Your teen years are a time filled with personal growth and discovery. Your brain's still forming, and you still have a lot to learn — which is why it's so messed up when adults take advantage of this by "dating" teenagers.
As a teenager, it can feel fun and exciting to "date" an adult — especially because these so-called relationships are often glamorized in TV and movies. But the truth is there really can't be an equitable relationship between a teenager and an adult,* and the adult should know better.
Many women may look back and realize that their middle or high school "relationship" was predatory — if you want to read about that experience, check out this post. But this time, we want to hear from men who have come to this realization.
Whether your older "partner" was male or female, we want to hear what the experience was like. What did you think of it at the time? When did you realize it was predatory — during the relationship or long after? How do you feel about it now?
What did you learn from the experience, and what do you want other people to know? If you're comfortable, you can share in the comments below, or you can submit your story anonymously via this Google form — your story could be featured in an upcoming BuzzFeed Community post.
The hope is we can both destigmatize talking about this experience as a man (as the conversation tends to center around women this happens to) and also help warn others how dangerous these experiences can be, as well as what to look out for.