Don’t lie to me in order to protect me, to spare my feelings, to make me feel better. I would rather know the harsh truth than be babied by you. I’m an adult. I can handle myself. If you have something to say to me, you can say it. You don’t have to treat me like I’m fragile. Treat me as an equal.

Don’t lie to me in order to keep the peace. I’m not a mind reader. I’m not good at guessing games. Nothing is going to change unless you tell me what’s bothering you. I want you to be open and honest about your feelings so we can work on our problems and grow as a couple. When you’re annoyed with me, spell out why instead of lying about being fine.

Don’t lie to me in order to save your own ass. I don’t want to date someone perfect — but I do want to date someone mature enough to admit when they were wrong. If you have to hide what you’ve done from me, then you know it was bad. You know you shouldn’t have done it. The least you can do is apologize. Own your shit. Look me in the eyes and say sorry because that takes more courage and emotional intelligence than coming up with excuses.

Don’t lie to me in order to impress me. I don’t want to hear about how you love all the same bands as me or how you make six digits on your paycheck. I want to know the raw, unfiltered you. I don’t want a relationship build on lies. I want you to be honest with me from the start. I don’t want you to be embarrassed about who you are. I don’t want you to feel like you have to put up a front in order to get my attention. Be real with me. Be transparent with me.

Don’t lie to me in order to string me along — because you’re going to get caught. You’re not going to get anything passed me. I’m good at finding holes in stories. I’m good at recognizing when things don’t add up. If you are lying straight to my face, it’s only a matter of time until those lies get unraveled.

Lying is the worst thing you can do to me. It’s going to shake my faith in you. It’s going to make me doubt every word that comes out of your mouth. If you lie to me once, I’m never going to be able to trust you again — and I can’t date someone unless I trust them completely. I can’t date someone unless I know they are being honest with me about everything, even the awkward things, even the uncomfortable things.

I’m not going to settle for someone who is able to look me in the eyes and lie to me. I’m looking for someone who is loyal, someone who is sincere, someone I can count on to tell me the truth, no matter what.