ACCEPTING OR REFUSING A DATE

Sometimes when you are asked to go out, one or more questions must be settled before you can give your answer. Maybe you have to ask your parents first. Maybe you don’t know the hostess who is giving the party and you would like time to check up before giving the boy your answer. You might want to learn more about the place you have been invited to—or about the boy who is inviting you. You may have an exam coming up which requires last-minute preparation.

In any of these cases, or others, it’s perfectly justifiable to explain that you would like to go but have to postpone your final decision. If you do have to ask a boy to wait before giving him your answer, be sure to explain why. No boy will condemn you for wanting to check with your parents before agreeing to go somewhere you’re not sure about. He may tease you about it if he feels insecure, but inwardly he will respect you for being the kind of person who is trying to abide by her parents’ wishes.

It’s not fair to keep one boy on the string while you wait to see if another boy will ask you out for Saturday night. If there is to be an event at your school to which you would like to go, you should give a definite answer to the first boy who asks you. No one appreciates a girl who keeps a date dangling while she looks for greener pastures. It’s certainly not fair to the boy, for it may be too late for him to get another date by the time you decide. It’s not fair to yourself, either, for once it gets around that you do this kind of inconsiderate thing, boys will look elsewhere for dates.