"Casual" isn't real - by Amanda Brown - good riddance

Modern society has lost sight of what the word casual is supposed to mean, especially in terms of dating. It’s plastered in dating app bios, used as a weapon during those dreaded what are we? conversations, and echoed in the cultural noise around us. Today, casual has become synonymous with pretending not to care when you actually really do. I think about this often. Like when my summer situationship (as written about in Love, briefly) claimed he didn’t have any interest in dating or being in a relationship. Even after two months of acting totally to the contrary (as they often do), where he behaved like someone invested: thoughtful, attentive, and present. I suggested we stop talking, appealing to the logical side of me that I don’t listen to as often as I should. He agreed begrudgingly, saying he didn’t want to, but it seemed like the right thing to do. The next morning, he texted: “Is it wrong to just casually talk?” I was so relieved that he didn’t want to lose me completely, accep

Modern society has lost sight of what the word casual is supposed to mean, especially in terms of dating. It’s plastered in dating app bios, used as a weapon during those dreaded what are we? conversations, and echoed in the cultural noise around us. Today, casual has become synonymous with pretending not to care when you actually really do. I think about this often. Like when my summer situationship (as written about in Love, briefly) claimed he didn’t have any interest in dating or being in a relationship. Even after two months of acting totally to the contrary (as they often do), where he b