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A random woman walked up to me while I was helping my 5-year-old niece make a teddy bear and started screaming that I was a "deadbeat who abandoned my responsibilities," then called mall security when I tried to explain she had the wrong person.

I was babysitting Emma for my sister while she worked a double shift at the hospital. Emma had been saving her allowance for months to buy a Build-A-Bear, and today was finally the day.

We were at the stuffing station when this woman appeared out of nowhere. She was maybe mid-thirties, clearly upset, with a little boy about Emma's age standing behind her looking confused.

"There you are, Marcus," she said, walking straight up to me. "I've been looking everywhere for you."

I turned around, thinking she was talking to someone behind me. "I'm sorry, do I know you?"

"Don't play dumb with me. You think you can just ignore Jayden and pretend he doesn't exist?"

I looked at the little boy, then back at her. "Ma'am, I think you have me confused with someone else. I don't know you or your son."

"Stop lying! Jayden, tell him who he is."

The little boy looked up at me with big eyes. "Are you my daddy?"

My heart broke for this kid. "No, buddy. I'm not your dad. I think your mom has me mixed up with someone else."

That's when she completely lost it.

"Mixed up? MIXED UP? You think I don't know what my baby daddy looks like? You owe three months of child support!"

The entire Build-A-Bear store went silent. Parents stopped mid-conversation to stare. Emma grabbed my hand tighter.

"Ma'am, I promise you have the wrong person. I don't have any children. I'm just here with my niece."

"Uncle Mikeee, what's happening?" Emma whispered.

"Your uncle? That's rich. Where's the three hundred dollars you owe me for daycare?"

I pulled out my phone. "Look, I can show you my ID. My name is Michael Chen. I think you're looking for someone named Marcus."

She barely glanced at my driver's license. "I don't care what fake ID you bought. You're not getting out of your responsibilities that easily."

Other customers were starting to record with their phones. A Build-A-Bear employee approached nervously.

"Is everything okay over here?"

"This man is trying to avoid paying child support," she announced loudly. "He's pretending he doesn't know his own son."

"Ma'am, I really think there's been a misunderstanding," the employee said.

"No misunderstanding. Call security. This deadbeat is harassing me and my child."

I couldn't believe this was happening. Emma was starting to tear up from all the attention and raised voices.

"Listen," I said calmly, "I understand you're upset, but I'm not Marcus. I'm Michael Chen. I work at Pacific Tech Solutions. I can call my sister right now to confirm I'm here with my niece."

"I'm calling mall security," she said, pulling out her phone. "You're not going anywhere until you pay what you owe."

Five minutes later, a security guard arrived. The woman immediately launched into her story about me being a deadbeat father named Marcus who owed child support.

The guard looked at me. "Sir, can I see some identification?"

I handed over my license, work ID, and even my gym membership card. "My name is Michael Chen. I've never seen this woman before in my life."

The guard studied my IDs, then looked at the woman. "Ma'am, this man's name is Michael Chen, not Marcus. Are you sure you have the right person?"

"He's lying! He probably changed his name to avoid paying!"

That's when another customer spoke up. A dad who'd been recording the whole thing on his phone.

"Excuse me, but I've been recording this entire interaction. This guy never claimed to be Marcus. He's been politely trying to explain the mix-up this whole time."

Other parents started backing me up. "Yeah, he's been really patient with her." "I saw him come in with the little girl earlier."

The security guard turned to the woman. "Ma'am, do you have any proof that this man is who you think he is?"

She stammered. "I... he looks exactly like him..."

"But his identification clearly shows he's not Marcus. I'm going to have to ask you to leave these people alone."

Finally, she looked closely at my face for the first time. Really looked. Her expression slowly changed from anger to confusion to embarrassment.

"Oh my God," she whispered. "You're not him."

"No ma'am, I'm not."

"I'm so sorry. You just... from behind, you looked exactly like Jayden's father. Same height, same build, same hair..."

The little boy tugged on her shirt. "Mommy, is this my daddy or not?"

"No, baby. Mommy made a mistake. This isn't your daddy."

The kid looked disappointed. My heart ached for him.

She apologized profusely before leaving with Jayden.

Emma looked up at me. "Uncle Mikeee, that was scary."