How should a person lose their virginity?

This has been bugging me for quite sometime now. I'm 26 years old, I'm self-consious about my appearance , and still live at home with my family. After reading SO MUCH yaoi, hentai, and watched my fair share of porn I've become curious about sex to the point where I feel like I'M LOSING MY MIND. So what's the best(or right) way to lose one's virginity should I throw myself at some stranger like a stereotypical slut or wait to meet the love of my life and lose myself in a passionate embrace? I know very well that sex is a part of life but I don't want to do anything that might cause me regret or lose my dignity but sometimes I just don't know what to do?