I never really knew where I stood on Hiddleswift. The relationship between Tom Hiddleston and Taylor Swift always kind of confused me.

On one hand, I kind of felt like Tom Hiddleston was Taylor Swift’s rebound and that he deserved better than that. On the other, Tom’s incredibly ridiculous PDA was almost painful to look at. Honestly, they were way too lovey-dovey for my taste. They were sweeter than an entire bag of sugar and it kind of grossed me out.

The good thing is I don’t have to care anymore because they broke up, which I wish I could say made me sad because I’m usually heartbroken over this type of stuff. When I thought Jay-Z and Beyonce were over, I felt like I was grieving the death of a family member. But Hiddleswift never really hooked me in the first place. It always felt suspicious, almost like it was set up.

I’m just going to come right out and say it: Hiddleswift was faked.

The thing is, this is actually a widely believed opinion. In fact, while Hiddleswift was still alive, there was an entire Buzzfeed article on it. Which is expected of them, but the weird thing is, they were right.

Jokes aside, Hiddleswift didn’t have a shred of realness to it.
It was the horrific “I Heart TS” tank top Hiddleston wore.
It was the uncomfortable interview of Hiddleston awkwardly dodging the paparazzi’s questions on his relationship.
It was the fact that their paparazzi photos always looked staged.
Not to mention the entire situation with Calvin Harris, especially Swift’s credit on writing his smash hit “This Is What You Came For,” was still messy as this relationship kicked off.

The question is, why? Was it because Hiddleston’s career is kind of slipping? If that’s true, why did it only last three or so months? You’d think they could negotiate for longer than that. Or was it because with the drama behind Kanye West’s “Famous,” Swift needed something to get the public talking about her without calling her a snake in the same sentence?

When these “alleged” faked relationships happen, and they appear to happen often, there’s never any confirmation. Hiddleswift will forever live in infamy beside Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson and every one of Tom Cruise’s ex-wives. But the fact that they happen, in itself, is commonly discussed by talent agents or people who tried to break into the industry but didn’t make the cut.

Faked relationships are a symbol of Hollywood vanity and the materialism behind the names on the Walk of Fame. They’re attention-seeking, rely on appearances and PR stunts and when people stop talking about them, there’s suddenly a new development. And we all know it’s all fake to an extent, but it doesn’t make it any less acceptable, or any less deceptive.

So why do we actually care? Don’t get me wrong, I love pop culture and celebrity romance, but it’s indulgent. It really doesn’t move our society forward, and in some of the misogynistic commentary on Swift’s dating habits, it really moves us back. This is the reason many don’t take pop culture seriously, and I for one, am kind of sick of it.

I’m not slamming pop culture or those who enjoy these types of fake relationships, without the guilt that I have. You do you. But my personal dissatisfaction is that when we lower our standards to garbage like Hiddleswift, we as a society come off as easily influenced. Honestly, guys, we’re so much smarter than that.

Let’s start acting like it.