A Nigerian couple, Dr. Emmanuel Joseph and Grace Akpan, have warmed hearts online after tying the knot following 18 years of dating.
The lovebirds, who met as teenagers in secondary school, exchanged vows on October 11, 2025, in Akwa Ibom State, surrounded by family and friends.
To celebrate their journey from classroom crushes to life partners, the couple recreated an old photograph from 2007, capturing a moment from their SS1 days.
The nostalgic shoot, shared on Facebook, has since gone viral, drawing admiration for their enduring love and commitment.
In a lengthy post, Grace recounted how their relationship began as a teenage friendship that blossomed into a lifelong bond.
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She wrote,” My SS1 LOVER till Jesus comes..He kept to his words..
“He told me I would be his wife, the statement has turned into reality.
18years ago, This man came to our school to start his senior secondary school classes. I couldn’t help but notice his cuteness and intelligence.
She recalled being smitten by Emmanuel’s “cuteness and intelligence” when he transferred to her school, adding that his persistence and charm eventually won her heart.
“Everyone had something good to say about him. Back then in class, this young man didn’t allow me rest, he was always looking towards my direction, smiling at me each time we had eye contact.”
Grace said that despite teenage fears of “getting pregnant and ruining her future,” she kept Emmanuel close as a reading partner, a friendship that deepened over the years.
“Begging for my notes when he had nothing to copy🤣🤣🤣. His boldness and aura didn’t start today. I fell in love with him the first day he walked up to my locker in class and introduced himself. His voiced stirred up something in me. The day he wrote me a letter to be his girlfriend, I couldn’t sleep, I read the letter at night over and over again, smiling at each words in it but I still made him begged for it😂 atlast i accepted to be his reading partner n friend. This is because my mum had told me if i have a boyfriend in sec sch i will get pregnant n my future will scatter, mehn, i kept emma close. From class prefect/assistant to school prefects. We became the talked about couple of the school.
“I remember when i went home from school to tell my Aunty (my second mum) aunty Ofonmbuk that I’ve a new friend that he is very intelligent n i will love to be reading with him, aunty ofon ask me to invite him home so she can check if he is a good boy cuz she doesn’t want anyone spoiling her daughter, so i invited him n my Aunty called him EBE EYEN on their first meeting then 2017, chai
“Dearest Aunty Ofonmbuk thanks for supporting us n always advising us to be good n make u proud, today you are not here to witness our union 😭😭😭😭 but I’m sure you are proud of us… we love u my Aunty n Mum.
“This young man has showed me nothing but true love for the past 18years. In his words he will always say ‘Baby please don’t go anywhere, I am your husband’.
“They say men are Scum, but he has proven otherwise. Thanks for staying true my king.. Thanks for 18 years of Undiluted love and Understanding. It has always been you from the beginning now let’s make it a forever deal.”
Photos and clips from their wedding and pre-wedding sessions have continued to trend with many social media users calling their story “the definition of true love.”