My stepson, 17, stays with us on weekends. Recently, my 14-year-old daughter begged me to stop him from visiting, refusing to explain why. One day, while grabbing laundry from his room, I moved a strange pile of socks and froze. Underneath were a family photo, one of her old school pictures, and a card she’d given her dad years ago—items not his, feeling oddly collected.
My husband dismissed it as his son cherishing memories, but the secrecy, paired with my daughter’s discomfort, unsettled me. She later said he stared too long or asked odd questions about life before he joined us, feeling uneasy but not unsafe. When I confronted my stepson, he shut down, later texting he felt like an outsider.
Realizing his loneliness, not creepiness, drove this, I still prioritized my daughter’s discomfort. I asked my husband if his son could stay with his mother for a few weekends to reset and ensure safety. Now, my husband’s angry, my daughter’s withdrawn, and my stepson isn’t responding. I’m unsure if I made the right call or worsened things.
