A mother described how passersby frequently mistake her 25-year-old doll boy for her son.
Following the dissolution of her 26-year marriage, Rachel Allen, 48, started seeing Alex Michael, 25, whom she met online. They have been together for more than a year and a half.
After her divorce, the teacher from Houston, Texas, US, signed up for a dating app, not realising she had to change the age choices.
Alex’s was greater since he was interested in dating an older woman.
After initially meeting, the two, who now share a home in Austin, struck up a conversation and experienced an immediate soul mate-like connection.
Rachel said: “I joined a dating app after my divorce. I was looking to get back on the scene and have some fun, although I didn’t realise that I would need to change the age markers.
Then, though, I noticed the message I had received from Alex, who had actually messaged me politely.
“I returned to his page often, but I was unable to see his age. even though he appeared younger than I did.
But something about him seemed peculiar. We quickly clicked once we began daily communication.
We travelled extensively as things developed, so I invited Alex, a New Yorker, to move to Texas and live with me.
When asked why she didn’t anticipate it to turn into a romance, Rachel said she assumed it would simply be a brief fling.
She described how when others assume things about the pair based on their age difference, they “simply laugh it off.”
She claimed that she and Alex were frequently mistaken for mother and son due to our similar appearances.
“The front desk clerk yelled at us, ‘Mother and son, I can clearly see it,’ when we entered a gym for the first time as a pair.
But as we entered the room holding hands, I believe he began to understand.
Additionally, a woman informed me I had raised him well on another occasion. We simply chuckle about it.
Rachel was astonished and thought that Alex was far too young when she responded to his initial message and discovered that he was 23 at the time, whilst she was 46.
But after talking and getting along so well for two weeks, Rachel made the decision to travel to see Alex in New York so they could finally meet.
I just figured he could show me around and had no expectations for the trip, she added.
“He was eager to meet with me as well, and when we did, we realised we connected even better in person.
“We kept meeting and conversing. He took a plane to Texas, and we also went to Miami.
“At some point, I put it to Alex: “Do you want to come to Texas and live with me?” Everything fell into place when he was offered a remote job.”
Rachel claimed that neither she nor Alex had ever had such a strong connection, but their family were very resistant.
She went on: “Particularly unhappy about our connection is Alex’s family.
“My two sons are boys. 22 and 19 respectively. My youngest has been the most accepting and open to it, while my eldest has resisted it more, but he is always respectful.”
After her divorce, Rachel declared she was tired of not receiving the respect she deserved. She added that while the pressure caused by criticism from family and friends has been worthwhile, she was done with not receiving it.
Added her: “When we are out and about together, we frequently encounter female looks and directed attention.
“I have even had people yell ‘cougar’ at me. But our relationship is so special, neither of us would ever want to walk away.
“We have talked about our future, marriage and kids.
