its like that scene where hannah finds a note from A inside her tooth

pretty little liars

now she is almost like a friend. of course, she could have always been, if the gain of emotional bonding was acknowledged, but men dont really do that with anyone but their girlfriends. thats why they so commonly become the therapist when dating begins - shes the only one he allows himself such a

gains of friendship with a woman, perhaps because women approach friendships very differently than men. generally womens friendships are based in emotional connection, and generally mens friendships are based in shared interests. this is why men get so excited when a girl likes stuff that they do.

they use social norms ("boy and girls cannot be friends!") as an excuse not to ask themselves why. only categorizing women as datable or undatable is dehumanizing to their character of personality - but that is the only value they attribute to women. they dont allow themselves to see the potential