First kisses are just first kisses.

That’s all they are. They’re not what Heath Ledger and Julia Stiles make it out to be in 10 Things I Hate About You or like that kiss in Pretty Woman where Richard Gere climbs up the fire escape to kiss Julia Roberts. Why is it that every ‘first’ is glorified not only by the media but also by the people who surround you? Firsts are just botched experiments, awkward embarrassing moments that you really don’t find any pleasure in recollecting every time someone in a party gets to the “Hey, tell me about your first kiss!” moment.

Talk about kisses that end an argument, kisses that make you giggle, kisses under the tree, kisses exchanged in a hurry because damn, the annoying roommate could be home any minute now. Get nostalgic about kisses that were just simple kisses on the cheek, kisses that say ‘thank you for being there’. Sloppy kisses on the balcony when you’re too drunk to stand without holding on to each other.

Romanticise lazy kisses from awkward angles because you’re both clearly not going to move from your couch on slow weekends. Early morning kisses with bad breaths are better than no kisses until after coffee. Kisses with a loud “MMMUUAAH” to embarrass each other in front of friends and watching your faces go red with a playful scowl. Kisses peppered on the jaw as your fingers skim each others’ features.

Starting and ending days with forehead kisses because there is nothing better than the reassuring touch of soft lips belonging to your favourite person. Trying the kiss from Spider-Man 2 because really, why not, and ending up with a pulled muscle in the neck and a sweet kiss that wasn’t as sweet as you’d planned or wanted, but you’d never regret it even if it meant wearing a neck brace for the next week.

Enjoy slow kisses on a sunny afternoon in the back seat of your car and realise how stupid you were to think first kisses were something that had to be recounted a million times when they were really nothing compared to every single kiss that had led you to this moment.

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#readersubmission by Medha K.

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Painting by Catrin Walz Stein

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