You Need to Be This in Order to Be With Me

Not unafraid of life or the uncertainties it throws at you, but unafraid to face the raw, vulnerable, and sometimes chaotic parts of me. I don’t want perfection or someone with all the answer. I need someone who can’t flinch when I expose the cracks in my soul. I need someone who can stand in the mess, in the noise, in the silence that sometimes drowns me, and still choose to stay.

I need you to be present. To be there, not just in the moments of laughter or adventure, but in the stillness, in the everyday moments that often get overlooked. I want you to see me not only when I’m strong, but when I’m breaking, and not see it as something that needs fixing, but something that just needs holding. I don’t need a savior — I need a partner.

I need you to be honest, brutally so, even when the truth stings. Because I’ve been through enough false promises and half-truths to know that lies, even the small ones, unravel everything eventually. Be the one who speaks with integrity, who shows up their heart on their sleeve, even when it’s easier to hide behind walls. I want someone who values realness over appearances.

But more than anything, I need you to be open — to growth, to change, to the journey that love takes us on. I’m not stagnant, and I won’t ever be. I’m constantly evolving, learning, unlearning. I need you to evolve with me, not be afraid of the shifting tides but to dive into them with me, even when we can’t see the shore.

You need to be this in order to be with me — whole on your own. I’m not looking to complete someone, nor am I asking to be completed. I need someone who knows who they are, who is comfortable in their own skin, who isn’t looking for validation in me but rather shares in the freedom that comes from two individuals who have themselves first.

Because, at the end of the day, that’s what I want: two whole souls standing side by side, not needing each other to survive, but choosing each other to thrive.

So, you need to be brave enough to love fully, strong enough to stand firm, and soft enough to understand that love doesn’t ask for perfection — just presence.

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This post was previously published on medium.com.

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