Dear Abby: After 4 years of dating I've yet to meet my boyfriend's parents or any of his friends

Romance between our kids

Meeting a partner's parents is a pretty normal step in a relationship. Why is he avoiding it? Getty Images. Getty Images/PhotoAlto

DEAR ABBY: I met a man online and have been dating him off and on for the past four years. His parents have been living with him since the pandemic, and I have yet to be invited to his home or to meet them. He is from Bolivia and says his parents want him to marry a Catholic Bolivian girl -- and someone without children. I am divorced, American and the mother of two.

He tells me he’s afraid that if I meet them, our relationship will be over. He keeps saying they are moving back to Bolivia, but they are still here.

I also have never met his friends. He says he never does anything with his friends, between his parents living with him and studying for his architectural exams. After all these years, I have yet to meet one of his friends. What should I do? -- OFF THE RADAR IN WISCONSIN

DEAR OFF THE RADAR: Recognize that this man may not have been entirely truthful with you about his circumstances. Bluntly put, he may be married, or he may not be who he has represented himself to be in other aspects of his life. Because your relationship hasn’t progressed after four years of dating (off and on), what you should do is MOVE ON.

Abigail  Van Buren

Stories by Abigail Van Buren

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Contact Dear Abby at www.DearAbby.com or P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

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