Were you cool in school? I wasn’t. And that’s particularly sad because I was homeschooled. So little competition and I still couldn’t pull it off.
To me, people who did manage to be cool in school are absolute legends. But what happens to a legend after happily ever after?
Reddit’s got the real details on what goes down.
1. The Atlanta Debutante and the Lowly Lifeguard
My mom was the elite Atlanta debutante and lived a very cushy life at a budding Miami country club. Beautiful and very popular at the private school. My dad grew up on a farm in Virginia. They weren’t poor but they were definitely not refined.
Eventually my father’s family made it down to Miami after selling the farm. He became the lifeguard at the country club pool where my mom spent days lounging about. My parents say they saw each other and that was it. The scandal was great – the debutante and the lowly lifeguard….
They just celebrated 54 years of marriage. My “lowly” lifeguard father made quite the life for my mom regardless of what all those elite twats said was going to happen. She gladly left the country club life for him and they are still so utterly in love it’s crazy. He carries a photo of her at the pool where they met. The only references she makes to being “that girl” are that they proved everyone wrong.
They are beautiful and I love their story.
– wadinglimpkin
2. The Secret Geek
I married the cool, outgoing, outdoorsy, sporty high school jock.
Turns out he’s secretly as geeky and introverted as I am.
He’s still the same person 25 years later.
– fattyfattybomstix69
3. The Go-Getter
I married the cool girl. Super athletic, everyone was her friend. We started dating in high school.
She’s kept up everything people loved about her. Nowadays she isn’t as interested in other people, and focuses on herself, her career, us and our future.
We’re planning to buy a house and have kids soon. I’m the breadwinner today but I’m not so sure if that’ll be true in a few years lol
– WakeAndVape
4. Complementary Differences
I’m an introvert and he’s an extrovert.
I never knew what to say to him in high school because he was so cool and funny, he intimidated me.
Now our differences complement each other I think and we’re very happy.
– [user deleted]
5. The Next Chapter
My sister married the prom king/starting running back from her high school.
He got fat, but also is a nice dude who makes a killing running some kind of raw materials company.
Doesn’t talk about the past at all.
– MisterBurns313
6. The Big Gamble
My mum was the nerdy girl who got all the As and had zero social skills, and somehow managed to start dating my dad who was the popular, good-looking guy who everyone thought would peak in high school.
She was actually advised by her family and friends that he wouldn’t give her the future she was hoping for. They got married at 19, had me when they were 20, and while they were pretty broke the first few years of my life, he paid for my mum to attend law school, started his own business and 25 years later with 3 kids, they’re still so in love and have a pretty cushy life.
My dad actually met one of the loud voices who told my mum she was making a big mistake marrying him, and she had said how she always knew he would turn out well, which he found hilarious.
– samknowsbest8
7. The Hidden Feelings
I married the football/baseball start, voted best looking…
His brother died while they were in high school shortly after he broke his collarbone and ruined any chances of college sports.
He was good at masking his feelings for years. He’s now in rehab for alcohol and about 100 lbs heavier.
– lilymax
8. Death of a Salesman
My dad was crazy popular.
Prom king, salutatorian, running back, serious ladies man.
He met my mom in a nursing class in college which he took to meet girls (lecture course and he was the only guy in a sea of women- this was the 70s)
They married, he became a car salesman, developed a terrible drug habit and died of a heart attack at 52
– mudsharkjr
9. The Sweetheart
My brother married the a popular girl, she was homecoming queen, prom queen, on varsity teams, in band, an honor roll student, beautiful, and super nice.
17ish years and 2 kids later, she is still a sweetheart, beautiful, and athletic.
– SafeHarbor870913
10. The One We All Loved
I married one of our high school sweethearts. We started dating there in the late 70’s.
A girl everyone loved. Long straight hair down to her rear end. Smiled all the time. Always in the beauty contestant shows and always generous and friendly.
Fast forward to now and she is still good looking and does not look her age of 60. Great mother and grandmother and still as good a person now as she was when I met her in 77.
– ShenandoahValley
11. The Center of Attention
Mom was the cool girl. Still is, still literally gets stopped by strangers talking about how cool/pretty/whatever she looks/acts.
BUT divorced (husband cheated) and widowed (second husband died), so never really managed to get a happily ever after in romance.
I’ve only seen her as a grown-up of course, but going by pictures + what I remember as a kid, she hasn’t changed all that much, I think sometimes she’s too used to people being “in her orbit” and will get sad if something happens where she’s not involved. Not overtly so, but you can see she’s expecting everyone to always want her there.
– Wit-wat-4
12. The Popular Loner
My best friend was prom king 14 years ago. Now he owns a successful small business.
Never had a girlfriend. Never had a boyfriend. Not sure about his sexuality but he’s a kick**s dude.
Proud he calls me a friend as I’m an awkward introvert.
– Jigbaa
13. The Serious Gamer
He was the one who had the 6 pack who all the girls swooned over. Very popular.
I was not.
Saw him after just leaving HS and started going out.
Ended up getting married in our early 20’s. God knows why?! I guess we thought it was just what happened next?
He never grew up. All he wanted to do was play online games. But I mean constantly. He would get in from work, walk straight past me to the spare room, straight online and play until the early hours. Get a bit of sleep, go back to work.
Same thing, again and again.
Never wanted to go anywhere. Just wanted to game.
Eventually, I gave him an ultimatum. He chose the game.
From what I gather, he’s remarried to someone else we went to school with and has 2 kids now. I was told she had to give him an awful lot of ultimatums before he eventually grew up.
– Tired3520
14. The Hot Cop
Not sure if he was necessarily cool but my dad was prefect and head boy of his school, got along nicely with everyone and was responsible. They didn’t have prom there so that was the highest honour you could probably get. Worked hard and all and had his classmates help to tutor him.
His grades didn’t end up great because he came in late to school once and got after school detentions. He would go home late and finish homework overnight, then get up at the crack of dawn to wash his father’s bus and be late to school again (more detentions). He dropped out and transferred to another school.
Now he’s a retired policeman who is working in security to send me and my siblings to school, does his best still. In my mom’s view he’s still handsome and she calls him a multitude of cutesy nicknames that he pretends to hate. Life is always as tough as normal but he keeps going.
– saor-alba-gu-brath
15. The Homecoming Queen
I married the homecoming queen, head cheerleader, and star basketball player. Yes, just one person.
At 50, she’s still stunning with an amazing drive. We’re partners in real estate sales, and she’s the engine that keeps our team successful.
I just keep trying to not f**k it up.
– obxtalldude
Well, from this sampling at least, I guess the answer to the question is…generally pretty good!
Who was the popular kid in your school? Do you know what became of them?
Tell us in the comments.