I started dating my husband when I was 19 and he was 21. It was my very first relationship. We've been together 10+ years, married almost 5 years, and we're very happy. We're also the ONLY people we know our age who have been in this long of a relationship. We still have many friends from the early days of our relationship, and not a single one of them are still with the people they were with when we met. It's just against the odds, and if you're going to run those odds, you've got to look them right in the eye and face up to the fact that they're not in your favor.

Frankly, I think part of what helped us make it as long as we have was NOT moving too fast and decided that we were Fated To Be From The Beginning. Because of our youth, neither of us really thought we would be together forever at the beginning - especially since it was my first relationship. We loved each other and took each other seriously, but we also knew, realistically, that we might not make it in the long haul.

Not raising the stakes to a dramatic Meant To Be Soulmates level helped us work through the problems we had in our relationship and assess them healthily, without it getting super super dramatic because of inflated expectations. Because we didn't see each other as Fated, we were able to grow as individuals and not just as a couple, which helped us transition into adulthood.

We never broke up because there was never a good reason to break up; we were always happy to be together, partially because we weren't completely wrapped up in each other. Not that we're not a little co-dependent these days, but college is about growth and we didn't rely on each other for that. We took it pretty slow instead of speeding up the timetable to prove anything to anyone. We also focused on having fun together instead of rushing into kids.

Plenty of our friends and acquaintances gossiped about us or weren't sure we would make it, too. Get used to it. People talk. It's not a big deal. Don't stay in the relationship to show them they're wrong.

TLDR: Don't get wrapped up in fate if you want it to last. Focus on building a solid relationship that makes you both happy and allows for both of your personal growth.