Sex before marriage can be a controversial thing in some cultures, communities, and religions. But as long as people have been having sex, they’ve been finding workarounds to have their cake and eat it too. A new sex craze called “soaking” has been making the rounds on Mormon TikTok, inspiring much debate about whether it’s just a rumor gone viral or people are actually doing it.

What Is Soaking?

To put it bluntly, “soaking” is the act of penetration without thrusting. Essentially, the man puts his penis inside the woman’s vagina, then simply lays there instead of thrusting or ejaculating. It’s a bizarre image, and it’s hard to imagine that anyone against sex before marriage would somehow be cool with it.

According to Mormon teens on TikTok, soaking is more common than you think. The theory is that by avoiding thrusting or ejaculation, soakers can circumvent religious laws that forbid premarital sex. The hashtag for soaking has reached millions of tags on TikTok, and some current and former Mormons swear it’s a real thing.

“While on my mission, I had several discussions with my fellow missionaries concerning sex in general,” said Gary Knauer, a former Mormon from Oregon. “Some talked about soaking. Some would discuss that anal sex is also a way to ‘keep one’s virginity.'”

Just when you thought soaking was strange enough, it gets even weirder. Couples looking to take soaking a little further can find a friend to be a “jumper” or “shaker.” While the couple soaks on the bed, a third person jumps on the bed or shakes it to help them simulate thrusting. Since the couple themselves aren’t moving, the theory is that they can achieve climax without the need to thrust.

Why Do People Soak?

While some people might just have premarital sex behind their parents’ backs and call it a day, others take the prohibition against premarital sex incredibly seriously. Mormonism is particularly strict about premarital sex, with a code of conduct that calls all sexual activity outside of heterosexual marriage a sin (even masturbation). Facing threats of damnation and excommunication from the LDS Church, it makes sense why some people would work so hard to try to find a loophole.

Still, even if some young Mormon couples are really soaking, it doesn’t seem to be a very effective loophole.

“Mormons have very strict rules about touching over the clothes or under the clothes and no petting, so it’s all very much against the law of chastity and would still require the man and woman to confess to their bishops to be able to become good standing members in the church,” said Carah Burrell, a 32-year-old former Mormon. “So it really just makes no sense. My take is that it’s probably 99% rumor and joke and a handful of idiots try it.”

Soaking may or may not be an important part of the sex lives of today’s Mormon teens, but one thing’s for sure–it’s something that none of us will soon forget.