Where I met my partner?
We went to high school together, but never really met until years later, at a house party thrown by another friend. She came along with a mutual friend of ours, sat down nearby, asked me to pass the chips, and I jokingly asked her if she wanted to fight. We became fast friends after that.
How we fell in love
We were friends first for about 5 years. She flirted with everybody, including me, but on and off dated a mutual male friend of ours. After about 2-1/2 years, I realized I had fallen in love with her, but a number of reasons (mostly the need to emotionally and mentally resolve my own situation), I bit my tongue until I was ready to explode from the pressure. I finally wrote her a letter confessing my feelings and found out that she felt the same way. It was funny to sit on the same couch, feet apart, for so long, but ultimately it paid off to build a really solid foundation of friendship. We've been together over a year now, living together for the past 6 months. Almost all of our friends know, and although our parents do not, they have readily accepted our friendship and living arrangement. I am truly blessed to be in love with my best friend.
Advice
- Explore in ways that are comfortable for you and assert your boundaries.
- Look for people who respect your choices.
- Be patient and don't give in to the social pressures of having to be with someone. You can't force attraction or intimacy.
- Be willing to take measured risks.
- Always be a friend first, and a lover second.
