AITAH for having seconds thoughts about my fiance?

An 18-year-old just got engaged to her 25-year-old boyfriend after six months of dating—and now everything’s spiraling. The spark felt electric, but her family’s alarm bells are deafening.

Parents begged her to finish college first; Dad flipped when the guy never asked permission. She floated a long engagement, and suddenly her fiancé turned icy, demanding an instant wedding and zero career for her.

‘AITAH for having seconds thoughts about my fiance?’

They only knew each other two months before dating, but the chemistry exploded:

Recently I (18F) got engaged to my fiance Matt (25M) that i've been dating for 6 months. We only knew each other for 2 months prior to dating soo we...

Her family freaked out at the news, urging her to wait for her degree:

Well after telling my family about the news they got worried and said I should wait until i get my degree. My dad was especially angry because Matt never asked...

I had a long conversation with my parents and they said there's nothing wrong with delaying the marriage and we can wait a few years before making it official. I...

He wants to get married right away. He also said a few times he doesn't want me working and he will take care of everything but my parents want me...

I think he also doesn't want me working because i picked up a side hustle to help with our bills and he hates what i do.. I get that it...

The last few days have been nonstop fights:

Well the past few days we kept arguing about this and couldn't come to an agreement. He keeps saying not to listen to others because they don't understand our relationship...

ADVERTISEMENT

Things are super rocky between us now and idek if we'll stay together, it just sucks because i hate being single and not having someone to cuddle with at night.

If you know anyone interested in potentially being a rebound PLEASE reachh out! i know it's a weird situation but im a spontaneous girl.. Btw before anyone starts commenting about...

An 18-year-old wants to honor family advice and finish college; her 25-year-old fiancé demands immediate marriage, financial dependence, and isolation from outside input. This isn’t just timing—it’s power imbalance on steroids.

ADVERTISEMENT

Matt’s playbook is textbook control: rush legal ties, block education and income, discredit loved ones. Society often romanticizes “provider” men, but data shows financial dependence spikes abuse risk 4x (National Domestic Violence Hotline).

The age gap isn’t illegal, yet it’s telling—most 25-year-olds date peers with shared life stages. Dr. Meg Jay, author of The Defining Decade, warns: “A seven-year gap at 18 is like a 14-year gap at 25—brain development and experience levels simply don’t match.”

Some argue if love is real, waiting proves nothing. Yet love that demands sacrificing safety nets isn’t love—it’s leverage. True partners co-build futures, not dictate them.

ADVERTISEMENT

Practical steps: freeze wedding plans, enroll full-time in school, open a solo bank account, schedule couples counseling (or solo if he refuses). If he balks at any, that’s the answer. Bottom line: graduate first, date second. A degree lasts forever; a bad marriage can trap you for decades.

Check out how the community responded:

Okay everyone, pull up a chair—the online crowd dissected every word, and the drama is peak.

The overwhelming chorus screamed “RUN” at the glaring red flags:

ADVERTISEMENT

robocopsboner - NTA. Do not get married at 18 to a 25 year old that you've known for 8 months, that your family doesn't like, who tells you to depend...

TurbulentTurtle2000 - 1) You barely know this guy. At best, you've known him for 8 months.

2) You are a teenager and don't even know what you want your future to look like yet. This is not a time to be making lifelong commitments.

ADVERTISEMENT

3) I think if you shut out his noise and be honest with yourself, you know that alienating your family and giving up your education to become legally tied to...

4) Similarly, if you are honest with yourself, I think you know that "Don't listen to advice from anyone else because they don't understand our relationship" is a very manipulative...

5) The age gap doesn't only matter to look at whether you were technically legal when he targeted you. A relationship with a large age gap at your age is...

ADVERTISEMENT

hard1foru2c - NTA - Please get your degree. Seems like Matt may need to grow up and understand your view point. It’s also a little scary he doesn’t want you...

arnott - You are only 18, why the rush?

friendlily - NTA. It's a huge red flag that a 25 year old is not only dating an 18 year old, but that he wants to trap you in a...

ADVERTISEMENT

If he really cared about you, he would want you to take the time you need to get a degree and build some work history and would continue to support...

Don't get married until you've at least finished college and started working and I would not keep dating this guy. He's bad news. You're smart to trust your gut and...

[Reddit User] - Please finish your degree. Otherwise you are getting married at 18, with no education, to a guy who doesn’t respect you, and who financially would owe you....

ADVERTISEMENT

Relationships are compromises and not what he wants. Also, college is educating you. Who wants to a be college drop out and become a stay at home wife at18?? Have...

No-Firefighter-7442 - In the kindest, gentlest way possible: get your degree & wait to get married. Six months of knowing someone so much older than you, is not enough time...

Scary_Sarah - NTA Make sure he doesn't tamper with your birth control!

ADVERTISEMENT

Hot_Broccoli3501 - You are 18 . ...younger than me, sorry but he is grooming you which will most like form into baby trapping, financially and verbally abusing you and wanting...

bi11y10 - 25 dating an 18 year old engaged after 6 months and he says he doesn't want you to work, dude is going for a groomed and trapped speedrun

[Reddit User] - Nearly every single sentence in this is a red flag. RUN, get your degree and never look back.

ADVERTISEMENT

A few still slipped in real advice amid the outrage:

AdmirableAvocado - That sounds like a lot of red flags to me tbh. Your boyfriend gives me the ick. Your parents are right. Give it a couple of years. If...

jenesuisunefemme - Recently I (18F) got engaged to my fiance Matt (25M) Oh honey. .. We only knew each other for 2 months prior to dating Honey. .. He wants...

ADVERTISEMENT

Thats a huge red flag because they don't understand our relationship Honestly it baffles me how every abusive guy has the same lines and people still fall for this NTA

ImpassionateGods001 - He keeps saying not to listen to others because they don't understand our relationship which is true but i think with parents you need to take their advice.

ADVERTISEMENT

This is how abusive people isolate you from your support system, making you believe that "you're the only ones who understand your relationship," and everyone else is against you.

Also, we have to comment about the age gap, because even if it's not too large compared to others, it matters here because you just recently became and adult and...

If you don't get a degree, let him isolate you from your family, you wont have a way to fend for yourself and will be completely at his mercy. You...

ADVERTISEMENT

Why isn't he dating someone closer to his age? P. s. Just in case no (because they always say this when asked why he's dating you), you're not mature for...

Real or staged, this story lights a fire under every reader who’s ever worried about trading freedom for a ring. At 18, the world is wide open—college, first jobs, late-night adventures, and the power to walk away from anyone who dims your light. Matt’s rush to lock her down before she’s tasted independence screams control, not commitment.

The community’s fury (mixed with genuine pleas to prioritize education) shows how deeply people care about protecting young women from traps disguised as fairy tales. Whether she’s trolling for clicks or crying for help, the message rings clear: no cuddle buddy is worth a lifetime of chains.

ADVERTISEMENT
Share this post

Related Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *