My 11 year old girl started year 7. She struggled with finding friends and fitting in, had rumors being said the lot. She handled things well and I discreetly let the school know she’s struggling a bit. There’s so much nasty comments or fake friends between the girls, her self-confidence has been knocked down.
She plays on an Xbox with a few people from school. Recently, a boy whom she knows from school had one his friends join. That friend is the same age and lives near us but is from a different school. Now that boy from the other school and her are dating and I've seen messages saying "love you" and stuff like that. I've spoken to my daughter about boys and all that stuff and I’m not happy she decided to date a boy she’s never seen. She thinks it great because this boy likes her without seeing what she looks like. The boy has quite a hard life himself, e.g. disabled parent and social services having to look after his siblings.
I asked my daughter to be friends with this person but I’d prefer that when she started dating it would be with someone she knows. I also messaged the boy explaining they could be friends on Xbox but that’s it. After a few days I felt like she understood but he sent her a load of crying emojis and begging and she agreed. I’m really worried because she suffers with confidence issues and she’s so desperate for a boyfriend because all the people at school have one. She hasn’t lied to me before but she tried to about this boy.
How can I make her understand this boy she’s never met isn't a good idea? It’s more worrying that he lives near enough for them to meet. She’s so pretty, I don’t understand why she thinks she’s not worthy. I've taken away the Xbox today due to fact she lied to but what do I do in long term?