Mark thought Travis, who had been out since high school, was gorgeous. And when he talked to him - wow! He was witty and shared Mark's affection for sarcasm.
Travis' annoyance at being struck in the head dissolved when Mark smiled at him.
A friendship grew - they made each other laugh until their sides ached.
One day, Mark invited Travis to a gathering at his place. After having another good time together, Travis was tired of guessing what was happening. Later that night, back at his own place, Travis sent Mark a message. "So . . . ?" he wrote.
"Do you want to get breakfast?" Mark replied.
Mark did not make a big coming-out announcement. He just let the world see him with his boyfriend.
"No one ever treated me any differently," Mark said. He and Travis also had the support of their families. They took none of this for granted, they said, because not everyone is so lucky.
Mark, now 29, was born in Germany - his father was in the military. His family eventually settled in Pemberton Township, Burlington County. He earned a law degree at Rutgers University and now works in student affairs at New Jersey Institute of Technology as a residence coordinator.
Travis, 27, grew up in Bloomfield, N.J. After Fairleigh Dickinson, Travis attended med school at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School in New Brunswick. He spent his last two years at Cooper University Hospital in Camden and, in 2008, moved to Center City. Mark continued to live in Newark, but spent every weekend in Philly.
Travis told Mark there would be no engagement until after medical school because he wanted a short engagement and it was not financially feasible to pay for both school and a wedding.
Then his heart got in the way.
By fall 2008, "it was to a point in our relationship where it really needed to happen, where I really wanted it to happen," Travis said.
