2 of cups as an obstacle???

Hello all,
I did a spread for a friend about a guy that she likes and the potential of a new relationship between them.They are at the very beginning and they 've only seen each other two or three times.In the obstacle position she had the 2 of cups and i wasn't sure about the meaning of that.I thought that maybe he is involved with someone else, but in this case i suppose that a 3 of cups or 3 of swords or the lovers would be more suitable, because he has already shown that he is interested in my friend.I have also seen 2 of wands as a choice in some readings but not 2 of cups.So i pulled a clarifier and it was 4 of swords.I'm still not sure what this means.Does he have some feelings but he won't act on them?Is this another relationship that maybe he is ending and my friend doesnt know about it?Is he taking a break from a relationship or from relationships in general?Or maybe he is at the 2 of cups stage but he is thinking about it, he is not sure, he is examining the situation?
Universal Wirth Deck, no reversals.
Thank you

The main problem I see with the Twos is that they have a restricted field of vision and movement; they convey the idea of back-and-forth, give-and-take regularity like the motion of a metronome or pendulum. The 2 of Cups as an obstacle could have an "always-on, in-your-face" quality that begins to feel confining. The 4 of Swords fully supports the idea of the 2 of Cups working itself into a rut of tedium. I think this derails many 2 of Cups relationships that start out promising; I've begun calling it the "tick-tock factor" . Maybe what we're seeing here is an "early warning." Something to keep in mind, at least.

Barleywine said:

The main problem I see with the Twos is that they have a restricted field of vision and movement; they convey the idea of back-and-forth, give-and-take regularity like the motion of a metronome or pendulum. The 2 of Cups as an obstacle could have an "always-on, in-your-face" quality that begins to feel confining. The 4 of Swords fully supports the idea of the 2 of Cups working itself into a rut of tedium. I think this derails many 2 of Cups relationships that start out promising; I've begun calling it the "tick-tock factor" . Maybe what we're seeing here is an "early warning." Something to keep in mind, at least.

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So you would take it as a warning that maybe nothing will happen or that something might happen but the relationship will be derailed for some reason?

Kinda jumping off from Barleywine here, but with a slightly different twist. Depending on the cards around it, the 2 of Cups could also mean that they're rushing headlong into this thing without taking time to really evaluate whether they're compatible on a deeper level. Sometimes that feeling of 'instant connection' leads people to overlook important things that are foundational to successful relationships. Once that 'honeymoon' ends and they start seeing each other without the rose-tinted glasses, things might change.

@rtemouri said:

So you would take it as a warning that maybe nothing will happen or that something might happen but the relationship will be derailed for some reason?

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I would see it as affecting the degree of satisfaction over time rather than simply as "pass/fail." The connection could very well be good for a while, but since we're trying to see how the 2 of Cups might be an "obstacle," my thinking is that it could get stale after a time. One idea I picked up from Paul Fenton-Smith on the 2 of Cups is to draw two more cards to place on each side of it, showing what the overall quality and dimensions of the relationship might be.

The 2 of Cups could mean that they're involved with someone else, but that right now they've had a falling out with their partner but there's a chance they could still find healing for this other relationship. I usually see added cards as added information and in this case the 4 of Swords looks to me as though the cards are saying to "hang back" and see what happens with this person. Don't count too much on there being a romantic potential because it's possible that if you become too emotionally invested, you'll be caught in the "yo-yo" effect of "go away/come here" with the person you're asking about.

I'd read some sort of difficulty in accomplishing the mutual trust and balanced co-operation of the 2C, perhaps one of them will be slow to trust or has been hurt in the past. In the 4S there may be contemplation around the relationship, kinda like deciding if they want to take it down the road of 2C.

Barleywine said:

I would see it as affecting the degree of satisfaction over time rather than simply as "pass/fail." The connection could very well be good for a while, but since we're trying to see how the 2 of Cups might be an "obstacle," my thinking is that it could get stale after a time. One idea I picked up from Paul Fenton-Smith on the 2 of Cups is to draw two more cards to place on each side of it, showing what the overall quality and dimensions of the relationship might be.

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That is a great idea, i will try it next time!

barefootlife said:

Kinda jumping off from Barleywine here, but with a slightly different twist. Depending on the cards around it, the 2 of Cups could also mean that they're rushing headlong into this thing without taking time to really evaluate whether they're compatible on a deeper level. Sometimes that feeling of 'instant connection' leads people to overlook important things that are foundational to successful relationships. Once that 'honeymoon' ends and they start seeing each other without the rose-tinted glasses, things might change.

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And again i don't understand why i didn't think of that earlier!Yes that makes sense they feel that they are compatible because they feel so much in love and they can't see if they are really right for each other.And it's again somekind of warning like barleywine said.Thank you barefootlife.

Grizabella said:

The 2 of Cups could mean that they're involved with someone else, but that right now they've had a falling out with their partner but there's a chance they could still find healing for this other relationship. I usually see added cards as added information and in this case the 4 of Swords looks to me as though the cards are saying to "hang back" and see what happens with this person. Don't count too much on there being a romantic potential because it's possible that if you become too emotionally invested, you'll be caught in the "yo-yo" effect of "go away/come here" with the person you're asking about.

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Thank you grizabellaI think that this is also possible.so in this case the 2 of cups might indicate that this person is in a relationship with someone else and the 4 of swords is a warning for my friend to hang back.i hope this yo-yo effect wont happen whatever the meaning of the 2ofC is i'm pretty sure now that the 4 of swords is a warning to wait and see.