@Zaku Fantasy plays a role in all our interactions with other people. We are constantly projecting what others might be thinking. I think fantasy plays a much greater role in internet relationships. Since the role of fantasy is so much greater, I think of internet people as less “real.” I have had many experiences on the internet where I thought a person was one thing, and was greatly mistaken. These mistakes are greatly compounded with both people have these fantasy perfect people in mind. While this has happened in real life, it has happened much less often.
One thing that contributes to it is the fantasy stories we might tell each other, when imagining what it would be like to be together. We can get very invested in these fantasies, and in believing that at some time in the future we will be able to act them out for real. Gradually, I think, it is terribly easy to lose touch with reality, and move completely into fantasy land.