Creepy or passing comment?

[Sighingnow]

I'm 25, I recently went on a date with a 36 year old. On the date he asked how old I was, I told him and mentioned people say I look younger often. He replied "I did think you were younger than that to be fair."

I think it would be wrong of him to ask me out if he truly thought I was younger. But perhaps he thought it was a compliment that came out wrong?

I don't know, what do you think?

I get where you’re coming from. I don’t think this comment necessarily means he is someone who is out to prey on younger women but I can see why it has made you pause and think twice about him.

I don’t get your issue, you’re 25. Younger could be 23. He’s nor said he thought you were a child.

It hardly makes him a paedophile, but I would approach with caution. Men who want much younger girlfriends sometimes do this because they have red flags older women see about them, or they can be immature. If they are very heavily focused on youth over personality, it is a recipe for disaster. This applies equally to men and women.

I would log that and take very seriously what you felt in your gut.

It has made you feel uncomfortable.

That is a fact. There is a reason for it. Maybe you will find out sooner or later if you pay close attention or maybe it’s just a reminder to have your wits about you.

Often there are other signals beyond words that our bodies pick up.

Do you usually date this age group? Is there anything else about him / his situation that unconsciously is uncomfortable for you?

What’s his relationship history?

How does he talk about his ex’s?

Yep to everything @scoobydoo1971 says.

Either they are shitty partners that as PP says women their own age see and won’t tolerate or they don’t want commitment / children so they prey on less experienced less demanding younger women.

I think it's creepy. You heard his voice and saw his eyes, you have more than enough context to trust your gut over God know who is replying on you on here (e.g. incel creeps with certain agenda against women). Trust your intuition, that's good enough.

Yep

OP, please think about this.

He's 36.

You're 25.

There is an 11 year age gap.

There are many, many women who are single, pretty, accomplished, never married, childless, and in their early 30s. Less so as they get to mid 30s, but still plenty of good women out there in their early 30s that would probably match him in term of where they are in their lives.

Do you not think that part of his attraction to you was that you are at least a decade younger than him......and if he likes younger women, he might like women that are even younger than you? Teen porn is the most popular category of porn for a reason.

To some men, that is a trophy. The ultimate prize would be someone even younger than you. There are younger women who quite like thinking of themselves in that way. It makes them feel secure to think they have an edge over other women because of their relative youth....but if he's this type of guy, chances are he's quite ambitious and entitled in that way and he'll drop you as soon as you have the audacity to age.

If you're hoping this materialises into as long term thing, please also know that older men might like younger women for the fact they're more inexperienced, less knowledgable, and less of a threat to their ego than someone that's more their level. When those women get to about mid 30s and older, they soon catch-up with their older husbands in this regard, and some of those men don't like this confident maturity.

Some also go for younger women because they want to be Peter Pans forever, never really committing, and they know they can get away with this much easier with a younger women as it's likely you won't be putting any serious demands on him until you're close to 30 years old....and then he can either keep making excuses as to why he can't marry you or have kids, or he'll dump you for someone younger.

Just be careful you don't waste your youth and you life on him. Plenty of women do get in that horrible situation.

Doesn’t matter if you look you ger or not.

46y/o man dating a 25y/o IS a red flag (MN seem to ve unusually full of age gap relationships, so will support these relationships, but) it really is.

You will understand it one dat.
Walk away.
Now.