The Wager at Comic-Con: A Metamorphosis of Love and Desire
The love story of Stephen Hayes and Tracy Monroe began three years ago at a Star Wars movie marathon held in a dimly lit community theater in Los Angeles during their junior year of high school. The air buzzed with anticipation as fans gathered for a weekend-long binge of the original trilogy, the hum of excitement mingling with the scent of popcorn and the flicker of projector light. Stephen, lanky yet athletic from his track team days, had poured weeks into his Luke Skywalker cosplay—green lightsaber glowing softly with a handmade hilt, beige tunic meticulously sewn with frayed edges for authenticity, his messy brown hair tucked under a sandy wig that kept slipping over one eye. Tracy, petite and radiant with curly auburn hair cascading in loose waves over her shoulders, embodied Princess Leia, her white gown flowing with delicate, hand-stitched folds, cinnamon bun hairstyle secured with precision using bobby pins she’d borrowed from her mother, and a toy blaster holstered at her hip...