Relationships in Second Life: Snowball and Angel Stryker’s Story

The final love story is from a couple who met on a dating site and continued their relationship in Second Life. Told by Snowball Stryker, he talks about how Second Life has played a huge part in bringing him and his beloved Angel closer together.

“Isn’t it amazing that love can pop its head up in some of the most strangest places? I’ve seen it come and go and in some of the most  strangest places. It’s quite a ride, you just hold on and pray you land safely. It’s a minefield for sure. To understand that ride I have to take you back 12 years… well not that far. But you have to understand where I come from and who I am.

I’m a dying breed, the type of guy who never tries to score on the first date. Just not my MO, you know. When you get tangled up with girls who aren’t serious it can be frustrating. I had a couple devastating breakups, but they were normal type ones. It wouldn’t be until January 2012 that I would finally have love wake me up and make me see what was going on.

Many meet during Second Life and go on to have happy lives together. I didn’t. SL did play a part but we haven’t gotten to it yet. I am a furry and I have no shame in admitting that. It was through a furry dating site I got tangled up with my ex. She seemed sweet and that was the danger. She was, to quote Alice Cooper, "Venomous Poison." A Spider. She spun this web of lies and deceit and then when things don’t work out, she turns herself into the innocent victim. She manipulated me into doing things I wasn’t okay with…. starting wars with her ex b/fs (one of who is currently one of my best friends now), yelling at me for not saying "I love you" on her guestbook over and over.
Things fell out between us when I joined SL. She didn’t want me on second life because she was using me and didn’t want me to find out. When I joined SL she made up excuses to drop me like a rock. I didn’t realize what she was doing and wanted her back, she said yes, but then told me to compete with the guy she was seeing behind my back. Then I made mistake two. I told her I had met my Angel. She then pulled the "I want to be friends but you can’t see anyone," Card.

Why go into this detail? What does this have to do with Angel? Everything. You see part of me woke up but I didn’t realize it. I had met this girl and Angel at the same time on the aforementioned dating site. I told Angel how little confidence I had and how I wasn’t sure if I could be serious with her like i wanted to. Angel told me to follow my heart. I followed my heart alright, but it wasn’t after the right girl. Well I contacted Angel shortly after my first day of disaster on Second Life and opened up to her. I said "I’m sorry I didn’t listen you. You told me to follow my heart, take a chance and not sell myself short. I really do like you and I hope you’ll let me get a chance to get to know you again." Confidence I didn’t have before, made it’s appearance. I spent the next 48 hours, tormented, hurting, in pain. I got a message from Angel and things began to move forewords. She had to reinstall Second Life to get a hold of me.
We spent 72 hours on Skype together, getting to know each other. She walked in to The Shelter where I was to tell me and everyone, she wanted to date me, she saw through me and saw that I wasn’t a failure, I was just trapped in a nightmare and needed someone to pull me out. And then she showed how serious she was. i wasn’t honest with my ex about Angel and Angel went and told her to back off. Took a knife that had my name on it.
I have to admit I was very angry she did that, I didn’t want her to get hurt, but I understand now that she’s as willing to go to bat for me as I am her. She’s everything I’ve been looking for over 12 years. The right girl, the one whose meant to be. I believe that Love is a journey that takes you to find your mate. It can be cruel to those who don’t appreciate what they have, and kind to those who wait and hang on.

As I write this, it’s 6 days out from when Angel will be coming up to be with me. The feelings of Anxiety and Excitement fill the room. It’s been quite a journey.

I helped Angel heal from heartbreak on Second Life. I always say I duct taped up my broken heart and gave it to her to replace her shattered one. She’s my Angel. I’m her Hero. She saved me from eternal dread and torment, and I owe her my heart, my love, my soul and my life for it. Not a day goes by that I don’t think about her.

So where did Second Life come into play? Right now. You see long distance relationships can be hard, even when it’s as short as 500 miles. Second Life helps us to take things slow so we don’t destroy it. Second life is letting us have a life together until we can physically be together. It’s a great tool to help nurture a relationship that is begging to survive. I used to hate SL back in the day, never understood it, now I do.

Love is a journey, an adventure. Second Life is the same, and when coupled together, despite the bad, good things can happen. Call it a game or don’t. Second life to me has become a lifesaver that drew me closer to my soul mate.
So close in fact that during her spring break she came up here to spend time with me, sort of a ‘are we compatible beyond internet/long distance dating?’ Well we knew we were but you never know. The week was magical. I’m a loose cannon, always full of rage and gets angry very easily. Not once when she was here did I lose my cool or my temper. It’s amazing what a soul can do when they love you back. So how close did we connect?
Drury University is one of the top colleges in the country, they take everyone unlike others. I’m enrolling in Fall Semester this year, and in June of this year, I’ll be giving up life in Chicago to move to the boonies with my girl. I’m giving up everything in the name of a girl who I love dearly. To start my life finally, and with the girl who I know is worth everything to me. Is her family crazy? Yeah. But so is mine. I can deal with that. Middle of nowhere? Well okay not, about 45 minutes outside of Springfield, Missouri. The thing is, we love each other, and we’re going to get married and have kids at one point. But for now, we’re just settling in nicely with our relationship.

Call Second Life what you want, I call it a lifesaver, because I was drowning in depression, hatred of myself, not caring about anything, and it brought her to me, and now, my outlook was turned around for the better.”

Not all Second Life relationships work like the ones you’ve read on this site. Like real life, it hurts when you give your heart to someone and they break it. Once you find someone you can truly trust, Second Life can be an amazing thing. Although being a couple is not required in to have fun in Second Life,  It is just an added bonus. Remember that behind every avatar is a living person, so treat each other with respect.