A DNA test has upended the life of a couple who thought they were happily married, revealing an unexpected truth.
Celina and Joseph Quinones, married since July 2006, share three children and sought to delve deeper into their ancestry. However, the information they uncovered was startling.
It turned out that the Quinoneses are related—they are cousins.
Celina was left feeling ‘sick to her stomach’ by the news, despite having been in a close relationship with Joseph, her husband and cousin, for nearly 20 years.
Their relationship began only a few months before their wedding, and at that time, neither family was acquainted with the other, even though there was a resemblance between them and their grandparents.
Speaking to PEOPLE Magazine, Celina, a realtor, said: “We ended up having our wedding, and even then, our grandmas seemed to be a lot alike, and they got along, but still, nothing clicked.”
It’s understandable that such a connection wouldn’t be assumed if neither family suspected it, and it’s certainly not a consideration on one’s wedding day.
The discovery emerged after a DNA test. (realestatemommas/Tiktok)
The truth surfaced when Celina began exploring their family tree through MyHeritage about a decade into their marriage.
Celina recounted: “I ordered the DNA tests. They came in, and sure enough, we did our swabs, put them in the mail, and off they went.
“Then we got the results back, and I searched the family tree DNA — another part of the search — and saw him pop up there. And I go, ‘Oh no.'”
The exact degree of their relation is unclear, though the DNA tests suggested they are between second to seventh cousins, meaning their closest mutual ancestor could be a great-grandparent.
The revelation caused Celina to question her marriage and consider if remaining together was the right choice.
She admitted: “I was in shock. I was a little depressed over it, to be honest.”
In the end, Celina opted to stay together.
They chose to remain a couple. (Davin G Photography / Getty Stock Image)
She remarked: “This was after we already had three kids, and all of them were healthy. They have 10 fingers, 10 toes, but it was just a shock.”
The couple shared their discovery in a TikTok video.
The video has since garnered over four million views on the platform.
Unsurprisingly, many expressed their disapproval of the couple’s decision to remain together post-discovery.
Celina, on her part, has accepted the situation and is content with their decision to stay together.
She commented: “I feel a little more free. Like, it is what it is. There are people that love no matter what or who, so why can’t I love my cousin by accident?”