Recently a young American woman has revealed that she has lost many friendships because she married her ex-boyfriend’s dad.
Sydney Dean is a 27-year-old woman from Ohio, US, who first met her now-husband, Paul, when she was studying in grade six.
Paul, a truck driver by occupation, first met his future wife, Sydney, when she visited his place at the age of eleven; she was dating Paul’s son then.
But their childhood romance didn’t last long, and Dean broke up with her boyfriend. However, the two remained friends and kept visiting each other.
While talking to Jam Press, Dean shared that she often visited Paul’s house as she was friends with his son, even after their relationship ended. The two teens continued to meet each other on weekends.
After some time, Paul’s son found a new girl and developed feelings for her. When they got into a relationship, Sydney felt like she had lost her only friend. So, she started looking for company, and Paul became her friend by chance.
But soon, she realized that she had a great connection with Paul, so she decided to give it a chance, and once she turned sixteen, she started dating Paul.
Eventually, in 2016, the pair tied the knot despite having a huge age difference between them – 24 years.
“He is the only person I have had an intimate relationship with, and he is the best,” She told Jam Press.
“I can’t really compare our intimacy to other relationships, as he is the first real relationship I have been in. She Continued. “I never expected to fall in love with Paul and we met in a non-traditional way, but I’m so happy I did.”
She said one of the major challenges they faced as a couple was to convince their friends and family that their relationship was a real deal and they had genuine feelings for each other.
“My mum already knew who Paul was and from the few times they have talked, they got along just fine. But when I first told my mum that we were together, she was not happy. The age gap really got to her and it stayed that way for about a year – eventually she came around.”
“Now that we live pretty close to each other, she comes over all the time. She’s 100 percent supportive of us and absolutely loves Paul.
“In the beginning my father didn’t like the age gap either and as he lives out of state, he didn’t see him as much. But now, he really likes him.”
She also said that because of her ‘atypical relationship’ with Paul, she lost many friends along the way.
“I did have one friend that wasn’t OK with mine and Paul’s relationship.”
“This friend would never want to come hang out or even talk to me much at all if he was around. She eventually didn’t want to be my friend anymore because of the age difference in the relationship.”
She added, “Then there were others who kept criticizing me for marrying Paul, but who cares for them. They couldn’t support me in what I wanted so I stopped hanging out with them.”
Speaking of Paul’s children, she said that his youngest son, whom she dated back then, was not okay at first, but now he is cool with their relationship.
“He didn’t agree with the relationship for a couple years, but now that we have been together and are married, he supports us being together.”
“He comes over with his girlfriend and their three children every other weekend just to hang out with us and BBQ.
According to The Mirror , Sydney concluded her discussion with the outlet by saying that she hopes her story will give people the courage to pursue relationships by not caring much about the age gap.
“I wish people would understand that couples with an age gap can truly love and care for one another.”
“There are a lot of negative assumptions about age gap relationships, but that doesn’t mean couples can’t be in it for the right reasons.
“He is the best husband I could have asked for, and he treats me so great.”
What are your views on this story? Let us know in the comments.
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Images & Featured Images Credits: The Mirror
I think age is only a number, as long as both are of the age of majority. I am not sure if 16 is the age of consent in the UK, but if it is, who am I to judge.
Hope they are both happy and have a beautiful life rich in love.