a mutual friend’s party that Olivia realized Jared is a very kind and good person deep down. While everyone else laughed at Olivia’s expense, Jared patiently explained how to walk straight in a video game. The very next night, at Jared’s 21st birthday party, they shared their first kiss. The night ended squashed in the backseat of his sister’s car holding tiny plastic buckets in case any of the drunk idiots vomited. In the morning Olivia trekked across campus to watch The Lord of the Rings: Extended Edition with an extremely hungover Jared; unknowingly the start of the rest of their lives.

Yosemite National Park is one of Olivia’s most beloved places in the world. Family vacations instilled a deep love for nature early on and they couldn’t wait to experience it with Jared. One of the sights Olivia was most excited to share was the Mist Trail, a challenging but not impossible hike where you get drenched while struggling up granite steps but well worth the view and sense of accomplishment once you reach the top of Vernal Falls. Luckily, the first time Jared saw it, it had been a wet winter and the waterfall was full to bursting. Unluckily, it meant the stairs were too wet to climb down, and they were forced to take the switch-backs. Grueling under the summer heat, but at least they suffered together. And now Yosemite was a special place for both of them. The next time Olivia and Jared went, it had been a very dry season so the Mist Trail was less impressive, but the hike was far more important that year. Olivia spent most of the way up preoccupied with their old knee injured while Jared was preoccupied with his plans for once they reached the top. After a quick lunch and waiting for the sweat to dry enough to take decent pictures, Olivia and Jared got in line for the very edge of the cliff. Jared casually said, “hey do you want to get married?” Olivia replied “Yeah?” confused because they had discussed marriage before but now seemed like an odd time to bring it up. The confusion was replaced by a blue screen of incomprehension when Jared actually got down on one knee and pulled out a ring. Olivia may have blacked out a little bit at this point but did manage to say yes for real – it’s the happiest moment they can’t remember!