Men who were turned down when they proposed to their significant others have opened up about what happened to them after, with many saying it worked out for the best.
Reddit user jagaraujo kicked off the thread on Sunday by asking guys to share their proposal rejection stories. Some said they eventually realized that they had dodged a bullet when they were told no, while others were admittedly still heartbroken by the demise of their relationships.
Interestingly enough, there were plenty of men who actually ended up saying ‘I do’ to the women who had initially turned them down and were happy to report being married for decades.
Turned down: Reddit users have revealed what happened after their significant others rejected their proposals (stock image)
Honest: Many of them agreed that they are now happy they were turned down because things had worked out for the best
One man said that he had dated his wife in high school, but he was ‘all wrong for her at the time’ and they broke up on good terms.
‘One of the last times we talked, I asked her if she would marry me one day,’ he recalled. ‘She laughed it off and said no way, and said I was definitely not the marrying type.
‘Fast Forward to college, I was working full time and she was a law student, and she walked into the liquor store I was the manager of,’ he explained. ‘We talked for an hour, and it continued in the parking lot, just talking and catching up.
‘At the end of the conversation as she was leaving, jokingly I asked her to marry me again. She laughed, I laughed… and she said. “We’ll see.” Married 16 years in October.’
Someone else said he met his wife of 22 years, to whom he is happily married, two years after being rejected by another woman.
Hard to handle: Some people had brutal rejection stories that they still think about to this day
‘The one who said “no” got married, for the first time, last year, and seems happy,’ he said. ‘My wife is way into me in ways that the former girlfriend never was, and I see my life as far happier with my wife than I ever was with the one who said no.
‘She’s not a bad person; I was just young and in love with someone who wasn’t in love with me,’ he noted. ‘It worked out for the best. I’m glad she said no.’
A number of people had brutal rejection stories, with one guy recalling how he found out the woman he wanted to marry was actually cheating on him.
‘Dated a woman for over two years and popped the question,’ he wrote. ‘First time she said, “I don’t know.” A couple months later I asked her again, she said, “Maybe.” I was pretty bent out of shape. But then I found out she was sleeping with several of my friends so I dodged a bullet there really.’
Another man said he was ‘so sure’ the woman he had been dating for a little over a year was the one that he drove two hours to see her at college and proposed during a ‘beautiful winter night walk.’
‘She looks me right in the eyes and said, “Oh you thought this was serious? Well, um, I don’t know how to say this other than I have been saying other people. Well, actually I have been seeing other women,”‘ he recalled.
Stuck: Some guys were admittedly still heartbroken by the demise of their relationships
‘I was stunned I got up put the ring in my pocket and walked to my car got in and drove away never looking back crying the whole time,’ he said. ‘Haven’t seen or spoken with her in seven years even though she has tried countless times to reach out.
‘Now it’s a story I tell friends who are nervous about asking their significant others to marry them. Reminding them that even if they say no it could be worse.’
One person recalled how his friend’s girlfriend ended up ruining her relationship over a silly misunderstanding.
‘My friend A had been with his girlfriend B for years, so he decided he wanted to propose. What he didn’t know, is that B was also thinking about proposing to him,’ the Reddit user explained.
‘A proposed first, and B freaked out because she had already set her proposal and bought a ring, so she said no. Over the next week, B freaked out more and more, and refused to answer A’s calls and messages.’
The person said his friend used the money he had saved up to buy a plane ticket to Europe for three months but ended up spending a year traveling around the world.
Happily ever after: Interestingly enough, there were plenty of men who actually ended up saying ‘I do’ to the women who had initially turned them down
‘One day, A says that he’s coming back and B decides to go and wait for him at the airport and propose to him there. It turns out that while being in Peru, A met a girl and they fell in love almost immediately, and got married in Peru,’ he shared.
‘Cue five years later, A and his Peruvian wife are still happily married and recently had a baby, while B hasn’t still quite forgiven herself for ruining her relationship with A.’
A few people were happy to explain how their parents ended up married despite their mothers initially turning down their fathers’ proposals.
‘My mum actually said no to my dad’s proposal when they were younger,’ one person shared. ‘Not because they weren’t in love, but because she wasn’t sure if it was something she actually wanted to do, rather than something that society expected of her or whatever…
‘They still stayed together and had kids (hence why you’re reading this now!). And then when my dad was terminally ill a few years ago my mum plucked up the courage and asked him.
‘Just to get her back after all those years he said no — before taking her up on the offer a few days later. He died a happy man.’