I’m thinking of dating a former student.

I (24F) married my husband when I was 20. I was absolutely in love and so excited about our future. About a year and a half ago, my husband died in a car accident. I was in the middle of teaching my first school. Due to my grief, I resigned.

In the last six months, I have been trying to become a person again. I am teaching at a new school, trying to make friends and maintain a social life. I have been set up on dates in this time, but my friends keep setting me up with guys who are looking for something serious. I had my love, if I’m dating I want fun right now.

This brings me back to a month ago. While at our a local restaurant/bar, I ran into a former student (19M) from my first school. We chatted for about an hour and a half-not like a teacher catching up with a former student, like two friends who haven’t seen each other in a while. It ended with him leaving his number on the back of a receipt for me and telling me to call him.

We starting texting back and forth all this time. I get butterflies when I see he texted me, I’m excited to hear from him. As pathetic as it sounds, I go frequently to where he works just to see him. Anyway, last night, he asked me out and I’m thinking of accepting. It’s weird, I know. I taught him for a semester, I know his whole family through my role as his teacher. I don’t want to be accused of something happening while I was his teacher, because that is so far from the truth. Now that I’ve seen him as an adult, I do find him attractive and interesting but I’m worried about how others will perceive this.

Does it make it better that I lost contact with him since being his teacher? I want fun, and he is fun, but is it worth the judgement I will probably get? Could I be actually jeopardizing my career by going out with him?