There's a phrase a man rarely hears from another man. That phrase is, "I love you." Outside of family or perhaps a gay relationship, how many men say to that to each other? Not many... with the exception of geeks.
For those who don't know, the correct response is, "I know." The original line and its response was forever immortalized in George Lucas' The Empire Strikes Back. This small bit of dialogue has stood out among a series of films that have not been know for its strength in writing.
The scene containing this small bit comes near the end of the movie. Our heroes have been captured by the evil Imperial forces. Han Solo is about to frozen in carbonite and no one is sure if he'll survive the freezing process. Knowing that the end might be near, Princess Leia is forced to declare her true feelings for Solo. Rather than return the sentiment, Solo, replies with his cocky retort.
I myself have jokingly said this to two former SJC residents. Without any prior knowledge of what I was going to say, they both replied, "I know." Just yesterday, I randomly text messaged one of my friends with simply, "I love you." There was no freak out reply on the other end, simply, "I know."
Hmmm... I better not make it a habit of randomly telling people I love them.