A new mom's effort to film her partner's "hot dad walk" carrying their baby out of hospital backfired when the proud father got caught up in corridor traffic, wearing Crocs.
The TikTok video posted by Paul and Morgan (@bamypb) still went viral, just not for the reason they might have hoped.
The vision of Paul in his lightweight, slip-resistant foam footwear, made the video a bit less poignant. He might even have passed for one of the hospital's health care professionals in those Crocs.
But the view of him getting grumpy about the slow-moving people in front of him killed off any hopes of him looking remotely hot, or cool, for that matter. Although he does look a little hot under the collar.
On the upside, the video prompted lots of laughs online, gaining over 738,000 likes and over 800 comments in under 24 hours.
"Couldn't do the 'hot dad walk' trend with my boyfriend because he walked out in Crocs and got angry at people walking slow," Morgan captioned the video.
The video clearly shows Paul walking out of the hospital with their newborn baby in a carrier, in black Crocs, with tall white socks gripped by what look like elasticated sweatpant legs. After a few seconds, he turns back to Morgan, rolling his eyes at the people walking slowly in front of him.
And viewers could sense him straining to carry their baby's ISOFIX, a car seat fixture that allows the seat to be secured in a vehicle without using a seatbelt. As one commenter noted: "Those ISOFIX things ain't light."
Many, beyond commenting on his facial expression or footwear, were fascinated by the ISOFIX in his hand, wondering why he was lugging the heavy mechanism through the hospital.
"My guy took the whole ISOFIX base with him," @brxndonio wrote.
One person explained: "Maybe he brought the ISOFIX because they're getting a taxi home, or a lift off someone."
Some endorsed Morgan's observations, though: "The people in front didn't have their Crocs set to sports mode. They were not as prepared as him," @baby_baphomet explained.
And who could blame Paul for taking footwear safety precautions against slipping up with his new baby.
@bamypb Not him bringing the ISO fix in the hopstial too 😭😭 #foryou
♬ End of Beginning - Djo
What is the 'hot dad walk' trend?
As of April 26, the term "Hospital Dad Walk" saw 19.7 million posts on TikTok. Often paired with the hashtags #hotdadwalk and #hotdadwalkoutthehospital, the trend reveals fathers' first steps with a new baby—and many say it's a good look.
Some on TikTok credit the hotness with the confidence and strength in men's stride when walking out with the child. But, like many trends, plenty of people are also pushing for awareness of what's unspoken: The hard work of new moms.
One video in particular sheds light on the hero behind the camera. "Behind the 'hot dad walk' posts, there's a mother who has just birthed our beautiful children," the video is captioned, showing the new mother walking cautiously and painfully out of the hospital.
"That's definitely the C-section walk," one person commented. "Remember this pain like yesterday."
"It is, well done hun," the new mother replied. "We are made of strong stuff."
Newsweek reached out to @bamypb for comment via TikTok.
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