So, I went contra dancing the other night and had a really good time with this one man who is a bit older than me. Contra dancing consists of multiple partners, though he was my favorite. We spoke a little bit at the event and are now friends on Facebook, for a few days. Since then, he has complimented me on dancing and being nice and whatnot, but has also called me cute and said he'd love to see me again. So, he seems nice and so far generally happy and kind...though I'm still keeping in the back of my mind the fear of internet predators. What do you think?

Hm since you've already met him in real life, at least you know he looks like he says he does, that's a first step. If it was me, I'd talk to him a bit more first online to get to know him better. Hopefully you can then find out if he lives up to his first impression. If any red flags appear, you can always end it there. If you decide to meet up with him again, do it in a public place, and be sure to have an emergency plan to get out of there if he turns out to be a weirdo. I'm not really sure what more to say, other than stay safe :)

You know him offline. Internet predators are a thing, yes, but it's not something you need to be like "OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG HE/SHE COULD BE A PREDATOR!!!" all the time with.

Several of my nearest and dearest friends I met online before I met them in real life. We've had the pleasure of Skyping so I know it's actually them and I spent months talking to them before getting anywhere near sharing immediate personal information. Just be cautious and reasonable (like don't immediately give your address or something without very good reason) - don't be scared.

How old are you and how old is he? That'll tell you something about whether he's a total creep, a harmless but lonely man, or a potential suitor with possibility for you.

My thoughts exactly. If you're 15 and he's 23, that's all the red flags. If you're 18 and he's 25, that's still a bit dodgy. If you're 25 and he's 45, hey, whatever floats your boat.

I agree. I'm hoping the OP doesn't report back with a huge age gap or as a minor.

I think your title is a little misleading since you met irl first and exchanged information. Go with your gut and be safe, but I think your internet predator fear will hopefully be unfounded.

Thank you for your responses I think the main thing here is the age gap, and that he's very persistent that we talk on the phone or see each other again . . . It's a new situation and I only spoke to him for 10 minutes. I mean, he seems nice, though that's always the thing, isn't it? So far I've also asked some of my friends and one told me I should just stop all contact while the other two were very hesitant in telling me to be careful. So I guess I'll just keep a lot of information to myself and build a trust for a while . . .?

Sounds like you trust your gut, which is the key thing anyway. If he's so very persistent, that's a red flag too. Anyone can pretend to be nice if they want something, it's when they don't get what they want that they tend to turn nasty. If he pressures you to hang out or talk on the phone, drop all contact. Same if he tries to guilt-trip you (by saying you're "leading him on", or how you "owe him" a meeting because XYZ, etc.). Someone genuinely interested will ask, not demand.

Just be careful until you're comfortable. I hope things work out for you. c:

Gotta agree with , it is a red flag that he's persistent on it, and you should keep in mind that you don't owe him anything despite of what he says. The fact that you seemingly aren't comfortable explaining the age difference also speaks to me. It's 100% alright that you want to keep it to yourself, but if it does make you uncomfortable, you should probably not go further with it. I agree with your approach to him though, however it's essential to figuring out his intentions that he doesn't have a guarantee that he'll get to meet you eventually.

I'm gonna repeat what's been said here. Stay safe, trust your gut and your friends. They know you the best after all. And you can always ping people here if he does something questionable.

I'd be very cautious based on what you've shared with us here. If you do meet again in person, please only do so in public spaces! Don't feel guilty about blocking his number and online accounts if it does come to that.

Do trust your gut. I've also met someone in real life before and they seemed real nice and normal. We exchanged phone numbers. However after that it got real creepy. The messages and phone calls and the need to see me again. Some friends told me maybe they are just nice and feel lonely, but hey... someone talking about knowing massage techniques in case I need it... no. There were too many red flags. I did meet them again in person at the bus stop by a coincidence. Once again they seemed fine and normal, but once they would start messaging me on my phone it would just creep me out to no end. I did question myself that maybe I am just misunderstanding them and they just want to be friends, but at the same time my whole existence screamed to get rid of this person lol If you're not comfortable with how the person is behaving then just move on.