I believe plenty of people would be perfectly fine without a romantic partner, even better off for it, so long as enough other needs or desires were met.
The problem comes in when you are unable to have any other type of significant companionship, because everyone around you has gone off to prioritize a romantic partner well above anybody else (which I find to be yet another unfortunate and reprehensible aspect of society and human constructs), so a lot of people are basically forced to follow the crowd whether they want to or not, otherwise they will never be someone's priority.
Nobody wants to be left behind.
It is a "can't beat them, so join them" situation, a self fulfilling prophecy of sorts..we treat romantic relationships like the end all-be all, and so it becomes such, even though its value should be no more than any other type of close relationship.
There is something wrong when you ("you" as in anyone, not OP) start picking and choosing who matters the most based on how attractive you found them and the fact that you fuck them.
Because let's be honest, that
is why you opened the door of your life to them, that
is why you grew to like anything else about them..because you gave them the opportunity in the first place-based on the most superficial and conditional of reasons.
And
that's the relationship we celebrate the most?
That's what we are all striving for?
No thanks.
Knowing that my family members would leave me to perish in a "me vs their partner" scenario is extremely disturbing to me, and makes me question why any other relationship exists in the first place, if it's always going to come down to that.
Why did I waste my time giving a damn about people for the majority of my life, just so that they can watch me burn in favor of the picture they swiped on tinder?
..Even if I was the romantic type, I would never consider that type of relationship to be the definition of "success" and I would never consider them #1 above all others, like so many seem to.
I would not mesh my world and meaning into theirs and I would never give them, or anyone else the impression that my partner was some 'King' or 'Queen' that everyone else in my life has to bow down to. No way in hell.
They can deal with being just as important as anyone else in my life, or gtfo-maybe even less so, because I really do consider most sexual/romantic connections to be the most shallow and toxic of all types of relationships...their goal is to stomp out all others and to sit atop the pile of corpses left from all the friendships and familial relationships.
The entitlement of the 'couple' entity is like no other I have seen before, and with the least amount of justification IMO.
(Yet the notion continues to be shoved down my throat, whether I'm interested or not, it's inescapable subject matter.)
Says who?

I'm sorry, I'm sorry!
I knew people were thinking it but I didn't know anyone was gunna say it..
Hell nooo. My cat followed me everywhere. Waited for me at the door like a dog. Snuggled up to me, did everything a loving pet would do. Have you ever had a cat? I thought cats were cold bastards until I owned one. Changed my mind instantly.
Yea one of my cats is like my shadow, she is extremely affectionate, she can be aloof but she follows me everywhere even if I turn around and she runs, she immediately comes back to stick herself behind by heels, she cries at my door like a baby and even falls asleep with her paw underneath it, trying to get in.
She gives kisses to the point I have to take my hand away and she looks at me as if she is completely blind to my ugly face, even my mother says the way she looks at me is adoring and strangely humanly attentive. (Wishful thinking perhaps lol)
My other cats are very sweet for the most part too, one of the boys is right behind my girl in terms of neediness and affection.
He is basically my child lmao
You are right but from my experience you don't get the same emotional connection with cats.
Dogs truly love you.
Cats mostly love themselves.
I don't think any animal's "love" can really fit the human definition.
I love my cats but I will admit I may be projecting when I say they "love" me back, and it would be no different with our family dog (who has since passed unfortunately..a great dog and very good with cats.)
I am pretty positive both would eat me if left in a room with my dead body tbf, I guess I just don't care, they still provide a safer and more stable companionship than humans, albeit a different type that may still not check the same boxes that human companionship does.