When you have a group of friends, somebody is going to be “that friend.” And if you are sitting here wondering, “Who is ‘that friend?'” it might be you! Friendships are not just about having love, loyalty, and horrible shared experiences. Friendships often have a lot of unacknowledged tolerances, too; your friends will put a smile on their faces, take a deep breath, and say to themselves, “I love them, so I’m lucky to care about them.”
These habits are not necessarily dealbreakers, but let’s be honest, if love weren’t involved, someone would’ve definitely snapped by now. Consider this a gentle roast from people who love you enough to keep you around.
Borrowing Things and Forgetting to Return Them
You always swear you are going to bring things back, and you believe it to be true with all your heart, but then time passes. And then weeks pass. The seasons change, and your friend quietly accepts that they will never see that hoodie, charger, or book ever again.
At this point, they don’t even ask about it, because it would feel uncomfortable and utterly pointless for them to do so. So, they have mentally written it off as the price of loving you. And no, you’re not stealing. You’re just… accidentally permanent.
Being Chronically, Offensively Late
Yeah, in the start, it might be hilarious to show up late to things. And then you start developing patterns in your life around it. Now, your friends don’t find it funny anymore. They have learned how to read you so well that they know when you say, “I’m leaving,” you are still at home, either in a towel or just starting to get ready.
Now, they show up early, order without you, and save you a seat just out of habit. And they do not confront you about your chronic lateness anymore because they are too exhausted from having to put up with it. They may love and tolerate your lateness, but know that every time you show up late, it is slowly eroding the other people’s faith in humanity.
Turning Every Conversation Back to You
Your friends will start telling a story about something major that happened in their lives, like a promotion or a breakup, and you will somehow manage to take the entire conversation back to you, to relate it to an experience you had. You don’t intentionally take the moment away from them. You will listen to what they have to say; however, within about 30 seconds, your mind will automatically say, “Hey, I can relate.”
Your friends will politely listen to you and laugh, thinking to themselves, “Is this a conversation or a one-person show?” They will probably stay friends with you because you’re a lot of fun and very loyal; however, sometimes they’d love a single sentence that doesn’t start with, “That reminds me of me…”
Being Weirdly Competitive About Nothing
Competition for you is literally… everything. Who’s the most exhausted? Who has the most going on? Who had it the worst? When your friends notice this behavior, they usually just ignore it – they give you “the win” out of sheer exhaustion from trying to fight back because arguing feels pointless.
They’re well aware you do this because of your own insecurities rather than a sense of superiority, so they choose to remain patient with you. Though if other people were to compare their lives against yours, they would have no qualms about telling you how unrealistic your outlook on life actually is.
Cancelling Plans At the Very Last Minute
You rarely cancel plans with your friends, but when you do, it is usually very close to your scheduled meeting time. Your reason for cancelling may be valid (exhaustion, bad vibes, or “not feeling social”), but it is nevertheless disappointing for your friends.
Although that’s understandable, your friends will respond by saying “No problem!” while sitting around alone, eating the snacks that they bought to share with you. They don’t think less of you for it because they realize how tough it can be for people with mental health issues to go out, but that doesn’t mean that they’ll ever forget how many times you left them hanging.
Trauma-Dumping Without Warning
You say ‘quick update,’ and then suddenly everyone is holding a weight of emotion that they didn’t prepare to carry. Of course, your friends care for you – they truly do – but there are times when they don’t want to have an emotional TED talk; they were coming out simply for brunch.
So, what are your friends doing? They are sitting there supporting you, nodding their heads, giving you advice, and trying to calculate how many cups of caffeine they are going to need afterward. They don’t stop you because they love you. But honestly, if you just come out and say ‘Can I vent?’ you might save a life. Or, you will at least save your friendship.
Overanalyzing Every Text Message
You send your friends screenshots as if you are trying to solve a crime. ‘What do you think this means?’ Meanwhile, the text just says “lol.” Your friends have told you numerous times that not every text has a hidden meaning; yet, you still find yourself here.
Your friends are helping you because they love you; however, deep down, they understand that no matter what logical answer they may give you, you will panic either way. Therefore, your friends are not finding a solution for your issues; they are merely performing emotional babysitting.
Never Making a Decision
You ask all of your friends what they want for dinner and then reject every suggestion. Not with malice, but rather with politeness, which is even worse. Your friends go through the five stages of grief while you say, “I’m good to go with anything” for the fifth time.
So, somebody finally just chooses for you. They don’t mind putting in the mental effort this time, but they know the next time and every time after it will be the same. Love is patient. This is a test of that love. And see how long it goes.
Oversharing With Strangers
You share your life’s story with anyone who will listen: cab drivers, baristas, random people at parties. Your friends watch silently, half-amused, half-concerned. They don’t tell you to stop, as you’re harmlessly entertaining.
But they brace themselves every time you get the opportunity to start with, “So basically, I’m going to tell you about how I grew up,” when the person they just introduced to you is now asking you whether or not the seat is taken.
7 Petty Behaviors That Reveal a Lot About You
Whether you are screenshotting receipts (out of spite) for later warfare or refusing to text first out of pure principle, your pettiness is basically your personality in high definition. This list is going to expose your petty self!
7 Petty Behaviors That Reveal a Lot About You