Just Being Italian?
Recently, a Southern Italian friend(m) told me that he and his best friend(f) hug each other a lot. But he avoids doing it in front of her boyfriend, out of "respect."
From my perspective, that reads as sneaky. If it's truly innocent, why hide it?
Personally, I(f) also have close male friends and treat them like homies. My behavior around my opposite-sex friends stays exactly the same whether or not my boyfriend is there, because I won't do anything behind his back that I wouldn't do in front of him.
But his point of view is: friends are just friends, and toning it down around a partner is simply being considerate, not deceptive.
So where do you draw the line? Are they being sneaky, or respectful? Where do you land on this?
For those from Southern Italy—where is the line between friendly physical affection and something more? It's so confusing from the outside!