I’m From Bloomington, IN.

by Victor Kinzer

State Satellite overhead image from Google Earth 2022

I stopped going to gay bars very shortly after turning 21.

I had gone to our local gay club (may it rest in peace, it closed a couple years ago) for karaoke night with a friend. It was my third karaoke Thursday and his boyfriend came along this time. His boyfriend thought I was quite the attractive thing (must have been the booze, which he had consumed a healthy sum of) and kept hinting at a three way. My friend isn’t the most sexual guy to begin with, and there was no way a three way was EVER going to happen. I had also only been with two guys in my whole life at this point. I wrote it off as flattering, let the guy know there was just no way and enjoyed the night.

So the night ends and we’re doing the goodbye hug and peck on the cheek thing, and this boy goes in for what I think will be a friendly peck on the cheek but goes straight for the tonsils in front of his boyfriend/my friend. If only this had happened after a year or so of gay bars. I didn’t go back again for nearly 3 years, and boy did I wish I hadn’t chickened out so soon.

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