Watch a drunk girl go home with a boy who doesn’t deserve her. Try to stop her, but she doesn’t listen. What do you do then? Enable her? Let her make the mistake she’s so persistent about?
It’s hard watching someone make the same mistake you did at 22 when you’re 24 now. Whether it be two years ago or a decade, I don’t think it ever gets easier watching your friend make the same mistake for love.
But you know what’s even stranger? Watching someone make that mistake and realizing it’s actually a mistake. No dumb excuses you used to pour out to your friends… “You just don’t get it, he’s a really nice guy.” Spoiler alert: He’s not. He’s just a boy who’ll say anything to get laid.
It’s an odd feeling, though—the feeling of realizing you want better for yourself. It’s like I’m finally growing up, and my heart doesn’t want to hurt anymore.
This year I’ve started to learn that love can come in so many different forms—whether it’s platonic, romantic, or materialistic. You are far more loved than you believe. You just have to give yourself the opportunity to see it.
Love doesn’t have to hurt.