My First Kiss with Laine

I’m here. I sent the text to the group chat, my palms moist and hands shaking. I had arrived ten minutes early. It was something of a superpower of mine, even when running late I still somehow managed to arrive at least ten minutes early. It always made first meets and interviews nerve-wracking, spending those ten minutes impatiently waiting. I chewed at my lower lip, waiting for those three little dots to appear on the corner of my screen.

Just finding parking. It was from Laine, John’s other girlfriend. I had been dating John for almost four years, but this would be my first time meeting Laine. Laine and I had been texting for a couple of weeks now. Mostly just that casual surface level conversation, commenting on the weather or something that had happened that day.

While I always arrived early, John was notorious for being at least an hour late for everything—it was a miracle that the text from them was coming in only ten minutes late. Not wanting to wait on the street I stepped into one of the many art galleries that lined the sidewalk. This one had a high vaulted ceiling with equally tall windows along the front. The bell above the door jingled as I closed the door. The last time I had been in this particular gallery was before I even knew what COVID-19 meant. Despite the quarantine having lifted, everyone inside wore masks. Colourful circles on the floor let everyone know exactly what six feet apart looked like.

Ordinarily, an art gallery like this would be packed with people for an open house. Everyone would be brushing against one another, a glass of Merlot in one hand, enjoying the buzz of energy that comes from some thought-provoking artwork and a conspicuously small cheese platter. At least the art remained thought-provoking, I thought as I gave the gallery attendee an exaggerated smile behind my mask. I didn’t know how to smile with my eyes.

I couldn’t help but sigh with pleasure as I took in the display for the first time. I had a weak spot for circles and minimalism. This gallery currently featured both. The artist, Iran do Espírito Santo, had painted one wall with perfectly rectangular grayscale bricks, the entire wall transitioning from black through the varying shades of grey all the way to white at the other end of the wall. I paused to take in the shaded spectrum before turning to another work that featured a portion of a brick wall cut into a perfect circle. The rough brick contrasted with the smooth curve of the circle. John would hate it, I mused, while I imagined Laine would try to find something polite to say. Feeling the buzz of my phone in my pocket, I stepped outside and jumped into John’s arms.

He kissed me despite the fact I was still wearing a mask. The three of us laughed. John and I used to be your regular monogamous couple. We’d go to dinner and a movie every week, cuddle on the couch, and generally have a good time. After a couple of years though, John became reluctant to make any additional commitments to me, telling me he wanted a family. I had no intention of having kids and he knew it from the start, but we loved each other. So, I explained to him what polyamory is, “It’s consensual, ethical nonmonogamy. We can date other people as long as everyone involved consents.”

John was incredulous at first. It led to a lot of conversations with me rolling my eyes, but it took him a long time to even consider dating other women. Finally, Laine came into the picture. When Laine grew comfortable enough the three of us started a group chat. This was our first date as a triad and my first time meeting her in person. I was tentative, giving her a gentle hug after asking permission. She was taller than I thought she would be. Her simple black dress accentuated all the right features.

John stood for a moment, exchanging glances between the two of us. Laine giggled nervously, “You want us to kiss already? Let us at least hold hands first.”

John’s cheeks reddened, his smile broadening as he nudged the two of us into the art gallery. Not the minimalist bricks and circles gallery I had first stepped inside of. This art gallery was just next door. Smoothly wiping my sweaty palms on my jeans, I took Laine by the hand and led her down the hallway to where a thick black curtain hung before us. A gallery attendee tugged at a thick rope, elegantly causing the curtain to swing open long enough for the three of us to step beyond and into the darkness.

It took a while for my eyes to adjust. The only light sources being from inside what, at first glance, seemed like terrariums or tanks you might find in a reptile exhibit. Laine laughed, “I thought this was an art exhibit, not a pet store.”

I led her over to one of the lit tanks and bent to look inside, “Tell me what you see.”

She gasped, much the way I had looking at Espírito Santo’s work next door, “Is that a Mars rover in miniature?”

Each terrarium was filled with a miniature diorama. This one showed a rover on Mars, the sky filled with twinkling stars and a small blue and green orb. A fan caused red sand to gust across the landscape. We moved onto the next one, John following close behind. None of us said very much. We simply enjoyed the tiny scenes playing out. Moving trains and blinking lights all tuned to go off when someone stepped in front of the dioramas. One was accompanied by crickets and hooting owls, a tiny person standing before a darkly towering forest.

Everything looked magical. I was enjoying the giggles of surprise coming from Laine as John watched—though I was pretty sure he was looking at the two of us more than anything else. I thought back to how excited John was after meeting Laine, about six months ago.

“She likes girls too! More than you even,” He had exclaimed. He had worried about me being jealous but my glow of compersion, that shared feeling of excitement, shone through. I had asked him if he ever felt jealous of the people I dated. He said, “Yeah but I want you to be taken care of too. You deserve to be happy darling.”

Then he waved a fist, “But if they ever hurt you, so help me.”

I smiled to myself, stopping in front of another lit terrarium. Two tiny people kissing, standing on a cliff with mountains stretching out before them. It felt like a whole other world stretching impossibly far. I had never been sure if a polyamorous relationship would work, let alone a triad, but at least my palms were no longer damp with sweat.

“Ready for dinner?” John called, pulling me back to the present. He had one arm around Laine. I tried to imagine what their children would look like—tall and dark haired probably. Even after six months with Laine he still got nervous about letting me know he was meeting her. There had been communication fumbles of course. John making plans with one of us and forgetting to tell the other. It took time to iron out the wrinkles, no relationship is perfect.

“Starved,” I said as he wrapped his other arm around me.

We all decided room service at the hotel would be the most comfortable. John ordered for the three of us while Laine and I sat on the couch, sipping at our glasses of wine, and making conversation. She was telling me about the classes she was taking at university when the conversation turned to why they had waited so long to meet.

I watched her lips, “Can I kiss you?”

She giggled but smiled, nodding, “Yes.”

So, I did. The dream of my triad relationship having finally come to fruition. It was one first kiss that led to many other firsts for the three of us, certainly a dream date I planned to never forget.

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Written by Kelsey Reich on March 17/2021 in Ontario, Canada.