I've been dating my boyfriend since October 6th and I love him. Truly. I tell him time to time, but he never says it back. He acts like he loves me though. He'll be sweet to me. He'll help me when I'm down. He makes me laugh. He's like a true best friend to me...but he never tells me he loves me. Does he? I mean he's had a really rough past with bullying and family issues so I think that's what might be affecting it. But I'm getting scared that he'll never tell me he loves me. What should I do?
If he never says it back when you say, "I love you," then he's probably not at the same emotional place as you yet. This is not a bad thing and does not mean that he'll never be able to love you. On the contrary, everything you've told us indicates that he cares for you deeply. So be patient with him. Don't make him feel guilty for not saying it back and don't hold it against him that his emotions aren't as strong as yours yet. Especially if he's had a troubled past, it might be very difficult for him to trust someone to that extent after such a short period of time (2 and a half months is, after all, not that much time in the grand scheme of things). Just keep doing what you're doing: be kind to him, keep loving him, and let him move at his own pace If this really starts to bother you, talk to him about it, and then you two can proceed from there however you think is best.
