Ok, you are not in a good situation. The ex is using the rent money to keep his hold on her. You're 18, she's 25. First off that is close to the age difference between my husband and I (he's 65, I'm 59). Our culture expects that, in a marriage, the male should be older than the female- and you never see anyone gripe about that, do you! A man can be marrying a gal young enough to be his daughter (or granddaughter in some cases) as a "trophy wife" and all you get is "more power to him!". (Check your own bias in this matter- what is your reaction to, say, a woman in her 50s marrying a man in his 20s? I bet 9 out of 10 of you would go "What does he see in her?" or even "Eeewww, gross!" Reverse the genders and the reaction is usually quite different. Be honest!)

Age should not be such a factor when it comes to matters of the heart. You're 18 and a drop-out - that worries me more than the age thing. I'm glad you plan to get a GED. My son, who is 32 and a computer genius, has a GED and works for the county schools. (You can get a pretty fair job with just a GED, it's just harder.)

My basic advice is get a job- any job (they always need dishwashers and fast food servers), both of you move to a cheaper place (even if it is more crowded) and stop taking the A-hole's money. As long as she takes it, he has a hold on her and he may be in financial trouble (or he may be "playing games" to mess with her head), so he is no longer a reliable source of income. Life is not going to be easy, but love can smooth things a lot. If you are really committed to this woman, you can do it. Give the kids a hug from me and good luck!- Granny:hippy: