By

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When I was little, I knew there was something about me that was different than all of the other kids playing on the playground.

I was an introvert, preferring to stay in the library than play tag with the kids running around the playground. I'd read books and make up little stories based on the plotlines of those books.

About that same age, I started developing crushes. I noticed I had an attraction to boys, but if I saw a pretty girl, then I would harbor an attraction for her as well. Being little, I thought having a crush on the same sex was normal. I asked my friends about their crushes and they all had crushes on boys. I thought I wasn't normal, so I decided to think about it later.

Fast forward a couple of years later. I asked my mom about having an attraction to both of the sexes. Apparently, this attraction was called bisexuality. Being raised in a very Catholic household, I knew what my mom was going to say, and it turns out I was right. She said bisexuality was a phase, and it wasn't normal. This led me to think I was bad for having an attraction to both sexes. I started getting disgusted at the thought of me liking a girl. I forced myself to like boys, and focus on them only.

When I turned 13, I noticed that I was attracted to this girl. She was like me: an introvert. She was the nicest person I had ever met. The wall I had built to protect me from bisexuality was crumbling down. However, I still doubted myself. I kept forcing myself to think that I was straight.

I had made new friends in middle school, due to my family moving away from my old school. To my surprise, my friends were also attracted to the same sex. For the first time in my life, I identified myself as bisexual. I felt normal.

To this day, I'm still scared to come out to my family since they're very Catholic. But what matters most is that I have finally accepted myself. I am bisexual and proud.