It was one of those hit-you-like-a-lightning-bolt relationships. I’d been planning to go on an extended backpacking trip to Southeast Asia — there would be no return ticket, I would figure it out as I went. My sister was teaching English in Seoul and booked a flight for me and our mom to meet her in Bali for Christmas, which gave me four months to save up money. The day after the flight was booked, things started with Ariel.
Our relationship developed so quickly that we laughed about being stereotypical lesbians (ever hear the joke about what a lesbian brings on a second date? Spoiler alert: it’s a U-Haul); in two months we were going on a road trip to Texas for her sister’s wedding, where I would meet her entire extended family. We spent almost every day together, but my trip loomed over us; I’d promised a good friend that I’d meet her in Seoul in March, so I’d be gone for at least three months. It felt impossible.
When Ariel’s parents got her a flight to Thailand on their flyer miles as a Christmas present, things started to feel slightly less apocalyptic. We would only have to spend a month and a half apart, and then we would get to spend two weeks together on palm-lined beaches before going to visit my sister in Seoul. After a tear-filled Christmas Eve goodbye, I was off, and we were on opposite sides of the planet.
Because email feels sterile to me and we live in the age of instant communication, Ariel entertained my suggestion that we write letters and text photos of them to each other. I even wrote her a few pieces of erotica. Some days we would talk on the phone for hours, and I felt like I was finally getting the teenage romance I’d never had, counting down the days until I would see her again, while going from Bali to Seoul to New Zealand and, after parting ways with Mom, finally to Thailand.
By Maggie Craig – Full Story at Popsugar.com