Theme Song: "All Of Your Love" - Hellogoodbye
Never have I heard the question so frequently, "What took you so long?!" And I can't help but think, how did I go so long without seeing something, or should I say, someONE, so wonderful right in front of my face? Well, let's start at the beginning: Kyle and I first met back in the fall of 2006 at the first ALLiES (Gay-Straight Alliance) meeting. We were all going around the room introducing ourselves Mickey Mouse Club-style and I remember my first thought when he spoke was, "Dammmmn, he's pale!" And from then on, he blended in with every other guy at Gettysburg. Our next encounter (that I actually remember, at least) occurred in early 2007, when I was scheduled to photograph the gBurg Forum (online newspaper) staff.I distinctly remember this photo shoot because when I entered the room, I recognized Kyle from ALLiES and yet there was no friendly exchange of smiles, waves, or even glances--just his unibomber stare. Based on his expression, I quickly concluded that he was: 1) straight but accepting, and 2) not particularly fond of me (I get that a lot). Needless to say, I took it all (too) personally, and from that moment on, he became invisible to me. With the exception of GBD '07 (see Episode 4.14: "Boys Wanna Be Her"), I honestly have no recollection of him... despite the fact that we must've been in the same tiny room at least once a week for ALLiES meetings.
A year and a half goes by, and it's January 2008. My girl Sara tells me how the Pagans were yelling at me (in a nice way) from across the street a few days ago; as always, I had my earphones and couldn't hear a thing. To make up for my insolence, I attend a Pagan Society meeting, where I "meet" Kyle anew. He never spoke very much during ALLiES meetings, so it's interesting to see him taking charge and successfully conducting a meeting. I'm impressed.
And almost immediately, I'm determined, as a Non-Pagan, to prove that I'm genuinely interested in the subject and didn't join only because I'm already friends with half the members.A few weeks later, a sub-group of the Pagans (Me, Sara, Katy, Em, Kyle) is formed, one that routinely meets for Queer As Folk nights, a tradition originally started by Wonda' Woman and me. The running joke of Kyle's steadily declining straightness (Half&Half -> 5% -> 2% -> Soon he'll be SKIM!) inspires Katy to recruit both him and myself to her Bi-Harem (AKA "The Bi-Entourage"), a group of bi-guys who must follow her at all times and fulfill all her desires. Our little "Pagan Posse" even goes to Snow Ball together, making it hands-down the most fun I've had at a college dance.
Literally hours before Easter Break hits (March 21), an Unfortunate Series of Events causes a rift between the women of the group and battlelines are hastily drawn. Being a trusted gay, of course I hear wind of this from both sides and try my best to play PeaceMaker, and yet, wanting not to get sucked into some drama. All three girls have gone home for the 4-Day weekend at this point, when I hear from Sara that Kyle's staying neutral. ...Huh? I whip out my cell phone and send him a TXT message for the first time:
Me: *SIGH* WOMEN...Frustrated by how incredibly slow I am at TXT-ing (gimme a break, my 5 key's broken), I just shout to myself, "Hell! It'll probably be faster just to talk to him in-person. After all, he does live only 9 doors down." So around 1AM I put on my flip flops and walk 30 feet to Kyle's room, the first time I've ever really gone there to see him. Over the break, we decide to have a little Pow-Wow, and hang out--just the two of us--for the first time ever.
Kyle: Lol, I take it youve been brought in too...
For the rest of the school year, it's as if we're the children of a broken home, spending Fridays with Sara and Saturdays with Katy & Em. During one QAF night in RISE, when one of the awkward residents has taken over the common room for Monty Python Night (not HORRIBLE, at least), 3 of us are forced to squeeze together on a couch, me sandwiched between Emily and Kyle. At one point, the girls become infuriated with Kyle over SOMETHING (what else is new?), and they're too far away to hit him. So... Katy arms me with a water bottle and I get to make him squirm! =D He tries to grab it from me; I'm surprised at how much upper body strength he's got, and at that moment, I start to find him INCREDIBLY attractive. Before, I hadn't given him a second glance, but NOW he's practically the hottest guy in the world... to me, at least. ;-)
During the next couple of weeks, he and I start regularly hanging out with the group from 8 to 1, and then swinging by my place from 1 to 4 for pizza and a movie. Catching on to the fact that we're acting like more than just friends, I start questioning our relationship: He reeeeally went out of his way to help me by cleaning up at Midnight Madness... Are we dating? We've wrestled around quite a bit... Are we just guy friends? We just went grocery shopping together... Are we married? I'm so confused.Finally, after one of our "death matches" at my place, I confess to him, "Kyle, I hate to say this, but... I think I'm falling for you." He says nothing. I continue, "I don't wanna say it, because as you know, I don't date friends." He just responds, "What's the worst that could happen?" He admits that he's developing feelings, and that's good enough for me; I just tell him that I wanna take things slow, because when it comes to relationships, my biggest weakness is my tendency to rush into things.
A few nights later, after a horrible dance competition at Mt. St. Mary's, I need a night with Kyle to cheer me up, and he does just that. Just having him around instantaneously lifts my spirits. That night, Ambika and Sara drop in on our little get-together, and although I love them both, I can't have them here all night because if they're here, nothing will happen. Lo and behold, once the girls clear out and Jinming's guest finally leaves, Kyle and I end up having our first kiss. What's even better is how Kyle's such a good listener.
He must've remembered the advice I gave to Sara (2 sentences) about romance a few months ago and how a simple kiss on the cheek can be so incredibly sweet. And that's just what he did to me. I could've melted right there, but instead, I mounted him and gave him a warm smooch on the lips.Even after the kiss, it's not until a week later, outside the library that I finally spit it out, "Are we dating?" He laughs and says, "I was gonna ask you the same thing!" That same night, we both show up at Japan House for an impromptu night of dancing and debauchery, during which we slow-dance and nuzzle together out on the porch, in the rain, on a busy street. And THAT's when I knew, that he was the guy that I could finally have a good, loving relationship with, a guy who wasn't ashamed of his feelings for me. I am taken. <3
The next morning, we make it all official on FaceBook, and I couldn't be happier because it happened the right way. It wasn't planned, I was never hunting him, I didn't use my powers of manipulation to catch him, but by some stroke of luck, I've got him, and he's got me. =D That's right, boys, I'm FORBIDDEN fruit. I don't care if you're hungry 'cause I'm not gonna fuck around behind this guy's back. Honestly, I like, respect, and admire him way too much to do that.
xoxo, baby!
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