Okay, you can do this. You’ve had these feelings for a while now, and it’s time to stop dating the same type of men that always turn out to be no good. You know you deserve better. You’ve had this same crush on him for a couple of years, but fear of rejection and ruining the friendship if it doesn’t go right has held you back. Step one, stop making assumptions that it won’t go right. You will never know what may come out of this if you don’t take the risk. What if he feels the same way you do? Step two, just breathe. Now go on, ask him!
Ladies, have you ever had this kind of pep talk with yourself? We like to call this the “getting out of the friend-zone” pep talk. Us twenty-somethings know of the friend-zone a little too well these days, but for those who do not we will explain. The friend-zone is the place where all relationship rejects are cast aside. For example: you have a friend, and all of a sudden he’s hinting that he would like the friendship to become a love relationship, but you on the other hand don’t feel the same as he does. You start to become distant, or start saying synonyms for “friend” every time you see or speak to him. You have now friend-zoned him.
It’s easy to get in the friend-zone, but what about getting out of it? We’ve witnessed many people (including some of us) go through the “getting out of the friend-zone” phase; some have made it through successfully, some did not. It can be terrifying for people to take that risk, and ask their long term friend to become more than just friends. However, some friendships weren’t meant to be just friendships. Most people say the best relationships start as friends. They’re the ones who know you better than most, you’ve already established a close relationship, you do almost everything together, and they treat you better than most of those frogs you’ve been kissing. Why not make it official?
We know we’re not the only ones that have gone, or is currently going through this type of situation, so here’s your one “get out of the friend-zone” card. Build up your confidence and have the conversation. Most men will never know how we’re feeling, or even if something is wrong. Who knows, he may have the same feelings and has wanted to say something about it to you as well. If not, it will be okay. He can either respect you for bringing up the conversation and politely explain how he feels, or if he’s rude about it, he just saved you from another horrible situation. Go with your intuition, it will never lead you wrong. If it goes right and he wants to take those next steps with you, it will all be worth it. Reverse the roles for once, you got this!