Circle of Friends

"I've got a terrific girlfriend. We go around in a big group of friends. I’m really a bit shy when it comes to meeting new people but my girlfriend is great to be around. She always introduces me and makes sure she talks about stuff that I know about, so it makes it easy to talk to new people.

I love being with her but we also spend lots of time apart. I have my music and she has her sport. And sex – we both think it’s great. We have the occasional fight but so far we’ve managed to talk them through."

"I just love Max. We’ve been together for a few months now but we haven’t done it yet. I’m ready but he isn’t. He reckons sex will just complicate things and we both have too much other stuff going on. We love hanging out together and with our mates. Some have boyfriends and girlfriends, but some don’t. When we go to parties and things we all hang out together. Sure we have our own separate friends. Max never gets jealous if I talk to other guys and I’m the same way. Yeah, I want sex, but I want Max more! We have heaps of fun without it. I’ll wait till he’s OK with it."

"Guess I have 3 main groups of friends. I play bass guitar with an old group of friends from school. We still like the same music and see each other every week for a jam session. I don’t try to change them and they don’t try to change me. What we have is great! We go to pubs to hear the bands we love.

Then there’s the kids from work and the kids from basketball. Haven’t got a boyfriend at the mo. That’s ok! Got plenty of friends. Plenty of things to do. Don’t really have time to think about it or let it worry me."

"I've got heaps of good friends and I’m never short of things to do or friends to hang out with. I really enjoy making people laugh and my friends say I’m lots of fun to be around. But they’d never describe me as a chick magnet. Not that I don’t keep trying though. I go to all the parties and hang around and join in everything that’s going on, hoping I’ll meet ‘the one’. But I just can’t seem to get any girl to see me as a boyfriend. I’m just everyone’s mate. Yeah, I suppose it’s great that everyone likes me and confides in me, but sometimes I really wish that I had that one special friend. But I’d never say that out loud."

"I’ve been going with Shakti for nearly 12 months now. We get on really well. She’s my very best friend. In fact, I don’t know how I’d live without her. My only other friends are a couple of mates I work with. I don’t see them outside of work much. Shakti has lots of other friends and still sees them often. I occasionally go out with them all, but I’d much rather it just be her and me. I don’t really fit in with her friends. I tend to stay at home and watch TV when she’s hanging out with them. Only problem is, I spend the whole time hoping she’ll ring me. She never does, and that always makes me feel slightly pissed off with her the next time I see her. I try not to say anything but I’m sure she picks up on my feelings."

"I've had a couple of boyfriends but my family don’t know about them. They’re pretty strict about when they want me home and who I should mix with, so sometimes I sneak out. I really like Nemo and they’d approve of him but he’s already taken. I always feel out of it because I’m the only one with no guy. I haven’t even slept with anyone yet. Everyone else has."