love interest

The romantic interest (also called love interest) is a stock character, an object of romantic admiration and attraction for the principal character(s), or heroes. It is also the plot element, the romantic subplot, thus introduced.This person is often a female acquaintance of the protagonist, as in the case of Jane in Tarzan or a man, as in the case of Disney's Pocahontas. The primary characters and romantic interests may be the two main characters, as in the case of Brokeback Mountain. Even the submarine warfare book Run Silent, Run Deep has a romantic interest shared between the two primary protagonists.
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