Italian influencer Minea Pagni, 22, met her husband, Massimo, when she was at school in his philosophy class. That’s right, folks, Minea is married to her former teacher, who is over 40 years her junior.
Relationships come in all shapes, sizes, and levels of controversy. Age gaps have always been a highly debated topic, from Aaron Taylor-Johnson and his wife to KATSEYE’s Lara Raj and her situationship. People can never agree on what’s right and what’s wrong, but the general consensus on this story is painfully clear.
At the age of 17, Minea Pagni met her soon-to-be husband in his philosophy class at school. She claims it became romantic a few years later, when she ran into him in a bookstore at the age of 21. It was there that she told him about her schoolgirl crush, and the man with the fully developed brain was like: Yeah, this seems fine and not gross at all. They were married a year later.
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“Many years ago, in the school of my small hometown, something happened, something that happens to many students,” she revealed on Instagram. “I found myself fascinated by a teacher: A man whose age didn’t match the brilliance of his mind; curious, passionate, alive. A teacher who knew how to light a spark inside people.”
To really hammer home who UNHINGED this age gap is, she married Massimo at the age of 22. He was that age in 1989, the same year the Berlin wall fell, and a full 15 years before his bride was born.
She added: “With him, I discovered the desire to learn, to grow, to become someone. And alongside all of that, a small crush bloomed.”
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Minea Pagni had a few choice words for critics
There is obviously a lot of backlash surrounding Minea Pagni’s relationship, mostly because when she was born, her hubby was probably watching the newly released conclusion to The Lord of the Rings.
Minea’s comment section is predictably a dumpster fire, but most of the comments boil down to it being “gross”, problematic, and nasty. Still, she doesn’t much care.
“Reducing a woman’s choices to money is one of the oldest and most unfair stereotypes. I have my own goals, my own work, and my own independence. I married him for who he is — his mind, his values, and the way he loves,” she recently told The New York Post.
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“I knew not everyone would understand, but I wasn’t fully prepared for how intense some reactions could be. Still, I’ve learned that criticism often says more about society’s fears than about our love.”
You’d think her parents would be a little concerned by the relationship, but they’re shockingly chill about their daughter dating a man they met at parent-teacher night.
“But once they saw how respected, supported, and happy I am, they trusted my choices. Today, they see the love and stability we share,” she said. “Love doesn’t know age.”
Yay for love?
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Featured image credit: Minea Pagni
