@ancrenne
"I think that unrequited love is a weird one. One that requires the lover to behave very well, to respect the feelings of the beloved and not expect them to feel the same or fall into the trap that Kaol suggests."

I'm with you on that.

"If this is hard, I think it's fair for the lover to remove themselves from the beloved"

True that, but if the beloved wants to do the "let's just be friends" thing and the lover removes themselves, the beloved may just think that the lover is only after one thing or doesn't want them as a friend.

"it's not the beloveds fault the lover feels the way they do and they have no duty to deal with those feelings"

But they could at least respect the other person's feelings if they don't want to reciprocate. The best way IMO is to let them know you're taking them seriously and you understand the way they feel. I admit, it is very tough for the beloved. They have to turn the lover down in a way that causes as little pain as possible. They're in a no-win situation because no matter what they do, they'll hurt them the short-term.

"But then I think love is a very strange concept."

Sometimes, I think love has similarities with some mental disorders (especially the mood-swings part).
( mistaspakkaman and the inedible shifting caterpillars, Mon 14 Jul 2008, 1:41, Reply)