Justin Bieber really, really wants Selena Gomez back, and he’s not afraid to let all 14.5m of his Instagram followers know it. The purple-hoodied one just posted a shot of his ex on his Instagram feed, captioning it, ‘Most elegant princess in the world.’ Clearly he’s sending a message to his former Disney princess: he loves her. He doesn’t care who knows it. He will never love anyone like he loves her. He’s desperate.
We would say it’s sweet, if only it wasn’t quite so sad. But, of course, we’re all guilty of a little subliminal messaging via social media, and the rest. Here are some of the most common (and very transparent) ways. You’re not fooling anyone, Lil’ Miss Subtle.
**The ‘deep and meaningful phrase’ Instagram or tweet
**This aphorism will usually say something like, ‘Stop trying to repair your heart by giving it back to the hands that broke it,’ or, ‘Spend your time on those who love you unconditionally. Don’t waste it on those that only love you when conditions are right for them.’ These deep, innermost feelings are almost a bit cheapened when they’re a) using words you’ve borrowed or regrammed, and b) telling everyone who follows you. Take the time to talk it over with a friend.
**Overdoing the ‘I’m having SO MUCH FUN’ selfies and tweets
**If you really are loving life and having the BEST NIGHT EVER, you wouldn’t really be thinking about putting ten pics of one evening on a social media feed. Also, it’s better to let someone miss you – so in this case being mysterious is the way to go. Less is more, people.
**You Instagram a picture of the hot guy/girl you’re hanging out with **
Even if it’s just a friend, your ex doesn’t know that! Sure, they’re about as interesting as watching paint dry, but they’re super-photogenic. Sometimes you may also Instagram someone your ex was slightly jealous of when you were a couple. That’s a knife in the heart, right there. But if they dumped you, they're not going to call you to beg for you back over photos like that. Just FYI.
**You look at what they’re liking on Instagram
**If you are still following your ex, you check the ‘following’ feed to see what they are liking. If they’re liking and commenting on a new person's feed, you'll get paranoid that it's their new crush. This is why unfollowing can be a blessing. You do not need to know if they are crushing on someone new, and unfollowing means you never have to find out.
**You check to see if they start following new people
**If they suddenly start following a new person on social media, it’s quite annoying because if that person reciprocates, they can now privately message one another with photos and there is no telling where this will send your imagination. Put that phone down!
Pictures: Getty and Instagram
This article originally appeared on The Debrief.