Q - Dear Annabelle, Me and my boyfriend have been going out for 9 months and all his friends hate me and call me bad names behind my back. My friends really like him. Any advice? A - Dear Trish, And how is it that you know what names his friends are calling you? Are you aware that it takes two people to hurt you? One to do the action and one to report it to you? Whoever is reporting to you is NOT your friend. Gossip is what that person is engaging in .........so you know that person is not worthy of your friendship, because no person of quality ever speaks badly of anyone in their absence or allows anyone else to speak badly of their friends. A true friend stands up for that friend or absents themselves from conversations that are negative. Thatās called character and good judgment, thatās called integrity. Now, onesā friends are a reflection of oneself.....does the person you are dating know what his friends say about you? How is it that he has not made it entirely clear to them that he will not tolerate anything negative about the girl he is dating? No real man allows another person to diss his lady. You have a strange dynamic going on in your life..had you considered giving this entire situation a good deal more thought? - Annabelle Q - Dear Annabelle, I guess I should've been more specific. Me and my boyfriend have been going out for 9 months. His friends hate me but they've never met me. They think I've changed him and call me bad names. I know because I met one of them and they told me because they said I seemed nice. She told me what they said and said she actually liked me. I told my boyfriend and he said he didn't believe the person that told me but he would ask his friends and see. Is there anything I can do? A - Dear Trish, Yes. Stay out of it. Donāt involve yourself in idle gossip. If you always conduct yourself in a manner that is above reproach and if you never indulge in gossip, people will know that you are of good character, have integrity and can be trusted. People judge you by your actions. Those who would do otherwise are not people with whom you would associate. (Surprised?.......donāt be.....this is how a most of the population actually lives.....and very nicely too. ;- ) - Annabelle