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30 People Who’ve Kept Tabs On Their High School Crush Share How They Turned Out As An Adult
High school crush... Most of us probably have a name or two that already popped up in our mind. Teenage romance, with so little knowledge, so many new and confusing feelings, navigating situations you're experiencing for the first time in your life. Have you ever figured out what made them so attractive for you? If you never made a move, do you regret it, or do you think it turned out for the better? Do you know what they're up to now?
One Reddit user had pretty much the same questions. They wanted to know "how did your high school crush turn out as an adult?", and people were eager to share their stories. After all, this, often the very first, crush has left a mark on many, as it is a very vulnerable and intense experience happening during our formative years.
From tragic losses to actually putting a ring on the person's finger, Bored Panda selected the most interesting accounts from people who kept tabs on their crushes and actually know what they're up to. Upvote your favorites and don't hesitate to share the story of your high school crush if you have one!
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#1
Still super hot. She married some loser and has a few kids with him.
That loser was me. Just celebrated 22 years of marriage.
RELATED:
#2
He had a rollercoaster of a life. I admire him more than ever, and more than most people I know, but can't wrap my head around why I ever found him physically attractive. Maybe it was always just his heart.
By age 25, he had a PhD, a wife, and was a captain in the navy. By 30, he had two PhDs, a small business where he made a metric a*s-ton of money, and his wife was pregnant. By 31 he was diagnosed with stage-4 skin cancer that swiftly spread to his lymph nodes, bones, esophagus, and a few other places. He was told he had minimal chance of making it 5 more years. Even with the best health insurance money can buy, it still basically wiped him out.
Seven years later, he's living a comfortable but not extravagant life as a civilian contractor for the navy, same wife and two happy healthy kids, and spends most of his free time advocating for better public health care.
BetterBitterButter 1 year ago
Glad he beat cancer. He is doing a good thing by advocating for better public health care.This guy was rich and still lost most of his savings to save his life.Everyone does not have same financial capacity and everyone deserves to live.
#3
He’s 32 and still works at the same pizza place and is a conspiracy theorist so I feel like I dodged a bullet.
#4
Still cute as heck, one of the kindest and most sensitive people I know, and still one of my best friends 15 years later. He's also recently divorced (his wife was gay but needed time and support to come to terms with it) and now he and I are slowly testing the waters :) What started as a crush has matured into a deep and rich friendship, and—however it may unfold—I'm so grateful to have that relationship in my life.
#5
She passed away our senior year, six months after she agreed to marry me after we graduated :(
#6
My crush turned into a self-righteous prick who still lives with his parents. He became livid when he found out my husband and I had a baby. I apparently was supposed to be his back-up plan if he couldn’t find anyone better.
SheamusFanFrom1987 1 year ago
Guess who got put in the rear-view mirror now... Good on you for not being his 2nd best choice. Smh...
#7
Haha, my husband! Our first marriages didn't work out and we reconnected after our divorces. If only I would have confessed I had a crush on him in high school, might have saved myself a lot of trouble... Lol
#8
Pretty good. Seems to have her life together, although she had a few setbacks. She's gone back to uni since job prospects in here field kinda sucked, but seems to be really enjoying it.
She's dating me though, so clearly her judgement sucks.
#9
The guy I crushed on for 2 and a half years did not end up turning out great. I'm still friends with his younger sister, so I know that he recently acquired his third DUI and his second divorce. He's currently living in his friend's basement and occasionally works for his friend's moving company as a mover, but only when he feels like it. He spends all his money on booze and owes the two moms of his 5 kids tons of child support. But man, was he hot in high school.
My second crush in high school is the only reason I got over my first crush. He's currently doing great, mostly because he gets to be married to me for going on 20 years :D.
#10
My high school ex randomly sent me a text years after we split up that went "I know you don't like metal, but I thought you'd like this" and a link to a clarinet cover of a metal song (I played in HS).
Little did he know that I hated playing clarinet and I was now a total metal head.
#11
An insanely talented molecular biology researcher at Boston. And she’s still insanely attractive
#12
Went on to be a teenaged model for hair products, graduated from Yale, toured Europe, opened her own successful ceramics company that is sold worldwide and is often written up in magazines. Makes me feel like s**t every time I think of her.
Linda Kirkland 1 year ago
trite, but *she* doesn't make you feel ANYTHING. you do. don't blame her for your lack of happiness. that is on YOU.
#13
She worked with the Obama administration (I forgot in what capacity) got married to some politician’s son (don’t remember don’t care to look up.)
She is happy and that’s the only thing that matters, oh she was also our schools Valedictorian she was so busy with her job she could not organizeour high school reunion so that’s a plus.
I wasn’t head over heels for her I admired her but I knew I wasn’t for her.
Then there’s another crush of mine, we ran into each other years after graduation at grocery store. After talking I asked her out to dinner at my house, I pull out all the stops I buy rainbow trout filets and make all the fixings.
6:30 rolls around I open the door and “who the hell is this man behind her?” Oh this is my fiancé , she tells (neglected to tell me about) me. Turns out they wanted to sell me on some MLM thing. She tried to cross the threshold I put my arm out and asked them politely to leave. I turned away from the door and had my saddest meal I ever ate.
#14
Multiple degrees, on track to being a full-time educator, mother of two, and my wife.
I'm so lucky.
#15
You made me check and she is actually a very successful artist and an art teacher at a renowned university in France. She even got decorated for her work (Chevalier des arts et des lettres)
#16
My friends high school crush was Tom Holland... Like they went to the same school
#17
Hot douche who doesn’t really do much except go to the gym.
To be fair, that’s how he was in high school, I just liked it back then.
Pamela Blue 1 year ago
That can't last forever. If the steroids don't finish him, old age will. Being fit is one thing. Trying to look like a muscular Adonis is another. Pure vanity. Give me a normal looking guy any day. People who look like this tend to have very big egos and small brains to go with it.
#18
Overdosed and died last year. I got to see him before he was taken off life support with a really good mutual friend we shared (organ donor too). It was surreal seeing him dwarfed by all these machines. He had one the largest hearts I’ve ever come across.
SheamusFanFrom1987 1 year ago
Ahh, jeez. It's never easy losing friends and even less so a crush. Sorry for your loss T_T
#19
Became a professional cheerleader, Died of breast cancer at 34. Googling names from high school is crazy!
#21
Began acting. It’s weird - every so often I’ll see a commercial or something and be like “oh, hey, I know them!”
My crush is an incredibly sweet person, so I’m glad.
Christmas love 1 year ago
Same with my high school crush! I happened to be channel surfing and stopped on a show called “Adam Ruins Everything”. I had never heard of it before but then suddenly I see my crush, I had to IMDB it to make sure I wasn’t seeing things! Then I found out he had a small role on “The Wolf of Wall Street”. I’m very glad to see he seems to be happy!
#22
My only GF in high school was my crush. Her mom banned her from dating me after about a year because my GF admitted to her mom that we were fooling around. This was about 20 years ago.
She’s still living with her mom, no kids, and as far as I know never again dated seriously after her mom broke us up. Still has the same job from high school too. It’s like her mom went way into protective overdrive and my former GF never grew up.
#23
Back when I was younger and crushing hard I got on AOL instant messenger and had gotten my crush’s screenname from a friend. I worked up the nerve to start a conversation with him and soon after some awkward small talk he sent me a message in Comic Sans, black background, red lettering, and in French. I then went to google for translation and found out he had just called me a pig, in French. Being a seemingly awkward and chubby teenager, I was literally crushed.
The heartbreak was only made worse by remembering that a few weeks prior I had selected to take French class the next year and couldn’t change it.
Years later now that I’ve *blossomed* he follows me on every social media platform, has reached out a couple of times to try and flirt/hang out. Hard pass.
I believe he’s moved away and is a teacher now.
Margie Ang 1 year ago
I think that in French they use the word pig in a more intimate setting, as in "Mon petit cochon" = my little pig, a phrase to address a lover or a child. The same with the cabbage "Mon petit chou" = my little cabbage. Ils sont fous, ces francais!!! 🤣
#24
I had three. One from the first two years and two from the last two.
The first one is now F to M trans, who walked to Colorado to join a cult/commune. He is now in Arizona recording rap albums.
The second girl moved to Florida and lives in a swamp. She periodically hits me up to tell me she misses me, how dumb I was that I didn't follow through, that we should get married.
The third was a missionary. She wasn't really into it once she grew up, came back home and I introduced her to one of my closest friends. They've been married for 15 years.
0/3.
#25
Still a ten for looks. I'm sure she kept on as the amazing, kind person she is. She moved to another country, speaks multiple languages and is more successful than I imagined. She seems happy but we haven't talked since the time I told her how I felt about her about 20 years ago.
#27
Harvard. Degrees in writing and medicine. Became a leading surgeon in a major city. Extremely proud of her. Always had her on a pedestal.... I guess with good reason
#28
My English teacher still looks fine as f**k
#29
One of them is homeless and a druggie. It's very sad.
The other one is famous in his home country, is a best selling author, and is regularly on tv. Don't have a crush on him anymore, but I'm glad we are still friends, and I'm happy for how well he's done.
I guess they balance one another out.
#30
I briefly worked with mine and didn't realise it was her until I left for another job. She looked almost unrecognisable, but it was 15 years after I last saw her. She's married with a couple of kids now, so pretty standard life I guess.
What do you think ?
EmBree 1 year ago
My crush started dating and later married my best friend. Double heartache for me. (He turned out to be a serial cheater and their marriage crashed and burned.) I met my husband months later and we've been married for 30 years now. Some things do turn out for the best.
Paulo Freitas 1 year ago
Ahh my 1st crush, we wherent on high school though but we where classmates, for Over 2 years i had a colossal crush on her, untill She met a new boyfriend ( now her husband ), then She married, had kids ( Twins ) she's still hot as the day i met her a frikking human Barbie doll, She apparently os also getting younger lol, i checked her Facebook a wille back, and i Saw She was 30.... Which is wierd because Im 44 and She was a year younger than me lmao.
Lisa H 1 year ago
Some of these posts are giving me a smidge of hope. My current crush is not my high school crush (because we're 7 years apart and grew up in different towns), but he's also my friend (not super close, but I still consider him my friend nonetheless). He is newly single and I am trying REALLY hard not to get my hopes up. Obviously it's going to be some time before he's ready to move on and there is absolutely no guarantee that he will see me as anything more than a friend. I'm trying really hard to not get my hopes up because there is every chance in the world that this will remain unrequited and I have to be prepared for that. Sorry, I know this isn't the same subject as the post, but I really had to get it off my chest. I have it bad for this guy and, at 36, my dating pool is pretty small and only getting smaller.
Ad Libitum 1 year ago
Does he have any strings attached like having kids?
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EmBree 1 year ago
My crush started dating and later married my best friend. Double heartache for me. (He turned out to be a serial cheater and their marriage crashed and burned.) I met my husband months later and we've been married for 30 years now. Some things do turn out for the best.
Paulo Freitas 1 year ago
Ahh my 1st crush, we wherent on high school though but we where classmates, for Over 2 years i had a colossal crush on her, untill She met a new boyfriend ( now her husband ), then She married, had kids ( Twins ) she's still hot as the day i met her a frikking human Barbie doll, She apparently os also getting younger lol, i checked her Facebook a wille back, and i Saw She was 30.... Which is wierd because Im 44 and She was a year younger than me lmao.
Lisa H 1 year ago
Some of these posts are giving me a smidge of hope. My current crush is not my high school crush (because we're 7 years apart and grew up in different towns), but he's also my friend (not super close, but I still consider him my friend nonetheless). He is newly single and I am trying REALLY hard not to get my hopes up. Obviously it's going to be some time before he's ready to move on and there is absolutely no guarantee that he will see me as anything more than a friend. I'm trying really hard to not get my hopes up because there is every chance in the world that this will remain unrequited and I have to be prepared for that. Sorry, I know this isn't the same subject as the post, but I really had to get it off my chest. I have it bad for this guy and, at 36, my dating pool is pretty small and only getting smaller.
Ad Libitum 1 year ago
Does he have any strings attached like having kids?
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