FIRST LOVE
Two exes see if it’s a case of unfinished business or a lucky escape
I was 17 and had just made friends with the new girl at school, who was a professional swimmer. I thought that was really cool so one day she added me to a group Skype call to introduce me to the other swimmers on her team. Thomas was on the call. We got talking and hit it off. He lived in Wales at the time so we couldn’t meet up for a while. When we eventually did, I invited him to my house and I was so nervous that I invited other friends to come along as well. We had a few drinks and a play fight resulted in my friends and I painting Thomas with nail varnish. He seemed to like the excuse to take his top off, and with good reason – he was ripped. After that, he’d visit when he could and we’d hang around London getting to know each other. At the end of one of his trips, I missed my train home because I was upset about saying goodbye. I remember our first kiss vividly as I made the move. It was at my house again and I don’t know what came over me but I went for it. We were official after that.
Six months into the relationship, Thomas’s family moved to London. Everything was wonderful for a year and a half – until I was offered a place at the University of Exeter. I was torn about whether or not I wanted to go, but I had to do what was best for me. That decision definitely changed things. Long-distance was difficult and I was constantly meeting lots of new like-minded people. After a few weeks, I travelled home and broke up with him.
That was about five years ago and we hadn’t seen each other since then, until we met for this date. He was 15 minutes late and I panicked that he’d stood me up. When he finally arrived, it was very relaxed. I was close to his family so it was nice to catch up about them. He’s a lot more courteous now. He was pouring my drink and holding doors open for me, it was really cute.