How They Met

The law legalizing same-sex marriage, which Governor Chris Gregoire signed last week, is almost certainly going to be challenged on the ballot in November. But forget for a second about the headaches brought on by the democratic process, and focus instead on the nine couples sucking face on our cover.

Married couples come in all shapes, sizes, and--now with the blessing of Washington's legislature--chromosomal configurations. That we all share the same hopes and fears should by now be obvious. But just in case it isn't, we decided to ask each of our cover subjects for their answers to the question that's eventually asked of every pair: How'd you meet?

We didn't do this by e-mail. And we didn't do it individually. To ensure the most When Harry Met Sally-like responses, we made sure that both representatives were on the line, whether by conference call or speaker, so that all their couple-specific quirks could be recorded for posterity.

Small edits were made for space. But what you'll read in the next nine slides is as faithful a representation as we could get of how these couples actually talk to one another. When, of course, they're not using their lips for something else.