We see the stares. We know you're looking. It's not that we lose sleep because you're staring. If anything, we are glad you are at least acknowledging us as a couple.

Trust me, you'd be surprised by the number of people that see us, and don't think we are actually together.

Although we are good with you acknowledging we exist as a pair, that does not give you the right to ask questions about us, just to confirm your belief on us. No, it's not a hoax. Yes, our parents are proud. And yes, we both know that we are not the same race. We don't just see butterflies and rainbows. We don't walk around and co-exist ignoring the fact that we have different skin tones because we are proud of our relationship and that is not something we can overlook because it is who we are.

The main problem we run into is that when people acknowledge our existence, we hear a lot of assumptions. People want to believe that they "know" why we are together. It's funny, though, because people don't often come to the correct conclusion of why we are together.

It's actually pretty simple. We are in love.

We weren't going out of our way to find people of different races. We are not in this relationship to be labeled, we are in it because we want to be together. It's not that we want to necessarily be viewed the same as every couple because we are different. But we don't like the negativity that radiates off those that don't approve.

Just so we are clear, yes, being in an interracial relationship is still frowned upon by some.

We don't know why it bothers some people so much. Why it gets under their skin, why they feel the need to make comments under their breath, or just simply ignore us all together. But frankly, we don't care. We know who we are and what we are, and we are proud.

So, please...

Stop playing the "guess the race" game with us.

Stop acknowledging one of us instead of both to make us seem separate when we are together.

Stop going out of your way to label us as something different when we are simply a couple.

Stop assuming you know things about us when you are only seeing our image.

Let us be as we let you be.