Ah, the controversy on talking vs. dating...what the hell is going on anyways? Dates used to be a big thing. You always hear about it. The girl and the boy like each other, they both dress up for a nice movie or dinner date, the boy picks the girl up at her house, walks up to her front door, actually opens the car door for her, they have a wonderful night and then he takes her back to her house and possibly takes her out again if he is interested. Nowadays, if a guy is interested in you, he’ll hit you up with a text that says, “Hey, wanna come over and Netflix and chill?” How romantic.

Recently, dating has seemed to be going downhill. If you see a boy and a girl together and ask if they’re actually dating, a new popular response is, “Oh no, we’re talking though”. That has always confused me, even though I’ve been stuck in the “talking” stage too. What’s the point of talking to a girl, you both having feelings for each other, taking her out, but NOT putting a label on it?! I get it, relationships are sticky. Guys obviously have a different view on relationships than women do, but no woman wants to be stuck in the “talking” stage forever.

I once “talked” to a guy for 4+ months. We both liked each other, we hung out, we flirted ALL the time, and when we weren’t together, he was always calling me. It was like we were actually dating, but wait, we freaking weren’t. That “talking” stage dragged on for forever before I finally said something about it. He wanted to date, just wanted to wait. Well, how much longer was I supposed to wait? This whole “talking” stage was getting on my nerves. The “talking” stage before any relationship is super annoying if it even turns into a relationship. Some people are stuck in the “talking” stage forever.

There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with hanging out with a girl for a couple weeks, and wanting to claim her as yours, but label it before it’s labeled as just “talking." “Talking” could be anything. You guys could only have eyes for each other, or you could be talking to other people too, and that’s what is so confusing about that stage. If you were just straight up with each other, things would be a lot easier.

So guys (and girls), next time you find someone you’re interested in, make sure you know what you want. Don’t be that person that drags on the “talking” stage forever. This whole mind games thing with the “talking” stage isn’t funny. Be a man (or woman), and tell them how you feel, and get yourself the person that you want to be with.