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The age of innocence
The teenage years can be bittersweet. On top of the constant barrage of swelling hormones, peer pressure and exams, there are the hard lessons of love to be learned. Small wonder, then, that the gray hairs start sprouting on parents' heads when their kids start dating.
But teens will be teens. 17-year-old Ju Xiaoguang and 16-year-old Rong Muxuan have been going steady for six months. Both second-year high school students, they started out as classmates in middle school. After four years of 'missed connections' the two started officially dating last year. "I knew she always kind of liked me," says Xiaoguang, smirking at his girlfriend. "Things really started to happen during SARS," adds Muxuan, who began a concerted SMS campaign to win Xiaoguang over during those tense weeks when few souls dared to venture outside. "I think my persistence paid off." Although they now attend different schools, Xiaoguang and Muxuan manage to meet up about 4 to 5 times a week and "hang out where most of our friends do - McDonald's, Internet cafes and bike rides." At school, most of their classmates are also dating, although "some of the older teachers still try to intervene in the students' love lives like in the past, but most of them are generally more relaxed about it." The one thing that remains taboo is PDA - public displays of affection. "We can get away with holding hands and stuff like that, but not much more." Xiaoguang and Muxuans' parents share a similar view with their children's teachers - while they remain concerned about their children's youth, they generally accept the fact that they are dating. "They definitely know," says Muxuan, who has been dating boys since middle school. "Her parents also know me pretty well," adds Xiaoguang. "We can visit each other at home as long as they're around. I think they're pretty comfortable with me because they knew me when I was in middle school." As with most teens, the future remains a rather murky concept for them both. Nonetheless, they maintain a mature outlook on their lives and aspirations. "I'm not sure about what I want to do yet, but I hope to have a good career and be healthy - I think that's what's most important," says Xiaoguang. Muxuan, who wants to get married and have two kids, sums it up in broader terms, "As long as nothing bad happens, things will be fine. There's no doubt in my mind that we'll stay together." |
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