The lyrics show a couple misunderstanding what they want from each other. The speaker thinks he is being careful and reasonable, but the woman hears his questions as missing the point. As the exchange continues, his confusion gives way to her frustration: she asks for something genuine, while insisting that it should not be called love.
The repeated phrase “not love” suggests she wants closeness, attention, or passion without the expectations that the word may carry. “Logical advice gets you in a whirl” means that sensible rules—such as waiting for the “right girl”—can make relationships more confusing rather than easier. Her “you’re all the same” sounds like a broad complaint about men, perhaps prompted by this particular encounter.
The title’s claim that things are “different for girls” is left deliberately general. It may point to different emotional risks or expectations in intimacy, but the lyrics do not explain exactly what those differences are. The woman’s position is also ambiguous: she may be rejecting commitment, or rejecting the speaker’s assumption that naming love is what she needs. The song captures the tension without resolving it.