Moving the conversation from the dating app to Instagram is always an exhilarating step. We’re now thinking thoughts like “Will s/he like my Instagram?”, “We both know we went silent because we’re stalking each other, do I need to like a few photos?”, “I should probably delete my 2012 low-waist-jeans phase photos”. After the initial investigation of this person’s Instagram has concluded, what follows is an expectation to flirt, to keep things interesting. When you’re tired of thinking of a witty response to “Nothing much, chilling,” a meme might end up being your knight in shining armor. A flirty meme will say all you want to, without you really having to say anything. “Back in our day, we had to call our partners on the landline and hope their parents didn’t pick up.” Step aside, old man. Now we flirt with pictures of SpongeBob with a few cute yet absurd lines spewed across the image. Let’s take a look at the situations in which a meme is usually the perfect answer, and a few flirting memes to get you started.
When Gen-Z Opts To Flirt With Memes
Memes make people laugh, bring people together and in this case, get the flirty text messages going. Okay, the person you’re texting won’t immediately take their shirt off because you sent them a steamy meme, but it’ll definitely get you out of the “wyd?” rabbit hole. Plus, how this person responds to a meme can tell you a lot about them as well. Are they up-to-date on the ever-important meme trends or are they still stuck in the Suez Canal just like that Ever Given ship? Let’s take a look at when a picture of Drake can do what you’re too shy to: get you a date. Thanks, Drake!
1. When you’re trying to get answers without making it look obvious
Ever been in one of those situations when midway into the conversation, you’re actually flirting with a friend you never really thought you would? What’s more baffling is when it happens a couple of more times. But wait, does this person really want something from you or are they just messing about? Is s/he looking for a relationship? Or you’re not sure if the person you matched with and started talking to is even looking for a relationship? And you can’t just straight up ask them, right? That’s just creepy. Much like the dating apps when you’re looking for validation, memes will come to your rescue. Send a meme that talks about relationships, strike a conversation about it, and get the ball rolling.
2. When you’re not sure if you can turn the heat up
Imagine this: you’ve been on a third date with someone, the conversations are flowing and you feel like you’ve found someone you can “go with the flow” with. But things just haven’t gotten sexual yet, and you’re both playing chicken when it comes to who’s going to make the first move. If you send across memes for flirting in this scenario, it’s basically a win-win situation. You bring the topic up without sounding like you were waiting to do so. Make it seem like you just happened to come across this meme right this instant and thought you should send it over. Simple.
3. When you’re trying to shoot your shot
“Just ask him/her out! It’s not too hard. What’s the worst that can happen?” is like saying, “Don’t be sad, just go outside!” to someone who’s depressed. At least in your mind, asking out someone you like is a life or death situation. Your flirting memes don’t abruptly have to ask this person out, you could just try and send them a cute meme to test the waters. If they don’t respond favorably, however, maybe try and numb the pain with more memes. It always works.
4. When you want to be funny
The pressure to be funny on a dating app is real, and it gets worse as the conversation goes on. Watching a conversation with someone you like die down because the responses weren’t engaging enough is like watching a cookie drowning in a glass of milk. Oh, what could’ve been. Memes are a great way to be funny. If you have no soul, you could even go ahead and claim you made a random meme you saw on the internet. Just don’t do that too often, you don’t want to end up Googling “Gen X memes funny” every hour to plagiarise some more.
5. When you can’t think of anything to say
No matter how strong the connection is, no matter how well you two get along, there will definitely come a time when you have to face the boring old “wyd?”. Don’t fret, it’s not the end of the world. Swipe away from the DMs, scroll your “discover” page for a bit and send across a few memes. You’ll make this person laugh and you’ll get to know more about the kind of humor they have as well. Don’t go about Googling “flirting memes for him” or “using flirty memes to make her say yes” just yet, though. Memes are not something you can rely on to seal the deal. Think of memes like a wingman. They’ll get the ball rolling, but you’re the one who’s going to have to put it in the back of the net.
