True Love Defined By Oranges
Is tricking your partner with fruit a reliable way to vibe check the relationship? TikTok seems to think so.
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It’s a Tuesday night, and I’ve just got home from a long day of work. After opting out of cooking and ordering take out instead, I decided to spend my time mindlessly scrolling through TikTok as I wait for my food. I scrolled through the typical content creators I always see doing the typical things they always do — OOTDs, GRWMs, day in the life, funny things, etc. But, all of a sudden, I was scrolling past multiple videos with a common theme — women asking their partners for oranges.
Weird, right? I mean, I know TikTok loves a trend, but this was so random to me. Before I knew it, my algorithm was flooded with the #orangepeeltheory.
It was TikTok’s most popular hashtag. With over 47 million views to date, the viral phenomenon was a test to gauge the strength of their relationship. The rules were simple — ask your partner for an orange. If they bring it back to you peeled, they’re in love with you. If not, it may suggest that they would be unwilling to help you through life’s larger challenges.
I thought it was a very stupid test. There is no way that you can base someone’s level of support and commitment to you through their decision of whether or not to peel an orange for you. Relationships are so much more complex than that! Their strength should be judged on the more fundamental elements like communication, trust, respect and loyalty.
While I could judge this theory all day long, of course I was still curious about it. So, I asked my boyfriend for an orange. I wasn’t questioning my boyfriend’s love for me; I was just curious if he would peel it or not.
We didn’t have one.
But, now that I think about it — does it count when I ask for a banana? Because those never come back peeled.