RadioPlay/CoupleSortsItOut

RELATIONSHIPS RADIO PLAY - A COUPLE SUCCESSFULLY SORT IT OUT 

“You're spazzing me out and spinning me around, my feet are off the ground, and I don’t know where I stand. You mystify me,” she said.

He sighed, gathering his thoughts before responding. “Look, the situation hasn't changed. We agreed on what this is.”

“But…” she started, uncertain.

“Now, for whatever reason, you're acting like things are unclear. You’re behaving like something's different. That’s coming from you, not me,” he pointed out.

She shifted uncomfortably, avoiding his gaze. “I just—”

“You haven't gone back to the last time we checked in. It's like you’re on a different page, getting your information from somewhere else, not from the agreement we had.” His voice was firm but not unkind.

“I don’t know what to say,” she muttered, still unsure of her own feelings.

“Why are you doing this?” he asked. “There are only a few reasons why you’d act this way. Either you want me to reaffirm that the agreement still stands, you want me to chase you, or you’re looking for validation. Maybe you’re bored and playing games, or maybe… someone else is involved.”

Her eyes widened. “What do you mean, someone else?”

“Either it’s another guy you’re tempted by,” he said evenly, “or it's a jealous woman whispering things in your ear. Either way, this is more about you testing yourself, but you’re expecting me to act like I’m the one being tested.”

She shook her head, struggling to form a coherent reply.

He continued, “Look, I’m not like a boy who’ll jump at the chance to play these games. Men respond differently. We know our worth. If you're unstable, I’ll write you off unless you make the effort to show me that you’ve resolved this inside yourself.”

She bit her lip, listening.

“So either you come here, show me you’re serious, and prove that I’m your priority… or stop wasting both our time and take your confusion somewhere else. It’s black and white.”

Her voice wavered as she spoke. “You’ve upset me now. I want you to tell me you can’t live without me.”

“But I can live without you,” he said, looking her directly in the eyes. “It doesn’t mean I don’t care about you or that I wasn’t planning a future with you. But all this, all this drama—it’s coming from you. Now, you’re telling me I’ve upset you? And you expect me to apologize for something I haven’t even done? That’s instability.”

Tears welled in her eyes. “I need you to stabilize me.”

“So you need me,” he said slowly, “but instead of admitting that, you want me to need you. You think that'll make you feel better?”

She was silent, unsure how to respond.

He softened his tone, realizing how tense things had become. “Look, I know this isn’t easy for you. I’m not trying to make it sound like I don’t care or that I’m above all of this. I just need things to make sense.”

Her lips trembled, and she blinked back tears. “It’s not that simple for me. I can’t just break everything down into logic and make it fit neatly into boxes.”

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I know, and I’m not asking you to. But emotions… they can be chaotic. They pull you in all directions. I can’t follow you if you’re constantly changing what you feel and expect from me.”

“I’m not trying to change things,” she said, her voice trembling but steady. “I just—sometimes I get scared. Scared that you don’t need me the way I need you.”

He stepped closer, his eyes softening. “Needing each other doesn't mean we have to lose ourselves, though. You need stability, I get that. But if you’re constantly testing me or looking for reassurance, it’s exhausting. I want to be here for you, but not by chasing after whatever fear pops into your head.”

She hesitated, looking down. “It’s not like I want to feel this way. It’s like… I know you care. I know you do. But sometimes, I get caught up in my own mind. I feel distant, and then I wonder if it’s because you’re pulling away.”

He reached out, gently lifting her chin so she could meet his gaze. “You have to trust me. If I’m here, I’m here. But if every time you’re feeling insecure, you pull me into this storm… it makes it harder for me to stay.”

“I’m not trying to push you away,” she whispered. “I just… I need to feel like you’re in this with me. That when I fall apart, you won’t just write me off as ‘unstable.’”

He frowned, his thumb brushing her cheek. “I’m not trying to dismiss you. I just want us to meet halfway. I need you to communicate with me, but in a way I can understand. If you’re upset, tell me. If you’re scared, talk to me. I don’t need you to be perfect or have all the answers, but I need honesty. Don’t make me guess.”

Her eyes softened, and she nodded slightly. “I’ll try. I don’t always know how to explain what I’m feeling. Sometimes I’m overwhelmed, and I don’t know how to reach out without making it worse.”

He took a breath, then pulled her into a gentle embrace. “I’m not going anywhere. I’m with you. But if we’re going to make this work, we both have to be willing to understand each other. You can be emotional, and I can be logical. Neither is wrong, but we need balance.”

She relaxed in his arms, her head resting against his chest. “I do want to understand you better. I just don’t want to lose you while I figure myself out.”

“You won’t,” he said quietly. “But we can’t let this push us apart. We’ll figure it out, together.”

The room felt smaller now, quieter. They stood there in each other’s arms for a long moment, both trying to find the right way forward. Finally, he stepped back, his hands still resting on her shoulders. 

“We both want this,” he said softly. “So let’s figure it out.”

She looked up at him, her eyes still glassy but calmer now. “How do we start? I don’t want to keep having the same fight.”

He nodded, thinking. “Alright. Let’s try this. Whenever you’re feeling distant or insecure, instead of pulling away or making me guess, just say it. Even if you don’t have all the words for it, let me know what’s going on in your head.”

Her lips curved into a small smile. “You really want me to just dump my messy emotions on you?”

He chuckled. “Yes, I’d rather deal with the mess in the open than try to decode the silence.”

She took a breath, then exhaled slowly. “Okay. I’ll try. But… you have to promise me something too.”

“Anything,” he said, looking at her intently.

“When I get overwhelmed, I need you to be patient with me. Even if it doesn’t make sense at first. Just… be there, and don’t pull back because it feels like too much.”

He nodded, his hands gently squeezing her shoulders. “I can do that. I’m not pulling back—I’m right here. But I need you to trust that, even when you’re feeling lost in your own head.”

She smiled more fully this time, her fingers brushing against his arm. “Okay. We’re in this together.”

“Exactly,” he agreed. “And if I do something that makes you feel off, tell me. Don't wait until it builds up. If I know what’s going on, I can do something about it.”

She sighed in relief, leaning into him again. “I can do that. I want to.”

He wrapped his arms around her again, pulling her closer. “And I’ll make sure I’m not just trying to solve everything with logic. If you need me to just listen, I’ll listen. Not everything needs to be fixed.”

She laughed lightly, burying her face in his chest. “That would help. Sometimes, I just need to feel heard.”

“I’m learning,” he said with a soft smile. “We’ll get better at this. Step by step.”

She tilted her head up, her eyes searching his face. “I know we will. I feel like… this is the first real conversation we’ve had in a long time.”

He nodded, brushing a stray hair from her face. “Because we’re actually talking. No guessing games, no defenses. Just being honest.”

She smiled, the warmth of it reaching her eyes this time. “That’s all I’ve wanted.”

He leaned down, pressing a gentle kiss to her forehead. “Me too.”

They stood like that for a moment, breathing together, feeling the tension finally begin to ease. The quiet between them was no longer filled with doubt, but with something else—something steadier.

“So,” he said after a while, “where do we go from here?”

She pulled back just enough to look up at him. “We keep doing this. Talking, being real with each other. And when things get tough, we don’t run. We work through it.”

He smiled, his heart lighter than it had been in days. “Deal.”

She laughed softly, wrapping her arms around his waist. “Deal.”

As they stood there, holding each other, the path ahead felt clearer. It wouldn’t be perfect, and there would be more rough patches to come, but they both knew they were in it for the long haul—together, figuring it out step by step.