[Ennui.]

I’d be honest with your manager. Let your manager know that you are nervous to be around the junior helpers after the incident because you’re afraid it’ll happen again (or whatever else the reason is) and see if your manager has any suggestions on how to deal with them. For example they may have suggestions on what you can say or do if it happens again or they may have assignments for you where you don’t have to interact with the junior helpers as much. Or they can at least have suggestions on how to get over your nerves.

If you don’t want to tell your manager I’d just try to limit the conversations you have with the junior helpers and keep it to work related topics only, or whatever you’re comfortable with sharing. If the junior helpers ask you can say you want to keep things work related but that it’s no offense to them.

If you do have to work with them, remind yourself that they have been reprimanded already and apologized, so hopefully they’ve learned their lesson. You can give them one more chance if you’re comfortable with it but I understand if you’re not given what happened! They’re young, so they have to learn and face consequences.