I was still young and figuring out where I wanted to go, sexually. I met her in class and we had some mutual friends. Something just… sparked as we talked to each other. I think we talked on the phone for 12 hours in the span of three days, and I hated talking on the phone with most people. She came up to me after about three weeks and slid her fingers between mine. I looked up in total surprise, but she just smiled this knowing smile and I blushed furiously under that gaze.
I had broken up with a very short-term boyfriend from our friend circle maybe a week before she made her move, and she had just ended a friends-with-benefits situation with another guy from our group. We walked the halls hand-in-hand and word spread through our group like wildfire. My ex was still bitter about the break-up, and I’d heard through our friends that he’d said “I can’t believe Jamie’s ex is dating my ex. What the fuck is up with that?” In secret, he told me years later, he fantasized about Alicia and me.