Hey, So It’s Actually OK for a Guy and a Girl To Be Just Friends
Most of us know how the story goes. A guy and a girl meet. They become friends. Over time, their friendship becomes romantic as they realize they have feelings for each other. Soon, they’re officially boyfriend and girlfriend.
When it comes to two best friends who end up falling for each other, it’s a tale as old as time, one that scientists have even done research on. It has brought to life many novels, movies, and shows, which was most recently the case with Netflix’s friends-to-lovers rom-com People We Meet on Vacation. The movie follows a guy and a girl who are platonic for years after meeting in college but end up falling in love by the end. There’s even a dramatic scene of the lead female character, Poppy, confessing her feelings to her guy friend, Alex, while in the pouring rain.
It’s almost as if opposite-sex friendships can’t remain as is, and there needs to be a romantic endgame developed. But in assuming that most, if not all, guy and girl friendships can’t be just that, it reinforces the idea that a deep connection always has to be romantic, as if they can’t just be friends and they have to be dating. Yet, that mindset hides how a guy and a girl can understand and healthily benefit from each other without resorting to being a couple.
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A Platonic Kind Of Love
At its core, a platonic relationship is one in which two people share a close emotional bond but don’t extend to being romantic or sexual. Most friendships are like this, and that shouldn’t exclude opposite-sex friendships, even when society deems that when a guy and a girl are close, that means they must love each other. As is human nature, we become friends with the people we like, and that includes men and women who form a close, friendly bond with each other.
A closeness can form that doesn’t come with the complications and expectations of romantic feelings. This then fosters a safe space where honesty, acceptance, and comfort can form, where people are free to just be themselves. Like with any friendship, these people are there for you when you need support or the point of view of someone from the opposite sex. There’s an understanding that happens because a connection is there that’s rooted in respect as friends.
Not every relationship needs to be romantic, after all, and different people serve different purposes in our lives. That includes having a friend or a companion from the opposite sex who brings a different perspective to their lives. Friends are friends, not some kind of situationship, and that dynamic remains regardless of their sex.
Why Make Everything Romantic?
Of course, falling for your friend or seeing someone as more than a friend is understandable, especially when consistency, emotional understanding, and vulnerability are involved. Yet, society often assumes that a guy and a girl who are close are together, and if they aren’t, speculation and rumors kick in.
The discourse that surrounds KATSEYE’s Sophia and Leon Barretto is proof of that. Whenever the two, who have been best friends for years, are spotted out in public, comments come in suspecting whether they are just friends or are in a relationship. Regardless of Sofia and Leon’s official status, what these comments and theories fail to realize is that a guy and a girl can enjoy each other’s time and company as friends.
Just look at Darren Espanto and AC Bonifacio. The two young stars have built a strong friendship over the years and have consistently shown their support for each other on social media and at various events. Marvin Agustin and Jolina Magdangal are love team royalty who have kept their bond and friendship as strong as ever, even if they have their own families with different people. Despite shipping from their fans, Brent Manalo and Mika Salamanca have maintained that they are best friends who found similarities and understanding in each other. And there’s Enchong Dee, who hasn’t been shy about sharing his lasting friendship with Erich Gonzales on social media years after their love team ended.
As you can see, that kind of connection and love can exist beyond the romantic. Not everything has to unravel like a rom-com or a fairytale love story, and a platonic relationship is just as worthy of a tale to tell.
If it isn’t societal pressure, it’s the stigma of being “just friends” even though both parties in the relationship are ok and comfortable with where they are. Trying to enter a relationship for the sake of trying to appease what other people think the relationship should be or for other wrong reasons and intentions does no good to both parties involved.
Whether it be platonic or romantic, any healthy relationship should have emotional awareness, understanding, and boundaries. Having a common respect and acknowledgment should be the way to go, and as long as you both are honest with each other and see each other in the same light, there’s no shame in that. Taylor Swift may sing about ruining a friendship, but if the connection serves a different purpose, it’s not worth forcing it. Friends remain friends because they want to, and that still applies to an opposite-sex friendship.
A Friend You Deserve
The question of whether or not a guy and a girl can be just friends feels like a never-ending debate. But we argue that there should be a space for this kind of relationship to exist and even thrive. In this world, society usually expects people who are close to end up falling for each other. But there are situations where it’s just a platonic relationship that’s comfortable and meaningful. It is possible to form a strong bond and a great friendship with someone from the opposite sex who understands you.
There’s a lot more to life than seeing it as just through the lens of romantic love and physical attraction when it comes to opposite-sex relationships. As radical as it may seem, thinking that’s inevitable for things to turn romantic when two people get close shouldn’t be the end goal, because we all find meaning and purpose in different ways. Yes, it’s not wrong for friends to become lovers, but friendships shouldn’t be built on expectations and assumptions.
Whether we admit it or not, we all want to find love in life; that much is true. But that love doesn’t strictly have to be love in a romantic sense. There’s love from family, love from friends, and love for self. There is love out there that makes sense even without romance. Wherever the tide brings you, at the end of the day, what’s important is that you still love and are loved, no matter where it comes from or how it is given.
Photos: MEGA Archives
The post Hey, So It’s Actually OK for a Guy and a Girl To Be Just Friends first appeared on MEGA.
Hey, So It’s Actually OK for a Guy and a Girl To Be Just Friends
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