Wanderer's Escape by Simon Goodson Page B

get involved with any girls?  Get close to any?”
    “ No.  There weren't any. Not anywhere near my age.  Not for the last few years.”
    “ Oh boy.  Then you're in for a rough ride I'd say.  Learning everything from scratch.  It might be for the best though.  Relationships back in prison were... not twisted but... I don't know.  Distorted.  People had so little time they grabbed the comfort they could when they could.  Never knowing if the person would still be in their group the next week.  Not knowing if they'd even be alive.  Relationships were about comfort.  Physical and emotional.  Hanging onto someone else.  Meaning something special to someone else even if just for a short while.  Yet all the time tinged with the knowledge it couldn't last.  That sometime soon you'd be split apart and never see each other again.
    I'm hardly the best person to advise you.  I've been married once, which was a disaster from start to finish, and I've got a trail of broken relationships behind me that you wouldn't believe.  I can give you some advice though.
    First off, you're both pretty messed up by what happened to you – being drugged into falling for each other.  Both of you are going to be terrified of that happening again.  Suspicious of any feelings for another person in case it's been forced on you.”
    “ Yeah.  We've managed to prove that.”  Jess told him about his encounter with Ali.  The long kiss followed by the slap and then another kiss.  Matt nodded, face mostly serious though with the hint of a smile on his face.
    “ Right.  I'm not surprised.  First thing to realise is that you two aren't special here.  She seems to have feelings for you, and you clearly have for her.  But if either of you was falling for someone else after the experience of being drugged there would be just the same worries.  It's natural – it happened once so you expect it to happen again.  In some ways it will probably be easier going through it together as you're both worrying about the same thing, both know something of how the other feels.
    Second thing is that she's a girl.  No end of books and films will tell you that means she knows all about feelings, about love, and that you as a poor boy will always be confused and off balance.  Load of tripe!  If there's one thing I've learnt it's that women, and girls too I guess, get just as messed up by those feelings as we do.
    Next thing... don't be someone you're not.  Don't try to impress her.  Relax and be yourself.  If any girl only likes you when you're pretending to be something different then she's not worth your time.  You won't listen to that one I'm sure, but maybe it'll sink in and come back to you one day.
    Lastly... even if things work out between you it won't last.  Probably.  Both of you will do and say things that hurt the other, probably things you can't believe you said but you won't back down from.  Both of you will take offence at things.  You'll argue over stupid stuff.  And end up breaking up.  Don't beat yourself up about it.  Relationships are no different to anything else.  Learning the skills to make them successful takes time, takes making mistakes.  If you're smart, if you learn from them, then one day you'll meet someone and it will work out.  I've seen a few that did. ”
    “ So we're doomed?  Ali and I shouldn't even start anything?”
    “ Oh god no!  Did I give that impression.  Grab it with both hands kid.  Enjoy it, the downs as much as the ups.  It could be wonderful.  For both of you.  Just understand that getting it right for the long term in a relationship is bloody hard and normally takes a lot of false starts.  Oh... and... you're plugged into the ship, yeah?”
    “ Yep.”
    “ Does it have any details on contraception?  Because I ain't your father and I really could do without giving you that talk.”
    The ship helpfully pushed some images into Jess's head.  Images that made him blush