Summer Of Love

Is it possible to have a successful summer fling?

- Marella Ricketts

“I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to continue this,” he told me.

“Oh, okay. That’s fine with me,” was all I could muster at that point, reverting back to my tendency then to put my walls up whenever I felt vulnerable.

In reality, I found myself feeling a little sad—possibly heartbroken, even—over someone who was just meant to be a fling. The beginning of it seemed magical, almost like a movie. It took place a few summers ago, back when I was in the middle of college. We had met at a party of a mutual friend, and then a few weeks later coincidentally bumped into each other in a foreign country. We proceeded to go on dates, but ended up hanging out for just a semester. I guess I was a little too carried away, justifying the warning signs with the fact that we sort of acted like a couple. “I’ll break up with him at the end of the semester,” I kept telling myself. But then he beat me to the punch, and I felt hurt even if I wasn’t supposed to. “Oh well,” I told myself, “At least I know more about differentiating flings from a relationship.”