#thank you daaaaaaad /lh

[therequiemforthelost-archive]

Gotcha, binch. Do 'em all. 💚🤍🖤

Oh noooo you got me what a shaaaaame /j

1.) When did you realize you were aromantic?

Uuuuuuh I wanna say in the first quarter of 2021 after breaking up with my ex boyfriend? I came to the realization that romance was legit just... friendship with a different label for me, if that makes sense. I feel very little distinction and being demiro myself, it can take a hot minute for the distinction to be more clear. And like even then, sometimes it just felt like ~super friendship~ and in the end for the two romantic relationships I had been in, both myself and my partner had been hurt in some way because it wasn't something I understood before it clicked. Tbh I should've realized it sooner cause there were multiple times in middle school when I'd talk about someone of the opposite gender doing something nice for me and not understanding why people would immediately reply with "omg do you have a crush on him???"

2.) How important is your arospec label to your overall identity?

Irl, super important, actually! It's hard for me to explain to people who don't know how it works and what it's like, but the people important to me love and understand, which I appreciate. In online spaces and irl ones, you may hear me just call myself aro, which is accurate, but I identify more with demiro at the moment! I can definitely say that I've been a lot happier and much more fulfilled in life now that I've realized it.

3.) Are there any aromantic microlabels you use?

Mainly demiro! I just found demirose, which I fucking LOVE, and I think aegoromantic, quoiromantic, recipromantic, and the tried and true grayromantic describe me fairly well too! Still, mainly demiro though cause it's easier to keep track of fjwhdj

4.) What does aromantic mean to you?

Aromantic means that just because I don't experience love romantically, that doesn't mean I can't fiercely love platonically. To me, it means that the part of me that people expect to be filled by a romantic partner is instead filled by the friends and family who love and support me. It means that I'm not broken and that I don't have to force myself to "fix it". It means that I an be atypically me, as I've started calling it.

5.) Has your arospec identity impacted your self shipping experience?

PFFFT fuck no-- Well, once I figured it out, a little bit. Helped me to understand why I'm so enamored with friends to lovers and childhood friends to lovers. But I still have ships that are more "traditional" in a romantic sense and lowkey some of the best ships I have. Like honestly, I absolutely LOVE romance as a concept, especially in fiction! ...Okay I lied, I like adding in a "oh god fuck WHY" moment for my OCs and inserts once they realize they have feelings and absolutely have no idea what the fuck to do or when the feelings changed.

6.) Give us some arospec headcanons for your f/os!

*slaps Albedo and Piers on the back* these bad boys can fit so much demiromanticism-- Lowkey though Albedo is very much gray aro. And I like to think Momo also identifies with an arospec identity and would probably just use gray aro until she figures it out. Platonical/Familial? You cannot look me in the face and tell me that Iago isn't aro in some capacity. I'd also hazard to say Aizen would be somewhere on the aro spectrum too?

7.) Here’s one (1) gush pass for a platonic or familial f/o!

We already know who that's going to and that's my duncle baybeeeeeee. Bertrand is like, so fucking kind and supportive to his kiddos and he doesn't even realize it? Asks about plans for the future, encourages them when the going gets tough, even makes a shitty dad joke about being cold and then starts moving his cold armored ass towards his kids to scare them because well, he is wearing cold ass metal. And we CANNOT forget the incident where a bunch of creepy crawlies started falling from a tree and in true uncle fashion, he used his shield as an umbrella and told everyone to fuck off and get their own. I love him so much. 10 out of 10, would punch a guy for me if I asked him to.

8.) Are you tired of being nice? Don't you just want to go ape shit? Free pass to go on a little aromantic rant.

Please please PLEASE if you are gonna make a joke related to something with a specific aro label, don't lump everyone together, please? Just because a label is under the arospec umbrella doesn't mean that the joke will go over well for all identities under the umbrella. It comes off as kinda exclusionary and can be a form of erasure. Like, shit hurts man, especially as someone who identifies as demiro. For example, if something is pointed out as a specific arospec label, don't make a joke about aromanticism in general. It doesn't go over well and lowkey makes me super uncomfortable. Also just, don't shit on demi labels in general please. Like, come on, right in front of my salad?