I'm fairly ruthless

**Warning: references to sex will be made in this post.**

Evan comes into the room and returns cordless phone to its cradle.

"Um ,Yondalla, what exactly is the statutory rape law in our state? There's a four year window, right?"

He knows I know. It is one of the "talks" I have with the boys. It comes years after the first safe sex talk and right around the "why you have to register for the draft even though you are gay" talk. "No. It is a two-year window. If you are nineteen, it is not statutory rape if your partner is at least seventeen."

"But it's the parents that press those charges, right?"

"Not necessarily. If you have sex with someone under seventeen you can be charged with statutory rape by anyone." I remind him that just because an act is not statutory rape it is not necessarily legal. It could be something else. (We've talked about our state's rather draconian laws about sexual activity in public places.)

He is embarrassed and says, "I know! I just wanted to know the age range. If someone named XX calls it's for me."

"And he is seventeen."

"Why do you want to know that?!!"

"So he's younger than seventeen?"

"I don't want to talk to you about this! Why are you asking?"

"It seems like a natural question to me, sweetie. You have a conversation with a boy and then you want to know what the statutory rape law is. How old is he?" By the way, I'm trying not to laugh while I'm asking him. He's so easy to tease that you would think it wouldn't be fun, but somehow it still is.

"I can't have this conversation. I'm leaving."

He walks out and I yell after him, "If he's sixteen, he's off-limits!"

"Gawd! I know already!"