Page 16 of A Solid Guide to Surviving a Situationship

“Are you still sad?” Andi asked.

I shrugged. “I don’t know. I think I’m in that stage where I’m not crying anymore. I’m just… confused.”

Honey nodded slowly.

“Can we not do the ‘let’s analyze James’ failed love life’ thing tonight?” I complained.

“You are at the most dangerous stage,” Mel said.

Andre frowned. “Why is that dangerous? To me James seems… alright.”

“Because confusion is where people start romanticizing things that were actually terrible,” Mel answered.

Andre pointed at her with a chicken wing. “Okay, that’s accurate.”

I sighed. “It wasn’t even bad all the time.”

That made the table fall silent for a second.

Honey tilted her head slightly. “That’s usually how people get trapped, you know.”

I ignored her.

“He was actually…” I hesitated, trying to find the right words through the memories that flooded my mind. “Soft with me. At least most of the time.” I laughed weakly. “He remembered small things. Checked if I got home. Sent me random updates during the day. Made me feel…” I stopped myself.

“Chosen?” Mel asked gently.

“In a way,” I admitted weakly.

“In a way?” Andi asked.

I ignored her too.

Andre frowned slightly. “Then what actually happened?”

I opened my mouth.

Then closed it again.

Because how do you explain a heartbreak that wasn’t caused by one terrible thing, but by a hundred small uncertainties slowly rotting you from the inside?

“He just…” I exhaled slowly. “He kept feeling close and far away at the same time.”

Andi nodded immediately, like she understood exactly what I meant—and no, not my answer, but my mood.

So she leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table. “You know what the real problem with dating right now? Nobody wants to commit to anything anymore. Everyone wants the ‘experience of intimacy’ without the responsibility of it.”

“Everybody wants to be in a relationship, but no one wants to give up their single ways,” I added.

Everyone nodded.

“Basically, situationships,” Honey said.

“Exactly,” Andi said. “Situationships are basically relationships where nobody wants to admit they’re in one.”

Andre chuckled. “From a straight male perspective, I can confirm that half of men are terrified of labels.”

“Terrified?” Mel scoffed. “Please. You just want the benefits of a relationship without the accountability.”