A Movie Decision

Name Withheld

I spent 10 minutes squirming, looking around at my friends, trying to make eye contact with one of them. But they were all watching the movie. Before we put the DVD in, I checked the rating and read the movie summary to make sure it would be OK. But even after taking precautions, I still felt uncomfortable.

I rationalized with myself that since my friends thought it was OK, it should be OK. Plus the rating was technically appropriate. But I didn’t want them to think I was lame. So I stayed.

After 10 more agonizing minutes I couldn’t ignore it any longer. I had to leave. As I left the room, I could hear my friends laughing at me. I felt my cheeks burning with embarrassment, but I kept on walking.

On my way home, I stopped at my best friend’s house. I told her what happened, and she told me she was glad that I had left. Sitting with her, I realized I wasn’t embarrassed anymore. I knew that walking away from the movie was the right thing for me. And that was even more important to me than my friends’ approval.