It’s 3:23 AM and I’m lying in my bed with my dog curled up against my legs. I tried going to sleep an hour and a half ago, but those stupid TikTok audios live rent-free in my head.
As much as I love the creativity that thrives on TikTok, I don’t appreciate how I have become the unwilling host of dramatic and heart-wrenching ideas that stem from TikTok edits. Most of the time, I have no idea what I’m even listening to, but I know it makes my brain happy.
One of the most popular sounds right now is the stupid “You came… you called” dialogue overlayed on top of Chance Peña’s “In My Room.” I happen to like “In My Room,” but I can no longer listen to that song without thinking of that lady dramatically turning from a window and longingly saying “you came” to this Edward Cullen-Mr. Darcy hybrid. He then stares at her before whispering “you called” and the beat drops. The couple meets in the middle, and they don’t even have to touch for me to feel the love and longing between them. I have never seen this show. I couldn’t even tell you what the name of it is, but I have already created three alternative scenarios with my emotional support couple.
Another audio goes to the same song, but this time the narrator has mommy issues. He says, “the first to betray me was a god; my creator; my mother.” And if that didn’t get me in my feels, I don’t know what else would. This audio had me falling to my knees in a Walmart parking lot. I was emotionally distressed when I first heard it and I don’t think I’m going to be able to recover from it.
These edits fuel my creativity, but for the love of God, please let me go to sleep.