My boyfriend keeps asking me about sex. We have been dating for a long time. I am scared and young. What do I do?

Sounds like you should not have sex. Being scared and young is plenty of reason not to have sex. You should never have sex until you are 110% sure that it's what you want to do and that you can handle all the responsibilities that come with conducting a healthy sex life.

You have to tell your boyfriend that you are not ready for sex. If you're afraid of hurting his feelings, don't be. A big part of any relationship is theability to talk openly with your partner. This include talking about sex, including the fact that you're not ready to do it. Check out Be a Blabbermouth! The Whats, Whys and Hows of Talking About Sex With a Partner for tips on how to talk to your partner. If he still bugs you about it, then he doesn't really care about your feelings. Guys that don't care about their partners' feelings don't make good boyfriends. Being badgered and coerced into having sex border being sexually assaulted. At the worst, it is sexual assault. At best, you'll be unhappy doing it which can have a long-lasting negative impact on your sexuality.

You don't state how young you are, but if you need a legal reason not to do it, check out the age of consent in your area. If you are under the legal age to have sex and get caught doing it, there is a chance that he and you could get into real trouble. In some places, violations of age of consent laws are misdemeanors. But if he's older and you're under the age of consent, he could get charged with a felony and be put on the sex offender registry. With no exaggeration, being put on that registry can ruin his life.

But even if you are both over the legal age in your region, remember: You hold the inalienable right to say NO. And should he violate your right to refuse, you can press rape or sexual assault charges.

Doom and gloom aside, at some point, people eventually do decide they're ready for sex. We have a great checklist you can pore over to help you figure out if you're ready to have sex. You can read Ready or Not? The Scarleteen Sex Readiness Checklist now and keep it in mind for later when you might really be ready to start having sex.