But over time, he noted, “we started surrounding ourselves with couples, with people who were married and had great relationships.”
Still, even he and Hayley ended up having “10 different versions of our relationship,” Derek shared. “In our vows we talked about it, we walked through fire together…We’ve been through some insane obstacles, insane moments that would usually crush and destroy couples.”
He continued, “There would be times when our relationship was over and it was dead—and I mean that in a beautiful way.”
As in, he explained, “This relationship is over but let’s start this new one…Now let’s begin this new version of who we are together.”
And each relationship they’ve had, Hayley said, “is better than the last.”