Doesn't this happen in most relationships? In this - as in so much - boylovers are really no different from anyone else. People fall in love when they're young and beautiful and sexually attractive to each other. But over time they get old, and bits start to sag or stop working or turn strange colours - age is not kind to any of us. If one is still stuck in this 'in love' stage, a relationship won't last when sexual attraction dies. I'm afraid that our rather infantile youth-worshiping culture privileges being 'in love' to such an extent that sexual relationships often do not endure beyond a few years.

But if you're lucky (and careful), that initial intoxicating attraction will mature into a deep loving care and admiration. That's real love, though it's not fashionable to say it. If you love a boy like that, you'll still see the boy you fell in love with long after he's grown up. That kind of love really can last a lifetime, and though I've never experienced it myself, I have the deepest reverence for people (like my parents) who have somehow managed to find it.