It exists, it’s just not what most people think it is. If someone says they just want to be friends, you aren’t in the friend zone. You were politely rejected. If one of you isn’t interested in dating the other person there is no friend zone.

The real friend zone is when you are actual friends first and both have feelings for each other, but one of you doesn’t want to risk ruining the friendship. That is the friendzone. It’s real. Just very uncommon and widely misused.