Those Three Words
Let it come natural.
The timing of these three words is pretty important. The key moment is whenever it feels natural. Don't give into the pressure of saying it early. Everyone believes you have to say "I love you" in the relationship, but in reality, it takes a while for you to even consider what love really is. Whenever it feels like the feelings are true, and not just what the idea of those feelings are, but when those feelings feel real, it is the right time. You don't need fireworks or a rose pedal cannon, all you need for the perfect moment is for it to be completely natural.
Find a word in between.
When you're in a relationship, you obviously like the person a lot. You may not love them but the word like doesn't seem strong enough. Find your own phrase or word that means I like you a lot and I'm on my way to loving you. Creating a word for just the two of you to share means so much, can make sharing your feelings even more special. Parker and I had one. "You know". We created this because one day we were sitting by ourselves and he told me, "I really like you Piper. A lot." I got scared that he was about to say the three words, so I said "I know." He was like "you know?" I explained how I felt that I really liked him and was on my way to that strong word, but that I wasn't ready yet. He nodded and said "you do know." So this began our little thing. Anytime we would say goodbye or goodnight, he would say "... and well you know." Which I knew exactly what he meant. It made me beyond happy because all our feeling were summed up in that two word phrase and only we knew what it meant. So make a phrase or word that symbolizes all your feelings so that your not tempted to use the love word before your ready.
You don't have to say it back.
When the other person says the 8 letter phrase, you don't have to say it back. They are ready to accept those feelings but you may not. No rush, like I said before let it come natural. If the other person does say it, don't get mad at them for that. They were able to accept it, but don't tell them they are wrong about feeling that way. That will just piss them off. The other person may feel that way, and most likely soon you will too. When Parker first told me, I was definitely not ready. I didn't say it back for a while. If the other person does love you, they won't force you into admitting those feeling until your ready.
Saying those three words can be a lot of pressure. Just remember that you don't have to say it. Sometimes it's better to wait until you feel more comfortable because that's when you know it's true. Find a word that can symbolize somewhere between like and love, because when you're in a relationship, you know you like them a lot but are not sure if you love them. Just be careful with the "I love you" because if you say it too many times in a friendly way, it can lose effect in the serious times.
-Xoxo Piper