Gen Zs like me have stopped dating altogether. We’re opting for friends with (other) benefits |
A few months ago I joked to a friend that we should make this our “summer of friendship”. He was freshly out of a serious relationship and I shuddered at memories of last summer, wasted moping over people I’d spent more time boring friends about than actually being with.
A winter of bucketing rain had all but erased our memories of languid days at the beach, picnics in verdant parks and evening strolls in a gentle breeze. Why squander summer on romance again?
We quickly put together a list of key organising principles. Dating was not allowed. Hanging out with friends must be prioritised at all costs. And under no circumstances could anyone “crash out”, the Gen Z term for when pining descends into melancholic obsession with a partner.
A summer of friendship: Grace Lagan, centre, and fellow Gen Zedders Anna Hobson and Hamish Lewis. Credit: Madeleine Fox
When we told our broader social circles about the summer of friendship, the response was not laughter but genuine interest. Unsurprisingly, the heartbroken and perpetually single wanted in, but so, too, did the people with a roster of casual lovers, friends in new relationships and even both halves of happily committed couples.
Sure, hanging out with friends was never going to be a hard sell. But the number of people eager to prioritise it over dating for the summer surprised me. It shouldn’t have. There are........