This is the true story of how I first experienced that most wonderful of things; cunnilingus.
I had never been in a man's bedroom before that day so when I found myself lying on my boyfriend's bed being kissed and touched, I was a barely contained jumble of nerves and I was sure I was going to lose it and bolt.
At twenty years old I was a late bloomer. This guy was the first to kiss me, the first to touch my breasts, the first to show me his man parts. All those firsts had been done sneakily at work during breaks but now he had me in a secure environment where we could do anything without restriction.
And the very reason it had taken me so long to start exploring sex was threatening to rear its ugly head again.
I had mostly gotten over my crippling shyness - enough to allow someone to kiss me, touch my boobs and to give me a glimpse of his dick - but as the guy nearly twenty years my senior moved his hand to my knee and stroked up my leg, I tensed. My face flamed and I felt my heart panic like a bird trapped in a cage that was miles too small.
I was so terrified, so nervous, so embarrassed.
No-one had ever touched me 'down there' and the churning inside my stomach was almost more than I could cope with. But my body was passionately fed up of the constant denial my shyness had forced upon it and wasn't letting me go anywhere.
My boyfriend pushed my skirt up over my hips and played his fingertips softly over the front of my thong before he slipped it down my legs and threw it to one side. I squeezed my legs tightly together and felt the heat of embarrassment flare throughout my entire body.
What if he didn't like the way my pussy looked? What if he found my vulva repulsive? I certainly found that I looked nowhere near as pretty and perfect as the ones in porn videos so surely he would hate mine, right?
I fought against him a little as he began gently encouraging me to open my legs but after a few beats I let him push my knees away from each other. I realised most of my fears had to do with my appearance so I decided it would be ok if he touched me, he just wasn't allowed to see me.
But the second I was exposed he sat up from beside me and peered down my body.
I immediately baulked and snapped my legs shut.
'You ok?' he said and placed a reassuring hand on my knee.
'Yeah, I just don't want you to see,' I said honestly.
'Why not?'
'...Because I don't like my pussy.' I inwardly cringed at hearing myself say the word.
'Why?'