I was kind of lost following my first divorce after only barely two years of marriage. The reality was we were too young to be married at 21 and both of us had some growing up to do first. I spent the first year since the divorce in ‘74 just messing around and trying to find some direction and footing to go forward. I was even contemplating going back to college. I was painting houses and doing some handyman work, though I was admittingly not very handy. At least I made enough to rent a humble apartment of my own. I figured that might make “entertaining” the ladies easier, but I had not been having much luck in that department so far. My “wining and dining” funds at this juncture in life were somewhat limited. Plus, I wasn’t really in the market for a committed relationship right then. I was just missing sex and hoping to get laid with no strings attached. And then along came Mikey, literally and figuratively.

I was up at my folks, the childhood home where I had been raised, to check and make sure everything was OK, as they were gone on one of their many cruises they loved to go on during those years. I decided to wash my truck while I was there, as I could not do that at my apartment complex. I was lost in thought when I was suddenly surprised by a cheerful voice.

“Hey, stranger, what’s new?”

I turned and it was Mikey, one of my childhood neighbor buddies that I had literally not seen in years. He definitely was not a little kid anymore at 22. He was two years younger than me and had gone to a private religious high school, while I went to a public one, so we had very little interaction during those years. But as kids we played together nearly every day in the early 60’s. He came from a strong Baptist family, and I had heard Mikey had gone off to some religious college back east. Now here he was standing in front of me wearing tight short shorts, as was the fashion in the 70’s, and a tank top. It was a hot day, and I was only in swim trunks as I washed my truck. I was a beach bum surfer and was very tan and fairly muscular, while Mikey was a very fair, a ginger, shorter, and slender.

“Wow, you look like Tarzan with that tan and muscles!” Mikey quipped, “You make me look like Jane in comparison!” I remember thinking that was an odd and interesting thing to say, and in retrospect kind of exciting.

Mikey than came up and hugged me, which seemed a little weird at first too, as I was not the product of a real touchy/feely family. We caught up on our lives a bit. Mikey had just graduated from college with a political science degree and wasn’t sure what direction he was headed next. He decided to stay with his folks for the Summer and look at his options. I told him I had just gotten a divorce the year before, and he mentioned just breaking up after a long-term relationship also. Mikey suggested that we should get together socially and ‘catch up’, as he put it. I invited him to my apartment for the upcoming Saturday. He said he needed a break from his folks’ constant ‘religiosity’, as he had fallen off the evangelical wagon as of late. Little did I know at that time how much ‘catching up’ me and Mikey would be doing Saturday!

In the next few days, I became obsessed with mulling over the hug and ‘Tarzan/Jane’ line Mikey gave me. Could this have been a sexual come on that I was just too naive to pick up on? I had never had a gay sexual experience, but I know I was getting erections just thinking about the possibility of getting Mikey into my bed and him wrapping those smooth, creamy white legs around me as we kissed. In that spirit I cleaned up my apartment really good, put nice clean new sheets on my bed, and threw a few scented candles around for a more romantic atmosphere. In other words, all the things I did when had a lady friend over that never seemed to work. Maybe I was just batting for the wrong team? Either way I was getting a vibe Mikey might be gay and I was wanting to get him in my bed and wasn’t quite sure how to go about it. These new feelings even confused me

Mikey showed up at my place Saturday afternoon and we decided to get a bite at Zapata’s, a great Mexican restaurant within walking distance to my apartment. Mikey had not been there for quite a while and was really jonesing for their tacos after a few years of suffering through North Carolina’s excuse for Mexican cuisine. While we were dining, I found out a little more about Mikey’s last few years. Yes, he was gay and had broken up with his long-term boyfriend right after he graduated. He was still in the closet with his Baptist family except for his more liberal sister. He asked me if I had a problem with him being gay and that he just wanted to be honest and straightforward with me. I assured him it was not an issue with me. In fact, as soon as Mikey told me he was gay I started to get a boner!

We walked back to my place, and I jokingly asked Mikey if he would like to smoke some pot “now that you are a sinner.” He laughed and said: “Sure, but I have to warn you it makes me Horny!” Looked like I hit the jackpot, and it would be smooth sailing from here. We sat down on my sofa, and I lit up a joint. I had one leg straight out resting on my coffee table when Mikey put his leg next to mine and again commented on how tan I was compared to him and ended with “You Tarzan, me Jane.” I laughed and turned my head towards him to reply with some clever quip when I realized how close he had gotten to me. There was a brief glance into each other’s eyes then we kissed. The tension had lifted, and we were off to the races.