Growing up too fast wasnt something i chose, but it marked a defining point of my childhood despite not being 18. I lost my innocence the day i realized that the pretty words a boy will tell you are a dagger in disguise. I lost my innocence the day i let my reputation define me, but adults will still say "You dont even know how bad life can get yet, all you have to do is go to school." What they dont know is that in school, they may teach you how to read and write. In school they taught me how to recite plays and taught me how to multiply 10 times 8, but they didnt teach me how to stop loving someone who doesnt love you anymore. They dont teach you how to deal with a goodbye you never received. In school they dont teach you that your friends will turn their back on you if its the cool thing to do, they dont teach you about how a boys kiss can taste better than Prozac. In school they dont teach you that alcohol makes as many problems as it solves but man does it feel good to let your throat burn for a split second rather than deal with the aching pain in your heart and the problems in your head that you couldnt solve. they teach that arithmetic and english are the main things to learn in life but life isnt 10 times 8 and life isnt this beautiful picture that artists paint. Life is the nights you lie awake at 16 missing a boy who you gave everything to. Life is the pain in your eyes that says Im fine when you know that isnt true. So maybe you are right, maybe i dont have to pay bills or deal with the "adult" world, but ive learned more about life in my 16 years of ages than some adults ever will.