Kylie Jenner has addressed speculation about her relationship with best friend Stassie Karanikolaou, insisting their kisses are purely platonic. In the latest episode of The Kardashians, Jenner said: “Isn’t it so funny that everyone thinks that we’re dating these days? When we get a little alcohol in our system, like we just like to kiss each other and stuff?”
The comments have reignited a conversation about platonic physical intimacy between female friends. Many women recall kissing female friends in their teens as a normal part of socialising, whether for fun, attention from boys, or exploration of sexuality. This physical closeness often extends to sharing beds, cuddling, and other tactile gestures that fade in adulthood.
As women enter relationships and cohabit with partners, such intimacy often diminishes. One writer noted that after becoming single, she experienced touch starvation, realising that platonic tactility was a missing puzzle piece in her life. She now asks friends to lie next to her on the sofa, rediscovering the comfort of non-romantic physical contact.
Jenner’s openness about kissing her friend has been praised as a refreshing reminder that affection between women need not be romantic. The trend highlights a desire among some to reclaim the carefree physical bonds of youth, even as societal norms shift towards prioritising romantic partnerships.
