A 19-year-old intern’s unsettling experience has gone viral after she revealed a coworker’s bizarre behavior of writing and circulating a fanfiction story about her and their 43-year-old manager. The intern shared her discomfort on Reddit, sparking an online debate on whether to report the incident to HR or risk jeopardizing her career.
According to the intern’s post, the coworker, who is also an intern and aged 24, had previously hinted that she thought the intern and the manager would make a “cute” couple. The situation escalated when the coworker shared a graphic fanfiction story featuring the intern and manager, which was described as unsettling and explicit. The story, which also depicted the death of both the intern’s and manager’s partners, left the intern feeling uncomfortable and violated.
“I asked her to delete it, but she dismissed my concerns, telling me to ‘lighten up’ and even hinted at turning the fanfiction into a book she plans to publish,” the intern wrote. She also mentioned that when she threatened to go to HR, the coworker claimed her longer tenure at the company would allow her to manipulate the situation to make it appear as though the story was written about herself.
Fearing backlash early in her career, the intern hesitated to escalate the matter, concerned it could harm her professional reputation. Social media users, however, were quick to offer support and advice, with many pointing out that the incident could be considered sexual harassment. “This is textbook sexual harassment,” one user said, advising the intern to report the incident to HR immediately.
Several others echoed the sentiment, emphasizing that the responsibility for addressing such misconduct lies with the company. “It’s creepy and unprofessional—go to HR,” one user advised, reinforcing that the intern’s career would not be harmed by taking action, but the coworker’s behavior was crossing serious ethical boundaries.
