Say it louder. Romance as a genre usually works the exact opposite way. If two characters are already completely into each other before they've spent any meaningful time together, you've removed the tension, growth, conflict, and emotional journey that typically carries an entire romance novel. There isn't much of a story left to tell.
That's why so many romance endgames are the person the protagonist didn't expect, didn't initially want, misunderstood, or wasn't even looking at romantically yet. Whether it's enemies to lovers, rivals to lovers, friends to lovers, reluctant allies, forced proximity, grumpy/sunshine, or even mates, the relationship has to evolve. The story is in watching two people change, challenge each other, and fall in love, not starting with them already halfway there.
That's also why "they barely interacted" has never been the gotcha people think it is. Makes them look stupid when they use it. I have read plenty of romances where endgames had zero interaction before their book.
Dean and Allie Hayes (The Score, Off-Campus by Elle Kennedy) do not interact before their book.
Devney Perry's Edens series regularly introduces love interests in the book where the romance actually happens rather than spending multiple books building them up.
The Addicted/Calloway Sisters series by Krista & Becca Ritchie also introduces romantic dynamics as each couple takes center stage rather than requiring years of prior interaction.
Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco โ The spin offs have introduced two new FMCs while FMC's from book 1 are still waiting for their story.
The Plated Prisoner by Raven Kennedy โ Slade doesn't become Auren's love interest until later in the series. Their romance isn't built from Book 1.
Aelin and Rowan had zero interactions before Heir of Fire.
Chaol and Yrene didn't meet until Tower of Dawn.
That is just the top of my head.
The bigger issue is that some Elriels refuse to pay attention to why romance tropes exist. Tropes are narrative tools. They're designed to create conflict, character growth, and emotional payoff. So when people say, "Well, Elain and Lucien don't even like each other," my response is... that's the fucking point.
SJM literally said back in 2016 that Elain and Lucien were going to have tension. She intentionally wrote awkwardness, avoidance, uncertainty, and emotional distance between them. You're reading exactly what she told us she was writing. Those are storytelling choices. Romance authors create obstacles because obstacles are what make the eventual payoff satisfying. If the couple started out perfectly comfortable and openly in love, there wouldn't be much of a romance arc to tell. I don't understand why this concept is so difficult for some of them to grasp. It feels lik they aren't engaging with Elain as a fictional character whose role is to serve the story. Instead, they treat her like a real person or a self-insert whose every interaction should reflect what they want rather than what best serves the narrative.
At the end of the day, Elain isn't a real person making independent choices, she's a character whose relationships, conflicts, and growth are deliberately written to create a compelling story. That's how romance fiction works.
