First, it was shock," said Rhett Fussell, a close friend of Michelle and her husband. "I thought, 'There's no way. She's 29, and I just had lunch with her the other day.' Now, the terror's set in."
The two had met the previous year, their friend Fussell recalled. Michelle and some girlfriends had headed to the Have a Nice Day Cafe for some late-night dancing. Young, also a student at NCSU, and his crew had ended up there, too.
Michelle, a spirited dancer, was showing off her moves. Jason Young, not as smooth, hung out near the bar. Michelle pulled him out on the dance floor.
Jason Young bloomed late, and it took him awhile to settle on the idea of marriage, Fussell said. Michelle, as usual, knew just what she wanted. Family was at the top of the list, Fussell said.
The two got married in October 2003. A mutt Jason Young rescued from a shelter carried the wedding bands down the aisle of the Long View Center, a chapel they rented on Moore Square in downtown Raleigh.
Cassidy made their family three the following spring. She became the center of their universe, Fussell said. They toted her to Wolfpack games. Cassidy would be decked out in a little cheerleading outfit, and her dad would pop her up in mock cheerleading lifts.
Jason Young itched to have another baby, Fussell said. Michelle got pregnant in summer; their baby boy was due next spring. Jason Young had just gotten a new job in sales for a medical records company. The gig meant more money, and Michelle talked of cutting back to part time on her job so she could spend more time with the kids.
Michelle Young's last day was like most for her. She headed to downtown Raleigh on Nov. 2 to work as a senior financial analyst in the tax department of Progress Energy. After work, it was a quiet evening at home.
Jason Young has said he slipped out that evening to get a head start for an early morning sales meeting in Virginia, according to Fussell, who said he talked to Jason Young at his wife's funeral.
Michelle Young stayed behind with Cassidy; a girlfriend came over to watch TV with her, the friend told Fussell. Cassidy popped in a DVD of "Cinderella" -- a Halloween gift -- and watched until she fell fast asleep.