7 of the Stupidest Things People Have Done For Love — Ever

"If you love me, prove it." We have no idea how many times that phrase has been uttered, but what we do know is that people take the challenge seriously. Sure, we've all done outrageous things for the ones we can't be without, but some people REALLY make an effort — and even go as far as to donate a kidney. A kidney! Ahead, hear from seven people on Quora who have done some crazy stupid things (not by force, mind you) in the name of Cupid and have the stories to back it up. Warning: get ready for your mouth to drop.

I proposed to a girl who I knew was already engaged in front of her fiancé (talk about big balls, huh . . .). It was the Summer of 2010, I was at the University of Houston working as an intern, and she was doing her master's at a different lab in the same university. I would go to her with fake doubts about my computer programs, and she would help me solve them. I was having the time of my life. But a few days into the internship, I came to know that she was engaged to marry a guy from the same f*cked-up lab. Fast-forward to the last day of my internship, and I just had to tell her how I felt. I wrote a two-page love letter, bought a card and some flowers (yes, some people would say that was corny, but I was in louvvv). And then I waited for, like, an hour for her fiancé to leave the lab. As soon as he went, I walked up to her, and that was the moment that the fiancé chose to return. She had already acknowledged my arrival; I could not turn back. Now, I believe that everyone would be peeing in their pants in this situation. However, feeling a great sense of exhilaration, I told her. Everything. For like 15 minutes. To her credit, she listened to me patiently and told me that it was really sweet of me to tell her this and that she was flattered but that she was already engaged. Hell, even the fiancé left us alone for a while. Till date, I respect her for her wonderful response.

— Kumar Amulya Yadav

I "stole" my parents' rental car and drove 13 hours from LA to Albuquerque, stopping only for gas in order to see my love. Certain conditions in my life at that point were keeping us away from each other. I left without word at 6 a.m., after emailing a lengthy note to my boss that I wouldn't be coming into work that week because I just had to leave and see the love of my life. We had been forced apart by the aforementioned conditions for two months, and it was killing us. Around 8 a.m., the "where the hell are you!" texts and calls came rolling in, but I turned off my phone. In the aftermath of all this, my parents had to make up a ridiculous and lengthy fake trip to the rental car company to explain the miles, as one of the conditions upon the rental was that it was to be used only in-state. So what happened to us? I ended up marrying her. Love can make us crazy, do ridiculous things, but I regret none of it.

— Anonymous

During our freshman year at different colleges, my high school girlfriend and I decided to spend the Summer in Russia. Or rather, she decided that she wanted to, and I, hopelessly in love with her and eager to see her over the Summer, decided to start taking Russian as an excuse to join her.

But she dumped me in March. I had already sort-of committed to the Summer, but not really. Yet in my infinite wisdom, I thought myself left with only one choice — follow her to Russia to win her back.

The eight weeks I spent in St. Petersburg were, as one might imagine, terrible. I had no friends and didn't speak the language. I lived in a home stay with an 80-year-old Russian woman. Oh, and I watched as she (my ex, not the 80-year-old) fell in love with a Russkie, who, in my pathetic attempt to be near her, I sort of became friends with.

When I got to the airport to come back to America, dejected and stupid as I'd ever been, I didn't see my flight on the departures list. I asked around in broken Russian and found out that there are actually two separate terminals of the St. Petersburg airport, and I was at the wrong one. Needing to get to my flight ASAP, and discombobulated as hell, I accepted a cab driver's offer to get me there for around $100, most of the money I had left.

When I got to the right terminal, the customs officer told me that there was a problem with my visa. I couldn't leave until I got it taken care of, and the next flight wasn't for three days. It was back to the nasty 80-year-old woman. Except when I got there, she was gone, and the door was locked. When I called her, she told me that she had gone to her dacha (Russian country home) and wouldn't be back for a month.

So at this point, I have no money, no girl, and no place to sleep. I got my visa taken care of, but still had to lug most of my stuff (except for what I'd left at the airport) around for three days. The only person I could call was . . . my ex's new boyfriend.

But, pathetic as I was, I couldn't bring myself to do it.

So my last three nights in Russia were spent on a cold beach, in a train station, and in a 24-hour bookstore. I almost got a full night's sleep in the bookstore, but was awoken by a terrifying man yelling at me in Russian. When I clearly didn't understand him, he said, in a not-too-accented English, "Get out."

So I arrived in America dirty, dumb, and loveless. Five years later, I'm just about over her.

— Anonymous

Me and my first love were in class 10 (15 years old), and after finishing 10th grade, we were supposed to pick up streams, either science, commerce, or arts. Our future in academics laid on that decision. He was a core science guy, and I was more into arts (political science and geography).

Once he asked me, "What will u be picking up?" I told him about going in for arts and he was like (sarcastically), "What will u do with arts stream — become a fashion designer? I don't care you WILL take up science." He stated this as a command; he was a very dominating person, and I actually like this trait in men.

So, that time I was so much into him I could see nothing but taking up science further; it was as if it was my "goal," though something like arts would really have taken me to heights, considering my interest and potential in that field. So, in a year, we fought and separated. But then I had already made the blunder of picking up science and one bad decision led to another and now I am 21, pursuing engineering (which i absolutely hate), and I hate myself for making a decision based on teenage love. Even though he is the only person I have loved truly until now, I still don't see how stupid I could be in something as important as my career and future. Maybe it was his charisma that led me into taking such a foolish step.

— Twinkle Solanki

I told her to marry someone else because our parents were against it. She eventually married someone else. Beat that.

— Anonymous

Back in my third year of college, I was in my first serious relationship with a classmate. The college was in the middle of nowhere (Pilani) and the nearest city (Delhi) was six-hour drive. The only inexpensive option to get to Delhi was by a backbreaking ride on the local bus.

My girlfriend was returning from a conference and decided to fly to Delhi and then endure the six-hour bus journey to college. She was alone. For those who don't know, Delhi is not a very safe place for women to travel alone, and to make matters worse, her flight was arriving at 5 a.m. Being the foolish romantic, I volunteered to make the six-hour journey from the college to Delhi, to pick her up and accompany her back to college.

I decided to take the 10 p.m. bus (last bus) the previous night and arrive at the airport at 4 a.m. the next morning and welcome her at 5 a.m. I get to the bus stop only to find that the last bus for the day is jam-packed! The bus was to leave in five minutes, and there was not a square inch in the bus to squat . . . except . . . the ROOF! With the thought of my loved one stranded at the airport, I summoned courage and climbed onto the roof.

Very soon I realized what a reckless decision I had made. Here I was, in the middle of Winter, with temperatures at a freezing 10 degrees Celsius, in the dead of the night, traveling at 50 mph on an accident-fraught highway, clinging onto life, on the ROOFTOP of a bus! Every so often the person in front would shout "tree branch," and we'd duck to avoid a low-hanging tree branch.

I was not sure whether I'd die of cold or be hit by a low-hanging branch or flung off by a sudden swerve or just doze off and fall to death . . . I mean, sleep. Fortunately my fellow passengers were a cheerful bunch. They passed around the communal hookah and the illicit liquor to keep us awake.

I reached safely and energized. My sweetheart was waiting for me, and I was glad to see her after a week's separation.

Well, a year later she broke up with me in the most insensitive way. I sometimes look back and think — the most exhilarating experience of that relationship was probably that bus ride! :)

— Anonymous

This story is probably best suited to be in the annals of the stupid, yet true, romance stories.

Ten years ago, I was just out of the university when I met this girl. She was young, beautiful, and her smile just lit up the room. I was a nerd, physically unattractive, and had never been in a relationship. I was also very naive as events turned out. It was my first relationship. I had never had success with girls. I came from a "psychologically inadequate" family background and had serious self-esteem issues.

Four months into the relationship (I will not bother to waste the reader's time narrating how we happened to be dating), she came crying to me one day. Her brother was ill, had been ill for a week (I eventually found out he had been in the hospital for six months at the time), and needed a kidney. Their only surviving relative was unwilling to donate hers, and she was worried that her brother would just die.

(An aside, I live in a third world country, and there is nothing like waiting for an organ donor. If you needed one, you would have to hope for someone you know to donate it or die a long and painful death.)

Then came the torrent of tears from her pretty face and I knew that I was going to do something really crazy. I volunteered to donate a kidney. She looked at me in disbelief. You can't be serious, she sniffed. But I was. I assured her that if I was a good match, I would donate one, and her brother would not have to suffer much longer. I was young and very healthy. I figured that there was nothing to lose and a lot to gain by being the hero in her eyes.

Knowing that my family would never agree to such an action on my part, I didn't tell them anything until a day to the surgery. The hell they raised is better imagined.

Fast-forward to one week post-operation. She came to see me since I was leaving the hospital that day. She was full of gratitude. She was full of life. Her brother's surgery was successful. She would be eternally grateful to me. She would be happy to spend the rest of her life with me. And so on. I felt like the king of the world. That such a stunningly beautiful girl would feel indebted to me gave me the best feeling in the world.

But things didn't remain so pretty for long afterwards. She began to give excuses for not coming to see me. If I called to ask if I could come over, she would make up funny reasons why not. She was busy. She was out of town. She was tired. She was having a mood swing and didn't want to see anybody. Eventually, two months after my good, eh, stupid deed, she broke up with me. Her reason? She didn't want to waste her time with a sentimental fool. Her exact words.

(I found out later that the "brother" in the hospital was in fact her longtime fiancé whom she loved very much.)

Since then, my already low esteem is yet to fully recover from the blow that being in that relationship dealt me. That was my first and possibly the last relationship I will ever be in. I was a fool.

— Anonymous