This Must Be the Place Prologue: 3
One thing that changed when Paul and I got together was that I had to come out as pansexual. Not that I was worried about being accepted; I wouldn’t be friends with anyone who wasn’t supportive of the LGBT+ community, and a lot of the people close to me were a part of the community themselves.
But it’s still nerve wracking to realize your concept of yourself was misguided and having to let everyone know that you got it wrong. No one else saw it that way, of course. Everyone was supportive of me, and they all thought Paul was great.
Paul was already out to his family, but I think us being together was still a surprise. I wasn’t the type of person he normally brought home. His previous relationships were with people more like him–responsible, polished, presentable people. Meanwhile, there I was with holes in my jeans and my face, cracking inappropriate jokes.
Still, his parents liked me. I think Lucinda was pleased that I could banter with her, and Lou is such a friendly guy that he would give almost anyone a chance.
His sister Lucy is my boss and my best friend. Telling her about our relationship was awkward since we didn’t know how she would react. To be honest, she was a little worried. She didn’t want to be forced to choose between us should we break up, but after a while she realized we were the real deal.
Eventually she would tell us that she was happy two of her favorite people were in love with each other.
We also had to connect with each other’s friends. This was pretty easy for the most part as my friends were all pretty cool and Paul had already set boundaries with some of his more difficult friendships. Besides, we already knew the important people in each others’ lives.
I didn’t get along with his best friend Danica at first, but she’d put some serious effort into being less of a busybody and we eventually became like family. Our connection was good for her, too, as it led to her meeting my friend Chase, who would become her husband.
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