༉˚*ೃ 𝐓𝐘𝐏𝐄𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐒𝐓 𝐊𝐈𝐒𝐒𝐄𝐒.

we all know how important first kisses are in stories where romance is concerned — how many readers wait for it — and often it seals the deal of a relationship beginning! it's always a very important moment that will depend on the characters, their relationship, and the situation! there are joyful kisses, tense kisses, angsty kisses and sad kisses, it's all up to how you want their moment to go. 

i'm in love with all these first kiss tropes — we all know i'm a sucker for romance — and some of them are cliche, but i'm a hoe for cliche romances, sue me. here's a list of all the first kiss tropes or types that i could conjure up! (this is me being soft and excited over kisses excuse me). remember that all of these first kiss tropes can be combined: you can have a sad moment, a lip-brush followed by more life-threatening situations and then a "can i kiss you" kiss while simultaneously a tearful kiss. combining them is so fun and a really effective way to amplify emotions!

SWEET / SOFT FIRST KISSES.   →      *   .    &

.     &     ━     cheek / forehead kisses    →   not officially a first kiss, but so damn cute if they have feeling for each other and haven't kissed before. it can be SO SOFT .

.     &     ━     kisses where their lips just graze    →   they're so close they can feel each other's breath, their lips brush against each other. maybe something causes them to jump apart or shift their head away (outside causes, or their own thoughts). one of my favourites .

.     &     ━     "can i kiss you?"    →   soft af, faces are close and they're both looking at each other softly, when one of them just asks, "can i kiss you?". bc consent is important and also this trope is just so soft ahhhhh .

.     &     ━     just enamoured kisses    →   they can't stop staring at each other and each other's mouths, because they think the other person is just so beautiful and lovely. and it's so soft and slow, like they just hold each other's faces or waists, and very slowly press their lips together. even better if they've been through some intense, life-threatening shit beforehand. always fit the angst in there .

.     &     ━     the "shut up" or "you're an idiot" kisses    →   similar to fight kisses, but softer, like it's this kind of cute, loving amusement at the other person (let's call them person B) being an idiot. maybe person B is stressing at something they did, that might have revealed their crush on person A, and person A just goes "omg shut up" and grabs their face or pulls them towards them by their shirt / collar and kisses them .

.     &     ━     the post-kiss shock    →   the kiss where person A kisses B, and B takes a second to respond because they're in shock, and they're just frozen. and then person A pulls away, embarrassed or scared that B doesn't like them back, and fearing that they ruined everything or read the situation wrong. and person B just takes their face and kisses them again hard. one of my favourite first kiss tropes .

.     &     ━     vague soft 'threat' kiss    →   "if you don't stop being so damn perfect, i'm going to have to kiss you", and person B is like "ok" and they just kiss .

.     &     ━     muddling everything up    →   person A is trying to explain their feelings for B, but is muddling everything up and just can't get it out, so they're like 'fuck it' and they just kiss person B to get the point across .

.     &     ━     back and forth    →   when they individually keep going back and forth between each others rooms to talk, because they're flustered and obviously like each other but are trying to convince themselves they don't. and then after a few times, person B opens their door to talk to person A, but person A is already standing there outside, about to knock. and they just look at each other with love and desperation in their eyes, and lunge forward for the kiss. channelling nancy and jonathan in stranger things (had me squealing)  .

.     &     ━     corner of the lips    →   person A presses a kiss to the corner of person B's lips and just hangs back, waiting for B to fix it .

.     &     ━     once they kiss they just press together so that their bodies curve together .

.     &     ━     classic first kiss    →   they just slowly grow closer, totally into each other, and they just shift their heads and their lips meet. and it's slow and soft, and maybe it gradually builds up to something more passionate and intense. just the absolute classic .

.     &     ━     short and sweet    →   a soft kiss which is short, and they both pull back and just have love and adoration in their eyes, and internally are like 'omg are we doing this?'. and then they kiss again .

.     &     ━     falling kiss    →   person A trips and falls against B. B catches them, and they're in an awkward position, chest-to-chest or face-to-face, and they're just frozen like that, and it's been building for so long, and then they just lean forward and kiss .

.     &     ━     landing kiss    →   very similar to falling kiss, but they land on top of each other. often comes when person B is saving person A and as they save them they just fall atop the other. channel bev and ben from it chapter 2 (ik they don't kiss there, but it's the vibesss). this can also be a situation where they don't kiss, but it hangs there for a moment, and just helps build up to that .

.     &     ━     when they're trapped in a small space    →   hiding or something of the like, perhaps in a closet. they're so close and are cramped against each other. A just looks up at B, and their hearts are beating so fast, because how else do you get out of this situation? and the just kiss .

JOYFUL FIRST KISSES.   →      *   .    &

.     &     ━     reunion kiss    →   they've been separated and in danger, and just spot each other across an area of space. and A just runs at B and launches themselves in their arms. perhaps clinging to their neck, or their waist; maybe A launched too hard and they both fall back on the ground. and there are probably tears of relief, and they just look into each other's eyes for a moment, totally in love, and just kiss. literally my other favourite kiss trope, unrivalled .

.     &     ━     the big damn kiss    →   they've been waiting for forever, and they get the chance, and person A just goes for it. flings themselves in B's arms, lunges at them, pulls them together, whatever, and just kisses them hard, and the world seems to stop. B in just in subtle shock because 'holy shit, this is happening', and it's just that big moment where everything slows down and it focuses on the sensation and the electricity and how perfect it is .

.     &     ━     drunk first kisses    →   giggly, clumsy. they happen .

.     &     ━     giggling first kiss    →   they both know they like each other, person B is being an idiot, and while kissing softly — and the both of them grinning so damn hard — person A just leans in and kisses them .

.     &     ━     jump kisses    →   person B has just accomplished something great and all giddy and excited and joyful, person A just runs up to them and jumps in their arms and kisses them full on with a grin .

SAD / EMOTIONAL FIRST KISSES.   →      *   .    &

.     &     ━     relieved kisses    →   one of them has just not died, or has woken up from bad injuries, and the other person just cradles them while sobbing and kisses them on the lips. my HEART. sad and joyful simultaneously .

.     &     ━     dying kisses    →   you KNOW i had to include this one. a personal favourite. they'll never see each other again, one of them is dying, and the person who is fine is crying in grief already, and kisses them for the first and last time, while saying they love them. I LOVE PAIN .

.     &     ━     distraught kisses    →   person A is feverish and distraught (maybe they've been injured, maybe they're sick) and person B is taking care of them so softly. A is very distressed and unwell, and person B just leans down and kisses them softly, tells them they're going to be alright .

.     &     ━     tearful kisses    →   person B is holding and comforting person A, and they're watching them so softly. person A looks up all teary and they're so close, they can see every detail about the other person, and while person A is crying they shift their heads and their lips just press together, so softly because they're so damn in love .

.     &     ━     crying, distressed kisses    →   person A has run away all distressed, and person B searched for them and finds them super upset, on the side of the street or somewhere. person B asks what's wrong, or something similar, and person A just turns to them with tears in their eyes, and quivering lips, and (in a soft, consensual way) B pulls them in carefully and kisses them. bonus points if it's raining or dark .

.     &     ━     quick and fleeing kiss    →   where person B kisses person A quickly on the mouth, and then flees because they think A won't like them like that. bonus if this is in a situation of imminent danger .

.     &     ━      "don't go" kisses    →   teary, desperate clutching. person A has been hurt, or something along those line, and person B needs to go for some reason (saving the world, or they've accidentally hurt person A). but person A doesn't want them to leave, "don't go, don't leave me". person B kisses them — whether they do leave, or stay, is your choice .

INTENSE FIRST KISSES.   →      *   .    &

.     &     ━     now or never kisses    →   extreme danger is imminent — it's before the last battle, the room is filling up with water, they're going to get killed by the monster — and they think they'll both die (likely, they won't). there's no place for second-guessing, and they don't want to die before revealing how they feel. for them, it's now or never, and so they kiss .

.     &     ━     heat of the moment kisses    →   damn they've just escaped the villain and they think the other is so hot so they're like 'ok i'm gonna kiss you' .

.     &     ━     the kiss before danger    →   person B is about to run off to do something stupidly brave, or they're about to get split up, and person A just pulls them in for a kiss. similar to the now or never kiss .

ANGSTY FIRST KISSES.   →      *   .    &

.     &     ━     fight kisses    →   one of them is angry at the other for doing something stupid, maybe putting their life in danger for the other person (re: sar and steve), and the person copping it, who's just totally in love with the other person, just moves forward and KISSES THEM .

.     &     ━     "i hate you" kisses    →   the pair have been previously enemies or rivalry. they have each other — but they really don't — and in the heat of it all they just say "i hate you so much", as they're so close that they can feel each other's breaths, and it's like "i hate you too", and they really don't, and then they just kiss .

.     &     ━     "I'M IN LOVE WITH YOU"    →   maybe they've been missing their chances this whole time (love, rosie vibes) and they're in a fight, and person A just yells out something across the lines of "because i love you!" and person B is like "?????" because they thought A could never love them in that way. and A just moves forward and kisses B so passionately and softly .

.     &     ━     angsty kiss    →   works well with wlw or mlm, where they both like each other and show it, but maybe person A is internally denying it. there's a moment where person B just leans over and kisses them, and person A pushes them off because they're trying to deny it so hard and is like "what the hell are you doing?!" and storms out, because they're confused and angry with themselves for feeling that way. and person B is just left alone and upset and hurt. such a good lead in for angst and then a proper kiss later! as long as it's consenual (they both like each other) and isn't predatory then it can be so good .

.     &     ━     spinning around kiss    →   person B storms into the room and spins person A around, and person A is like "what?" either angry or confused because what's going on, and person B just grabs their face and kisses them .

ACCIDENTAL / CIRCUMSTANCIAL FIRST KISSES.   →      *   .    &

.     &     ━     meant-to-be cheek kiss    →   person A goes in for the cheek kiss, and person B accidentally turns their head towards them and their lips meet .

.     &     ━     fake kiss v.1    →   they're pretending to be in a relationship with the other, or someone is harrassing them being like "how are you not dating anyone?" and person A just grabs B and is like "i am!" and kisses them and B is like "??? HUH??". super cute if they have a crush on each other .

.     &     ━     fake kiss v.2    →   fake kiss also works in a scenario where they're trying to escape from something, like goons are chasing them, and to make no one notice them and blend in, they just kiss while the antagonists are passing. think captain america and black widow in catws .

.     &     ━     spin the bottle    →   cute af if they both have a secret crush on the other. bonus points if their friends know and are watching with shit-eating grins .

.     &     ━     fake kiss v.3 in context of an ex    →   person A sees their ex and turns to person B and is like "my ex just walked in please kiss me so they'll leave me alone" and they kiss to make the ex leave or get annoyed or something .

.     &     ━     teaching how to kiss    →   person A teaching person B how to kiss. this screams ao3 and 2012 wattpad, but i still love it, don't bully me .

.     &     ━     "are you scared of kissing?"    →   person B is like "what, are you scared of kissing? it's just a kiss?" and they're just teasing, like joking and not expecting it, but A, all annoyed, is like 'FINE' and just kisses them, and B is REELING .

.     &     ━     on-screen kiss    →   if the pair are actors that play romantic interests in a film, and both like each other. the first time they have to kiss for the role in their film .

this is like a game of i-spy to find which ones are in my stories, because i don't think i have a single kiss in my fics that aren't on this list. my favourites are the soft kisses, i couldn't live without them.

remember consent!! these are only cute if both parties want this. for example, fighting / angst kisses, angry kisses, etc, can be super problematic if it's not consensual. they need to both at least be processing their romantic feelings for each other. please don't include a weird possessive, abusive-esq kiss in your fic's relationship where there's a lack of consent and an abundance of possession, unless you're going for a toxic relationship.

don't make fun of me for liking cringy kisses okay! i'm still a cringy romance girl at heart. i just remembered my favourite fic in 5th grade was 'kidnapped by one direction' fanfic, why the hell are you reading my tips oh my god. for real though, i'm so happy i matured past those.