@brat22,
Actually, your premise is utterly flawed.
Love - real love, that is - is surprisingly easy.
Chew on that one for a moment.
It is people who ask each other how they're doing, not because they think it's a good idea or because they want the other person to do it back or because society says they should. They do it because they're genuinely interested in how the other person is, and what they have to say. It's people who maybe suffer for other reasons (after all, cancer, crib death, unemployment, etc. don't care what kind of a relationship you're in),
but not for their relationship. It is people who stay together not because society dictates it or they think it would be better for their children or their bank accounts. They stay together because they enjoy each other's company. It's people who aren't jealous of the other one's work and other friendships because they know that their partners need those interactions as well. It's people who hang in there when life throws them a curve but they don't throw curve balls into their own relationships because they're not dumb enough to mess up a good thing.
TV and the movies tend to not show these types of relationships because they don't hold a lot of drama and they don't make for good storytelling. But they are the reality of "happily ever after".
Now, your fellow might just have trouble expressing himself - have you ever thought of that? There are a lot of people (and a lot of men were raised into this sort of culture) who feel weird about saying
I love you and who don't really have a romantic bone in their bodies. They feel love, but it's not conveyed via hearts and flowers. It's how they fill your car with gas without being asked; it's how they go to a party with you even though they don't want to, because
you wanted to go; it's how they treat your parents, friends, and siblings, too.
Drop the drama; it's exhausting and you will never be able to keep it up. Don't fight for something that's not worth it.