‘I love you, and I don’t think that will ever change.’

A Romance to Freedom and Pride is a Gay Romance short story.

Aidan and Markus recall when they first met as young men who fell in love with each other, their need for secrecy as gay lovers in a boarding school where no dating was allowed, and the upsets they stood up against in the face of bigotry.

Their love and desire to marry never changed, as they waited for gay marriage to be legal.

Excerpt from early in the story:

From the library window, Aidan watched the other lads as they scurried through the school’s terrain, scaled the fence at the other end, and jumped to the other side for a not-so-clandestine rendezvous with the girls from the neighbouring boarding school. The rule was ‘No dating allowed.’

‘They are so going to get in trouble,’ he muttered to himself.

Chuckling brought his attention to the lad leaning against the bookshelf. ‘And we are the studious ones, I presume?’

Markus always had an air about him of arrogance and pride, his uniform had not a single crease in it – he was from one of the richer families here. Aidan was quieter, kept to himself, yet often found Markus observing him. In the short time Aidan had been here, he’d found himself drawn to Markus somehow but never thought much more of it.

‘It’s strange that you’re here only for your senior year,’ said Markus, ‘but I’m glad of it, regardless of the hows and whys. And I reckon I know exactly why you’re not out there with the other lads.’

‘Oh?’ Aidan raised an eyebrow, curious. ‘In the last month since the school year began, you’ve figured me out, have you?’

Markus pushed away from the bookshelf and came to stand very close to Aidan, his cheek nearly touching his as he leaned towards his ear, his whisper making Aidan’s heart pound.

‘The same reason as me. You don’t like girls. Neither do I, and…’ Markus pulled away just enough to stare into Aidan’s eyes. ‘I like you.’

His face twitched nervously, but his eyes never left Aidan’s gaze. Aidan drew in a breath and realised he was smiling.

Markus backed away and offered Aidan his hand. ‘Come, let’s go…study in the dorm room.’

Heart racing with excitement, Aidan took Markus’s hand, and the two lads nearly ran all the way to the dorms. Markus shut the door quickly, pressing Aidan against it, his lips coming very close to the other lad’s. Markus’s dark hair contrasted Aidan’s blond head of hair, his captivating grey eyes boring deep into Aidan’s brown eyes.

Markus swallowed, and murmured, ‘Now, I’ve never actually kissed anyone before.’

‘Good, because neither have I,’ admitted Aidan.

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