BOYFRIENDS - Thurs 25th Feb

If you are a guy and you know my group of friends and I then chances are that at one stage or another you have been labeled as boyfriend by one of us!
 
TRANSLATION: The word boyfriend is so interchangeable that it can be used to refer to: a guy we are seeing, a guy we have a crush on, a guy that buys us a drink or even the cute guy that just drove past in a car. 
 
We use the word as often as we change our underwear!  It is just a label.
 
But does this label come with expectations?  Unfortunately, in most circumstances, yes.
 
Being raised with boyfriend in our vocabulary, just the simple act of saying the word conjures up thoughts of holding hands, kissing or maybe even a white dress [oh god, I’ve gone and scared all the male readers away haven’t I?]
 
As we grow up we attach labels to people to distinguish where we stand in our current relationships.  It seems to be a process that we go through so that we are not confused by what the people around us want from our interactions.  The label implies that we know where the relationship is heading and we have certain expectations that go along with that.
 
But can we have a relationship without placing a label on it?  Can we just have fun in the moment and not wonder where things are going?   
 
Obviously this is best answered on an individual basis.  However, I do believe that age is the major factor.  The older we get the less time we seem to be willing to “waste”.  Each person is weighed up for partnership potential and the expectations of the relationship seem to be addressed right from the start.  “I wonder if he could be my boyfriend?”
 
Moral of the story – let people know what you want from them.  Honesty is definitely the best policy. 
 
Pretending that you are happy to be friends with your boyfriend, when secretly you are planning the wedding will just end in heartbreak.  Sure, trying to be friends will mean you get to spend more time with them.  But ultimately aren’t you just buying some time and trying to manipulate them into changing their mind? 
 
By having these ulterior motives you aren’t being honest with them OR with yourself.  Eventually your true feelings will come out.  And if you have been a good actor up until then, the results will probably scare the be-jebus out of the other person and have them running for the hills!
 
Don’t be scared of announcing your feelings.  Believe it or not, your heart wont shatter into a thousand pieces if they don’t feel the same way!  And just imagine the joy and exhilaration if they do!
 
… now where’s my boyfriend??