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.

Parker Travis, 50, financial accountant at Seattle Weekly, the one on the right: We met through a hiking group. I was a member for some time, and just kind of showed up at our meeting place, and Paul was there with a good friend of ours. We flirted over the course of many weeks on different hikes. And then at the end of August we went on our first date.Paul Hill II, 46, paralegal, the one on the left: We actually flirted for several months.PT: A couple months.PH: It's an outdoor adventure group called Outventures.PT: This was in 2005. I think I was the pursuer.PH: I was interested. He's kind of a subtle pursuer. I didn't really realize it at first. It wasn't until we were on a camping trip with a big group of people and he and I ended up by a river.PT: By ourselves.PH: By ourselves, talking and looking at the stars. And then one thing led to another.PT: Then I kissed him. That's what he means.Seattle Weekly: [And the name of that river?]PT: The Bumping River. [laughter]

Ramie Sutter, 39, EMT, right: I was having coffee, sitting by myself at Vivace. This beautiful lady, as she was leaving, she popped a note on my table. And . . . Dana Wallentine, 31, full-time student at the University of WashingtonaE™s Foster School of Business, left: And thataE™s what I did. I said you are beautiful, please give me a call, maybe we can have coffee together sometime. And gave her my number!RS: And we did. Four years ago.DW: Oh, and I got her to move to Seattle. She never went home to Palm Springs.RS: I wasn't living here at the time. So basically I stayed for her.DW: And braved the cold and wet, like a champ.RS: Most of the time. Our heat is on 80 degrees constantly. It's not very often that the pretty girl chases me. I usually have to use a lot of humor and charm.DW: Have you seen our picture? She was on a stool the entire time!RS: I'm often on my tiptoes. But my calves look amazing.

Carlos Garcia, 41, product merchandiser at Nordstrom's, right: Jim and I met because we were both doing volunteer work for an arts group in San Francisco called Visual Aid. I was 23 at the time.James Harris, 50, owner of James Harris Gallery in Pioneer Square, left: And I was 33.CG: We were going to hang up artwork made by artists who had AIDS in high schools for World AIDS Day. Jim picked me up in his little white pick-up, wearing his little white T-shirt. Jim, you go ahead and interrupt me if I get any of this wrong. Jim kept on talking about his boyfriend--basically telling me, Don't be interested in me because I have a boyfriend. I was like, Fine, I don't care. You're old. Fast-forward to March. I was leaving my job to go to a meeting for [Visual Aid]. But I guess I got the time wrong, because when I showed up, the whole group was like, OK, that was a great meeting, we'll talk to you guys later. I used to bike around San Francisco, and this guy comes up afterward and says, Hey, nice to see you. I see you've got your bike. Need a ride home? So I say Oh, great, thanks, that'd be awesome!-- the whole time thinking Who the hell are you?JH: I parked in the same garage for work. At one point he put his card with his name on it, saying Call me sometimes.CG: That was after we'd already met! I thought you were cute by then.JH: We started going out around May, and that's why we call our official anniversary May 6.CG: Is it May 6? I thought it was May 3rd.JH: No, it's May 6 [audibly disappointed]. It's the day after Cinco de Mayo.CG: You still have that business card I left you, don't you? JH: I probably do, yeah.CG: And 17 years later weaE™re still together!

Leslie Bower, 33, practices Chinese medicine, left: We actually met on Valentine's Day. We were both single and had a mutual friend who was having a dinner party for some other friends that we didn't know. Neither of us really wanted to go.Jessica Rongitsch, 40, primary-care doctor, right: Maybe you shouldn't say that.LB: Oh, yeah; she might read this. So we ended up at this dinner party with a bunch of people we didn't know. I'd been living in Seattle for only, gosh, maybe two or three years, and I had never met anyone I was interested in until her. It was sort of stressful, because I was thinking How are we going to see each other again?JR: So I stepped up and invited a few of them over to my house the next weekend. Really I just wanted Leslie to come over.LB: It's a total cliche, but when I met her I just knew right away. I started plotting. I'm a little bit younger than her. I was thinking, How am I going to get this amazing, beautiful, established doctor? So I had to start planning.

Josh Rohr, 36, Physician Assistant, left: So we had mutual friends that were having a dinner party. I saw Jeff walk in, and I said to my roommate at the time, Who's that guy? I'd seen Jeff before, I couldn't remember exactly where. We found out over the course of the dinner party. We got to talk. Friends on Facebook the next day. Asked him out a few days [later].Jeff Maggioli, 42, first-year nursing student at the UW, right: You know what's funny? We had seen each other before, at Dina Martina at Re-bar. JR: Oh, jeez.JM: Josh was with a good friend, but I thought they were dating. So I ended up talking with Josh's younger brother. Not for romantic reasons--we had both been in the Peace Corps.JR: The Dina Martina story [sighs]. I feel bad because we had an opportunity to meet sooner, but I was oblivious. There was a cute future partner of mine sitting right in front of me, but I was distracted. I'll blame it on Dina.

Stephenie Landry, 34, runs AmazonaE™s baby division and is very pregnant, right: We met in high school.Alison Billings, 37, manages T-MobileaE™s mobile payments business, left: We did not meet in high school. That has a whole different connotation. Stephenie was a friend of my brother's.SL: OK. I probably first met Alison while playing with her brother at the age of 13 at their parents' house. Her brother and I were really good friends.AB: That's the first time we met. The second time we met I was living in California.SL: Alison and I were both living in San Francisco, but we didn't know that. A mutual friend invites us out for dim sum, and when I arrive Alison is sitting right there. I was like, Hey, youaE™re Brian Billings's sister! But I was thinking And you're gay! I was pretty excited. AB: And then we hung out again. Stephenie was moving into a . . . SL: Oh, come on. I asked Alison out on a date right away, and Alison wouldn't go out with me because I was her brother's friend. All the other stuff is not that interesting.AB: She was a friend of my brother's! [laughter] My mother made a very distinct point that Stephenie was Brian's friend and I was not to go out with her. Which also spoke a great deal to my mother's confidence in my dating ability.SL: Dating Alison strengthened my relationship with her brother, too, which is fun because I've known her family since I was a little kid.AB: That was 11-and-a-half years ago. SL: Alison probably knows the exact date too. You know the date, honey?AB: November 25th.SL: She's very good with numbers.

Kurt Reighley, 44, KEXPaE™s DJ El Toro, right: The flashpoint for me is Dr. BuzzardaE™s Original Savannah Band.Mark Mitchell, 49, costume designer, left: That was the song he was playing when we officially met at an underground nightclub downtown. He was DJing when I walked in. I threw myself at him. And I kept throwing myself at him until he caught me.KR: That's pretty much the gist of it. We are both friends with Paula [a burlesque performer known as The Swedish Housewife]. In 2002 I was DJing different parties for her at a place that was then known as the Catwalk. One night when Mark was there . . . were you MC that night or were you just a guest? MM: I was just a drunk. A guest, I mean.KR: I played I'll Be the Fool for You by Dr. BuzzardaE™s Original Savannah Band. Within the first hour of our meeting, he had declared that I was his new boyfriend. Like a child will say That's hot or That's red. I was his boyfriend, and he was going to make it stick. And he did.MM: My version of the story was way more succinct.KR: Caleb is a professional! He can edit them down into one version!

Alicia Berger, 48, writer/visual artist, right: Jodi was a barista at Vivace and I was a customer. I had just broken up with somebody and had lost a lot of weight, so I went to Vivace and got a mocha with whipped cream, which wasn't what I normally ordered. I thought she was cute--she always remembered me as mocha with whipped cream, and because she was cute, I would get that.Jodi Jaecks, 46, private chef, left: She was trying to gain weight because of her break-up. Every time I would be working, I'd see her at the end of the line and say Oh, cute girl is here. She says she asked me out, but I think we asked each other out.AB: I asked her one day what was up, because she didn't look like she was having a good day. She said she had just broken up with her girlfriend, and I said I'm so sorry, but walked out and said Yes! So I made her a break-up mixtape. You might not want to print that.JJ: She forgets the part where I said So when are we going to have lunch?AB: We've been together now for eight-and-a-half years. In case you can't tell from the photograph, last year she had breast cancer.JJ: He probably just thought I was really butch.

Chris Caliz, 32, Microsoft program manager, left: We met on Match.com. Nathan had just moved positions into a new building, and saw someone who looked like me. Then later that night he saw my photo and profile on Match, and saw I was working for the Evil Empire, a.k.a. Microsoft. He realized one of his best friends worked in my building. When he contacted his friend--this person who was my co-worker--his friend showed up at my office 30 seconds later and said Hey, do you know Nathan Fish?Nathan Fish, 32, Microsoft program manager, right: When he found out we were talking, he said Oh my God, I've been thinking about setting you up for months! Every now and again I still see [Chris's] doppelganger. I haven't snapped his photo because that seems creepy. But he does exist.