What to know
- From bold public shoutouts to secret gym eye-tag games, Torontonians open up about who they’re crushing on right now ahead of Valentine’s Day.
- This edition of This Is Dating Now hits Sankofa Square and TMU, where singles and couples alike spill on cursed Valentines, first-ever crushes, and long games that finally paid off.
- Whether it’s naming names or keeping it low-key, the city proves that having a crush doesn’t stop once you’re cuffed—it just evolves.
With Valentine’s Day around the corner, some Torontonians are cuffed, while others are still daydreaming about their crush.
Everywhere around you are stores advertising lovey-dovey products, couples walking hand-in-hand, and the continuous reminder that you’re single. But love takes place at its own pace, and while not everyone has a Valentine’s date, some still have their eye set on a special someone.
For this edition of This Is Dating Now, Now Toronto hit up Sankofa Square and Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) with a sign reading “Tell us about your crush,” to hear all about who Torontonians are feeling right now ahead of the season of love.
TMU student Abbie shares all the details about her crush’s appearance, all the way to the little things like her “eyes that kind of crinkle at the corners” when they’re talking together. With what we can guess is a bad history of dating, she believes Valentine’s Day is cursed. So this time, she’s starting a new tradition, with plans to visit Vancouver and celebrate the Lunar New Year with her crush instead.
To make it even more special, she shouts out her crush on Now Toronto’s social media: “Hi Brinna, what’s up.”
But another resident, Lina, isn’t as courageous to name-drop her crush; in fact, she doesn’t even know his name.
“My crush and I kinda play eye-tag… Every time I go [to the gym], and I see him, I’m like ‘Oh my gosh, I can’t believe he’s looking at me.’”
We love a gym crush, but sometimes it’s so intimidating to go up to someone.
Richelina, however, has already confessed her crush to her crush. “We’re going out on Valentine’s Day, hopefully, yay,” she shares shyly. “This is my first crush ever.”
Of course, having a crush doesn’t have to end when you start dating—sometimes, you just keep crushing on your significant other. That’s what happened when two guys saw our sign and came over to talk about their girlfriends.
Evan shares that “She makes me at a loss for words,” and has set himself a deadline to ask her out today.
Adam explains his crush goes back all the way to high school. “I liked her since Grade 9, and then she didn’t like me; she didn’t talk to me. And then after a few years, I joined all the clubs she joined, did every event she did. Eventually, we started hanging out a little bit, and now she’s my girlfriend.,” he smiled, but admitted he still has to figure out his Valentine’s Day plans.
From confessing to a crush to hopeless romantics and full-on relationships, Torontonians have crushes all around.
Got a dating story for us? We want to hear it! Send your experiences to news@nowtoronto.com for a chance to be featured in a future edition of This Is Dating Now.
