Social media users have been left divided after a Starbucks barista left a chilling note on a woman's coffee cup.
The note in question was written on the back of a Starbucks hot drink cup and was given to an 18-year-old after a man approached the teen while she was studying at a branch in Corpus Christi, Texas.
The girl's mom, Brandy Selim Roberson, praised the barista for stepping in after noticing that the man, whom she did not know, was being "animated and loud" which initially grabbed their attention.
A female barista then came over and handed the high school senior the coffee cup, telling her it was "an extra hot chocolate someone forgot to pick up."
However, on the back of the cup, the employee had written a message that said: "Are you okay? Do you want us to intervene? If you do, take the lid off the cup."
"She looked up and just saw a row of baristas staring at her — ready to step in," Roberson recalled to the New York Post.
Thankfully, the girl confirmed that she was okay but her mom emphasized how grateful she was that the staff members at the branch were prepared to intervene while her daughter was alone.
"This reaffirms my faith in humanity," she told the outlet. "Maybe just seeing this story, others... if given the opportunity to say something or turn away, they would say something."
After the incident, Robertson took to Facebook, to share the story with a wider audience in the hopes that more people would step up and do something if they felt that a situation did not seem right.
Alongside a snapshot of the cup, she wrote in the caption: "My 18-year-old daughter was at Starbucks, alone, the other night. A man came up to her and started talking to her. A barista handed her 'an extra hot chocolate someone forgot to pick up.'"
She continued: "How grateful I am for people who look out for other people! Side note: She felt safe and did not remove the lid, but let them know. She said the whole team was watching over her the rest of the time she was there. Thank you to Starbucks for having a great team."
The post was recently re-shared by the popular account Call to Activism on Twitter, known now as X, where many took to the comments to express their opinions on the matter.
"As a father of a daughter, I’m glad people are still looking out," wrote one user.
Another recalled a personal incident: "I wish that was me when my boyfriend assaulted me. Nice customer service."
"That’s some quick thinking by the staff. Nice to see people looking out for one another!" a third stated.
However, others weren't entirely convinced that this was an appropriate response.
"I feel so bad for younger guys that might want to go talk to a random chick," wrote one user, who seemingly only cares about a man's need to flirt, as opposed to respecting the personal space or safety of a woman.
Another seemed to blame "feminism" for the incident: "Lmaoo demonizing a man having a conversation with an SOS message on a cup. Feminism has gone too far."
And this user insensitively said that the baristas should have been more focused on their own jobs, writing: "Imo the baristas need to worry about making lattes and not about grown adults having conversations in a coffee shop."
In a scenario that we know can turn sour within a few seconds, we applaud the Starbucks staff for being brave enough to speak out when they noticed something was off. People should always speak out if they sense something is wrong with a situation - it could save someone's life.