If you have been following my submissions, you will know that a little while ago, I opted to go for a buzz-cut instead of maintaining my shoulder length hair, which has been both liberating and erogenous, and not just for me!
What I had not considered was the reaction of my parents who I caught up with when they were back in the UK for a few days. It wasn't that they didn't like it -- in fact my mother in particular was very complimentary about the way that it showed off my face. The problem for me was that it prompted some rather awkward questions.
I suspect that both my parents were beginning to notice that I wasn't like most girls of my age on the basis that they had never seen me with, or heard mention of a boyfriend, which by now most parents would have probably expected.
It wasn't that it was a hugely difficult conversation. I think it started off with my Mum asking if I was bothered that people might think I was gay with my new haircut, and evidently, I didn't react in the way that perhaps she was anticipating.
I didn't respond initially, and in hindsight, that delay in replying almost certainly gave me away. I guess that I always knew that there was going to come a point where I would have to admit to my sexual preferences, and I should have recognised that the haircut might be the trigger insofar as my Mum and Dad were concerned, even though that was not why I had gone for my new style -- I was absolutely not trying to make a statement.
It was that delay that lead to my Mum saying quietly, but not in any way accusingly, 'Is there anything you want to tell us?'
'You've gone very quiet Andrea.'
After what seemed like minutes, but was probably more like 10 or 20 seconds, her next comment was 'you are gay aren't you.' My Mum held her arms out and just smiled at me and said 'come here.'
I got a long and very physical hug and my Dad put his hands on my shoulders.
So far this had gone a good deal easier that I could have ever hoped for. To cut a long story short, they were very accepting, and did not seem remotely perturbed. The only thing is, I was a bit economical with the facts.
The abridged version is that my Mum and Dad think I am in a relationship with Sam. Whilst this could be construed as technically correct, the love of my life is her Mum, and I have not been able to bring myself to share this piece of information with them yet.
In reality, it's more complicated than that, and I'm not sure how any parent would react to the notion that their daughter is not only in a relationship with the mother of her best friend, but that her daughter joins in as well. That would almost certainly be too much information, so I am embarrassed to admit that I have let them think that Sam is the one.
On top of that, I think it would be fair to say that Helen and I's relationship is to an extent, polyamorous.
I wouldn't say that we are promiscuous, but we are not averse to meeting with, and having other like-minded females join in from time to time. I think sexually adventurous would be a more fitting description, and I wouldn't change that for the world. I am a very sexual girl who is acutely aware of my needs and desires to experiment.
I have had some of the most fulfilling sex ever, and because we never go behind each other's back, there is no guilt. We share our experiences, and we have experimented with threesomes and foursomes, most recently with Lizzie as the fourth.
That said, Lizzie and Sam are becoming fairly close, although that has not prevented our playing together.
All of which leads me neatly on to a more recent liaison. Some time ago, I started to notice a lady of indeterminate age, but older than me, in and around the gym on occasion.
She is quite tall -- I would suggest around 6 feet (or over 1.8m for the Europeans among you), with what I would describe as a feathery pixie cut, so short, but rather longer than mine. It is this that makes her look quite striking because her hair is somewhere between ash-blond and silvery-grey, and she wears wire rimmed glasses which add to her air of elegance.
However, she is slightly stern faced, although when she does smile, her face lights up and her eyes come alive. This, together with her remarkably long legs and outdoor complexion combine to give her a quite striking appearance.
I must have seen her ten or twenty times, but I could not place her. I was certain that she wasn't a student, but she didn't appear to be staff either, or at least, not part of the teaching staff.
Because of the amount of times we had seen each other, I suppose that she became what could best be described as a nodding acquaintance, but after my first hair shortening exercise, she suddenly became a bit more chatty, starting with just 'Hi' and more recently, a 'how are you' question, and as time has gone on, that flash of a smile.
She has started to frequent the gym more regularly, but she appears to be more into running and spinning than weights or rowing. She certainly has an athletic look about her, but if she is a runner, then I would have her down as a distance runner more than a sprinter, and she undeniably has the legs for it.
Over time, it seemed as if our workouts were becoming more synchronised -- i.e. she was there more often when I was, but more conspicuously, she was starting to warm down around the same time as me.
I have said before that I am neither shy or modest, and for a good three or four weeks as I have gone to the showers, she has never been far behind me. The occasional glimpses my way have become more noticeable, especially as they have become longer, and she would follow me back to the changing room and by now, was engaging me in conversation, and it was that that lead to her asking me if I was up for a drink after my workout.
Actually, I wasn't, as we had a tentative plan for Helen to pick me up on her way home, but I was intrigued, and said that I could grab something quick, but that I needed to make a phone call first.
I called Helen and let her know that I was going to stay on campus for a bit longer (and yes, I did tell her that I was stopping for drink), and fortunately, that probably helped Helen out as she was running a bit late and was able to avoid the detour to come via the University.
I opted for a banana shake, whilst my new acquaintance opted for a smoothie. I won't bore you with a rerun of our conversation, but it turned out that she did work for the Uni, but in an admin role in a building on the opposite side of the campus from where I was based.
Her name was Freya (I love that name!), and she was very easy company. We did the same thing again at the end of a workout late in the week, and this time we had a longer chat, during which I found out that her mother is Danish, and that's where name is derived from.
As I was preparing to leave, she offered to get us another drink and as I wasn't in hurry, I stayed on.
At this point our conversation became a little more intimate. She had been getting ever so slightly touchy-feely, not in an 'in your space' kind of way, but just a touch here or there to make a point, and I was mesmerised by the length of her fingers.
She came back with the drinks, and out of the blue, and as she was sitting down she suddenly said, 'I love your hair.'
'Thanks' I said, 'I love it too.'
She said that she had seen me around quite a bit, and then almost didn't recognise me after I'd had it cut, but repeated that she loved it, and that she thought it really suited me.
She pulled her chair closer, and in a much quieter voice asked me 'do you mind if I ask you something.'
I had an inkling of what was coming, and sure enough, after my affirmation that I didn't mind at all, told her to go ahead.