As if dating in this day and age wasn't hard enough already, there's a brand new dating craze that is baffling singletons left, right and centre.
Whether we've naughtily done it ourselves or sadly been victims of it - it's clear that many of us know exactly what 'ghosting' is.
But, there's now a bigger, badder and more haunting phenomenon to deal with when it comes to the modern world of dating.
Advert
If you've been lucky enough to have never come across the term ghosting before then - first of all - good for you.
Second of all, if you've been living under a rock all this time, ghosting refers to someone halting all communication and contact with another person without any given warning or justification as well as ignoring any further attempts to communicate.
While we may differ on what mode of address we use to describe the bizarre ordeal, from blanking and airing to ignoring and digital departure, we can all agree it's a big old faff no matter what end you're on.
But, strap yourselves in, as it's about to get a whole lot worse.
Singer-songwriter Mariel Darling took to TikTok to warn her 256k followers that getting 'zombied' is even worse than getting the ghouly treatment.
Mariel explained that new dating villains have transformed into flesh-eating corpses who reanimate from the graveyard of failed romances to revisit their past flames from the dead.
Yikes.
The overlay text of the video read: "Zombied is the new ghosting."
Mariel revealed: "Girl, you’re being ghosted? I'm being out here being zombied."
The 'Free Girl' star went on to give her own definition to the lived experience.
"It’s like ghosting, but he comes back from the dead after a couple months and hits you up," she explained.
The TikTok has gone on to receive over 1.5 million views with an avalanche of comments from people who definitely shared Mariel's pain.
One TikTok user commented: "Mine has a Jesus Christ complex, he comes back every three days."
Another wrote: "I saw someone say she puts gravestone emojis on their name in contacts so she knows not to deal with them anymore."
Good tip.
"Tell me why this happened to me three times in the last three weeks," penned a third while a fourth echoed: "It happens to me all the time."
Another TikTok user pointed out: "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???"
Guess we've got to get the apocalypse gear out.
Topics: Sex and Relationships, TikTok, Dating trends
Rhiannon Ingle