A famous Backstreet Boys song that came out 1996, coincidently when most of my friends and I were born, was and is named "Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)." Believe it or not, I think this song was the perfect anthem for all of the reckless kids born in '96. Now, that all of us are 20 or about to turn it, we're either in a relationship, just getting out of one, trying to get in a relationship or playing games with each others’ hearts. (Pun intended.)

We're all playing games with each other no matter what the situation is and it's getting kind of old. The number of first dates, solid relationships, and high school sweethearts are plummeting while the number of heartbreaks, cheaters, and divorces are growing exponentially.

For those of us in a relationship it’s always a game of who can win and get even. Now a competitive edge isn’t a bad thing, but when that becomes the center of the relationship we start playing games, and it’s no longer a healthy relationship. I get it, we’re all not perfect and we mess up, but when the other makes a mistake we’re suppose to forgive, not get revenge.

The ones fresh out of relationships seem as if they need to make their exes jealous by doing one thing or another, aka wasting time by playing childish games. They act as if they need to always have the upper hand and one-up one another even though they aren’t together; whether it be an Instagram picture with a new flame or a Snapchat story with and old enemy.

Most of the ones trying to get into a relationship are doing it all wrong by talking to multiple people and playing games and thinking that something other than a love triangle, square, or octagon is going to come of it. One person is all someone needs at a time. Try it, if it doesn’t work, try again. Dating isn’t something that should be plural, keep it singular, people!

And don’t get me started on the ones just playing games with peoples’ hearts … it’s cool if both parties know that nothing is going to come of it, but don’t be that guy/girl that leads people on and then just pushes them off an 80 foot cliff and yells ‘surprise.’ That’s never fun, we’ve all been the pusher and the pushed and I think most of us have learned that we don’t like surprises.

It's almost ironic because all over social media we post cute "relationship goal" things and wish that we could find a down to earth guy or a wife-material girl. But how can we find that when we're all playing games and being caught up in something that’s just wasting our time?

We can’t!

We are 20, which translates to us being half way to 40 … Stop trying to get revenge; stop trying to make each other jealous; stop talking to multiple people; and stop being a lead-er-on-er. It’s all fun and games, till someone gets hurt, and trust me, it’s not fun being the one that's hurting.