London couple Petros and Telly inspired one gay teen’s coming out (Photo: @petros_sp | Instagram)
A gay couple have responded to a coming out message they inspired from a gay teen.
Two months ago, the website Guys Like U ran a story about Alex, a 16-year-old in Spain.
In it, Alex explained that he knew he was gay from the age of 12.
Alex (Photo supplied)
‘I had met a boy who I really liked and we started going out together. We dated in secret to start with because I wasn’t ready to tell anyone that I was gay and I felt ashamed.
‘At times I was so unhappy and scared about being gay that I felt like I wanted to die. I thought that being gay was a bad thing and I was worried that my family and my friends would stop loving me because of it.’
However, that’s when Alex came across the Instagram accounts of a London-based gay couple: Petros and Telly (@petros_sp and @sold_a_telly).
Petros and Telly (Photo: @petros_sp | Instagram)
‘They looked so in love and so happy and I really wanted to experience what they had. They changed my life and inspired me, because they made me realize that two guys really can be accepted without being seen as something bad.’
Alex subsequently came out to his family. His mom took the news well. His father, who comes from a very traditional, Christian background, did not. Despite this, Alex has no regrets about coming out.
The couple at Pride in London in July (Photo: @petros_sp | Instagram)
‘I really feel like a new person, a happy person. I am proud of who I am and I am looking forward to living a happy life travelling, playing sports and being with my boyfriend. My life has completely changed and it’s because of seeing two boys in love online.’
(Image: @petros_sp | Instagram)
‘It’s touched our hearts to read about Alex’s story’
In a follow-up article, Petros and Telly responded to the story.
‘It’s touched our hearts to read about Alex’s story. In our eyes, he is the one we look up to. For someone to be in such a dark place and to pull themselves through and realise that friends and family are there to help.
‘We’re honoured that we were there to help (even though it was indirectly), and hope that Alex’s story inspires more people to see that being different is far from being a bad thing.’
Christian Guiltenane, the founder of Guys Like U, told GSN why he felt moved to run Alex’s coming out story.
‘When I first came across young Alex’s story about the guys on Instagram who inspired him to come out, I was so moved.
‘I was so pleased that a young guy who was bursting to come out had come across some regular guys who lived a life that he aspired to.
Telly and Petros on holiday in Madrid (Photo: @petros_sp | Instagram)
‘Alex saw two boys very much in love. Their regularly updated posts offered him a world that he was yet to experience but wanted for himself. They are regular guys, the kind of fellas he’d see walking past him in the street.
‘This is exactly what we need in a world where a nine-year-old boy can be bullied to death because of his sexuality.
‘Having spoken to Petros and his partner, they are amazed that they have had so much of an impact on this young lad’s life.’
H/T: Guys Like U
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