History Main / InsecureLoveInterest

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'' episode "Enchanting Grom Fright", [[Characters/TheOwlHouseAmityBlight Amity Blight's]] biggest fear is revealed to be getting rejected by her crush [[spoiler:Luz]], as shown when a SupernaturalFearInducer takes on their form and rips up the note she had written to ask them out to the school dance. [[spoiler:This even continues in the episode after they start dating, as the emotional abuse she's suffered from her parents has left her believing that love is something transactional that must be continuously earned if you don't want to lose it. As such, she spends the entire episode trying to prove that she's an "awesome girlfriend" (much to Eda's annoyance).]]

* Both Kyotaro Ichikawa and Anna Yamada from ''Manga/TheDangersInMyHeart'' for eachother.
** A lot of Ichikawa's ObliviousToLove moments are less because he's dense (Far from it) and more due to poor social skills and [[HopeIsScary a refusal to believe that he has any chance with her romantically, even after they became friends. Fearing that he'll get hurt for even believing it.]] He ''is'' able to see the hints, but he puts it in the back of his head. [[spoiler: It gradually gets through to him more and more.]]
** Yamada herself is ''definitely'' head over heels for him. And while she happily seeks him out like a kid going to a candy store, she's indirect about her feelings and pulls back from getting ''too'' close or implying anything too strong out of fear of messing things up. Or being worried that he's not into her interests. Her GuiltComplex stemming from her perceived lack of talent and fear of being a burden to her loved ones also ties to how she wants him to see her.

* ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'': [[Characters/MiraculousLadybugMarinetteDupainCheng Marinette Dupain-Cheng]] has this with Adrien, explaining why she is so shy in his presence and CannotSpitItOut. Later, very impressed by her rival Kagami (because of her riches, abilities in fencing, and bold attitude), Marinette back out first. [[spoiler:When she learns Kagami and Adrien had quickly broken-up, Marinette vainly tries to reconcile Adrien with this "perfect girl". It takes Kagami, of all people, to assure Marinette that ''she'' is the perfect match for Adrien.]]

* ''WesternAnimation/MiraculousLadybug'': Marinette has this with Adrien, explaining why she is so shy in his presence and CannotSpitItOut. Later, very impressed by her rival Kagami (because of her riches, abilities in fencing, and bold attitude), Marinette back out first. [[spoiler:When she learns Kagami and Adrien had quickly broken-up, Marinette vainly tries to reconcile Adrien with this "perfect girl". It takes Kagami, of all people, to assure Marinette that ''she'' is the perfect match for Adrien.]]

* Connie Maheswaran, the ImpliedLoveInterest of the titular ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'', doesn't understand how Steven, a boy with magic powers and an epic destiny awaiting him, would be interested in a completely normal and mundane girl like her. The insecurity goes both ways, however, as Steven admits at one point he doesn't understand why someone as smart as her would like hanging out with him when he -- from his viewpoint -- just keeps messing everything up. They grow out of this mindset by the second season, though, and are dating by the time of ''[[WesternAnimation/StevenUniverseFuture Future]]''.

* ''WesternAnimation/HeyArnold'': Helga Pataki is madly in love with Arnold, but is too shy and insecure to tell him because she's afraid he'll reject her. So [[LovingBully she resorts to bullying him instead]].
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'' episode "Enchanting Grom Fright", Amity's biggest fear is revealed to be getting rejected by her crush [[spoiler:Luz]], as shown when a SupernaturalFearInducer takes on their form and rips up the note she had written to ask them out to the school dance. [[spoiler:This even continues in the episode after they start dating, as the emotional abuse she's suffered from her parents has left her believing that love is something transactional that must be continuously earned if you don't want to lose it. As such, she spends the entire episode trying to prove that she's an "awesome girlfriend" (much to Eda's annoyance).]]

* [[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons Homer Simpson, frequently, to Marge]]. In "Milhouse of Sand and Fog," he believes Luann Van Houten when she reports her mistaken belief that Marge cheated on him, and confronts Marge about it, nearly causing Marge to break up with him because she's so offended by what she sees as his lack of faith in her. As he'll admit later, it's not Marge he doesn't trust but his own good luck.

** In ''VideoGame/Fallout4'', should you pursue a romance with Danse, once you tell him that you're in love with him after the quest Blind Betrayal, he's absolutely floored since the events of Blind Betrayal [[spoiler: revealed to the both of you that Danse [[TomatoInTheMirror is a synth]]; the Brotherhood of Steel abhors synths as abominations and wants to wipe them all out, and upon learning that he's a synth, Danse became suicidal and believed he deserved to die -- he only survives if you convinced him that he deserved to live and then stand up to Maxson to make him spare Danse's life.]] Upon your confession, he expresses disbelief that you could ever love a being such as him, [[spoiler: "a machine" -- you promise him that you don't care that he's a synth, and that the fact that he has these insecurities and emotions means that he's more human than many others.]]

* In ''WesternAnimation/BarbieFairytopia: Mermaidia'', Nori feels that Nalu will never love her because of class differences. She vents these feelings by [[GreenEyedMonster bitching at]] Elina, who [[spoiler:she thinks]] is dating him. (Unusually for the trope, Nori resolves these feelings ''before'' starting a relationship with Nalu.)

* In ''Film/TheChargeAtFeatherRiver'', Anne thinks that Miles cannot possibly be interested in her because she believes she has been defiled forever by her treatment at the hands of the {{The Savage Indian}}s. Her sister Jennie does not help her insecurity by telling her that Miles is only showing interest in her because they are in the wilderness, and once back in civilisation, he won't look twice at her.

** In ''VideoGame/Fallout4'', should you pursue a romance with Danse, once you tell him that you're in love with him after the quest Blind Betrayal, he's absolutely floored; the events of Blind Betrayal [[spoiler: revealed to the both of you that Danse [[TomatoInTheMirror is a synth]]; the Brotherhood of Steel abhors synths as abominations and wants to wipe them all out, and upon learning that he's a synth, Danse became suicidal and believed he deserved to die -- he only survives the quest if you convinced him that he deserved to live and then stand up to Maxson to make him spare Danse's life. Upon your confession, he expresses disbelief that you could ever love a being such as him, "a machine" -- you promise him that you don't care that he's a synth, and that the fact that he has these insecurities and emotions means that he's more human than many others.]]

* The ''Franchise/{{Danganronpa}}'' fanfic series ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/series/273834 The Naekawa Project]]'' has [[Characters/DanganronpaTokoFukawa Toko Fukawa]] taking this role. Because of how she's been mistreated in the past, she is shown to be confused by what her boyfriend [[spoiler:and eventual husband]] [[Characters/DanganronpaMakotoNaegi Makoto Naegi]] sees in her, viewing herself as ugly. This is something that Makoto works hard on to help her with throughout the series, reassuring her that he loves her and she's beautiful to him. Ironically, Makoto himself feels unworthy of Toko when he learns of her AbusiveParents, feeling that he failed to protect her, and Toko finds herself working to reassure him.

* The ''Franchise/{{Danganronpa}}'' fanfic series ''[[https://archiveofourown.org/series/273834 The Naekawa Project]]'' has [[Characters/DanganronpaTokoFukawa Toko Fukawa]] taking this role. Because of how she's been mistreated in the past, she is shown to be confused by what her boyfriend [[spoiler:and eventual husband]] [[Characters/DanganronpaMakotoNaegi Makoto Naegi]] sees in her, viewing herself as ugly. This is something that Makoto works hard on to help her with throughout the series, reassuring her that he loves her and she's beautiful to him. Ironically, Makoto himself feeling unworthy of Toko when he learns of her AbusiveParents, feeling that he failed to protect her, and Toko finds herself working to reassure him.

* In ''Theatre/CyranoDeBergerac'' the title character feels that, due to his large nose, he is unworthy of Roxane, whom he is very much attrcted to.

* {{Deconstructed}} by "Sorry" by {{Music/Halsey}}, in which the singer admits she doesn't believe anyone could ever really love her as she is, so she runs away whenever things are actually good. The song is her apologizing to her ex for not realizing how much they loved her and admitting she blew it and ended their relationship for nothing.

->'''Dimitri:''' [[UptownGirl Princesses don't marry kitchen boys]].

** In "[[Recap/FriendsS4E11TheOneWithPhoebesUterus The One with Phoebe's Uterus]]", Chandler is apprehensive about sleeping with his current LoveInterest Kathy, because she used to date Joe (who is a SexGod) and Chandler fears the inevitable comparison since he knows he's [[LousyLoversAreLosers no good]]. By the end, he manages to gain enough confidence to do it when Rachel and Monica give him some tips on how to be a better lover.

** A lot of Ichikawa's ObliviousToLove moments are less because he's dense (Far from it) and more due to poor social skills and [[HopeIsScary a refusal to believe that he has any chance with her romantically, even after they became friends. Fearing that he'll get hurt for even believing it.]] He ''is'' able to see the hints, but he puts it in the back of his head.
** Yamada herself is ''definitely'' head over heels for him. And while she happily seeks him out like a kid going to a candy store, she's indirect about her feelings and pulls back from getting ''too'' close or even implying anything from a fear of messing things up. Or being worried that he's not into her interests. Her GuiltComplex stemming from her clumsiness and perceived lack of talent also ties to how she wants him to see her.

** Yamada herself is ''definitely'' head over heels for him. And while she happily seeks him out like a kid going to a candy store, she's indirect about her feelings and pulls back from getting ''too'' close or even implying anything from a fear of messing things up. Or exchanging a gift thinking he wouldn't like it. Her GuiltComplex stemming from her clumsiness and perceived lack of talent also ties to how she wants him to see her.

* ''WesternAnimation/{{Wakfu}}'': A source of angst for Yugo over the course of Season 3 is the fact that he feels he shouldn't pursue a romance with Amalia (despite knowing she feels the same way) because despite almost being the same age, Amalia very much looks her age while Yugo still has [[OlderThanHeLooks the appearance of a young child]]. He eventually gets over it.

** A lot of Ichikawa's from ObliviousToLove moments are less because he's dense (Far from it) and more due to poor social skills and [[HopeIsScary a refusal to believe that he has any chance with her romantically. Even after they became friends, fearing that he'll get hurt for even believing it.]] He ''has'' been able to see the hints, but he puts it in the back of his head.
** Yamada herself is ''definitely'' head over heels for Ichikawa. And while she happily seeks him out like a kid going to a candy store, she's indirect about her feelings and pulls back from getting ''too'' close or even implying anything from a fear of messing things up. Or from exchanging a gift thinking he wouldn't like it. Her GuiltComplex stemming from her clumsiness and perceived lack of talent also ties to how she wants him to see her.

Related to IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy. Also compare ICantBelieveAGuyLikeYouWouldNoticeMe. If this causes a breakup, they may say ItsNotYouItsMe (and really mean it). Contrast BetterPartnerAssertion, where characters argue their superiority to their love interest. May result in an ImaginaryLoveTriangle.

* In ''Fanfic/AvengerGoddess'', Jane Foster immediately feels jealous when Diana shows up and Thor recognises her, even though Jane hasn't known Thor that long.
* In ''Fanfic/TheBeastOfGusu'', Wei Wuxian initially isn’t sure if Lan Wangji will reject him on account of his shifter status. In Chapter 3 of “Unstoppable”, after he regains his memories and returns, Wei Wuxian asks Lan Wangji if he regrets marrying him, feeling that he’s caused too much pain and trouble for him; Lan Wangji responds that he doesn’t regret marrying him, loving him or knowing him.

* In the fancomic ''Webcomic/TheLastAdventure'': Both Fluttershy and Discord are this towards each other, partly because none of them wants to spoil their friendship, partly because of Fluttershy's usual unsureness, but mainly because Discord is still a pariah among most ponies. Discord, in particular, feels unworthy of her because of all his mistakes, and he also fears to have his heart broken when she'll grow old and die on him, since he is immortal.

* Hilbert in ''Fanfic/AMidSinnohNightsDream''. He tells Dawn that he doesn't think he deserves that sort of love. He tries to ignore his feelings for the sake of team cohesion, invoking NoHuggingNoKissing at first. [[spoiler:Even when he eventually ''does'' get into a relationship with her, he's still averse to making any progress. The context of the RelationshipUpgrade was hypothermia and a private lodge where ThereIsOnlyOneBed. He only got into the bed when he remembered that sleeping in snow-soaked clothes wouldn't be the best idea.]]
* In ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13189446/1/ More than Meets the Eye]]'', the reason why Ash rejected Misty's LoveConfession, despite returning her feelings, was because he felt he wasn't good enough to make her happy, mixed with a dash of IDontWantToRuinOurFriendship. It takes having to save her from her fiancé [[BitchInSheepsClothing who plans to marry her just to take over her Gym]] for him to confess why he felt that way.
* In ''Fanfic/MyHuntsmanAcademia'', Izuku has trouble believing that he somehow won [[spoiler:[[ProudBeauty Yang]]]] over and is constantly worrying about messing up and pushing her away. He promises that he'll "get better" at it as fast as he can, even as she assures him that they'll go at a pace he's comfortable with. He's self-conscious about how rough and calloused his hands are compared to hers and he nearly has a panic attack while thinking about his first-ever date.