Teen dating shouldn’t be hazardous to your teen’s health.
“Ouch!” Terri was shocked that her boyfriend slapped her and left a red mark on her forearm.
“Ah, that’s just a love tap,” he said.
“Well, it hurt,” she snapped. “Don’t do it again!” She closed her locker and turned toward her next class.
After school, Leo drove her home from school. He wasn’t talking much. He almost seemed angry, but Terri couldn’t think of anything she might have done to provoke him. He looked around before he turned his eyes on her. “I saw you talking to Art.”
“So what? He’s just a friend.”
“You should stay away from him.”
Terri didn’t like the look in Leo’s eyes. She didn’t want to argue with him. “I have homework to do,” she murmured, and started to get out of the car. Leo grabbed her wrist and squeezed uncomfortably tight. She looked down where he gripped her and saw her arm getting red, his fingers white.
“Stay away from him. You belong to me now.”
She pulled away from his grasp. “Wrong, Leo. I belong to me. And don’t touch me again. You need help.”
His face reddened. She hurried from the car and toward the house, her door key in her hand. She didn’t look back until he squealed tires when he took off down the street. For a moment she was afraid, but she shrugged it away. Everyone has bad moments, she thought. She must be over-reacting. But once she was inside she locked the door again, in case Leo decided to come back. She was afraid to tell anyone what had happened. She didn’t want her parents not to like her boyfriend. She didn’t want everyone to think she was crazy. Maybe she should wait and see what happened the next time she talked to Leo.
