“We aren’t dating, just talking,” is an all too common phrase that is said today. It seems that the days of dating have been replaced with a more popular and efficient method of interaction, talking. However, this trend isn’t just communicating words with one another. According to Urban Dictionary, it is “when two people are not exclusive with each other nor have established what they are as a couple, but have some sort of relationship.” The question everyone wants to know is what does the “some sort of relationship” component entail and what do the unspoken rules of talking reveal about the generation of millennials.

For some, talking is clear, simple and quite ironic as it actually has little to do with speaking. It is instead defined more along the lines of “friends with benefits,” i.e. having consistent sexual intercourse. For others, it is the phase that occurs before the official label of “boyfriend and girlfriend” is established. Either way, millennials are undeniably avoiding classifying their relationships. This in part may be because young adults today are more concerned with the illusion of having a relationship, rather than actually being in one.

All too often millennials are accused of being entitled. Is there truth in this accusation when evaluating their non-existent relationships? Do the youth of today feel like love is a given and that talking is just something to pass the time until they are ready to settle down?

It seems that the work millennials exert nowadays is simply focused on the here and now, as opposed to the future. Long-term relationships can be intimidating and for college students maintaining one is becoming less of a priority. Instead, young adults are focusing on excelling in their academics and attaining top-notch internships and jobs.

Which is great, until they realize they are lonely—leading them back to talking to someone and thereby receiving only immediate pleasure.

Well, that is until boredom strikes. But fear not, as millennials have other people to “cushion” a falling out when talking fails to suffice.

According to Urban Dictionary cushioning is “a dating technique where along with your main piece you also have several ‘cushions,’ other people you'll chat and flirt with to cushion the potential blow of your main break-up and not leave you alone.” While this appears superficial, it reveals that millennials really are just lonely and unsure how to properly date. Instead of focusing on developing a long and healthy relationship with one person, the newest trend is having a few options, though one person normally precedes the rest, thus ensuring he or she never feels alone if things suddenly end with their first choice.

Miillennials are known for using artificial terms to avoid seriousness and potential heartache. Ghosting is yet another term, where one person gradually stops responding to another’s calls and texts until eventually communication ceases to exist. And if you thought that was bad, bread crumbing is even crueler. It is the act of knowingly leading someone on, giving him or her hope that they have a chance to date you, even though you aren’t actually interested in them.

It all comes down to selfishness. Most people abide by the mentality that they are given a life on this earth for themselves to live. Finding a significant other just isn't as much of priority anymore, a fact which can be applauded to a certain degree.

While the majority of millennials aren’t malicious people, there are many who just believe that they have to be well established in their careers before committing to a serious relationship. Is it possible for one to excel in both work life and simultaneously personal life? Will talking ever cease to exist and if so what will it be replaced with?

Millennials are the generation that abandoned true and heartaching love—a bold statement perhaps, but one that undeniably holds truth.