Ahhh virginity.

The very word strikes fear into the heart of any young adult. People hear about a virgin in their midst and suddenly the sexless wonders are banished into exile along with Sloth from the Goonies or Jabba the Hutt on his way to Tatooine.

The real question is: Are there any left out there? And if so, will the real Virgin Mary please stand up?

After asking around on campus, I found they do still exist, and not just in some cave yelling ”Hey you guyyyyss” or plotting to steal Han Solo’s head. They're out walking around universities nation-wide, in real human skin and everything.

Virgin One:

Male, 22 years old 
The “Saving Himself For Marriage ” Virgin     

When talking about virginity, Christian faith has to be mentioned. As a lot of Christians (and non-Christians) know, the religion advises sex to be saved until marriage (see 1st Corinthians 7: 3-4).     

Virgin one has chosen to let his Christian faith guide his choice to remain a virgin. One explains, “I think virginity is a result of my identity as a Christian. I am definitely only a virgin today because of my Christian faith.”

However, his philosophy has not been an easy one to uphold.

“There have been times where I have had to consciously make an effort to say no to sex with a partner," One adds. "That’s not always easy in the moment, but I have never regretted saying no to sex, and I know many men and women who have regretted saying yes.”

Virgin Two:

Female, 20 years old 
The “Waiting for the Right One” Virgin     

“I just haven’t met someone worthy,” Two admits.

… That’s all she had to say, pretty much answering all questions in one fell swoop.

Virgin Three:

Female, 21 years old
The “Scared Shitless of Getting Pregnant” virgin     

“Having children is a nightmare of mine,” Three admits. “No, like seriously I probably have a nightmare about getting pregnant at least one night a week.” Virgin three goes on to elaborate she is so paranoid about becoming pregnant, that she’s considered taking Plan B after a night of what she refers to as “hand and mouth stuff.”

“It’s not like I don’t want to have sex, I mean the appeal is definitely there—especially in college," she admits. "I just don’t want to mess with birth control or any of that because frankly I don’t trust it, and I really don’t want to mess with the idea of abortion either. I’d rather be a 21-year-old virgin than a pregnant 21-year-old.”

Virgin Four:

Female, 20 years old
The “No One has Ever Met My Unrealistic Standards” Virgin     

"I feel like (sex) is something truly special and I only want to share that with the one person I truly and only love,” Four says.

She has dreamt of the person she will eventually lose her v-card to, and believes strongly that whoever it is will be her husband.     

“Although I would say there have been times where it seems like it would be a whole heck of a lot easier if I wasn’t (a virgin), in regards to dating in college at least,” she admits. "I'm a virgin because I’ve never been in love. I feel like if I’ve waited this long there’s no point in giving it up to a rando.”

Four also points out there is an immense amount of pressure for women to lose their virginities to someone who really matters, which plays a major role in her current state.

Virgin Five:

Female, 21 years old
The “What if I Royally Suck at it (pun intended)”

“If I’m being honest, when I take a guy home from the bars or something I always avoid telling him I’m a virgin," says Five. "I’m so afraid he’ll judge me for it. Plus what if I’m terrible at it? So I just play it off on the fact that I don’t have one night stands, it usually gives them the hint.”

When asked if she thinks virginity has lost some of its luster the older she gets, she replies, “Yeah actually, sometimes I feel like hooking up is sort of the equivalent of sex. I mean guys have had their ‘you know what’ in and around my mouth while I’ve been naked so what’s really the difference?

" … Do I sound like a virgin saying that?”