It's not illegal, but it's still weird, creepy and potentially harmful and no
amount of lambasting about "the problematic age gap discourse" will make it not
true.
Well, I'll do ya one better. If I, right now, at 24 years old, suddenly attracted the attention / infatuation of an 18 year old child, I would maybe be flattered and find it amusing and let her down gently, assuring her that she can certainly find a suitable partner among her peers. An 18 year old child is either in high school or freshly out of high school, almost certainly still living with their parents, most likely has never worked full time or had to worry about supporting themselves, does not have the life skills or experience to be an appropriate partner for me. We are in different stages of our lives.
Well, I'll do ya one better. If I, right now, at 24 years old, suddenly attracted the attention / infatuation of an 18 year old child, I would maybe be flattered and find it amusing and let her down gently, assuring her that she can certainly find a suitable partner among her peers. An 18 year old child is either in high school or freshly out of high school, almost certainly still living with their parents, most likely has never worked full time or had to worry about supporting themselves, does not have the life skills or experience to be an appropriate partner for me. We are in different stages of our lives.