My Boyfriend

by Marinka on February 28, 2013

Before I was in high school, I had a fake boyfriend.

He was handsome and nice, but he was so in love with me that sometimes it got uncomfortable for me.

Because I was the kind of girl who wanted to keep things casual, I was just a kid after all, but he was all over me. Not physically, of course, but emotionally. He knew, of course, that we couldn’t do it because I wasn’t a whore, but even though there were girls seriously interested in him, he was waiting for me.

Several of my friends knew about David.

His name was David because when I first told my friend Lana about him and she asked his name and at that moment the only name I could think of was David because we were students at an Yeshiva and also David Horowitz was walking by and probably making gagging sounds at the sight of me since we were nemeses. (And if you’re going to read some “romance” between me and that asshole, I have to ask that you enroll in remedial reading immediately because that was definitely not there.) By the way, this is a good lesson, if you’re going to lie and create an imaginary boyfriend, you probably should have some things in order- like name, age, where he lives (I hear Canada is especially welcoming to the imaginarily in love) and maybe what he looks like. Believe me, I learned the hard way.

Lana wanted to know all about him and I had to improvise. Since I wasn’t the sharpest crayon in the shed,the improvisations sounded something like this.

Lana: What does he look like?

Junior Marinka: What do you mean?

Lana: Is he handsome?

Junior Marinka: What?

Lana: What color hair does he have?

Junior Marinka: Color? Hair?

But eventually I settled on blond. Either that or brown.

Sometimes he sent me flowers. I really, really hope that I never actually sent flowers to myself from him, I hope that I just told me friends about the flowers he sent, but I can’t be sure. There was a florist nearby and I was, as you may be picking up on, insane. The only reason I think I wouldn’t have sent the flowers was because my junior high school wasn’t in an office and everyone knows that that’s the only point of having flowers delivered- so that everyone else can see and be a little jealous (where “a little jealous” = realize that they have no reason to keep living since they will never know love like you know love). So I’m sure I told everyone that he sent me flowers, but I probably didn’t buy them. I need to hold on to this now, if you don’t mind. I really do.

Eventually when I started dating a real person (so overrated) I still felt weird that I never dated before, so I kept David as an ex. That’s the awkward thing about breaking up with a made up boyfriend that no one tells you about– you have to have the whole break up scenario at the ready. And with homework and being on a team, I was already stretched to the limits. I went with some sort of “it just didn’t work out” bullshit, which, when you’re 16, really goes a long way.

But that was over, OMFG, over three decades ago. I was a teenager and David was a figment of my imagination. So tell me, why, today, of all days, as I was coming home from grocery shopping and checking the mail, did I think about David?

And why did I miss him so much.

One year ago ...

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{ 16 comments… read them below or add one }

Stacy @bklynstacy
Twitter:
February 28, 2013 at 7:36 pm

*sigh* Because there’s nothing like young love. And so much young love is unrequited, anyway, he’s about equal to more than half of my teenage obsessions.

Reply

Cy
Twitter:
February 28, 2013 at 11:04 pm

…because he sounds divine! In my head, anyway.

Reply

Tinne from Tantrums and Tomatoes March 1, 2013 at 7:05 am

Because he is the one that got away… to Canada…

Reply

b a seagull
Twitter:
March 1, 2013 at 9:39 am

As long as it isn’t because you’re expecting a letter…

Reply

Peajaye
Twitter:
March 1, 2013 at 10:52 am

Wouldn’t it be awesome if you got a friend request from him on Facebook?

Reply

Ann
Twitter:
March 1, 2013 at 10:53 am

Love this.

Reply

Suzy
Twitter:
March 1, 2013 at 11:49 am

My first novel, which has no ending because ohmygod are they hard to write, I had a chapter on a guy I called Harvey Casper. (Harvey for the Jimmy Stewart movie and Casper the friendly ghost) He was the imaginary bf that I tortured all current boyfriends with. By the end of the book he had hair and eye color and was a Democrat. I even had him appear at a party to torture another man by saying “you just missed him” so many times I had other people looking for him at the party and the tortured man saying he was going to kick his ass.

I guess it’s pretty apparent why the book remains unfinished.

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The Flying Chalupa
Twitter:
March 1, 2013 at 12:59 pm

And with homework and being on a team – funny.

Look, my parents sent me flowers on Valentine’s (delivered to my classroom) in middle school every year. And signed it from the guy I had a crush on. If they hadn’t done it, I probably would have done it myself.

David obviously treated you really well.

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Mexmom March 1, 2013 at 1:21 pm

Oh the first love is unforgettable!

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Wendi
Twitter:
March 1, 2013 at 1:30 pm

I demand to see Husbandrinka’s birth certificate.

Reply

anna see March 1, 2013 at 2:50 pm

Loved this so much. You made me feel all angst-y and miserable again. Thanks for the memories!

Reply

Awesome dude March 1, 2013 at 8:27 pm

You are missing yourself at that age.

Pshkin said:

Blessed is one who is young
During and from the young age.

Since if you are not young at 16 you will never feel young

Reply

Mama D March 1, 2013 at 9:43 pm

Missing your misspent youth? 😉

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Mama D March 1, 2013 at 9:43 pm

Missing your misspent youth? 😉

Reply

the mama bird diaries
Twitter:
March 5, 2013 at 1:12 pm

David sounds dreamy. I wanted a boyfriend so badly in 8th grade. I don’t know why I just didn’t make one up.

Reply

Roshni March 5, 2013 at 2:15 pm

Your first, ideal man!! Of course you would!

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