WHEN YOU LOVE

WORSE FIRST

"I'm not going to make a big deal, but son, your generation has resources we didn't. I want to understand how come."

Dylan turned his head away, "you said you wouldn't make a big deal."

"I'm not; I'm just surprised. I thought you knew betterㅡ," Lee said, remaining focused on his driving.

"Well, I was drunk and high, remember," Dylan replied with a tight-lipped smile to go.

Lee evoked his sternest tone, "wipe that grin off your face. You heard Doctor Summers an STI isn't anodyne when you don't treat it. You should be weeping and inform whoever transmitted it to you."

The boy huffed, "Are you serious? Do you really think I can walk up to her and say hey, remember last Friday? Well, you gave me more than an erection. You should have a check-up."

Lee gave Dylan a side glance and would have slapped him behind the head if he wasn't driving, "What, so you're just going to let the person spread the venom? ㅡHasn't our example taught you anything? ㅡLies, deception, and secrets aren't they what broke our family and made sexually transmitted diseases a trend worldwide. Back in the eighties, those who lied and hid their condition largely contributed to the escalation of AIDS and HIV. There were millions of people spreading it without even knowing. The condom was harsh, but it saved lives."

"I don't sleep around, Dad. I didn't want to do it, but things were out of my control."

"I didn't say you did. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying you asked for it, but your choices before that part were in your control. Come on, Dylan, you've seen enough movies to know how people perceive these things. If you avoided the high consumption of drugs, we wouldn't be here discussing STIs."

Dylan sighed and sunk back in his seat. His father was right, and he knew it. The boy already visualized the face Becky would make and the eventual rumors that would fly about. Still, he did what Lee asked, not for Becky's sake but for everyone's sake.

As Lee said, if he thought he was old enough to practice sex of any form, then he was old enough to take accountability for the consequences. There were so many perimeters when one decided to be sexually active.

Even though Dylan knew staying safe was a must, he made the debutante mistake, and now, he found himself in front of Becky.

"About Friday."

"What about?" The girl said between her chewing bubble bursts.

"Well, you know what happened between you and me."

The girl blinked twice, "what happened between you and me?"

Dylan didn't know if she played pretend or if she actually didn't remember. Becky had drunk like everyone else. Perhaps everything was blurry for her too.

"Do you remember anything?" Dylan pursued.

"Well, you threw up all over the place," she said while laughing and stopped when her chewing made her choke as she accidentally swallowed it.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Becky answered, feeling like karma slapped her for laughing at Dylan.

"Do you recall anything that happened before that?" Dylan tried to redirect the conversation to the essential.

Becky's eyes darted. It was obvious she knew where he was heading with his question. "Eh, Dylan, about that other thing, could you avoid talking about it?"

"I'm sorry, Becky, but it's that other thing we need to discuss. I went for a check-up and wellㅡ." Dylan paused. He didn't know how to say it. Still, he continued, "You need to see a doctor too. I think you transmitted an STI to me.