She Is Young, Drawn To Older Men—their Calm, Their Steady Presence. They Make Her Feel Safe, Like They

She is young, drawn to older men—their calm, their steady presence. They make her feel safe, like they hold answers to her restless questions.

But people talk. They call it strange, even wrong. They say she’s naive, that she doesn’t see the danger in the gap between them. She hears their words but feels they don’t understand.

It’s not rebellion or a search for a father figure. It’s the way their wisdom steadies her, the way they see her differently than boys her age.

Still, doubt lingers. Is it admiration or something more dangerous? She wonders, but for now, she lets the ache stay hers.