At the start of the year, most of your friends were single. A night out was the perfect time for a Pulling Competition (to see who can pull the hottest guy in the Lemmy), and nights in consisted of watching He’s Just Not That Into You and hating on Scarlett Johannsson’s character. Then slowly, one by one… Your girls all found someone.
Obviously, you couldn’t be happier for them. Their boyfriends are sweet and funny and treat your friends like the princesses they are. Plus, it’s always handy having guys around the house – if anyone ever broke in then you would have an army of men living with you that could defend your territory… And they can also change lightbulbs and fix broken TVs. It’s a win-win.
But even though you are happy for your friends, sometimes the Green-Eyed Monster can come out. Every Saturday night, your friends are out with their boyfriends for a fancy meal, whilst you’re home alone admiring Rita Ora’s eyebrows on The X Factor and ordering Dominoes for one.
But hold the Pity Party! Here at Her Campus Exeter, we have decided that being ‘The Single Friend’ actually has loads of perks:
1. No boy drama
Being The Single Friend means that you can give your friends advice on all of their boy problems, without having any of your own! Well, that’s not strictly true. You do have boy problems, but they’re usually not very serious – although accidentally ‘Super Liking’ that creepy guy on Tinder did feel like a tragedy at the time.
2. Get with cute guys on a night out
We aren’t saying that pulling should be your aim on a night out – having fun should always be your priority! That includes crazy dancing, flirting with bouncers and ordering one-too-many Sambuca shots. But if the opportunity should arise where a cute guy is giving you the eye on Top Top, then you can totally go for it! And, who knows, after kissing a few (rugby) frogs, you might even find your Knight in Shining Jack Wills.
3. Spoil yourself rotten on a daily basis
When you’re not in a relationship you become your own bae. Instead of spending your time shopping for birthday/anniversary/Christmas presents for a partner, you can treat yourself whenever you want to. Fancy a ridiculously overpriced Lindt Santa? Go for it. You don’t need an occasion to buy yourself a present, because every day is the perfect day to celebrate being you!
4. Your own bed
Yes, it would be nice to fall asleep spooning someone… But at least you now have a whole bed to yourself. There are so many things you can do with this new-found freedom – fall asleep in the starfish position, build an Instagram-worthy den, or get your parents to send you all 20 of your cuddly toys from home…
5. More free time
With the absence of Date Nights and cute meet-ups, the average single girl finds she has a lot of time on her hands. This means she can take up a new sport, learn a new language…or watch 3 seasons of Gossip Girl in a single weekend.
6. Always up for a Girls’ Night Out
As soon as your friends say they’re up for a night out, then you are on it! You’ve already sorted out the Pres Playlist (which consists of Taylor Swift’s Shake it Off, Fifth Harmony’s Worth It and Atomic Kitten’s Ladies’ Night – for old times’ sake!) and you are beyond excited for a No Boys Night Out. Then when you finally arrive at Unit 1, it’s your prerogative to lead the girls in the Single Ladies dance.
7. Time to work on yourself
If you’re coming out of a bad relationship, then your self-esteem may have plummeted further than the drop from Cardiac Hill. You need some time to remember all of the amazing qualities that you have, and to work on being so in love with your life that you see dating as just a bit of fun. You should never feel like you need a boyfriend – you are a sassy independent woman who doesn’t need anything…apart from chocolate and caffeine.
Being in a relationship is awesome, but being single is just as fun! Try to keep that in mind the next time you feel yourself inwardly retching when you see a cute couple kissing in public.