Don’t frown upon the friend zone
It’s every high schooler’s nightmare, at least as far as the dating world is concerned. You finally have the courage to talk to a cute boy or girl in your class, and ultimately end up plenty of time with them as the weeks go by. And while hope is at an all time high at this point, you ultimately realize that he or she doesn’t feel the same way about you as you feel about them. While you may want to be their new boyfriend or girlfriend, they have put you squarely in the friendzone!
And in reality, this fear is present even in young adults as well. Just when you think you are making progress towards a romantic relationship, they make it clear to you, either explicitly or implicitly, that they just want to be friends. For someone with such high hopes, that realization can be brutal. But being in the friendzone is not the end of the world – far from it in fact!
Even if you are put in the friendzone, there is a very good chance that you and this other person actually do click personality-wise. If that’s the case, then it would be prudent not to simply cease talking to them because reality does not meet your expectations for a romantic relationship. As much as it might hurt at first, being friends with them is not as crazy as you think.
For one thing, there is no such thing as having too many friends. Especially ones that you truly get along with. So even you are romantically interested in him or her, you can still take it upon yourself to enjoy their company as friends. Although it might take a bit of an adjustment at first, if you can handle being around him or her in that sort of capacity, you can really have a great time and elevate your social life.
In addition, having a friend of the opposite gender can be particularly useful in helping you actually find someone else who might be interested in you. If you are interested in one of his or her friends, then being good friends with him or her can help get your foot in the door. He or she could put in a good word for you, or even test the waters and see if their friend has any interest in you back. Or even if you aren’t actively looking into one of his or her friends, he or she could still take it upon themselves to introduce you to their friends out of the blue, with hopes that the two of you hit it off. In essence staying friends with him or her could provide you with your own wingman or wingwoman, which is especially powerful since they are of the opposite gender from you.
And lastly, although you definitely should not be counting on this whatsoever, there is always a chance that your friend ends up changing their mind about you, especially after spending enough time with you as friends. We’ve already discussed how important it is to marry your best friend, and so if you end up becoming a genuine best friend to him or her, there is a very real possibility that romantic feelings will eventually follow. But even if that doesn’t end up happening, the end result is still a genuine friend, which is quite invaluable in its own right. So instead of frowning upon the friend zone, recognize just how lucky you are and embrace it!