Janet wasn't the only one experiencing dramatic life changes that semester. Frank, too, was exploring previously uncharted territory. His relationship with Andrea, intense from the start, quickly deepened into a genuine love affair. Somehow she'd been able to penetrate every defense he had, connecting with him in an almost primal way. At first he'd fought the connection. He'd always been in complete control in his prior relationships, and the loss of that control was frightening. However, the thought of losing her by barring her from his heart was far more terrifying. He gave up the fight, and turned over his life and love to her – as she did to him.
For the first time in Frank's life, he was completely faithful to a lover. Their powerful emotional bond, combined with their sexual compatibility, satisfied him in a way that no other relationship ever had. Their reliance on each other, both in and out of the bedroom, led them to move in together by the beginning of October. Since they'd been spending virtually every night together anyway, the adjustment required was surprisingly minimal. As they settled into their new life together, Frank realized something startling.
He was finally happy.
It had never occurred to him that he'd actually been unhappy before. Yes, he'd admitted to Janet that his life on Transexual had its drawbacks, but he hadn't truly understood how serious those drawbacks had really been. On the surface, he'd had it all…but he'd never looked more deeply than surface level at anything in his life. The wealth, the status, the ever-available lovers eager to satisfy his every desire, had all been superficial pleasures. Beneath it all, he'd been lonely. His own personality flaws had condemned him to emotional isolation from virtually everyone, with the exception of his mother and a select few longtime friends.
Matters had actually improved in the years since he'd been left behind on Earth. His newfound ability and willingness to consider the feelings of others, in addition to his own, brought him many friendships that came to mean a great deal to him. The knowledge that these people wanted nothing more from him than his companionship – that they weren't trying to increase their own importance through a relationship with him – added greatly to his sense of well-being. But it was not until he allowed himself to fall in love that he truly understood how much he'd been missing.
Despite the strength of his relationship with Andrea, he could still see problems. He'd shared more of his past with her than ever he had with anyone else, particularly his sexual compulsiveness with lovers of both sexes. The confession about his sexuality had not particularly surprised her, given what he'd already told her about his encounter with Janet. He'd even confessed, in as casual a manner as possible, about his prior propensity for cross-dressing. Her response, again, was to take the news in stride. Her primary reaction was a wry comment that he was probably better-looking than she in full drag.
In spite of those reactions, he still couldn't begin to imagine telling her he was an alien. He knew Earthlings enjoyed science fiction films featuring creatures from outer space (mainly malevolent and hideously ugly, he couldn't help but notice), but they displayed remarkably little ability to seriously consider the potential for intelligent life on other planets, or that aliens might actually be living among them. Once or twice he'd attempted to start a conversation with Andrea about the possibility of other intelligent life "out there," but she hadn't demonstrated much eagerness to discuss the subject. Apparently it was not a possibility she found particularly intriguing, much to his dismay.
Somehow, someday, he'd have to tell her…but not yet.
