I... have a special Valentine!
The last ten days have been amazing for me. I... now have a boyfriend!
It started innocently enough. Since 1994, one of my interests has been the ‘Furry’ fandom. That is a group of people who like art and stories featuring anthropomorphic animal characters - from classic cartoons Bugs Bunny and Mickey Mouse (loved that stuff since I was a kid), to characters like the ones in some video games, original art and stories of our own creations, and including ‘mascot costumes’, where some of us put together anthro animal costumes, and wear them as performers, or at Furry conventions. I have one of those costumes, as a cute female fox.
So, on Feb 4th, I joined a FB group for members of that Fandom who were 30 and older, and posted a pic of me, and a pic of me in my suit, and a bit about me, ending with my age and that I am a trans female. The fandom is quite supporting of the LGBTQ community, so no reason not to be up front on that point. I was mostly just seeking to connect socially with other local people my age, who were interested in the fandom. The group is not a ‘dating site’, by the way.
I quickly got lots of friendly welcome messages in the group, and complements on my fox costume, as well as several nice complements on how pretty I am. And a few people reached out on Messenger to say ‘hello’. One was a guy in Klamath Falls, about 200 miles from where I live. He has a horse/unicorn costume. We chatted all day by Messenger, and it swiftly became apparent that we had a lot of other things in common, beside the fandom. And it also became evident that we liked each other, in ways that just might possibly develop in romantic directions!
Two days later, we were still chattering away with each other by text, all day long, and had shared a lot of photos and art, and some of our personal histories and ‘adventures’. We had a few friends in common in the fandom. And while we were still just talking along the lines of being friends, he made it clear that he was very supportive of my being trans, and that he had dated a trans woman before.
Over the next two days, the flood of texts between us continued, each of us attentively and supportively learning about the other. We were both smiling a lot as we read each other’s chatter, which gradually and mutually became much more... personal.
By days 5 and six, we were discussing if we should start considering ourselves a boyfriend/girlfriend couple - a conversation arc that I initiated. He took his time before deciding that yes, it was certainly looking like that. By the end of day six, we were both feeling like if we were in the same city right then, the dating would have already started... and while neither of us was rushing to travel and see the other in person, we were beginning to happily anticipate that it will happen eventually. Most likely at an upcoming fandom convention, if not before that. By the end of that six days, I had sent him a valentine card by scanning and messaging it to him, and we were agreed that if we could more readily get together, we would already be dating. We continued almost continuous chatter back and forth...
To make a long story short, today marks the start of the tenth day, and every single day since we met has been amazing, filled with deep, loving communication between us. The kind of conversations which make for best friends, and better life companions. All sorts of topics, from books and music that we like, to deeply erotic turns of conversation - though not sharing nudes or anything that far out. Just virtual hugs and kisses, and what we would love to be doing if we were in the same room...
I had thought I might find a girlfriend eventually, since as a woman, I identify as more lesbian than straight. But i am bi, and guys are fine with me too. And here I meet a guy who thinks I am beautiful, feminine, and even sexy, and who would clearly accept and support me both as I am, and as my transition completes. We are making each other very happy, and he has been immensely respectful and supportive.
Of course, I plan to be careful when it comes to meeting him in person. I?ll check with mutual friends to see what they think of him, chat with some people who have known him for years... and even then, do our first meeting in a safe, public place. But so far, there have really been no ‘red flags’ showing. Nothing about him that seems creepy, or off. No direction to our chatter that wasn’t gradually entered into and mutually acceptable. He has not been eager to push for escalating anything, nor has he tried to encourage me to rush to meet him. We are just eagerly getting to know all we can about each other, and loving what we are hearing.
One hell of a great Valentine’s present!
