You are a little over a year older than my daughter.
No, she is not a child any more ~ but she is certainly not an adult and I doubt that I will consider her an adult in the next year or so.
If I were your father, I would probably feel the same way about you ~ even though 16-year-olds can legally marry here.
My friend wouldn't even allow her girls to start dating until they were 16.
I allow it, but with many rules and conditions. Both sets of parents take & collect them; they can be together in groups, in public places, or with parents nearby; they must not let things go too far ~ hand-holding, hugging, chaste kisses are ok ~ no more.
I, too, would be worried about love-bites ~ there's just something about them. They are very visual ~ they send messages to the world. Those messages tend not to be positive ones.
At 16, I felt quite old ~ and to be honest, I don't think that I have changed very much, as a person, since then ~ even though I am now middle aged.
But, to a parent, 16 years flies by. To your father, it must seem like no time at all since you were a baby.
Parents worry. He has no-one to share his worries about you with, so he goes into emergency mode. That's what parents often do when they are frightened or worried.
I'm guessing that he is scared that you may become pregnant, be abandoned, get a disease, get hurt, have to give up your education, etc, etc.
He sees you growing up and realises that your life doesn't always involve him, which can be frightening for a parent.
Show him that you can trust him. Earn his trust.
He will gradually come to see you as a young woman, rather than as a child, anyway, as you grow into your later teens. Show him patience and understanding ~ and hope that he can do the same for you.
