wow, (((radioflyer))) yours is a much deeper story than mine... but at least i've realized it now while i am still in my teens that i don't wait so long as you have. One time... someone told me [regarding my ex boyfriend] friends don't treat people like that... and i thought to myself "they don't?" it was exactly as you described... i had considered him my friend before and after we went out.. but the abuse persisted, and i didn't think i had any other choice than to take it. But i know what i've gone through, and i can remember it without anxiety. That is the best feeling in the world.

"Sometimes it takes us to the bottom of our misery to understand the truth..."
~Gustav Havel - existentialist