At exactly 8:47 PM on a Tuesday, 11-year-old Veronica shuts her math textbook with a decisive thud. She isn’t thinking about fractions or the upcoming science quiz. Instead, she pulls up the blanket on her bed, grabs her tablet, and scrolls past three action movies to land on a teen drama. She knows the plot by heart: The two leads almost kiss in the rain, misinterpret a text message, and finally confess their feelings at a school dance.
She thinks about this "situationship" constantly. She analyzes the timing of his replies. She types out a message, deletes it, and re-types it. She asks her best friend, "What does it mean if he sent a laughing emoji but not the crying laughing emoji?"
For an 11-year-old girl teetering on the precipice between childhood playgrounds and middle school hallways,
Shipping is safe. It allows her to experience the thrill of romance without the terror of rejection. You cannot get your heart broken if you are just hoping that Hermione and Draco get together (even if it doesn't make sense).
Where a 7-year-old sees a couple holding hands and says, "They have germs," Veronica sees a story. She asks herself: How did they get there? Are they nervous? What happens after school?
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