Why do I see so few Hickeys?

I wonder, as I stare at the maroon bruise on my neck, are hickeys for the youth or newly necking only (if I can use the term "newly necking)? I ponder this question as I think about the ways I used to “get rid” of them in my younger years, when I actually had them. And yes, there are a few moments that come to mind as I think about hickeys. As an adult, one would think that I would think about them differently, that it’s not a banner of shame as it was in my childhood. I’ll never forget the “necklace” Chris put around my neck (see prior post regarding the first kiss).

Chris not only provided my first kiss, but also my first hickey. It was June and thus turtlenecks were out of the question. My parents picked me up that evening, completely unsuspecting. It wasn't until the following morning that my mother spotted the "necklace".

"What's that?" she asked. I hadn't seen my neck.

"What are you talking about?" I replied.

"Go look in the mirror."

"Yikes! I thought. That's not good. "

I used that summer to research how to rid myself of these bruises. No amount of makeup, cold spoons or high collared shirts offered any relief. It seemed that the only remedy was time, and the darker the bruise, the longer it took to go away. My mother was relentless and wouldn't let me hid out at home. "Let's go, Andrea, we're going to the mall." I thought, "surely to parade me around so that people would gawk at my neck."

Since that time, I noticed the marks on other girls, and some boys and would acknowledge them as if they were the salt of the Earth, careful to maintain eye contact and not stare at the hickey.

As an adult, I don't see too many hickeys. Not on adults anyway, and I wonder anew, why this is. Maybe they had a tyrant for a mother as well (and I mean tyrant in the nicest sense of the word) and were just averse to them, maybe they don't put themselves in compromising situations, but sometimes, it's almost unavoidable, as was the little gift I received recently. I was married for 12 years and didn't have the occasion to hide hickeys. I hope marriage doesn't damper passion for everyone, but it begs the question.