Guest Post: The Platonic Boyfriend

At exactly midnight on my 21st birthday, my phone rang.

"Is that your boyfriend?" one of my friends asked half in jest, knowing exactly who was calling.

I don't actually have a boyfriend, at least not in a romantic sense. The caller in question is my best friend, with whom I just so happen to spend pretty much every waking moment. We have myriad inside jokes, text several times a day, and occasionally grab meals just the two of us. We are for all intents and purposes dating, but we have never hooked up and never will.

And he's not the only straight male with whom I've found myself in this kind of relationship with. I've had a series of platonic boyfriends - guys with whom I've shared my innermost thoughts and deepest, darkest secrets but have never thought about sexually. This is both a blessing and a curse. The fact that I don't hook up with them allows me to foster a close relationship without the added liability of sexual tension. It also, however, be an obstacle in forging meaningful romantic relationships. I mean, there are only so many hours in a day, and if the bulk of them are spent in constant contact with platonic boyfriends, what's left for a potential romance?

I wouldn't trade my boys for anything, but I do think that going forward I should open myself up to the possibility of a non-platonic relationship. After all, sometimes a girl's gotta get some, right?

-Alex