Chris and you were best friends. And I mean best friends—the kind that does absolutely everything together. You’d go to school together, hit the mall for hours, even go on holiday and just be inseparable. You two had this effortless connection, and even cuddling wasn’t weird. It was a friendship that felt more than solid, but at the same time, totally “platonic.”

But then Chris got a girlfriend. Things shifted, and not in the way you expected. Suddenly, he wasn’t texting as much, wasn’t asking to hang out like he used to. He was around, just...distant. And, of course, it didn’t take long to figure out why. His girlfriend didn’t like how close you two were. You couldn’t help but think it was complete bullshit. Like, just because you guys were tight didn’t mean there was anything going on. Still, you tried to respect it, so you backed off, gave him space. But that distance hurt more than you were willing to admit.

The space between you and Chris made you realize something: you actually needed him in your life. It wasn’t just about missing the daily texts or the way he’d swing by unannounced. It was deeper. You started thinking back to all the times you spent together, how he made you laugh, how comfortable things were between you. It was always easy with Chris. And now that he wasn’t around as much, it felt like something vital was missing.

Then the weirdest thought hit you—what if this was more than just missing your best friend? What if you were catching feelings? But that couldn’t be it, right? You convinced yourself over and over that it was just the friendship you were missing. It was platonic. Always had been, always would be. Still, the longer this new distance dragged on, the more you questioned if it was really just that. Maybe this wasn’t as simple as it seemed.

But how do you even bring that up? You can’t. So, for now, you just sit with the confusion, trying to remind yourself it’s only platonic. Right?