The newest dating trend is being "zombied."
From one generation to the next, terminology and social conventions related to relationships continue to evolve, and the list of words defining them keeps growing.
In the digital age, where communication has become much too simple as a result of the information and technological revolution, interacting with someone after a break is not a huge concern, but a new term has been coined for this phenomenon: "getting zombied."
At a time when everyone thinks that being ghosted is bad, singer-songwriter Mariel Darling took to TikTok to share the latest horrifying dating trend: being "zombied," and this toxic dating trend has gone popular.
"Girl, you're being ghosted?" "I'm being zombied," she shared with her 255,900 followers on the platform.
"It's like ghosting, but he comes back from the dead after a couple months and hits you up," she explained in the video with 1.5 million views and 151,100 likes.
Talking about the dating conditions in New York City, she said, "A zombie apocalypse is extremely similar to dating in New York City."
"Have you ever noticed that they all zombie you at the same time? Like, why are four guys from my past all hitting me up on the same day?", one of her followers commented.
"Mine has a Jesus Christ complex, he comes back every 3 days," another joked.
Dating expert Samantha Jayne told news.com.au that the trend has been around just as long as relationships, adding that players love to adopt this behaviour.
"It can be extremely damaging and confusing. Impacts self confidence and leaves someone feeling anxious about abandonment then when that person reappears can give a sense of hope and a painful reminder of the random departure," she said.
"When an old flame you are over returns out of the blue without an explanation and expects things to be normal, it is cruel and can leave you feeling bewildered.
"Remember this person is appearing with no accountability and expects things to be back to normal as to where they left off."