First Infatuation

We were twelve years old that summer, my friend, Carol, and I. We passed our time by going for long walks, snapping pictures of each other with our Kodak cameras (when we had money for film), and sitting on the deck of a small houseboat that was docked at river’s edge next to my house. We sat there for hours talking, eating apples and dangling our feet in the cool, green water.

It was a memorable time in our lives.

On Saturdays, we went to an afternoon movie. There we met friends from school. My first boyfriend evolved from one of these Saturdays at the movies. His name was Buddy. I’m sure he had a “real” name, but that’s what everyone called him. So, there we sat watching a western movie, probably starring Roy Rogers or Gene Autry, and munching on popcorn. Buddy and his friends were sitting behind us.

As boys are prone to do, they were talking and laughing too loudly and we couldn’t hear the movie. I took it as long as I could, then turned around, looked right at Buddy and said, “Why don’t you grow up? If you don’t want to watch the movie, then leave, but we’d like to watch it... and hear it, too, if you don’t mind!”

Believe it or not, it got quiet. A couple of the boys left and next thing I knew, Buddy was sitting in the seat next to me. I looked at him and he whispered, “I’m sorry.” I smiled and nodded, figuring he’d leave, but he just sat there watching the movie. I looked at Carol out of the corner of my eye and she poked me in the ribs with her finger. We were trying hard not to giggle.

Suddenly, Buddy touched my arm, which was on the arm rest between us... then his hand slid down my arm and he very slowly took my hand in his. Without even looking at each other, we sat there holding hands and watching the movie. I could feel my heart pounding! I had never held hands with a boy before and Buddy was the cutest boy in school! I was careful not to move – I barely breathed – for fear he’d move his hand.

When the movie was over, he removed his sweaty hand and we stood up to leave. I thought he’d say something like, “See ya’,” and take off, but he didn’t. He walked with us. When we got to Carol’s house, I said, “I’ll see you tomorrow.” She said, “Goodnight.” And Buddy walked the rest of the way home with me. We sat on my porch swing talking about school and stuff until my mother came to the door and told me it was time to come in.

Buddy said, “Do you think you’ll go to the movie next Saturday?”

“Probably,” I said.

“Maybe we can sit together.”

“Okay. See you then.” I said.

My mother asked, “Who was that?”

“Just a friend from school.”

Buddy and I remained friends for the rest of the summer, sitting together at the movies and talking on the phone, but the budding romance was not to be. Just before school started in September, his family abruptly moved away. The night before they left, we went for a walk and he gave me a cute cat pin to wear on my sweaters. I still have it in my jewelry box. We wrote letters for a while but, eventually, I had only sweet memories of my first infatuation.

Losing your first boyfriend is one of life’s most painful events!