Biting: The Trend that Isn't.

According to radicalparenting.com, a site overseen by Vanessa Van Petten, hickeys have become a thing of the past. The new thing? Bite marks, and plenty of them, in new places over the body. Now, the "love bites" appear on the chest, just above cleavage, or on cheeks. This seems like some petty trend, spawned by Twilight or True Blood fans across the nation, but that may not be the case.

"I think the prep crowd has started into it because of the Twilight scene," a Conway High sophomore boy said, "That crowd started having bite marks when the 'Bite Me' shirts came out. It's a stupid book trend for them, and will fall out as soon as the books go under. For the underground scene, it's been around for years. It's nothing new. People are just noticing it now because of the vampire craze."

A survey went around this same high school. At random, five 'goth' students, five 'jocks,' five 'cheerleaders,' and five honor students were selected and polled about the "love brands." Seventeen of the twenty had bitten other students. Fourteen had been bitten, and all said they had "worn them with pride."

"I bite my friends," one junior girl said, "As soon as we're friends, I feel the need to mark them. Most of the time, we're hanging out and cuddling or acting stupid, but I just want to bite them. It makes them a part of my life, and I can always prove it." She went on to say it was "even better if they returned the favor."

This widespread trend must have a root. Some students blame the vampire craze, while some say it's a display of affection. Either way, students aren't covering them up. Is it really about domination? Love? A violent occult practice sweeping the nation? The possible causes have been debated until those arguing are blue in the face.

"People bite other people. It seems like something a two year old would do, and it is. The strangest part is that it seems to be for the same reason. The fight for dominance," a senior boy commented. "I always bite my girlfriends, sometimes as early as the first date, to show that I'm the dominant one in the relationship. If the chick has a dominant streak, she'll usually do the same thing back."

A freshman girl countered this, saying, "It's never about dominance. It's about caring. If you can show these marks, it means at least one person loves you. Most of the time, the bites scar, and never go away. It's like a mark of love."

"I got into it after I saw my other friends doing it," a senior girl admitted. "It was stupid at first, but something about it drew me in. It's not seen as normal, and there's a bit of mystery to it. Parents flip about little [stuff] like that all the time, so a bit of risk goes into it, too. It's almost addicting, especially if you break skin." She said it "heightens the intensity of the moment."

As this trend spreads, so does the concern of parents.

"My daughter has come home with marks before," a Conway mother said. "She tells me not to worry, but it makes me wonder where else those mouths have been."

"She's right to worry," her husband said, "It's not normal. None of this is normal. I mean, we did strange things without our parents knowing. We drank, smoked, and had sex. It was teenage life. It's still teen life today. Still, parents should worry. Now, it seems that love really does bite."