Okay, Im new on here so be gentle.
I am 20 years old and I have a friend who is 19. I met him in high school and have always been close to him, and eventually begin to fall in love with him. We were always with each other, and always knew what to do to cheer each other up. He has known me better than most of the long-term men I have dated, or anyone for that matter. I had expressed my feelings long ago, and he explained that he valued the friendsip we had, and that he didnt want to lose that by starting a relationship.
Just on Valentine's day, we got to hang out together, and he told me that he had mixed feelings and that he had been dumb in high school. He basically confessed that he always loved me and that he is stupid for now realizing it. He said he had waited for me while I had many boyfriends, and that he was always so jealous when I would come to him and talk of these men he had to compete with in silence.
He stated that no other women in his life could ever relate to him the way I always had, and that he just had this connection with me that always brought his heart back to me. He was ready to start settling down now, and he couldn't seem to find the woman he wanted to marry. We ended up sleeping together, and afterward, I felt as if I had just slept with my best friend, not a possible love of my life. I really did still love him, but I no longer felt the love for him that I used to feel. He had told me too late. The feeling of love for him was gone. I still wanted to be friends.
I explained that to him right away, and he took it pretty bad, but he smiled at me and said he would want nothing more than to be my best friend, and nothing else if that is what I wanted.
So what my question is, is it possible for us to have the relationship we had before? Is it at all possible to have our friendship without it being awkward? Will we be able to still be as close as we were before we had sex?