Crushes on fictional characters

[Ekaterina]

Couldn't find a topic on that, but wanted to ask both allos and aros who experience crushes on fictional characters: how do you experience it? I'd need help to be able to determine better if the thing I experience and call crushes is that indeed. 

[lovelyleaf]

sometimes i wish that they were real because i think they're really sweet and that them and i would go well together. lately i just imagine scenarios with them until i get bored of my very limited and not creative imagination. 

[smac n cheese]

idk, I just see a fictional character and I'm like "YOU'RE JUST LIKE ME BE MY FRIEND" and I can find them cute but not in a romantic way

[Ekaterina]

Thank you for the replies! 

3 hours ago, smac n cheese said:

idk, I just see a fictional character and I'm like "YOU'RE JUST LIKE ME BE MY FRIEND" and I can find them cute but not in a romantic way

Well this I do know, but in addition to having characters I relate to and characters I find cute, there also are characters about whom I feel... this thing. 

6 hours ago, lovelyleaf said:

sometimes i wish that they were real because i think they're really sweet and that them and i would go well together. lately i just imagine scenarios with them until i get bored of my very limited and not creative imagination. 

I don't necessarily think they would go well together with me, I don't necessarily even think about it, but I do imagine all kinds of scenarios about them, not romantic per se, but just all kinds of stuff often including some brand of hurt/comfort if it's a tragic character, and just unrestrained fun if it's a fun character, and both if they're somehow both, but either way thinking about them causes a physically pleasant sensation, a stupid smile, and agitation, sometimes to the point I would avoid mentioning their name aloud because I'd have a weird emotional reaction that would give my "crush" away; and it's a thing when I'm very sensitive for potential mockery.

I also sometimes imagine in these cases portraying this character, in text game/roleplay or even on stage (I'm not a stage performer, not even an amateur one, but I often fantasize about playing as characters I like, not only the "crush" ones but other types of liked characters too, I think these are probably their own category).

Also the characters I "crush" on I do find visually pleasing even if not handsome/beautiful, I'd draw them (I draw much more characters then just them, but these I sometimes get fixated on drawing), and if the story doesn't have a set visual (being a book or opera) I'd fixate on designing and redesigning this character and be picky about it, and very picky on actors portraying them in adaptations/stagings, but also hunt all possible visualizations of them (live-acted or illustrations) I can find.

Edited March 2 by Ekaterina

[lovelyleaf]

7 hours ago, Ekaterina said:

including some brand of hurt/comfort

i don't think about it but that's nearly all of what i imagine lol. 

[Mult]

I'm neither romantic or sexual and I don't crush on characters, so I can't answer this question, but growing up I found this confusing as well.

I really could not understand why kids would get possessive over and be so interested in fictional characters. I could never understand the existence of character/person content like people drawing their personas with the characters in a romantic way or people writing fanfiction about characters where the person reading it is involved in the story and involved with a character romantically.

It was just very bizarre to me. I could understand people "shipping" characters with each other as there's a competitive aspect to that where people would get very defensive over fictional relationships, but inserting oneself into fiction wasn't something that I understood.

Now I think it's about fantasizing about a relationship for oneself. They like that character and they want a relationship, so they fantasize about themselves being in a relationship with that character.

I'm probably the one people would consider weird because I actually really enjoy characters rejecting me in videogames and I want more of that. I just really enjoy a character telling me that they just want to be my friend because personally platonic relationships are much more meaningful and important to me, so someone telling me that they don't want romance and just want to be friends is literally the best thing ever. This is most likely tied to how I hated being confessed to and still hate dealing with someone's unrequited romantic/sexual feelings for me.

The whole reason I played Undertale was because my twin was playing it and she chose the flirt option with Papyrus as a joke which resulted in an adorable set of events where he clearly didn't understand romance either but determined that he just wanted friendship. I've only seen a similar scenario in the video game Hades where you can romance Dusa as Zagreus but she also determines that she only wants to be friends and she realized that she was idolizing Zagreus rather than actually being in love with him romantically. I haven't actually been able to get to that point in the game but eventually I want to play through that scenario. So I will pursue romantic options with fictional characters in videogames to get rejected. 

So I suppose romantic interest in fictional character is like a role-play of sorts. An avenue for fantasizing about something one wants.

[Nagito]

I'm strict aromantic and I do have fictional crushes, three at the moment with one being my main "fictional other" (and he's literally the worst villain in the whole franchise). I don't wish any of them being real, or anything like that, because I'm repulsed by the idea of being in a romantic relationship for real. I'm into them, because they are fictional.

[Guest Myrt]

I have been in love with a man who cannot show romance, no mush, lovey dovey stuff

 He swears he lives me and has some actions that he tries to show mebwith. I apologize, I'm not sure this is where I should see info, but wanted to try.

Anyone have input for me