How emojis changed the ‘friend-zone’ and relationship game

I would pick you;

And plant you in my garden;

So, I’ll get to see you every day.

Remember those corny messages you used to send to your crush? Well, things changed and you’ve probably figured it.

The world of texting created a new breeze of taking the awkwardness out of the conversation between two people who liked each other … or didn’t.

Phone calls had this moment of unrivalled embarrassingly deafening silence when one party did not know what to say on the spot. Like when one said ‘I love you’ with the other not feeling the same way.

Call time was ticking. Ending the call would be rude. So, the only way out was to keep mute until one felt the need to change the topic.

Texting is different. Despite there being a signal to indicate a ‘READ’ text, time to reply was at one’s own convenience. A reply to an ‘I love you’ message could come instantly or a day later without any awkwardness.

Of course, there’ll be the thrill and anxiety from the party who sent that ‘I love you’. An anxiety that even caused people to switch off their phones once that message was sent (like it was going to change the reply *rolling eyes*).

But it was a welcomed thrill and anxiety that the ‘call silence’.

Along the lines adding one’s reaction like *wowed* *rolling on the floor laughing* and others made these texts rich. Then there was the use of symbols to create facial expressions.

In that, a small digital image or icon used to express an idea or emotion in electronic communication called emoji came to being.

Emojis complimented by the ever so cheap WhatsApp was a game changer. And with millennials on the look for different ways to ‘curve’, the opportunities to explore was unprecedented.

The emoji electronic communication started off with the simple smiley face and other facial expressions but not anymore.

The peach emoji is just the peach emoji on paper. However, it has a whole different meaning in the real emoji world. So is the egg plant combined with others to create the very many other untold perverted meanings.

Love has different expressions and so are the emojis of love with the very different ways bae can make you feel at home.

Notwithstanding, there comes a time when people willing to be put in a certain position on the love radar have to deal with the ‘friendzone’ not expressed with words.

On a normal day, the 'laughing tears' emoji should express tears of joy. But there’s been so many a times when that response has actually been a hidden tears of sorrow.

Some emojis have the effect of diluting the bigger pills that have been hard to swallow. Just like that, serious messages are sent across as if they were jokes waiting for a positive response to react and go further. The ‘what are we?’ and ‘do you want your girlfriend to beat me’ messages are sent with its dilution factors, those emojis. A backup plan to escape the awkwardness and deem it all a joke.

And then the bigger issue of the friendzone kingdom. These emojis are hard to decode and most people know that. The complexity of understanding them makes it a perfect fit for specialized occasions.

So for all the times you don’t know how to put the message across without coming out as the bad person, you fall back on these.

And the many more emojis around.

Yeah, it’s been a pleasure texting with these electronic codes. But more than ever, communication in relationships and trying to friendzone that prospective wannabe lover has never been so coded … and unpredictable.

What is your favourite emoji?