So you found someone you're interested in. You spent time together (a lot of time). You learned what they like, dislike, and everything in between. You've been asked, "So what's going on between you and so-and-so," and one too many times you have had no answer to that question. Then it ends. They tell you they don't want anything serious or they practically fall off the face of the Earth for no apparent reason. In the end, you were trapped in the dreaded "Almost Relationship." And it sucks.

Your friends can't believe you're grieving over someone you were technically never dating with the label of being Facebook Official. The lack of a definition of a label of being emotionally attached to someone doesn't make it any easier to get over an individual, but can actually make it harder. It becomes a constant mind game of, "What if..." and, "What did I do wrong?" It can become days and possibly even weeks where the thoughts of that person seem to never end. There are several reasons why you can't seem to get over your Almost Relationship.

There was no closure.

Humans like closure. It is the ability to say, "Yup, that happened, and I'm ready to move on." In a normal break up there is that time period of closure. You two might have met up and discussed the reasoning behind the breakup, or it was obvious. You had to vocally say what the reasoning was and then move on from it. In an Almost Relationship that individual has had every right to get up and leave. What do we do when we can't get this closure? We have to write our own endings. One which that individual is no longer a part of, but there is a spot meant for someone else.

You only know your side of the story.

You know your feelings and thoughts. You know every thing you did/said/thought. But do you really know everything that individual did/said/thought, too? Probably not. This leaves you to assume everything was your fault. You are your own worst critic and it can become maddening. But here is the beauty of life—everything happens for a reason and that individual was not meant to be a part of your life. As cliche as it sounds, that person didn't work out for a specific reason that you will find later on in life.

You got caught up in the expectations.

Throughout the course of this Almost Relationship there had to be plenty of times where they called you something sweet, made a quick promise to do something together (probably in the future) that never would be, and made you feel special. While this person never owed you anything and honestly probably made those remarks in the heat of the moment, expectations were created. As those expectations grew, once the relationship ended, those realities came crashing down. Hard.

You can't stop thinking 'What if?"

Talking to someone becomes a habit ingrained in our daily routines. Once it ends and the hope comes crashing down it becomes a trigger of constantly wondering what could have been. What if you would have asked them out sooner or if you did something different that one time.

Moving on from an Almost Relationship can be just as much work as moving on from a real break up. When dealing with this reality, it can be hard, and you may think How can I deal with this? Remember that the idea of that person may be completely different from the person they actually are. Being caught up in a relationship makes you put that person on a pedestal with everything they do being perfect. But were they really? Were they adding value to your life? Were they making you a better person? Were your feelings based on the desire to be in a relationship with that person or just the thought of being in a relationship in general?

Taking a step back from an Almost Relationship can be emotional and hard. But this gives us time to understand what we actually want out of a relationship and to get to know ourselves better. It is a reminder that the best people in your life will stick around while the others aren't meant to be there for a reason. As Grandma always says, there are plenty of fish in the sea.