This is pretty low key in comparison to some other confessions. But I’m having trouble coming to terms with the fact that I really like my friend’s little sister. I’m 19, she’s 15. In five years, nobody would bat an eye. And I know 100% that right now, it’s not okay. Such a big percentage of our lives is not “just a number.” She’s entering her sophomore year of high school, and I’m a rising junior and a researcher. We’re living different lives. But we’ve connected over a shared passion for intellectual exploration (she’s incredibly keen for a teenager), literature, music, everything that really matters to me. We both love languages and travel, and we absolutely love talking when she comes to visit her sister. She’s got the greatest smile, the bluest eyes, perfect skin, and a laugh like no other. I wonder if I can make sure we’re just friends for long enough that maybe, just maybe, it would be considered okay. And I’m ashamed that such a real connection with somebody is considered categorically wrong under the law. Am I a bad person?