KATIE MARGARET HALL EXPLORES THE GREY AREA BETWEEN FRIENDSHIP AND ROMANCE
A couple of years ago I caught myself defending a friendship to my girlfriend of the time. I boldly claimed: “We’re just good friends!” in response to an assumption on my girlfriend’s part that something romantic or sexual must be going on. She needed to find a way to account for the intimacy that my friend and I had together, which she felt excluded from.
As I said those words, I could feel myself cringing. Questions raced through my mind. “Why am I describing this friendship as ‘just’ anything and demeaning it to less importance than the relationship? Why am I having to justify the nourishment that this friendship offers me?”