I knew this was going to be upsetting to some people. To me, going to everyone I know and telling them I’m gay and having a heartfelt moment with tears…I’m not interested in that at all. "Thain is the more outgoing of the two of us. And Clay did it in a way so befitting of modern times. That's when Clay seized the moment and burst through the closet door.ten years after his brother did. I figured if I’m going to tell a few people, I need to tell everyone," Clay said. Then, I decided to go to law school at Baylor University, so then it became 'I'm focusing on my studies.' About a year or two after graduating from law school, close friends started to ask me if I’m gay. I was working for the Rockets doing events and promotions on nights and weekends, so I fell back on 'I’m too busy to date anybody.' Nobody really asked me if I was gay. To an extent, that pushed me further into the closet because now we had the gay twin and straight twin assumption. By the time Thain came out, I hadn’t even experimented with guys before, so I wasn’t ready to come out. "I had an idea in middle school that I might be gay, and by high school, I knew. After Thain came out of the closet, people assumed Thain was the gay twin and Clay was the straight twin. Thain and Jack eventually bought a house at 25, got married at 26 when same-sex marriage laws were still rocky - which was attended by Thain's father - and they eventually married legally five years ago.įor Clay, though, Thain's newly revealed sexuality put him in a precarious spot. He would get mad if I didn’t bring Jack to our family gatherings." He and our step-mother progressed over the years. He eventually came around and said he loved me but he’s not sure he accepted this. We went a few months where we didn’t talk, not because he disowned me but because he wanted to figure it out. It was a lot for him to wrap his mind around. He’s from a small town and was raised Southern Baptist. "Within a day or two of coming out to my mom, I told Clay and our other siblings, and I eventually told my dad. The twins' father and step-mother proved to be more of a challenge. When Thain broke the news to his mom, she showed instant support. I told my family and Clay," Thain described. I had told a couple of friends, and I came out officially at 23. We did the long distance thing, but I was still in the closet. After graduation, we were together, but he stayed in Austin and I came back to Houston. The first year out of college, he was fully out. Jack and I dated in secret, and then he started to come out during his senior year of college. Clay and I were roommates, and we shared a bathroom in college with our suitemates, and Jack was one of them. I started dating my now husband Jack my sophomore year at Trinity College in San Antonio. "I probably realized I was gay at some point in high school. Thain, the older of the two by seven minutes, decided to live his truth and came out of the closet as gay. But what happens when one twin comes out of the closet and the other doesn't? Thanks to the experience of Clay and Thain Allen, we're one step closer to understanding that question.or at least their experience on the matter. They might view each other as their greatest competitor, or they might find their greatest supporter in the other. People sometimes confuse one for the other, yet the wardrobe is automatically doubled. These are their stories.īeing a twin can be sometimes fun, other times pesky. Houston Press met with members of the LGBTQ community to learn more about their experiences belonging to this group. June is the anniversary of the Stonewall riots, often regarded as the tipping point in the modern gay rights movement and earning its recognition as Pride Month.
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