I think thinking for yourself is such a hard thing to do, because you just want to fit in in high school. So being comfortable with who you are is such a massive thing for a lot of people.
That single thought is enough. The impulse increases to a wish, the wish to a desire, the desire to an uncontrollable longing, and the longing (to the deep regret and mortification of the speaker, and in defiance of all consequences,) is indulged.