'Life After Lockup' Couple Derek and Monique Are Engaged

Source: Courtesy / WeTV

BOSSIP’s Sr. Content Director Janeé Bolden caught up with WeTV breakout stars ahead of the finale and their engagement to discuss their relationship, clear up misconceptions and to get the scoop on what’s next for the couple.

While the pair have expressed gratitude to the people who have been with them on their journey, they also acknowledged that opening up their relationship to public opinion has been difficult at times.

“I’ve always been a private person when it came so my love life and who I’m dating,” Monique told BOSSIP in regards to letting the public in on her relationship with Derek via the Love After Lockup and Life After Lockup series. “So for it to be displayed on TV for the world to have their opinions and judge us it’s kind of — annoying for me. I’ve always been the type of person like I’m going to do what I want to do regardless whether people like it or not.”

“I’ve been the one to make it where it’s fun instead of focusing on the negative,” Derek shared. “It’s our life, let us live our life, no matter nobody else’s opinion or comment, don’t let that affect us. Let’s continue to enjoy each other, love each other and continue to live and do all the things we want to do we talked about when I was locked up.”

“It’s the person Monique is, her character, and not only that, she shows me exactly who she is,” Derek told BOSSIP about what he loves most about his fianceé. “When I was locked up she would tell me so much the person who she is and now that I’m out she’s showing me. The love she has for me I can’t compare it to nothing. It’s unconditional, it’s strong and I feel it. I know she’s the one that loves me. I can almost say she loves me and wants to see me happy sometimes more than she wants to see herself happy. It’s something that I never felt before, never had before. That’s why we still going strong.”

“What I love the most about Derek is he’s very loyal and he’s willing to do whatever it is to make me happy,” Monique told BOSSIP. “He really doesn’t care about what other people think, like he’s always going to do whatever is best for him.”

Sounds like they make a perfect match. Unfortunately, Monique and Derek’s families weren’t always on the same page about their decision to be together, and WeTV cameras were rolling during some pretty major fallouts.

“I would say my family as far as my sisters, they’re learning Derek and they kind of trust my judgment,” Monique said of her family’s opinion of her boyfriend. “It’s like whatever makes me happy like they’ll support it. It’s just a work in progress, but it’s moving in the right direction though.”

“It’s divided,” Derek shared about his own family’s take on Monique. “My father’s side loves to support me and Monique’s relationship. They love Monique like their own, they’re embracing our relationship. They welcomed her to the family and accepted her. Then you have my mother’s side which is more adversarial, where they want to figure Monique out and now it’s televised for the world to see. It’s kind of like, I always tell Monique they’re trying to really kind of test Monique and see if she’s the right one for me long term. I really like Monique and I want us to be married and have kids and my mother’s side really want to know if she’s the one. I was locked up at 20, they knew me then, so now they don’t see me as a grown man. It is all new, for the world, for my family and friends. It’s Derek in his grown up life, in adulthood so with that being said, I’m just focused on the people who support us. If you support us you can talk to us, you can be around us, you can enjoy our relationship and be a part of our family.”

On the show, Derek normally encourages Monique to ignore his sisters’ shenanigans — which she told BOSSIP she generally tries to do, however did admitted that cameras sometimes caught her when she was compelled to respond.

“I think anything that I ever said, I would say it was always a reaction,” Monique told BOSSIP about her negative interactions with Derek’s sisters. “But I’m definitely getting better at just ignoring them. I don’t need to prove my love for Derek to them. Our relationship is just between us and either they can be for it or not. And if not then I can just ignore you.”

Derek and Monique open up about misconceptions about their relationship when you continue…