I used to believe in dark romance.
The kind of love that was possessive, intense, even painful.
The kind that made you think, “He loves me too much — that’s why he gets angry.”
But that wasn’t love. That was control.
I used to mistake jealousy for care, silence for mystery, and pain for passion.
Until one day, I realized love shouldn’t hurt this much.
I was walking on eggshells, apologizing for things I didn’t do, I thought the boy live nextdoor to me was gentle and decent but he's a monster, I still get nightmares about those possessiveness, I'm totally traumatized by everything recently , I don't know how to deal with my nightmares. I just want to forget my trauma.
That’s not love.
That’s fear.
As a victim of the same “dark romance” so many girls romanticize.
But now I speak up because I don’t want anyone to confuse abuse with affection.
Real love doesn’t cage you — it lets you breathe.
Real love isn’t dark — it’s safe, gentle, and freeing.
If you’re reading this and it feels familiar, please remember —
you deserve peace, not pain. You deserve love, not survival. Just face the reality don't fantasize those dark things they are worse in real life.