People come in to your life and people leave. We all have those who weren't technically labeled but are still significant enough to be an ex-something. Here are some types of ex's you'll have in your life.
The Ex-Boyfriend: Okay well...duh. The ex-boyfriend is the most common use of the term "ex". When someone says "oh yeah he's my ex" most people assume they mean boyfriend. Ex-boyfriends are hard because it means at some point he was important enough to be called boyfriend. Thankfully, I have yet to have one of these on my campus, but when I'm home the mere thought of running in to him puts me in an anxious state. So I can only imagine how hard it would be to have an ex-boyfriend wandering around your own campus. If you've managed to stay friends, power to ya for succeeding where many have failed! If not and you run in to them, try to be polite at least. He was an important part of your life at one point and probably knows a LOT about you. Smile, have the meaningless small talk at the very least, don't let him see you're nervous, and continue on.
The Ex-Friend: Ex's don't always have to be a previous romantic/sexual relationship. A friend has as big an impact, if not larger, on your life than most. There may not be a specific reason the two of you aren't friends anymore, life happens, people move and change and grow, and sometimes it just becomes too hard to stay friends. Sometimes though, a friendship becomes toxic and you need to leave them behind. For anyone that's ever had to do this you know how hard it can be because when you look back they were a part of so many things in your life. Don't let the fact that you're not friends anymore ruin the memories you had with them. You had good times and they were there for you when it was good for you, but now you're in different places and that's not a bad thing.
The Ex-Undefined but Significant: This is a tough one ladies (and gents). We've all been there, usually referred to as "oh we're like having a thing I guess?". This is more than booty calls and constant hook ups, but not quite a relationship. This is very hard territory to be in. Usually one of you wants it to be "official" and you're too afraid to ask but there's some kind of mutual understanding that there are feelings involved. Or you think there's a mutual understanding but then something changes, hence why they are now "ex".
The Ex-Booty Call: Whether you were his booty call or he was yours, sometimes this is just awkward. It wasn't insignificant enough that you can just pretend you don't know who the other was, but not significant enough to bring up (unless there were feelings involved but then I'd see above to "The Ex-Undefined but Significant"). If you see them around campus, give them a small smile and a wave maybe, or don't. It's all up to you and how it ended.
