Stefy Rae says, "First off, he's young and still learning. Trust me, these things get better with age. Don't worry about it too much. It's such a small thing, and if you truly like the guy it shouldn't really matter. But since you said this deeply troubles you, then you should gently suggest to him what you like in a kiss instead of telling him what your friends are saying. There's no reason to do that, plus telling him what others are saying would only crush him."

We agree with Stefy Rae on this. It's not cool that your friends are talking about how your crush isn't a good kisser, and if he knew, he'd be mortified and hurt. Your "friends" should keep their opinions to themselves. One way to give your boyfriend a subtle kissing lesson is to kiss him how you would like to be kissed. Or, if he does something that feels good (like not mashing your lips or swallowing your tongue) you could casually say "that feels good." That should help him get the message, too. Good luck, keep at it and enjoy your time with this great dude.

My Friend Likes Him, Too!

I started liking one of my friend's really good friends, before I knew that they had had something a while back. One day in gym class, I mentioned the guy and my friend told me that she'd be jealous and not very happy if I ended up dating him. She had a boyfriend at the time, though, which made me confused as to why she'd even care. Then, just a few days ago, my friend and her boyfriend broke up and now she plans to see where she and this guy stand. It was really hard to hear since she knows I like him. However, this guy always flirts with me, and he doesn't seem to have any interest in my friend. I'm not the type of person to try and hook up with a guy my friend likes, but these feelings are really strong and I can't seem to help them! So basically what I'm asking is, would it really be bad if I dated him?

— Caitlin, 14, Ontario, Canada

"No," says Stefy Rae, "I don't think that it's bad if you end up dating him. It's another story if they were on a time-out from each other and you tried to hook up with him then. But you like him and he likes you, so go for it. She's not really your friend if she doesn't want you to be happy."

We see Stefy Rae's point, but we do think you should have a talk with your friend before anything happens. Just let her know that you still like your crush, and you understand she likes him, too, and that you don't want to do anything sneaky or hurtful to her. Explain that you had no clue she once had something with him, because otherwise you would never have gone there, but that now that you like him, you can't just turn it off. Maybe you two can agree that neither of you will stand in the other's way if this guy asks one of you out. Be prepared for her to say it would upset her if you went out with him, though. Then you have a choice to make: Pursue the guy and risk hurting your friendship, or back off from him and risk resenting your friend. Try to keep the lines of communication open between the two of you, and ultimately, if you start dating this guy, make sure you don't drop your friend. With time and effort, you two can be tight.