Shauna - Part 2

Shauna had some friends that I saw more than I saw her. Two of them kept telling me that I should ask her out. I took her number off one of them but I had exams so I told her friends that I would call her but I needed to pass my exams (GCSEs so I didn't want any distractions - we were told they were more important than they turned out to be, so I didn't know any better).

I would go for coffee everyday in town after revising and I'd always bump into them, because they were just leaving school then they had the impression that I just hung out there all day. Shauna heard about this and thought I was avoiding her.

After my exams and after a long phonecall which involved ironing out any creases in her thinking about the situation we agreed to meet up for a date.

Pam - Part 2

Pam and I started seeing each other but since her and her ex-boyfriend were doing the same course it became very hard for us to go out without him bitching and sniping. We tried to ignore it but since they were living in the same house it became almost impossible to have a normal date.

She'd often show up crying at mine and always insisted I didn't go round to talk/thump her ex-boyfriend.

Still that made things very difficult because he tried to use a nasty trick that a lot of boyfriends do when they know their girlfriend is leaving them for someone else:

"It'd be okay if it was anyone but him."

It nearly worked, I'll tell you how another time.

Sarah - Part 1

Sarah was one of those long and impossible friendships that grow into a long, sporadic and eventually messy relationships.

Here's how we met.

She was in the year below me at high school and I was a big music fan. I used to swap tapes with a guy in her class. She was super cute and when I was down seeing him I always ended up talking to her.

Eventually after a few months another friend told me that everyone in her class thought I was only down there because I fancied her. This in its own way wasn't untrue but it also wasn't fact.

Eventually me and her ended up hanging out throughout school but at that stage we were just friends.

Sophie - Part 3

Sophie and I were pretty competative. We were both pretty studious but at the same time sporty. For some reason we decided to wrestle one day. I thought this would be fun and playful but as it turned out Sophie was pretty technical and fast.

I found after a few minutes that I was getting slapped silly by her. I remember thinking that I needed to pin her just to show her who was better. I pounced on her, grabbing her by the shoulders and pushing hard. My shoulders touched the bed and Sophie loomed over me, giggling.

I struggled and struggled but just couldn't manage to get myself free. Sophie let go of my shoulders, and pinned me down with one knee on my shoulder.

She sat there with her hands on her hips, giggling and shaking her head and saying "just give up."

I didn't have a choice.

Lindsay - Part 1

Lindsay was my first college girlfriend. Or at least the first proper one. At the start of college it was almost like high-school again, going out with girls for maybe a few days to a week or two but nothing of any substance. That was until I met Lindsay.

She was on the same course as me, a big and sometimes bitchy course and it took me a while to make friends. One day a group of ones from the course who all lived together were going to the seaside. I was invited and because I didn't really know anyone from my course yet I said yes.

The day itself was a typical studenty one and it really helped me to feel settled at college. Lindsay and me clicked as we hung out. We liked the same music and laughed at the same things.

A few of us went to a club when we got back. This was the start of me and Lindsay.

Maria - Part 1

Maria was my first girlfriend. Not the first girl I kissed but the first girl I actually went out with. It didn't last long and almost didn't get beyond the first date but that her cousin was in my class at school and that's how I saw her again.

It was at a party when I was thirteen. My brother was in a band with a guy from his school and his brother had a flat in the town centre. We went there on a Friday night and like a lot of parties there were a few girls there too. I was blind drunk (my trick in those days was to down a quarter bottle of vodka have a great time for about an hour then throw up all over myself) and over I went with the not so great chat up line "Will you face me."

My brother had actually spotted Maria and wanted to ask her out but I was quicker getting to her. His chat up line might have been better but he never got the chance to use it as Maria said yes to mine.

Not much happened after that. We chatted for a bit and she had to go home. I stayed the night as I was too drunk and my parents being split up offered me a great excuse for where I was the night before:

"At dad's," (to mum).
"At mum's" (to dad).

The next day I was supposed to play rugby. I slept in.

Sophie - Part 2

I was after this girl called Sarah who was a new arrival in the halls of residence. She told me that she was going to a drum and bass night with her flatmates at a club in the city centre. I got together a group of my mates and we all went for the night.

I got more pissed than I should have and chewed Sarah's ear off badly (my prowess hadn't much improved since Shauna or Julie). I think I blew it with Sarah that night but we later became close friends.

We were all seated around the one table and I had some good chats with Sophie. Mostly about how we had very different senses of humour but that itself made us both laugh.

A few days later I met her on the lawn at halls and she said she was feeling sick and homesick. She was thinking of leaving. I didn't like this so I called by her flat a few times that week to cheer her up.

That was the start of us hanging out.