What Happens When A Workplace Crush Goes Wrong?

"You know what, let's talk about relationships." So, what's going on with you? "Nothing" - the iconic Monica-Rachel conversation.

In the world of people finding their soulmates at workplaces, posting their cute little stories of their romantic relationship being the manager and the employee or the infectious joy of catching a crush's eye, not everyone sails in the same boat. Contrasting these widely shared romantic tales are those who have endured an awkward or cringe-worthy moment with their crush, who was once their daily motivation to spend an extra 15 minutes perfecting their outfit, only to become an unwelcome, recurring source of frustration. 

If that one office romance that gave you butterflies is now giving you the "ick," you are not alone! SheThePeople spoke to some Indian women to hear their stories of workplace crushes that turned sour. Here's what they had to say.

AWKWARD...

"I had a crush on my colleague once. Nothing ever happened, but they found out (another embarrassing story) and started keeping a distance. It was really awkward," Anu Dixit shared.

The story of the secret spouse

Raghvee T has one such story. “One of my colleagues from a different branch DMed me, and we started texting a lot, and it was pretty obvious it wasn't just platonic. Then, suddenly, they went silent for a few days out of nowhere. I was confused. Then they texted back after a few days, saying their spouse found out, so we have to stop talking. I didn't even know they were married!”

That workplace philanderer

Shweta (name changed for anonymity) had a similar tricky experience. "One time I started talking to my senior at my new job, thinking it's so cool that I pulled an older guy. Things moved fast with him, and we confessed our feelings. Later, I got to know he had been talking like that to many younger women who were new to the team. He resigned when he realised we girls found out."

The ‘Channa Mereya’ moment 

“There was a particular guy in the office whom I had a crush on, and who had become an increasingly eye-pleasing motivation for me. I later had to realise, however, that he had already made a completely new girlfriend, proceeded to get quickly married to her, and eventually just left the job entirely, taking my motivation with him,” said Janvi, hilariously (name changed for anonymity).

These kinds of stories always let you burst into laughter when you hear them, but experiencing them yourself can really break your heart because you get pulled into a completely fake world, a delusion, and then you only wake up to realise they were just living their own separate dream. But, don't let all those perfect 'love at first sight' tales get you down. 

You're the main character in this office drama, so whatever you do, never reply to a relationship red flag message with, 'See you soon, sweetie' (might be cc to 10 others!)

Views expressed by the author are their own.