Feeling salty? We’re finally being honest with our mates about their sh**ty dates

With endless mixed signals, bad behaviour and raised hopes, the dating world is harder to navigate than ever. But should we be helping our friends sail through the slaloms with a little more frankness?

WORDS: BRIT DAWSON

Although she’s more straightforward with other friends when it comes to their dating lives – gently but firmly steering them away from rationalising shitty behaviour – Robyn* has become a habitual sugarcoater with her friend Lola*. Over the past few months, Lola has been dating again after a bad break-up. According to Robyn, though, she’s still ‘smarting from the previous relationship’ and is bringing ‘quite toxic fixations’ into new romantic situations. But if Robyn or other close girlfriends try to challenge Lola’s behaviour or unpack these dynamics, ‘you’d better expect the silent treatment’. Yet, lately, Robyn has noticed something unusual happening. ‘Lola has started turning to one of our straight male friends for advice, who’s able to be much more honest and sometimes even quite brutal in his response,’ reveals Robyn.…

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Cosmopolitan UK (Digital) - 1 Issue, April/May 2025

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