After I went home some leading on went on and I may have been
somewhat responsible for that. To be fair, that 'somewhat' up there
on the last line should most likely read 'totally'. The problem I had was
that I really liked the feeling of being wanted and I assumed that
there would be no harm in keeping up a long distance relationship for
a bit and enjoy the attention. To be clear, as an adult I realize
that this was a horribly egocentric thing to do and to this day feel
bad for what a jerk move it was. I do that a lot. Well, now that the
mea culpa's have been mea culpa-ed I can get back to what it was I
did wrong. It started with a letter from my southern love interest. I
responded in a way that any sensible person would interpret as an
escalation of the romantic feeling which, I think at the time, I
really meant. I was even making plans for a return trip to Florida to
see her. The letters got more intimate and more regular. I should
have done the mature thing and told her that it was probably not
practical for us to keep up an exclusive relationship but if the
opportunity for either of us to move a little closer we might start
from there. What I did was keep the fires burning until the letters
slowed to a trickle. Things were left unresolved until she came out
to visit some people and me in Utah the next summer. We talked and
decided to go rock climbing I didn't tell her even at that last
chance for dignity that I had a girlfriend and when I showed up to
meet her in a halfway parking lot and I got out of my car with my
girlfriend and that was when she realized what she should have been
told. We did go climbing still but there was an understandably chilly
feel to the activity and I felt like a huge idiot for letting this
thing go unresolved for so long. We parted ways and have spoken
again. Better for her to not associate with people like me anyway.
