Halloween is a time for dressing up in costume, playing a part, and hiding behind made-up personas. But when Lindsey Freshwater and Yesica Rodriguez Barragan met the Friday before Halloween in 2018, the two women’s genuine personalities drew them together, creating a lasting bond that withstood time and distance to become true love. “A twist of fate brought us together at a new queer-friendly bar in Adams Morgan,” says Lindsey of the night the two met. “Yesica was in town from New Jersey, visiting her best friend Valeria in D.C. that weekend. She approached me, and we hit it off right away. A few days later, we went on our first date.”
That date was the first of many, though the couple lived in different cities—Yesica in New Jersey, Lindsey in D.C.—until August 2019, when Yesica moved in with Lindsey. “Despite the distance, we spent almost every other weekend together from when we first met until we moved in together,” Lindsey recalls. And on their one-year anniversary, the couple took their relationship to the next level when Lindsey proposed at POV, the sophisticated rooftop bar and lounge at the W Hotel in D.C. “The view is stunning during the day, but especially spectacular at night when the monuments are illuminated. The sun was setting, and the light was just right, with the Washington Monument silhouetted by the setting sun. It was an intimate moment, shared by just the two of us, and it couldn't have been more perfect,” she goes on.
And while the civil ceremony on January 24, 2020 during which Lindsey and Yesica officially exchanged vows might not have been their idea of a dream wedding, the couple found the perfect way to celebrate their union by having a “pretend” wedding the following day. Officiated by a friend, the wedding was an intimate one, attended by Lindsey’s parents and around 30 of their closest friends, followed by a reception at The George. “Although my sister Lauren couldn’t be there, she had planned a special speech for us and had asked my mother to deliver the speech for her. Unfortunately, my mother had forgotten a page at home, but Lauren had been watching on FaceTime and stepped in to deliver the rest. When she was finished, there wasn't a dry eye in the house!” Lindsey says. There in spirit were Yesica’s family, who were unable to travel the distance from her native country of Colombia.
Truly a day filled with love, the gathering was a happy one, with friends and family supporting the union of two souls. And though the women might easily have met and lost contact, it was their complete lack of artifice and their willingness to show one another their true selves that made their chance meeting turn into a happily ever after.
Story by Liesel Schmidt | Photography by Catherine May Taylor | As published in the May 2020 Issue of VIP Alexandria Magazine