First Kiss

I have never forgotten my first kiss. I never dared to dream that the perpetrator would one day walk back into my life and sweep me off my feet. Life is sweet when it deals you these serendipitous surprises.

Kerry was a pretty naughty boy. He was not nasty, not violent, but one of those cheeky little rogues who made school a little more entertaining for his fellow pupils. He smoked behind the sheds, didn't do his homework and lit grass fires in his summer holidays.

I was the swotty teachers' pet. I came top in pretty much every subject. I was the person people asked for homework answers. I was vehemently anti-smoking and in my summer holidays I practiced my handwriting.

We had practically nothing in common. Even though we were in the same year, we weren't even in the same class. You would never had put us together as a likely match. But then there was this school holiday to Holland and we were thrown together in a mixed group of children from our year. We got talking, and we liked each other. I was surprised by his loyal and protective nature. I had presumed naughty kids weren't really very nice and avoided them. He proved me wrong. He says that he felt he was able to be himself with me and didn't have any bravado or machoism he needed to live up to, as he did with the lads. Conversations were easy. Being together was easy. We spent more and more time together as the holiday went on. There was no romance at this stage, we were just kids, but we did become very close.

Back at school we all went back to growing up. After a while we naturally started to become interested in the opposite sex as playmates of a new kind. I fancied him. He fancied me. I told my best friend. He told his best friend. I told my best friend to tell his best friend....... and so the game went on. Eventually, somehow, we were 'going out' with each other. One afternoon my form teacher pulled me to one side and warned me 'I don't think you should be hanging around with that Kerry as much as you do. Girls like you shouldn't spend too much time with boys like him. He'll be a bad influence on you.' After this of course, he only grew even more attractive to me!

We shared our first kiss at Rockerfellas, a nightclub that held a non-alcoholic disco for the under eighteens up until 9 O' Clock on Friday nights. I felt so grown up! Actually, I say 'our' first kiss, but whilst it was my first kiss ever, it wasn't his; good job really, I needed a bit of help from someone who knew what they were doing.

Good old days! I'm back left, Kerry is the rude gesture.

We never really broke up. We just grew up. We went our separate ways and moved on as you do. Of course every now and then over the years I'd think 'I wonder what Kerry Bowman's doing these days,' but I imagine lots of people think such things about their first boyfriends. Nothing ever comes of it; not usually. I joined Friends Reunited for a few years. Nothing ever came of that. Then out of the blue a couple of years ago I got a message on Facebook..... from Kerry!!

We got chatting straight away. And once we started it seemed we couldn't stop. It was just like old times. Conversation was so easy! We chatted into the night.... every night. We arranged to meet after a few days. I was to go round to his for a coffee. I wasn't nervous at all; just excited. In fact I couldn't wait to see him again after all those (twenty-three!) years.

I found his flat and he came to the gate to meet me. We hugged, kissed each other on the cheek and went inside. Well....... as soon as I saw him I was hooked. His eyes were exactly the same - those piercing pale blue eyes that gave me butterflies, but everything else about him had changed. He had gotten all...... well, manly! I fancied him now more than ever.

A more mature Kerry (some things never change):

We talked and talked and I didn't leave until one in the morning. We have been together ever since. For ever this time.