I’m not sure why I kept picking the wrong people to enter my life. They once presented themselves as charming individuals, until something went wrong and it made my life ten times worse by remaining in it. Those people gave me hope that someday I’d find someone that was worth fighting for. Why couldn’t we have met two years ago when I first came to college? Well, turns out that I did meet that person. And you know what? He’s my best friend.
Two years ago, I would have never thought that I would inevitably date my best friend. I blogged about horrible dating experiences and recollections of past relationships that burst into flames, tallying the number of times I would think I’d be single forever. My track record of dating always sided with the casual meet-and-greet with a stranger or mutual friend at a dinner party, and then things took off from there. As someone who always shied away from mixing friends and relationships together, this was the equivalent of jumping off the Empire State Building.
One of the things people ask me when they find out that I date my best friend is, “Do things get weird when you guys know everything about each other already?” The answer is absolutely not. In fact, I like the fact that the person I’m dating knows me like the back of his hand. When we’re in an argument, he’ll know just what to say to make things all right, instead of shouting impulsive sentences at my face and causing the argument to blow up even more. He knows what makes me laugh, cry, and get more annoyed than anything, and that’s what I like about him so much.
One of the things that I wish I could have changed in my college experience was to give up the constant chase of trying to find someone that was worth my time. Yes, some relationships I’ve endured have been with people that are inspirational individuals, but not everything is meant to be in the end. If anything, I wish I could have turned back the clock and just settled down with the one person who was by my side through thick and thin to begin with.
If you’re the kind of person who doesn’t know if they should be making a move toward a close friend of yours, I encourage you to wait it out and feel for reciprocal emotions. We’ve all been there — having a crush on a friend but the feeling isn’t matched, so then you’re left with the constant shred of doubt in your head that your friendship might be ruined. Have no fear, but do proceed with caution. You’ll know when you’re ready. If there’s any advice I could offer up to a person, it would be to follow your heart. For too long, I chased after people that seemed like a good idea to be with, but turned out to be people I had nothing in common with and people that couldn’t relate to me on a personal level. Especially in college, there will be a limitless number of opportunities for you to explore what you like, who you like, and a bunch of other factors, but some of the most constant things that you can count on are your best friends.
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