Jaqy and Hailey
When I was in kindergarten, I met a girl named Jaqueline, who went by Jaqy. She had just moved to the United States from Puerto Rico and I liked the way she talked. It’s 2018 and Jaqy and I are still friends. Although our lives took different turns, although we shared different backgrounds, and although our religions were different, our friendship never severed. Up until the time I was about twelve, I attended church on Sundays. From then until I was around fourteen, I attended youth group most weeks. Then, my life hit puberty and high school and I started questioning everything I knew about religion. Jaqy, on the other hand, grew up in a strictly Catholic household. She went to church, youth group (when she wasn’t at cheerleading …show more content…
For almost six months, we spent most days together. We were similar in many ways, yet so different in others, and that’s eventually what led to our demise. After we had sex, I stopped attending church. I felt like I couldn’t be a Christian girl anymore when I was acting upon those which others would call “sin”. Sex felt good and I liked doing it. At fourteen, I even knew that who I am is more important than a religion. After we broke up, I crept back into Christianity to help guide me through, much like I would do for a few more years of tough times. The breakup that I went through at fourteen wasn’t a normal one, though. During the end of the relationship, I found myself overwhelmed with sadness and fear. Although we spent every day together, it became less fun. I felt angry and afraid most of the time and I took it out on him. I found out later that I was suffering from depression and anxiety that stemmed from a traumatic childhood. The senior boy I was “in love with” hadn’t faced the loss of a family member close to him, let alone childhood trauma. He couldn’t understand my illness and he didn’t want to deal with it, so he broke up with me. It was …show more content…
She had boyfriends and felt heartbreak but never like I did at that time. Jaqy was religious, remember? She really didn’t even have time for a boyfriend with school, Catholicism, and cheerleading. She felt her heartbreak for me but continued living the way she had for so long. Although her parents were going through a divorce, Jaqy found her faith helping her through it. She got average grades, loved to cheer, and followed her parent’s strict rules almost to a t. However, at eighteen, we were both crazy about enjoying adulthood. Jaqy went to her first college party and only days later did I find out that she was thrown in a cold bathtub due to alcohol poisoning and almost was rushed to the hospital. It was the last time she ever drank like that again. Her parents didn’t know. She refused hospital treatment because of it. Rather than be safe and healthy, Jaqy wanted to heal herself so that she didn’t suffer the disappointment and anger from her parents. Around this time, Jaqy stopped divulging so much into her personal life due to the shame. At the time, I openly drunk texted my mom and had money for an Uber home in my bank account form her every weekend. Our parents raised us differently. My parents knew that I was having sex and that my boyfriend was sleeping in my bed every night but they trusted me. For that, I thank them. The night I was raped, I called my mom and told her everything rather than hide it the way Jaqy did
When I was in kindergarten, I met a girl named Jaqueline, who went by Jaqy. She had just moved to the United States from Puerto Rico and I liked the way she talked. It’s 2018 and Jaqy and I are still friends. Although our lives took different turns, although we shared different backgrounds, and although our religions were different, our friendship never severed. Up until the time I was about twelve, I attended church on Sundays. From then until I was around fourteen, I attended youth group most weeks. Then, my life hit puberty and high school and I started questioning everything I knew about religion. Jaqy, on the other hand, grew up in a strictly Catholic household. She went to church, youth group (when she wasn’t at cheerleading …show more content…
For almost six months, we spent most days together. We were similar in many ways, yet so different in others, and that’s eventually what led to our demise. After we had sex, I stopped attending church. I felt like I couldn’t be a Christian girl anymore when I was acting upon those which others would call “sin”. Sex felt good and I liked doing it. At fourteen, I even knew that who I am is more important than a religion. After we broke up, I crept back into Christianity to help guide me through, much like I would do for a few more years of tough times. The breakup that I went through at fourteen wasn’t a normal one, though. During the end of the relationship, I found myself overwhelmed with sadness and fear. Although we spent every day together, it became less fun. I felt angry and afraid most of the time and I took it out on him. I found out later that I was suffering from depression and anxiety that stemmed from a traumatic childhood. The senior boy I was “in love with” hadn’t faced the loss of a family member close to him, let alone childhood trauma. He couldn’t understand my illness and he didn’t want to deal with it, so he broke up with me. It was …show more content…
She had boyfriends and felt heartbreak but never like I did at that time. Jaqy was religious, remember? She really didn’t even have time for a boyfriend with school, Catholicism, and cheerleading. She felt her heartbreak for me but continued living the way she had for so long. Although her parents were going through a divorce, Jaqy found her faith helping her through it. She got average grades, loved to cheer, and followed her parent’s strict rules almost to a t. However, at eighteen, we were both crazy about enjoying adulthood. Jaqy went to her first college party and only days later did I find out that she was thrown in a cold bathtub due to alcohol poisoning and almost was rushed to the hospital. It was the last time she ever drank like that again. Her parents didn’t know. She refused hospital treatment because of it. Rather than be safe and healthy, Jaqy wanted to heal herself so that she didn’t suffer the disappointment and anger from her parents. Around this time, Jaqy stopped divulging so much into her personal life due to the shame. At the time, I openly drunk texted my mom and had money for an Uber home in my bank account form her every weekend. Our parents raised us differently. My parents knew that I was having sex and that my boyfriend was sleeping in my bed every night but they trusted me. For that, I thank them. The night I was raped, I called my mom and told her everything rather than hide it the way Jaqy did