Bet on a guy you can talk to.

We’re told to expect so many things – a guy who kisses you on the forehead or a guy who tells you how beautiful you are or a guy who calls you honey in front of his friends. But those things are so arbitrary. They’re easy to do in the beginning. They don’t mean anything if you don’t find a person who also makes you feel accepted and truly cared about and more understood than you’ve ever felt in your life.

A kiss on the forehead, a remark about your beauty – these things are sweet, but they’re also over in an instant. They don’t necessarily correlate to longevity, and commitment, and to somebody who’s going to be standing next to you when things get really ugly or stressful or depressing. These aren’t the things that tell you it’s going to last.

So bet on a guy you can talk to. Bet on a guy who makes you feel comfortable enough to open up about your darkest thoughts, your biggest worries, your greatest shames, your most fragile insecurities. Bet on a guy who makes you feel lighter for sharing these things with him – not more unsafe or more in danger of being unloved because of your imperfections.

Bet on a guy who shows you new parts of yourself. A guy who makes you feel so loved for the person that you are and yet also makes you excited to try new things, to take new risks, to continue running on the path towards becoming the person you want to be.

Bet on a guy who feels like a partner. Someone who stands next to you through everything – the wonderful things, and even more so, the horrible things. Bet on the guy who shares everything with you and the guy you share everything with, too. The guy who looks to you for advice and who’s just as helpful and supportive when you need advice back.

Bet on a guy who looks at you in a way that makes you feel so seen and so present and so real.

Bet on a guy who encourages you, who believes in you, who trusts you, who looks up to you, who inspires you just as much as you inspire him.

Bet on a guy who stands by you when you fail but refuses to ever let you settle for less than your true potential – the guy who pushes you to keep taking risks and the guy who challenges you and encourages you to keep getting back up, because he believes in you so much.

Bet on a guy who makes you feel okay with the fact that love is always a gamble, because if you have to take this leap with somebody, you couldn’t imagine taking it with anyone more incredible than him.

Bet on a guy like that, and it will be the best risk you’ll ever take.