I've seen it too many times in Hollywood. Talking about a relationship in public can jinx it. And if you have your picture taken together, you might as well start packing your bags.
I think most people played both variants and regular games. It was a period when variants were very popular and there were a lot more variants being played at that time. Every week practically, it seemed someone would publish a new variant in a zine.
Hard though it may be to accept, remember that guilt is sometimes a friendly internal voice reminding you that you're messing up.