Nico Tortorella & Bethany Meyers' Gender Non-Conforming Wedding Ceremony Will Make You So Emotional

The traditions surrounding weddings have been so ingrained in American culture that it's beyond refreshing when people choose to do things their own way. On March 9, Younger's Nico Tortorella and Bethany Meyers were married in a gender non-conforming ceremony, as reported by Refinery29. They chose to have a courthouse wedding with no guests, but they didn't forgo wearing white. Tortorella and Meyers wore a matching Roman-inspired ensemble, complete with crowns. Their outfits defied gender norms by having the flowing look of gowns with pants underneath for both.

In celebration of their union, Tortorella and Meyers wrote an essay about their wedding day for the LGBTQ+ publication, them. The partners have been together for 11 years, and they describe their relationship as queer and polyamorous. The newlyweds have been sharing details about their relationship for quite some time, in hopes that their candidacy will open people's eyes to the many different ways in which people express love. In 2017, they did a joint interview with The Advocate in which they delved into how they see themselves and their relationship, and their piece for them expands on that beautifully. Tortorella wrote of their wedding day,

"The looks are everything we've ever dreamed of. Genderbending ensembles designed by our dear friend Andrew Morrison. Timeless androgynous paraphernalia mimicking Romanesque sculpture that fluidly blends masculine and feminine. In this relationship, we both wear the pants and the dress. We put on our faces and machinery, finally topping each other off in crowns. Duh, we wore crowns. not for the gag of it all, but because it feels like something we've done in the past, so we had to keep the tradition alive. In this life's iteration, this is, in fact, our royal wedding."

Tortorella and Meyers, founder of the be.come project, shared pictures of their stunning outfits on Instagram, as well as more details about their wedding.

Meyers captioned the photos on her Instagram page,

"Can't believe I kept my mouth shut for an entire week until we shared this. We waited because we wanted the opportunity to tell our story, in our own words — which we did — and I hope you take a moment of your day to read and open your mind to what different types of love can look like."

Everything about their private ceremony appears to be an ode to their love story, and their hopes for the future. Even the date was chosen for a specific reason — in a video on Instagram, they explained that March 9, 2018 translates to 399 in numerology, and "39" is a "blessed count," according to Tortorella.

As for how they define their relationship, Meyers wrote in them,

"If you had to label it, Nico and I are in a queer polyamorous relationship. Labels that help people understand, but not labels that define us. Most think we planned this and one day decided we would be multiple-love kind of people. We didn't. It's just the way our relationship developed over 12 years. We became polyamorous without ever really trying, and we let each other go so often; I guess we finally realized it’s the reason we are impenetrable. It’s hard to break something that bends."

Are you a little bit in love with Tortorella and Meyers now? Because you're definitely not alone. The way they discuss their love for each other and for the other people they invite into their lives is so moving, just like their wedding day. They eschewed all of the typical wedding day traditions, but their ceremony still had the same foundation — it's built on love, mutual respect, and a desire to build a future together on their own terms. And there's nothing more romantic than that.