21-year-old 'mom' to 15-year-old says she's never taken seriously
It's safe to say Hunter Nelson, 21, doesn't have the life of your average college student.
While her friends are going out and having fun, she dedicates her time to raising a teenage girl.
When they're worrying about exams, parties, and college romances, Hunter is worried the other parents at high school aren't taking her seriously because of her age.
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In a video posted to TikTok, which has been viewed over eight million times, she opens up about being '21 with a 15-year-old.'
She wrote in the caption: "No other parents or staff members at her [high school] are gonna take me serious," and "I can already feel people asking me what grade I’m in when I go to her events."
Confused? That's okay, most of Hunter's viewers were at first - but don't worry, she was on hand to explain.
"U WERE SIX WHEN YOU HAD A BABY," asked one horrified, and very bewildered TikTok user.
“You know I was gonna fact check this and see if it’s even possible but I don’t think that’d be a good look in my phone," admitted a second.
Of course, it's pretty much impossible for Hunter to be the biological mother of a 15-year-old daughter, with just six years between them.
But Hunter has got a very reasonable explanation as to why she's raising a teenage girl.
"I recently filed for guardianship of my sister a few months ago … I felt the best way to keep my sister safe, happy and to have all her needs and wants met was to come a couple states over and live with me."
She added: "It's 100 percent legal. I don't know what the ages are in every state but in North Carolina, at 21, I went and filed for guardianship and I was awarded it through court."
In a separate TikTok video, Hunter admitted that the decision to take over as her sister's guardian has caused some serious family drama, and she has even received death threats from members of her sister's maternal family members.
At first, even her sister wasn't happy about Hunter becoming her legal guardian, but Hunter insisted it was 'best for her even if it was very hard for both of us.'
Speaking to any other potential guardians who might be in a similar situation, she advised: "Sometimes they’re not going to be happy about it. But you just gotta do it.”
Ali Condon