“If you’ve been friends with someone for a while and want to get out of the friend zone, what should you do?”

Sally:

I know it can feel like it sucks to be in the friend zone. But honestly, the friend zone is not a bad place to be. There is so much pressure for girls and boys to be dating or nothing at all, but having a friend of the opposite gender can be one of the most rewarding things.

If you feel like you’ve started to develop feelings for your best friend, carefully assess the situation before taking any action. You don’t want to risk jumping too soon and ruining the friendship that means so much to you both. What I think the best thing to do would be to have a mutual friend, that knows you both, act as the middleman. Make sure it is someone that you trust, and talk to them about how you feel. This way they can casually in conversation drop the idea to your friend about the idea of you and him/her being together. “So, would you ever consider being more than friends with ____?” can give you an insight in to how they feel about the idea, without making it awkward between you two. If the answer is positive, it’s a green light to start flirting and when the time is right, you can open up and tell him/her how you feel.

If the answer is no, then continue on as friends and consider it a dodged bullet.

Sincerely,
Sally

Steve:

If you’ve been friends with someone for a long time it’s gonna be tough to get out of the friend zone. You’ve kind of already dug yourself into a hole. Your  only solution is to let them know how you feel because they’re not going to develop romantic feelings for you if you’re just sitting around doing nothing all day. Also, everyone likes someone who says what they are feeling. So don’t beat around the bush, just tell them how you feel.

Maybe they’ll laugh in your face or maybe they won’t. But whatever the case may be, you’ll never find out whether or not they have the potential to be more than just a friend unless you give it a shot. Best case scenario you guys fall in love and live happily ever after. Worst case she hates your guts and never talks to you again. Regardless, this is high school and you’ll get over it.

You’re gonna be nervous when you tell them how you feel, but there’s not much you can do about that. You’ve just got to toughen up and go for it.

Sincerely,
Steve