When you hang out with your best friend, you might curl up on the couch, talk about your deepest, darkest secrets, and let your guard down as you laugh, cry, and vent. You’ll feel incredibly comfortable, loved, and seen, but according to TikTok, you probably won’t bother to hug.
The theory that “best friends never hug” has been making the rounds on the platform since 2022, when a creator speculated that friends who never hug are often closer for longer than friends who hug all the time because it means they don’t overstep each other's boundaries. When you think about it, you might not be entangled in a hug all the time because true BFFs frequently have strong sibling energy. Who knows, your best friend might show up and settle in without even saying hello. You probably see each other frequently as well, so there's probably less of a need for a reunion-style squeeze.
Meanwhile, think about how often you’ve side-hugged lesser friends, sheepishly embraced an acquaintance, or overcompensated for awkwardness by reaching out your arms. Hint: It’s probably more times than you can count. That is because you are less invested in whether or not you are actively crossing someone's boundaries. Of course, this theory is just a theory, but it has two camps: the people who 100% agree that best friends never hug and those who think the idea is completely ludicrous.
This has sparked major debates on the app, one anti-hugger commented, “I gave my best friend of nearly 10 years a parting side hug at her birthday party and was like, ‘idk why i did that.’ We talk about our deepest traumas and yet we cannot have any physical affection.” As if to support the no-hug theory, someone else wrote, “[my friend and I] hugged all the time, and now we don’t talk.”
I feel the same way I think when you reach a certain level of closeness, you tend to not worry too much about physically showing your loyalty and devotion. It's almost like "showing off" to me. Do you agree? Let us know by DM'ing us @YMSRadio!