Couple Who Met During Emo Karaoke Marry in Church from My Chemical Romance's 'Helena' (Exclusive)
The couple exchanged vows at the notable location in California, making a teenage dream come true for the alternative bride
A couple whose love blossomed over a shared taste in music made a monumental move that made their big day that much more unforgettable.
Vanessa and Jordan met through friends in the months before the pandemic. Vanessa first encountered Jordan's friends on a night out, and when she joked about the kind of guy she was looking for, they offered up his name immediately.
A week later, the guys brought Jordan out to meet Vanessa at an Emo Nite karaoke event. At first, she worried her personality was a little overwhelming for her prospective suitor.
"That night, it was all me talking and him sitting there with his drink, not saying much. I thought, 'This guy doesn't like me,' but his friends said, 'No, he's just very nervous. He said you were cute,' " she tells PEOPLE exclusively.
Before they left that night, Jordan asked for Vanessa's number and the two started getting to know each other better. They enjoyed a first date at a Korean barbecue restaurant that would become their yearly stop to celebrate the special occasion.
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On one of those anniversaries, Vanessa noticed Jordan "acting weird" and started to wonder whether he might be ready to propose. When the day came, everything that could go wrong did, and nothing ended up happening.
A few weeks later, before Vanessa went in for a major surgery, Jordan proposed.
"I'm sitting there crying and the nurse is like, 'No, no. Don't put the ring on her,' because I was already prepped for surgery," she laughs. "He put it on my hand before I woke up afterward."
Though Vanessa and Jordan can be "the total opposites of each other," they focused on their shared loves when it came to planning their wedding.
"When we first started talking about the wedding, I joked, 'What if we get married in the 'Helena' music video church? I'm a big My Chemical Romance fan and we had gone to an event they always have there called 'Ghouls Day Out.' "
She continues, "They decorate the Immanuel Presbyterian Church on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, California, to look just like the music video. They have a model dressed as Helena, the coffins and vendors. The vibe is great. So we went to one of those a few months before we got engaged, and I got teary-eyed. I knew I wanted to have either my wedding or my funeral there."
Those who aren't familiar with the music video might also recognize the church from its prominent use in films including The Amazing Spider-Man, John Wick, Sister Act 2 and Legally Blonde 2.
When it came time to actually look into it, the couple thought it might not work because it's a popular location and could end up out of their price range. While they didn't have the date they'd initially settled on, they did have the couple's dating anniversary available.
"We had already decided we only wanted to do a ceremony because we have so many family members and friends, but at the same time, not many that we see often or are very close to," she says. "We thought about eloping but we did want to find a way to include everyone. This felt like the perfect way to do it all."
"At first, it didn't seem real. Then we went to the church for the walkthrough and saw everything including the suites. I remember walking out of there and sitting in the car and asking Jordan if this was for real."
The couple's work to make the church resemble the video involved a lot of DIY. That day, however, the couple was filled with nerves and excitement.
"It was crazy. We woke up and it was pouring rain, just like on our first date. We got to the church to set up and put down our flowers and we had some friends help. Slowly, it started to come to life like in the music video. I started to cry because it was too perfect. I couldn't believe it was happening, that the day was here."
"The church itself was beautiful but as I saw my photographer's photos, I couldn't believe it. The vibe is so dark and beautiful, I can't explain it."
Most of the couple's guests didn't know that the church was the same location from the iconic 2005 music video.
"I made similar pamphlets to the ones in the video. Inside was a photo of me and Jordan styled similar to the demolition lovers from the 'Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge' album cover. It was a lot of little things, because I didn't want to put too much. I wanted it to be just right."
One of her favorite touches was the Lovers table, which celebrated all the relationships in their lives that paved the way for their love story.
"We had photos of his grandparents and his great-grandparents and his parents and we had pictures of my great-grandparents, my parents and my grandparents all on their wedding days."
Vanessa was excited to share photos from her big day on TikTok, but she never imagined how viral they'd go.
"It's been a little bit crazy. I had one person say, 'Oh she's living the generation's dream.' And it was really special to me, as a big My Chemical Romance fan, with a husband who was on board and loved it as well. I love that it's been so positive and that people are so happy for us."
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Read the original article on People.