that would be a wonderful opportunity if things were alright back then.  I mean if there was no violence involved or trust issues.  You just have to think of the reasons that lead to the separation and see if they're gone (like distance, goals).

Tell him to call you in 6 years or so, if he feels the same way. Maybe you will still be single! But for real. I was with my first love since 18  up to  21. Then on and off for the next  4 years after that. I always felt that if we got together again, it would be after we are done with all our bullshit, when the timing was right. But either at 18 you are mature enough or not enough to commit seriously. I only say this because 9/10 times people end up wanting to experience more than the person tehy are with ending up hurting the other. So my advice, experience life first.

Right now, I say "yes" immediately and without question, but if it actually happened that she said she wanted to try again, I have a feeling I would take a couple of days to think about it first. I mean, I'll always love her (and only her), but being the most beautiful thing in my universe doesn't magically make everything she did acceptable.

In this world, true romantic love the way it was intended to be shared has effectively lost all meaning.

@ShirleyD@xanga -

From the moment a human being is born they are experiencing life and from that point on (hell, even before that) they are susceptible to death. There was a girl who sat next to me in history class junior year of high school who was hit by a car while walking home and died halfway through the school year. I was considering asking her out the very day it happened. Why? She was a virgin and so was I. She was beautiful and had never really been in anything close to a serious relationship and neither had I. Her entire life was a total of 16 years. "Baptism by fire" (going all-in on your first try/decisively jumping into something immediately) produces success and/or failure in a way that is advantageous because it ensures no previous negative experiences effect the outcome (e.g. laziness, lowered expectations, etc.). Deliberately taking more time than absolutely necessary to "experience more" first is downright greedy, presumptuous, and makes the bold assumption that both you and the other person have all the time in the world to "love" (each other), but there are more important things to do with the unknowable amount of time remaining. Can you imagine if someone decided to "take more time" to try again with their first love and died before they could...? The kind of hell the other person would go through knowing they were put off for experiences that never paid off and that never contributed to the would-be relationship?

When you reach adolescence, your DNA determines you are a fully functional human being... an adult. It doesn't matter how much or how little you experience after that, you are as much yourself as you will ever be, because you have all ~100 billion neurons, but from that point on, you are losing so many synapses (the connections between them) that by time you've lived "a full life" (~70 years), only about 50% of them remain. 

Experience makes you better at the path you are currently on at any given point in time. If you are "enjoying the single life" and dating like crazy, meeting tons of new people while focusing on work/school/having fun/whatever, that's exactly what your brain is focused on doing better, and it will trim the connections it finds unnecessary to make you more efficient at it... not bothering to take into consideration that by time you want to be in a serious, long-term, and committed relationship, you've already trimmed all the connections that otherwise would've been useful in learning about and developing a unique and strong conscious and subconscious connection with one individual specifically (i.e. time spent "growing together" is lost).

The longer you take, the less of yourself you are investing in the other person. If you want them to know they mean a lot to you, let them experience as much of you as possible before you are "mature" and resemble everybody else. 

If you're not thinking about and doing what you want to do in the future right now, you're not getting any better at it.

No one takes life or love seriously anymore.

I'm still with my first real love after 5 years.  It's not about whether or not you're too young, or old enough.  It's about whether or not growing up means growing together or growing apart.  You two have to decide what's best for you.

@T3hZ10n@xanga - This is pretty much exactly on target.  Well said.

@TheOP - My advice, given that this is your first relationship, it was a successful one, and it was a major one, would be to avoid dating for awhile.  Especially if you don't feel you are really "over" the ex.  18 is an age where you are probably scratching the surface of a lot of things in the world, and I would say, take the time to experience some of them fully.  I won't go into a full diatribe on self-discovery here, as there are thousands of authors and millions of books on the subject, but you have an opportunity to do some of that without the lens of a relationship... and doing so will, I guarantee, make you a better partner in future relationships.  Avoid jumping back on the boyfriend, and avoiding jumping anyone else.  Maybe start keeping a diary (or hey, a blog... that'd be convenient), and when you can go back, read the old entries, and go "Man, I'm in a whole different place now, and I like it" then you'll be ready to reevaluate the original boy, or go looking for a new one.

As far as the actual question goes... sure, I'd like to believe it would work.  In practicality, I don't know... one of the major facets of any long-term relationship is learning to embrace the change in your partner, and so I would be a bit wary of someone who wants to come in and out of a relationship as the winds don't blow their exact way... but sure, I'd hope for the best in the future.  And you lose nothing by keeping a positive mindset and hoping for the best.  If somebody else comes along that really sweeps you off your feet, then it won't be a problem, because real quality long-term "new" relationships quickly dull the cuts of the old ones.

he wants to end the relationship on an amicable note rather than the reason for the breakup being that he messed up in some way or another or vice versa. so he wants to remember his first love fondly than be bitter and angry about it due to his insecurity and fear of being a failure.

@Gorrific@xanga - me and my first love broke up after 6 years.. but i hope you 2 can last!

Been there, done that, didn't work out. A break-up happens for a reason, whatever it might be from his side your yours, but it's better left to rest. The first time it happens though hurts the most.

i think it's probably best for you to move on and not think of things like this.  it'll just keep your mind occupied and waiting.  

Don't let this define you, instead let it be what ever comes from it. Also, find yourself while everything and everyone else goes about doing the same. If it's a lasting love then time will be the only thing that will test it's merits. Just listen to yourself and feel comfortable with the decisions you make. My grandma says, "Life's short, eat dessert first."

18 is definitely young. Give it some time, and don't be hooked on the idea of getting back together.

I experienced my first love when I was 19--long story short, it didn't last but we're still friends. He said that our lives were going in different directions, and he was right; I moved overseas, on the other side of the world. Every now and then I still have thoughts of coming back home in a few years and seeing if he wants to try a relationship, but I'm not letting it stop me from deciding on my career goals. Try being single for a while and focus on other things, because you'll miss out on a lot if you stay stuck on thoughts of him.

First of all, congrats on waiting until you were EIGHTEEN to do all of that stuff!! :)
It makes me happy to read that, you have no idea; a lot of the people I knew in school were insane, losing their virginity at age 13 or 14 - sheesh :S

Anyway, my frank answer to this is NO, you do not get over your first love, nor do you ever.
It's been twelve and a half years since my fairy tale went terribly wrong, and I lost the love of my life. Time passed yes, and we both moved on; both of us married now to other people - but let me tell you that I'm NOT exaggerating one bit when I say that not a single day has passed where he didn't cross my mind at least once.
I always have thoughts of 'what might have been' or 'how did we go wrong'...
It doesn't at all mean that I don't love and cherish the person I'm with now, but it's just the 'first love' thing that never leaves you alone.

Doesn't have to be a horrible plague on you though, although for a long time, it was for me. Now I've finally reached a point where I can just look back at the fond memories and be happy and wistful instead of crushed or regretful.

No.

Just no.

Been there, done that.