The marriage between a 22-year-old Malaysian man and his 48-year-old former teacher has been making news headlines in South-East Asia.

Muhammad Danial Ahmad Ali first met his future wife, Jamilah Mohd, in 2016, in the classroom, as she was his Malay teacher in junior high school. There was nothing romantic about their relationship last the time, although the 22-year-old claims that he still remembers Jamilah’s caring attitude and closeness to students. The two lost contact during Muhammad’s Form 4 class, but they met again by chance when he had to go to the headmaster’s office and noticed his former teacher. He said hello, but that was about it until Form 5, when Muhammad started noticing Jamilah more and more. She texted him a birthday message that year and they started chatting. Eventually, Muhammad confessed his feelings for Jamilah, but she rejected him, because of his age and the 26-year age gap between them. But he didn’t let a simple number stand in the way of love.

“Since I didn’t know her address, I went to look for her. Fate helped me find her home,” Muhammad Danial Ahmad Ali told the New Straits Times. “After that, I met her and we had a sincere conversation.”

Despite Jamilah’s constant rejection, Muhammad insisted, and eventually, his former teacher let her guard down. With the consent of their families, they planned to get married in 2019 but were forced to push back the wedding to 2021, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The proud husband said that they were married at Jamek Bandar Kota Tinggi Mosque, in a small ceremony, surrounded by family and friends.

“Age is just a number and I will do my best to shoulder the responsibilities of a husband,” 22-year-old Muhammad said.

As for Jamilah Moahd, she divorced her first husband in 2007, and has been focusing on her work, rather than romance, ever since.

“There were people who wanted to get to know me, but I turned them down,” the Malaysian woman said, adding that he gave in because of Danial’s persistence in pursuing her.

“My husband comes to me with confidence. He is very serious and does not hide our relationship with his family. That’s also one of the reasons why I accepted his proposal,” the 48-year-old woman said.

Muhammad, who works at a water plant, considers himself lucky to have married the woman of his dreams, and doesn’t really care about the 26 years between them.