#AGAIN i repeat do not get me into shipping drama i'll cry. and block.

[cryingatships]

So, I don't know how to begin this post. Let me start by saying that this is only a personal social observation (gotta use my major somewhere), based on what I've seen in the school shipping culture around me. (Pls keep me out of shipping discourse, ty.)

So, the entire ep was a kick in the gut, and it's tackling issues which are very, very personal to me, even rn when I'm in college. bullying, ragging, classism, institutional prestige... as if I'm not getting enough of drama, politics n media irl

But anyway, I'm not gonna go into those rn. Instead, I want to write a bit about this—shipping in schools.

I don't know how much this happens in the western school systems, but in the part of the world where I am, aka in South Asia, 'shipping' people (keeping it in quotes cause no one actually uses the particular term), starts at school.

No one teaches it to you, to be honest. But when two students of the opposite cisgender are close with each other, share their lunches/food/tiffin, then whispers start around the class. The reason for this closeness may be that they just vibe together, or their parents are friends, or sometimes they are actually in relationships/like each other.

From what I've seen in my (and a few other schools I had friends from), it usually starts as early as first grade? Back then even holding hands were scandalous And it doesn't really matter if the 'shipped' persons are popular or pretty or not, it can happen between any people who are a little close. Or if one side likes the other (which may be stated publicly or to friends).

Of course, it typically only happens with two people of the opposite cis genders, though as you go up in grades/classes, the scope of shipping friends/peers go into plenty other directions, too.

A lot of the times, it just turns out to be friendships, but I've personally seen people who are shipped get together too. And then there were a few instances where two people purposely promoted their 'ship' because they wanted to get close to the other person's friend in a very roundabout way. Is high school normally like this or is my school just????

So anyway, shipping people who are your friends/peers is considered normal around here. A thing to laugh and chat about with your friends (who can be the shipped ppl too), shout in the hallways, make silly doodles on etc. Of course, this can take a dangerous turn any second—many guardians do not approve of their children getting into relationships (real or otherwise) in schools, many people who are 'shipped' feel uncomfortable with the whole thing (though they in turn participate in shipping others), and of course there's the ever present chance of stalking, invasion of privacy, rivalry etc

School shipping is also a gradual process of socialisation involving love, romance, attraction, ig. Many institutes lack (or refuse to allow) talk of romance/attraction and sex ed. Many guardians would never touch the topic of talking to their wards/children about relationships, romantic and sexual love, some going as far as to forbid their wards from consuming any media about these things. In such a scenario, where love, romance etc is considered almost a taboo never to be associated with, shipping, ie love but without involving yourself into it, becomes a way to deal with them. Talking about your peers being in love starts a conversation about stuff that would not have taken place in any other way. Most times, this is not a self-narrative thing either, people 'shipping' friends/peers are aware they are not the 'shipped' people. But anyway. Most times is the keyword here

Of course, this shipping slowly goes into the areas of life when people *are* allowed to love, but most of it ends in high school (unless you're still in fandom, but that's a different thing altogether). People are too busy trying to eat, sleep and also study to continue shipping friends in college/uni.

I'm not going into the debate about whether this is healthy or not. As I stated at first, this is but a personal observation of things I've seen around, and things that are still happening, starting from when you are 5-6 years, ye.

(It's only been two years since I got out of hs, that's not a very long time. And my juniors tell me about the current school gossip XD)

This is just me seeing a drama and then rambling about something in it, so ye, Do Not get me into shipping drama.