What happens when attraction and closeness are combined?

Attraction refers to the involuntary feeling that someone experiences when they feel “drawn” to someone or something. When attraction occurs, people usually identify it as a combination of excitement, pleasure, and interest and can take many different forms. It can be directed towards an object, a person, or a concept. Additionally, attraction can be romantic, emotional, sexual, physical, or aesthetic in nature.

When referring to attraction as a feeling that someone is experiencing towards another person, the combination of attraction and closeness can yield something significant or even make room for an intimate relationship. Breaking down what is meant by “closeness” could refer to two different types of closeness. There is physical closeness which is the actual physical proximity that someone is to another person. Then, emotional closeness is how safe a person feels with another person and how vulnerable each person is willing to be with one another.

When combining physical closeness with attraction, this is a combination that can make pursuing or moving forward with an attraction more “feasible” based on the ease of access to the other person’s time and energy. Plans do not have to be made far in advance, and traveling does not need to be considered when someone is physically close to someone else. Along the same lines, because of the ease of access, two people might see each other more frequently and develop a relationship faster than if they were a significant distance apart from each other.

When combined with attraction, emotional closeness can mean that pursuing a relationship (platonic, romantic, or physical) can be easier to navigate or feel safer emotionally than if no emotional closeness exists in the first place. Communication might already be well established and healthy or feel a lot more natural. A person might already feel emotionally safe with the other person, thus making reconciling differences a lot easier to do.

Combining emotional closeness and physical closeness with attraction can be an ideal situation for many people, especially in regards to pursuing a romantic relationship. Having all three of these concepts happening simultaneously is not a guarantee that something will happen. It does make the process of moving forward with a relationship a lot less intimidating and “easier” for both parties involved.