Anyone in a committed relationship is bound to find out unexpected things about their partner.
Those things tend to include weird habits and phobias, not the fact that they’re blood-related to you.
And yet, for one couple from Utah, this is precisely what happened half a year into their romance.
In a video shared to TikTok by a user called Kenna, 20, captioned “shiz happens,” she revealed that she and her then-boyfriend found out that they were cousins after six months of dating.
But rather than call things quits at that point, they got married a year later.
Inevitably, the public admission prompted an outpouring of horrified comments from fellow TikTokers, with a number demanding a “storytime” about the situation.
However, instead of offering clarity, Kenna simply posted another clip, this one showing her embracing and kissing her husband, and reinforcing the point that they were cousins.
This time, she branded the situation: “Just Utah things”.
@kennahags Just Utah things #cousinsdating #siblingsordating #siblinglove #family #marriedlife #cousinsmarriage #wedding #funny #couplescomedy #ick #awkward
Commentators were quick to stress that incest is not a “Utah thing” but, rather, an illegal thing.
Indeed, Utah is one of just 24 states in the US where marriage between first cousins is prohibited by law.
But in 19 others, including New York and Florida, such marriages are entirely permitted. It’s perhaps worth noting that despite being from Utah originally, Kenna and her hubby now live in the Sunshine State.
Still, it is also worth noting that Kenna hasn’t responded to questions about the degree to which she and her man are related.
Since the commercialisation of DNA testing via ancestry sites, many of us have discovered that we have third, fourth and fifth cousins scattered across the globe.
And, of course, gene pool-wise there’s a very big difference between a first cousin and a fifth cousin.
Nevertheless, Kenna is obviously quite willing to let people believe that they are, indeed, closely related by broadcasting the eyebrow-raising disclosure.
She also has proudly broadcast other controversial facts about their relationship, including that she is a stay-at-home wife who sunbathes by the pool while her husband/cousin works, and that they don’t follow members of the opposite sex on Instagram unless they’re family members.
@kennahags Things my husband and I do that just make sense #CapCut #contriversialopinions #marriage #marriedlife #newlymarried #newlyweds #contriversialcontent #stayathomemom #stayathomewife #sahm
She has also repeatedly stressed their desire to have children and, given that they’re both Mormons (as she revealed in an earlier video), they’re likely to want a fair few.
This has prompted further concerned remarks from viewers given that they are, you, know, COUSINS.
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