OPEN SCENE: April White makes her way from the street and into the lively scene of Downtown Sarasota’s Cask & Ale one balmy Friday night, sauntering right past Charlie Balliette. In that moment, time stood still for Charlie, he recalls, “going from seeing in black and white, to seeing in color.” April was wearing a slinky black dress with high heels and red lipstick— à la Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. “She was one-part vintage, one-part modern,” he says. “And one-part movie star, one-part girl next door.” Everyone else in the bar diminished to background extras of a clip that would become the entire plot of an abiding narrative. Fast-forward to a few outfit changes and dates later, to a proposal leading April to swap the arresting black dress for an even more captivating white one. And the setting for their happy ending looks perfect enough to come from a green screen. The two tied the knot in an intimate and elegant ceremony at Wayfarers Chapel—also known admirably as “The Glass Church”—in the coastal town of Rancho Palos Verdes, California. Designed by Lloyd Wright—architect and son of Frank Lloyd Wright—The Glass House was built between 1949 and 1951. The sacred structure consists of majestic architecture, mostly glass with a brilliant wooden, geometric frame and stone-paved entrance way. And while poeticized for its redwood forest surroundings, perched atop stomach-dropping bluffs above a Pacific Ocean peninsula, the chapel precariously sits on loose soil in an area characterized by slow-moving landslides. Though seemingly unstable geologically, records have indicated that the holy church itself has not moved since its construction, leading some to believe that a higher power protects the glass church structure from destruction—making it one of the most sought-after wedding venues by hopeless romantics. As April and Charles prove by pronouncing their vows standing over a clifftop chapel, the greatest love stories can happen with a simple, valiant hello in a small town bar. That’s a wrap. Queue the warm and fuzzies with the credits.

CHARLIE BALLIETTE AND APRIL WHITE STAND INSIDE THE WAYFARERS CHAPEL IN RANCHO PALOS VERDES, CA.