How we met

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I've been doing this blog for a few weeks now and always mentioning My Boyfriend, maybe I owe it to you to tell how we met as he is important to myself and this blog.

When I moved from Wales to England last year after 12 years there, I decided the time was right to move on- I'd finished school and finally I could have some time to think for myself at the age of 17. By then I'd been fascinated by Japan for 7 years and I was so eager to make a new start moving from my mums house to my dad's that I was easily influenced by others choices and my own.

My teacher suggested I did TEFL, but people discouraged me as I was young and wasn't convinced the course would be effective as I thought it was a two day thing, so I thought I'd do a more long-term course and picked Travel & Tourism. A BTEC course which will grant me a diploma after my second year.

Out of naivety I hastily moved away the following day after the big ceremony at school which my dad attended along with my mum and it was the proudest few moments of my life seeing both my parents together, witnessing my last 12 year achievement. However, despite being seduced into a course where I thought people were going to be on the same page with interests with me and talk about places we wanted to visit- my hopes for a better future dissolved instantly.

I had no friends moving to Kent, just a handful but I'd hadn't seen since I moved so of course they'd moved on and made their own friends since, leaving me twelve years behind. I dove into the deep end and realised college was no different from school and that a school bully or 'jock' would always follow me around like a plague. It became very isolating and lonely for me as I'd had a completely different upbringing, especially being an only child in a place known for 'sheep shagging'.

Until one day I had a meeting with a tutor, despite having a hard time understanding the course and what they expected off me, she was happy I'd come here. To resolve my confidence issues she suggested I looked up friends online, I thought it was a silly idea and instantly thought she saw me as sad- despite I was ok working alone.

But I took her idea anyway and began to search, it was difficult to find a genuine or useful website then an idea struck and thought what about putting my interest of Japan and Japanese skills to the test? So I began to search, putting adverts with my email address on forums; weeks later no luck, so I looked again and found a Rosetta Stone website and made a few friends there, it was more of a private email thing so I met a few anonymous Japanese people who were friendly and nice, however I wanted something more.

Then I found The Mixxer not long afterwards- where you can message people and exchange Skype names.

I knew meeting people online could be risky or meeting weirdos, so I took my chances and of course there were a few I had to block immediately, along the way I'd met a nice man and a couple of girls whom I'd had a laugh with.

Then one day, a boy adds me on March 9th.

He is 17, a student and very polite.

We spoke for a while and I taught him a few things in English to brush up his sentences and he was really grateful- but I was so nervous, for no particular reason I was afraid he wouldn't want to speak to me again for being a little sarcastic. However the enxt day he messaged me- told me about his day and was charming all over again, then we spoke the next day and the next day. Soon we became very comfortable with one another I stopped looking for other people to meet.

He was young and quite naive, most of the time to start we had to type so that we could understand each other, he was a perfect, genuine person and I used to stay up late for when he woke up he'd talk to me first thing in the morning at home or on the train. I looked forward to it.

We spoke mainly in English, I wanted him to become more fluent as he was a keen learner.

Every time I mentioned a person's name from either college or a celebrity I liked he'd fish around and ask 'who's Alex? Your husband?' or 'oh, I won't interrupt your love' when I told him I was going to see Robert Smith of The Cure live. It baffled me and I had no idea what he was going on about- I thought he was just confused but really he was just making sure I was single.

In April I was going to Hong Kong with my dad to celebrate my 18th- a week before he asked me what my favorite song is; I told him Lullaby by The Cure and when I got back he surprised me by getting his guitar out and playing the first few chords.

Then a few days later, we were talking casually about something else when suddenly he typed- I love you. I literally jumped out of my seat, I was so surprised then something made me want to say it too, so I did- Ashiteru. And that surprised him even more that I knew it in Japanese.

It took a few months to comprehend his words- we'd never met, we'd only been speaking a month, how could this possibly work?

But one day it hit me what he was saying, he was very strategic, after a few weeks he started calling me honey which I thought was funny and made me shy. But six months later, I'm used to it, despite the inconvenient distance we're just like a normal couple.

Finally on July 3rd we met in Hyde Park and it was the best day ever, I'd never known anyone particularly a boy to be so happy to see me- we went to Green Park, Abbey Road and Wembley.

However, we weren't perfect, certainly me. Our relationship was in jeopardy due to trust and anxiety which we both battled through and when we came close to finishing it last month, we both realised what we meant to each other and so now we're closer than ever before.

Last night I wondered if he was still in love with me, sometimes I get a little insecure since we talk two or three times a day and it was getting boring, but he said no and sighed so heavily when I said I was happy for now.

We've thought of plans for our future, especially if I come to visit in March- I was watching him making an itinerary of our trip from the moment I get off the plane to eating and waking up etc, thinking of that reminds me how much he wants me to come.

Of course I have to put of with a lot of ignorance from people at college and sometimes even my dad; they all wonder how this could possibly work, judging our trust together. The racism really upsets me, even though I'd told them many times he's Japanese, they still call him Chinese, for travel students this shocks me.

They give him mean names which I won't repeat, but because he's just a bully I know it's just to get through to me, nothing personal towards him. But I promised him I'd always defend him. We Skyped at college and some students liked him others were rude but luckily his English listening skills isn't too good. But recently with me he's been amazing.

After what we had been through together I have no doubt about us, I just remember the big smile he gave me in Hyde Park and the tears he shed when I was angry with him. He is so romantic, I never thought it was possible for a boy to be so besotted by a girl. I share everything with me and he shares a lot with me too.

We have talked about marriage, quite early on after he said he loved me and he continues to talk about it too and children- he really wants to give me the full Japanese experience when I visit. Insisting I stay in his grandpa's traditional Japanese home and giving me a big welcome.

I met his family a few weeks ago, his grandparents, parents and aunties and they all smiled and waved back, his Obaasan saying I was pretty.

I'd like him to plan a visit to my area one day afterwards so that I could show him all around London and Kent, maybe one day.



I have to keep reminded myself to thank my tutor for encouraging me to make friends online, because since then my grades went up and my future was bright, I went to Wales to save money for him and not only that I got more experience and work to put on my CV to show employers in the mean time. If it wasn't for him I'd have dropped out of college and looked desperately for work and found my own way to and around Japan- though it would have been a lonely journey.

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Photos

First picture
He gave me a whole bag of treats including green tea kitkat and biscuits, they were so delicious

So nice
I miss him terribly, but talking every day is enough

sakuksaku panda
Green tea pandas!! ;D

The Tour
Wembley wasn't a place I ever thoguht I'd go to but I went wherever he and the school went so I got to see more of London with him- which was a nice surprise

Sweating
We were both worried about meeting up- finding each other, going according to plan etc. I arrived an hour early and it was so hot I almost gave up.
So after fifteen minutes of his lateness I went back to the tube station, then decided I'd give it another go and there he was, yelled my name, ran and tackled me saying I love you

Regret
My only regret is that we didn't take many photos, especially at Abbey Road- but sometimes memories are more important than that