Shannon and Aakash met in the fall of 2014 during their first year at Temple Law. They were assigned to the same section (shout out Section 1!), which meant that they had all of their first-year classes together. Aakash distinctly remembers the first time he saw Shannon: it was during their first Legal Research & Writing class. As their Legal Research & Writing professor bored the rest of the class to sleep, Aakash had never been more awake. “She’s the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen” he thought to himself. Aakash decided to enlist the help of a friend that knew the waters of Shannon’s heart better than anyone: Captain Cook (better known by her alias, Amanda McMenamin née Cookman). Aakash asked Amanda what Shannon’s deal was and suggested that she bring her around more often. Amanda responded, “I’ll try, but you have no shot.” You see, Shannon was newly single and not quite ready to mingle. Her relationship was now with her textbooks, not with boy from Legal Research & Writing.
The first real conversation between Shannon and Aakash took place during one of the first nights that they went out on the town with their law school friends. As the clock struck midnight, Shannon, as she’s been known to do, decided to leave the party, citing what she calls “exhaustion.” Aakash realized this was what he was waiting for: the chance to be alone with Shannon, a chance that had alluded him since their first Legal Research & Writing class. Delighted by her acceptance of his proposal to walk her home, Aakash began to ask the questions he had thought for weeks. “Why are you so quiet? Why don’t you talk more?” To those that have known Shannon her whole life, the idea of her being quiet may come as a shock. But, when among new people in unfamiliar surroundings, she reserves her dynamic personality, waiting for her moment to unleash. Aakash tried to ease her anxieties by telling her everyone felt new and unsure in law school and that she should just loosen up a bit. Aakash, realizing his line of questioning resembled more of a prosecutor’s cross-examination of a witness than a scene from the Notebook (or insert your favorite romance movie here), backed off and wished her a goodnight.
Shannon and Aakash didn’t do too much talking the rest of their 1L year, so let’s fast forward to the start of their 2L year and queue Captain Cook. Amanda and Aakash had remained friends throughout their first year, and the two of them, along with Grayson Sundermier (Aakash’s best friend and one of the lucky groomsmen!), spent lots of time together outside of law school. Shannon, who had also remained close friends with Amanda, began to tag along during these outings. The more time she spent with Aakash, the more she realized how much she liked him. Although Aakash felt the same, he was hesitant to make a move because he didn't want to ruin their newfound friendship. So, at this point, Shannon decided to take matters into her own hands. Always the early riser, Shannon spent her morning study sessions in the Temple Law Library with one eye on her book and one eye watching the door for Aakash. Before Aakash could sit down to study, Shannon would be sitting across from him, telling him everything she had thought since the last time they had spoken. Aakash, who normally was not a morning person, was slowly being converted.
As the semester went on, late nights out with friends turned into late night conversations with Aakash. One night in particular stands out to both of them: November 23, 2015. Shannon, Aakash, Grayson, and Amanda were out at the now closed Perch Pub in Center City. Amanda and Grayson left early, leaving Aakash and Shannon alone, once again. And, once again, after a long night of Shannon talking about her family and childhood and Aakash talking about Premier League Soccer and MMA, he asked to walk her home. On this walk home, Shannon was hoping for a kiss, but much to her dismay, Aakash never mustered up the courage. To this day, Aakash isn’t sure why not.
A few weeks later, however, everything would finally fall into place. It was December 12, 2015 and Shannon and Aakash were out celebrating the end of the 2L fall semester. After a night of festivities, Aakash asked Shannon if he could walk her home for a third time. As they reached the entrance to Shannon’s apartment, Aakash held Shannon’s hand, pulled her close, and told her, “I’m going to do something I’ve been wanting to do for a long time.” He finally kissed her, and they’ve been living together happily ever after ever since.
Shannon and Aakash's first official date took place during one of her favorite times of the year: Christmastime. Aakash, still having good friends at his old place of work, Comcast, took Shannon to the top of the Comcast Center for a sunning view of the Philadelphia skyline. After leaving the view, Shannon and Aakash watched the Comcast Holiday Spectacular, explored the Christmas Village in Love Park, and enjoyed the Macy's Christmas Light Show.
This story begins on Sunday, April 21, 2019, better known as Easter Sunday. Shannon and Aakash were spending the weekend at her childhood home and helping her parents prepare for an Easter celebration. Aakash, for the first time since he knew her, was trying to get away from Shannon. He had a very important question he needed to ask her parents, one that Shannon couldn’t be present for. Once Clare noticed that they needed more beer for the party, Aakash quickly told Shannon to run out and buy some more. After ushering her out of the house, Aakash gathered Clare and Bob in the kitchen and told them he had something that he wanted to ask them. Before he could even get the words out, Clare burst into tears, dove across the kitchen island, and hugged him. When Aakash finally was able to ask for their daughter’s hand in marriage, Clare and Bob both said yes! Bob poured two glasses of whiskey and offered Aakash the same advice that Clare’s father offered to him: “Don’t try to understand her, just do everything you can to make her happy.”
Months later, on June 29, 2019, Aakash and Shannon returned to her childhood home. Aakash intended to propose to Shannon on the Lumberville-Raven Rock Bridge. It bridged Pennsylvania and New Jersey, their respective home states, and was one of the first places they had explored together. There was one problem: Aakash didn’t know how to get Shannon to the bridge without raising suspicion. Lucky for him, Shannon’s brother, Robert, had the perfect plan. He pointed out that his life-long triathlete mother, Clare, goes for her long run every Saturday on the Delaware River Trail on the New Jersey side of the bridge. So, just like every Saturday, Clare would go for her long run and then somehow lose her car keys on the trail. At this point, she would call Shannon and Aakash and ask them to bring her spare keys to the bridge, knowing full well that Shannon would never miss an opportunity to help a loved one.
Well, this plan went off without a hitch! Clare called Shannon, explained that she couldn’t find her car keys, and asked the soon-to-be-engaged couple to bring them down to the bridge. Shannon hurried Aakash out of the house, they sped down to the bridge, parked the car, and began to search for Clare who was nowhere to be found. Aakash suggested that they walk across the bridge to the New Jersey side, and to his surprise, Shannon jumped on the idea and began to race across the bridge. Aakash, however, took his time, forcing Shannon to slow down. Once they reached the center of the bridge, Aakash grabbed Shannon’s hand, turned her around, and got down on one knee. Aakash then pulled the ring out of his pocket and asked her to spend the rest of her life with him, and she said yes!
Little did Shannon know, Clare and her Aunt Beth were hiding nearby on the deck of the Black Bass Hotel, capturing their engagement on camera. They ran to Shannon and Aakash with a popped bottle of champagne to celebrate. Clare then jumped on a picnic table and screamed “THEY’RE ENGAGED” and proceeded to tell every stranger she saw about the wonderful news. After a glass of champagne, some happy tears, and lots of pictures, the foursome headed back to Shannon's childhood home where the rest of Shannon's family and Aakash's parents were waiting for them. They celebrated with fireworks in the cul-de-sac, cocktails, and appetizers, and then continued the festivities over dinner at Marsha Brown’s in New Hope, serendipitously located right down the street from the River House at Odette’s.