Genderless.

*Gasp* "You're talking to a boy!"

"Yup..."

"Do you like him? Are you two going out? How long has it been? How often do you two talk?"

"Um... We're just friends."

*Wink* "Sureee"

"Okay..."

You can't imagine how many times I've been a part of this kind of conversation, both sides of it actually. I've teased my friends about their newfound boy or girl (space) friends, asking them incessantly about how much their conversations have progressed or how late they have found themselves talking to each other. And for this reason, this blog post is much harder to write (especially at 2 am)... because not only am I the victim but also a perpetrator of this social norm: the expectation that a male and a female cannot be friends unless they want to date each other at the end of the day. I don't know much about what other people may think on this matter, and so what I say here pertains mainly to me and to the people who choose to be associated with these thoughts and mindsets.

Do I like him? Yes, as a friend.

Are we going out? No.

How long has it been? Long enough.

How often do we talk? A lot. Because we're friends.

No this does not pertain to only one situation, but several that I have encountered before when I have met someone new of the opposite gender. How could I possibly talk to a BOY so often if I don't have a crush on him? Simple. Because I like him as a person and I'm interested in him. As a human being. Each person, regardless of gender, is amazing - each has a story to tell and hundreds of memories to recount in conversation. And why not talk to our male counterpart with innocent intentions? Maybe I want to know their perspectives and their opinions on certain things. Maybe I want to find more friends. Maybe I need the words only they can say right now in this moment of my life. Maybe just maybe, their gender and the potential to date them don't intrigue me but it's the people they are that I've grown quite fond of. I've found people in general to be highly intriguing because each has something unique to say that has its own special aspect to it, whether that was influenced by childhood or a recent series of events. How will I know until I talk to him?

I want to be his friend. We are friends. We all need people in our life to depend on and at times, we might not be able to find that person in our respective genders. And that's alright. We can, we should be able to confide in the opposite gender without worries or pointless assumptions.

But on that same note, what if I do like him? Why should it matter to others?

(p.s. Yes, this was inspired by current events - but I'm not angry at anyone. Everyone I've encountered so far has had innocently teasing intentions and they're mostly my closest friends so I know they mean well. ^__^

p.p.s. No, I do not like anyone right now - if you were wondering from that last sentence. I'm living and (quite frankly) enjoying the single life.)

#socialnorm