It never ceases to fascinate me that people out there in the adult world continue to pursue romantic relationships with excessive perseverance and emotional investment. I don't just mean people who like to have casual encounters with attractive and interesting people of the opposite sex. No, I mean actual, serious, steady relationships that ideally are designed to last for decades. I shouldn't have to mention factors in our country's soup of statistics about the high number of marriages that fail. I shouldn't even have to draw my own examples of friends' stories and tales heard on the elevator or city sidewalk about the unfortunate romantic endeavor of this young woman or that young man. For the amount of practicing singles searching for their ideal life partner, this search seems to cause a disproportionate amount of emotional stress.

I don't understand the courtship practices of human beings. I've never had a girlfriend in my life and have never wanted one. Some people say that's a little immature and I have to disagree entirely. Me wanting to forgo permanent, life-altering decisions in favor of my education, intellectual maturity, and occupation is immature? And I suppose that your search for "Mister/Miss Right" like striking lucky some sort of philosophical lottery won by "following your heart" and "knowing the time is right" is somehow very mature? That's Disney princess logic. That's about as immature as it gets. Many people don't seem to be living in reality when it comes to finding significant others, and this makes me sad.

If people knew what makes them happy and content with their lives, then they wouldn't have to find another person to fill some sort of gap. Nobody is made incomplete. We are all fully capable of living productive, happy lives. We shouldn't need some other person to make us "complete". That's bullshit. I am who I am and no woman should...

It never ceases to fascinate me that people out there in the adult world continue to pursue romantic relationships with excessive perseverance and emotional investment. I don't just mean people who like to have casual encounters with attractive and interesting people of the opposite sex. No, I mean actual, serious, steady relationships that ideally are designed to last for decades. I shouldn't have to mention factors in our country's soup of statistics about the high number of marriages that fail. I shouldn't even have to draw my own examples of friends' stories and tales heard on the elevator or city sidewalk about the unfortunate romantic endeavor of this young woman or that young man. For the amount of practicing singles searching for their ideal life partner, this search seems to cause a disproportionate amount of emotional stress.

I don't understand the courtship practices of human beings. I've never had a girlfriend in my life and have never wanted one. Some people say that's a little immature and I have to disagree entirely. Me wanting to forgo permanent, life-altering decisions in favor of my education, intellectual maturity, and occupation is immature? And I suppose that your search for "Mister/Miss Right" like striking lucky some sort of philosophical lottery won by "following your heart" and "knowing the time is right" is somehow very mature? That's Disney princess logic. That's about as immature as it gets. Many people don't seem to be living in reality when it comes to finding significant others, and this makes me sad.

If people knew what makes them happy and content with their lives, then they wouldn't have to find another person to fill some sort of gap. Nobody is made incomplete. We are all fully capable of living productive, happy lives. We shouldn't need some other person to make us "complete". That's bullshit. I am who I am and no woman should have to act as a requisite for my life to be satisfactory.

Maybe some people like having others around. I guess some people in fact feel like their lives are complete by having a significant other. If that's the case, then sweet. Go for it. But why does it seem like nearly everyone out there who isn't 1) totally ugly, 2) socially deficient, or 3) an axe murderer will invest hours upon dollars of their personal life and savings into dating a slew of mildly interesting and reasonably attractive people? Why? It is my honest opinion that many people in our world put far more effort into finding a person who may not exist as opposed to creating for themselves a meaningful existence in this brief life. It's delusional. They're not being honest with themselves. That's what's great about fucking. As long as the people involved are mature and knowledgeable about what is going on, then there is no confusion. It's so straightforward and honest.

If people want to know what will cause them to fall in love, then they should sit down and think. Look at your Chinese zodiac. Take an enneagram test. What is it about your platonic relationships that makes you happy? What about your hobbies? Your job? What factors in your life make crawling out of bed to face horrors like global economic collapse, exhaustion of natural resources, and Nicki Minaj worth the fight? Love is not your panacea. It's not the SCP-500 that will solve all your problems and make your life magical. Let me tell you how love works. Let me tell you a story. Not just any story. The Last Story.

So there's this really cool video game out on the Wii called the Last Story. It's a really cool Japanese role-playing game. I'd recommend it if you're into that sort of game. In the story of the Last Story, there are two main characters: Zael and Calista. Zael is a young man who works as a mercenary for local lords. He was orphaned as a child when raiders burned his village and killed most everyone. Ever since, he's wanted to protect the weak from those bullies who abused their power. Zael's big dream is to become a knight for the king's army and maintain peace throughout the land. He fantasizes about living in the castle and being part of the royal lifestyle until he dies. It's the meaning of his whole life to escape from the slums and the drunkards.

Then he runs into Lady Calista. Calista, a lovely young woman with pale hair and pretty dresses, is the niece of the king, and basically the Disney princess of the game. She wants to avoid marrying the really scummy, loserface Jirall, and wants to live her life on her own terms without being monitored and protected 24/7. Again, a Disney princess stuck in a high tower, except she has her own range of abilities and an actual personality. Calista wants to escape from this claustrophobic royal life and live among the free people of the realm.

When these two people meet in the game, it's like a match made in heaven. They both know who the other is, and that is what mystifies them. They have their first real moment at the top of a tall tower on a warm, blue evening with the full moon high in the sky. Shooting stars fall like it's a fucking apocalypse. Basically, everything is like every trope for love sequences in every anime/manga imaginable. You see, Zael sees the royalty and power that runs in Calista's veins, and Calista sees in Zael the freedom and uninhibited life of a mercenary. Each one is exactly what the other person wants in his/her life. The plus is that they're both attractive anime characters. Why wouldn't they fall in love?

Zael and Calista here represent the most basic and simple love story. Two people from different worlds who are both missing one important thing that they spend their whole lives searching for. When they are together, that missing requirement is fulfilled. Zael can be a night in the realm of Calista's power and Calista can be free in Zael's carefree mercenary work. It's a win-win. This is how people in real life fall in love. The problem is that it's not always a reciprocal thing.

My friend G is in love with my friend M. M is a lovely young woman with serious problems at home emotionally and economically. She is very fragile and we have to give her love and support to keep her afloat. My friend G is a big guy who doesn't date much and is funny and smart. G is an older brother in his family, and he went to schools wherein he always played the role of older brother to younger people, making sure that everyone was in his/her place and doing things right ways. He is an innate older brother figure.

Now what happens when you have an emotionally-despondent teenage girl with domestic issues make friends with a young man who finds satisfaction in ensuring the happiness of those his junior? Bingo. It's nature. It's our biology to be drawn together, but it's our humanity that gives it reason and personality. Our bodies seek contact with others, while our human hearts seek to find a meaning within this union. At the end of the day, love is chemistry in its purest sense. Take the right chemicals under the right conditions and mix them together. When you get it right, things explode! Love is a science; it's all formula that needs the same factors written in for each experiment. Love is not unique or magical or even special. It's not written in the stars or predestined when we are born. Love, like every other event that make up the vast spontaneity of our lives, results from the saturation of countless tiny, immeasurable details that cannot be seen on the surface.

The fact that love has transformed into a culturally-specific phenomenon rendering years of cinematic tripe and low-level fantasy novels on supermarket check-out counters is where I think the problem lies. People don't know what love is. They don't understand themselves and what it takes for them to live full lives. Some people enjoy dominating others physically and emotionally because it's engrained in male instinctual genetics to secure and maintain attractive female mates since we were monkeys. It makes them feel strong and virile. There: sexually-aggressive men.

Some people like being controlled and fought over because it's engrained in female instinctual genetics to secure and maintain male mates. It makes them feel valuable and worthy of being sought out. Bam! Submissive domestic abuse victims. You see, it's all science! It's biology and chemistry. And just like those sciences, people are highly predictable.

If you think that's cynical, then that's okay. I challenge you to prove me wrong. I would much rather be cynical and correct than happy and living a lie. I have no problem with never having had a girlfriend. I never plan on it, either. The question is now: Can I ever be in such a relationship? Am I even capable of abandoning this logic and letting my feelings lead me? Probably not. I have no issue with being alone for the rest of my life if it means that I can make comics until my hands cripple away without someone pestering me that I'm not good enough for her. A woman isn't going to be the Calista to my Zael, so dating is pointless. I've already found something that makes me complete: stories. From creepypasta to BBC shows to Watchmen to J-pop videos, these sources of unfettered beauty and creativity fill my heart with a joy that I cannot begin to describe. I need no woman to melt my heart into gelatinous butter like a 19th-century poet. The title screen of Xenoblade Chronicles takes my breath away and brings my to my knees. You see, I don't need a woman to be happy. I've found my happiness.

Or maybe someday, while traveling China or somewhere in my future adult life, I will encounter a young woman of reasonably attractive composition who has a personality and interests that don't conflict with mine. Who knows? Perhaps it will come to pass that my erotic fixation on mother figures will manifest itself on a young woman who inherently and without asking mothers everyone in her life. This young woman will find joy by having a young man to care for and hold tight. I'm not saying that I can't fall in love at all ever, but if it does, it will have to be under specific circumstances with the correct catalysts. The chances of this happening are not impossible, but I'm certainly not going to waste my time trying to spot her on a train platform.

Then again, you never find something you're not looking for, right?