One day — that was the difference between a happy union and a paperwork nightmare.
April 15, 2022, was the "perfect" day for young couple Alex Malliot, 30, and Daniel Baxter, 33.
With 80 of their closest friends and family bearing witness, they walked down the aisle in a beautiful ceremony on Pender Island in British Columbia, Canada, and tied the knot.
They went all out, too, spending £15,836 ($20,000) on all their decorations and festivities.
"It was the most beautiful magical day," Malliot said. "It was a textbook fairy-tale wedding."
But as the couple partied into the night, their officiant was frantically trying to reach them — there had been a mistake.
Couples in Canada have exactly three months to get married after applying for a license, else their union won't legally count.
Malliot and Baxter said their vows three months and one day after filing — their expensive ceremony was completely void.
The musicians didn't miss a beat, however.
A friend from Baxter's job was ordained, so the pair asked her to officiate a second wedding just four days later.
This one only cost £79.18 ($100) — they used outfits from Malliot's nonprofit clothing library and tied the knot in a local park with two friends bearing witness.
"I think it was really hilarious and sweet," Malliot said. "We wanted to get married, and if anything showed that the wedding was for us and not for show, it was this.
"Our second wedding was a classic example of the type of people we both are. We are both clumsy and do screw up even when we try not to."
