too close to your friend’s boyfriend’s friends

Facebook message from TTT: Hey Hey D. Kareem.  Tonight is [insert corporation’s gay organization]’s 1^st year kick off thingy… I think it would be good since you work at [corporation in the same industry] if you came.  Food… Drink… Vlada upstairs.

My response: Ugh, you gotta tell me about this shit the day before so I can wear/bring something cute!  I should be able to make the last hour.  Thanks for the invite.

I found TTT at the far side of the bar.  MicHELLe was talking to some awkward guy who looked early 40s.  I heard the word “manager” in his title and promptly worked my way out of their conversation (isn’t it about time for “director”? “executive”?  Some variation on “VP”?  Not that I discriminate based on title, but you can’t be awkward and an underling in your 40s!).

“Tink and I broke up,” TTT said in a third-drink attempt at a hushed voice.

“Again?  I mean, oh, I’m sorry.”

“No, for real this time.  He’s gotten all his stuff out of my place, and I’ve gotten mine out of his.  We have to meet to exchange keys and everything.”

EEERRRRR!  Stop the track!

(For best results, skip to 2:00)

TTT and Tink have ‘broken up’ about 14 times in the year and change they’ve been together.  To tell you the truth, I saw it coming, but much like the death of a terminally ill relative, it hit me in an unexpected way when I heard it for real. 

That’s really all I should say.

Breakups happen, and people get hurt and get over it.  TTT seemed just fine.  In fact, he pulled me aside at one point, asking, “So my friend that I introduced you to… I kinda want a piece of him.”

“The one right there?”  The one in the same rotational management program you just got out of who could end up on the same career path as you?

“Yeah.  Do you think he looks like Tink?”

“Um… they’re both white and not fat.”

“I don’t know.  I don’t want people to think I’m trying to get a clone of TTT.”

Dude looked nothing like Tink.  But if the whispers of scene queens stop you from getting ass, you obvi don’t need it.

All seemed well enough with TTT, but it was MicHELLe I was worried about.  As I said before, MicHELLe tends to get really friendly with both sides of a relationship, and this was the case here.  If you think about it, chances are that a relationship is eventually going to end (especially when you see blatantly obvious signs), and you can’t count on both parties being mature and diplomatic about it (not saying that TTT and Tink aren’t… I really don’t know either way in this situation, and I’d almost rather not know… almost).  It gets hairy when you’re too close to your friend’s boyfriend’s friends (I’m not saying don’t be friendly, but be strategic, for your own sake).  When I asked MicHELLe what friends we lost in the divorce, he listed a lot more names I didn’t know than familiar ones. 

Did I mention that if this ends up anything like the result of a certain breakup that happened in our circle a little over a year ago (intense gym activity and increased party presence leading to the coming forth of everyone who had a crush during the relationship), things could get a hell of a lot funnier  more drama-ridden  interesting with the Ivy League Crew et. al.?  Yeah.

Speaking of situations that could have gotten awkward, click here.


Note: you may find the "Topics of Discussion" (now on the right) and the Cast of Characters to be of help in navigating this blog.