Okay so I mentioned in a previous post there is this teen girl I work with. She's really sweet. I was thinking of asking her out. Not so much as a romantic date but as friends.

I'm not afraid of rejection. Not at all. I could easily understand if she didn't want to go some place with a guy who is more than half her age. Someone who is old enough to be her dad. I would easily respect it if she declined. She might even say her parents wouldn't allow it which is fine. The only downside, and it's kind of a big one, is that if I ask her out then I'm letting the cat out of the bag so to speak. She'll KNOW I'm a pedo. (even though it's not really pedophilia since she is a teen but the distinction is rarely made by the rest of society.) There is a risk that she will treat me differently afterwards. She might want to create a wider berth with me if it makes her uncomfortable and then there is really nothing I could do to go back. Even if I frame it as "just friends" it might still raise the alarm bells.

The potential positives is that she'll say yes and we'll have a good time.

But is it worth it? I don't know. What do you guys think? I feel like if I don't ask then I'm letting society win by alienating myself from a possible relationship just because of age difference. But what if she agrees with society? What if she agrees with the brainwashing that most youth are fed? Then society wins anyway and I'm trapped in an odd situation.