‘I’m a instructor – one dad’s inappropriate behaviour has left me uncomfortable’
A daycare worker is dealing with an awkward situation as she claims a dad keeps flirting with her when he comes to collect his daughter, making her feel uneasy.
The woman formed a bond with the man’s four-year-old daughter – who she pseudonymously referred to as Emmy – from the moment she started attending the daycare. Due to Emmy’s attachment to her teacher, the woman would regularly interact with the girl’s father at pick-up time.
Initially, their conversations were casual, but over time, the married father of two became increasingly flirtatious. He frequently compliments her on being “young and smart”, which makes her “uncomfortable”, but he doesn’t seem to understand that he should stop.
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In a Reddit post, the woman shared: “It obviously makes me uncomfortable, but for the sake of his daughter, I don’t really say anything. I have tried to set some boundaries, but it’s really uncomfortable. I jokingly said once, ‘Well, if I were your age, I don’t think I’d date someone as young as me,’ and he was like, ‘Well, good thing I would,’ and he laughed.”
She sought advice from her colleagues about his behaviour, but they dismissed it as him being “just a flirt” and not meaning any harm. However, the situation escalated when the dad asked for her phone number to “call if anything happens”.
She continued: “He was being super pushy, and I felt a little trapped, so I gave him my phone number. He texts me all the time, asking what I’m doing. I have FaceTimed his daughters a couple of times, but it just feels wrong.”
“I briefly talked about this to a friend, and she said that she would’ve told his wife. I don’t even think I have the guts to do that. Ever since my friend told me that, I started casually bringing up his wife in conversations. He would always change the subject or say she’s not here.”
Commenters rallied behind the woman, advising her to slam down boundaries with the bloke. Tips included only pinging him messages strictly about his kids and avoiding chinwags with him outside the daycare.
One woman who’d been in the same boat shared: “If you see him in public don’t be nice to him. I had a student’s father who made me uncomfortable, he got my number from a coworker. I was just a b***h to him. I only contacted their mum about them. I mean honestly, sometimes you just can’t be nice to people without giving them the wrong idea. I’m sorry he’s making you uncomfortable, this sucks.”
Another chimed in: “You need to be a lot meaner. Just really frosty. He’s super manipulative and inappropriate.”
And a third piped up: “Stop being a rug. You have every right to say NO to anything he asks. This is a business you work for. You are NOT friends. You are his kid’s daycare teacher, that is it.”
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