Gut feelings, even the most subtle of them, can cause us to rethink our current relationships. Though, as obvious as they may be, we don’t always listen to them or pay attention to the not-so-subtle red flags that they raise. If you’ve ever allowed an uncomfortable situation to go on for longer than it should have, rest assured that you’re not alone. Here are some of the strangest and downright creepy stories from women who dated outside of their comfort zone:
1. Trust Your Gut
I ignored my gut feeling about him and overlooked his strange tendencies. I really tried to give him the benefit of the doubt. We were together for almost two years, but at some point, I found out that he added girls he didn't even know on Snapchat and he would say rather inappropriate things to them. I'm now aware that one of the girls was a minor, while he was 26. That was bad enough, but it gets even worse.
On my 22nd birthday, he had invited my best friend to sleep in our bed with us, and the first time he met my SISTER, he gave her the same invitation. He gave both of those invitations right in front of my face. If we were out together and he saw someone attractive, he wouldn't just glance, he stared. He regularly talked badly about my family and was just generally an awful person.
I was his first real girlfriend and he was extremely self-centered and mentally abusive. Our relationship ended almost a year ago, but he still goes to our regular hangouts asking about me. He would ask others if they knew where I was living, who I was seeing, etc. My takeaway from that whole situation is to always trust your gut feeling about people.
2. “I’ll Break Your Arm”
He picked me up in his beat-up truck to take me to a restaurant for lunch. The actual date was nice but unfortunately, we realized that beyond our initial chemistry, we had nothing in common. After the date, we got back in his car, and it was the middle of summer, so it was stinking hot. I was still trying to get the seatbelt on properly when he caught me totally off-guard with his comment: “If you don’t open that window now I’ll break your arm”. Then he laughed but like...what?
I wound that window down so fast. Luckily, the drive back was super short and I never contacted him again.
3. Classic “Good Guy”
I had a bad vibe but my friend told me he was a “good guy,” so we went on a date. He asked to drive my car, and for some reason, I said yes. Biggest regret of my life—he totally curbed my rims, then shrugged it off and instead talked about how he was fired unfairly from his job. The next weekend, I avoided his calls and I went out to dinner with friends instead.
While I was gone, he broke into my apartment. My neighbors and the cops were waiting outside when I got home. I spent the night with my mom, and he showed up at 3 am when they let him out. He was already trying to get in a window. After that, an officer spent the rest of the night in the driveway. I thought that'd be the end of it, but I was wrong.
Fast forward a couple of weeks later—he showed up at my work, moped over to me, and handed me a bunch of folded papers. It was 10 handwritten, front-and-back notebook papers where he detailed how I was the love of his life and how he wished I would die. I was terrified and called security, who escorted him away. I never saw him again, but I found out later that he did the same thing to some girl in Spokane.
Unfortunately for her, he was able to actually get in, take advantage of her, and send her to the hospital.
4. The Regular
There was a guy who came into the restaurant I worked at a few times a week for lunch. He did this for a little over a month, so he became a regular. He asked me out every time I brought him his bill. He always asked in a light-hearted way and never seemed upset or anything when I turned him down. I assumed that after the first few asks, he may be thought of it as more of an inside joke at that point.
He always gave me weird vibes but he seemed nice enough, so I thought I might have just been making assumptions because of his appearance and that I wasn't being fair. One time, when he asked me out again, I decided randomly to agree and give him a shot. I really thought it couldn’t be that bad. He was always super kind and I had gotten rather used to the awkwardness I felt being around him.
He got so excited when I asked him to leave his number on the receipt. I told him I would call or text him when I wasn't busy to set something up. A few days later, I hadn't texted him yet to set anything up, but I still ended up getting a text only a few minutes after walking into my house after I got home from work. He said, "Hey! I know it's a long shot, but I'm free tonight and bored. Wanna hang out? If you're free, that is"! I never gave him my number.
So I asked him how he got it, and he said I gave it to him the night I agreed to go on a date. I absolutely know I didn't. I got really creeped out but I decided not to confront him about it and just play it off like I was a ditz. I told him that I wasn't free to hang out that night. I said I was going to be working later to help cover a shift and that I would be pretty tired by the time I was off.
A few minutes passed before he responded. He said, "Why are you lying to me”? I just responded with, "What? Lol". He said, "I know you are home. If you didn't want to hang out tonight, you could have just said so". Alarm bells rang in my head. I thought he was joking. I felt exposed. I felt the crawling on my skin that only burns into you when someone is staring at you.
I looked out through the blinds and I was stunned—he was parked right outside my house. I could see his face lit up by the phone screen. He was so close. I texted him and said, "Hahaha, you caught me! How did you know I was bluffing? I'm sorry. I do want to hang out soon, I'm just not feeling up to it tonight". After that, I called for help. Officers showed up, approached his car, and talked to him for a bit.
He drove away a few minutes later and then the officers came to my door. They told me that they acted like a random neighbor was complaining about a strange car. They didn't implicate anyone but they made it seem like it was an older person and probably not me. They then took his plate information and asked him politely to move so he didn't upset anyone in the neighborhood, and he complied.
I went to my friend’s house that night and filed a restraining order the next morning. I later found out that he got my number from the shift sheet behind the hostess counter because several co-workers had seen him (at different times) snooping back there. I guess he grabbed a roll of silverware claiming that the server hadn't left him any, and he simply said he didn't want to bother anyone because he knew they were busy.
This stopped anyone from suspecting him of anything odd. I don't know how he got my address, but I assume he must have followed me. He must have been full-on stalking me for a while. He did come into my work a day or two later for lunch, acting like everything was normal. I immediately went and got my manager and she informed him that I had a restraining order against him, preventing him from eating there.
I had already changed my phone number so I don't know if he tried to text me. I didn't sleep at my house for weeks, but I never saw him again after that. I often find myself thinking back to that time and wondering how much more he did, and for how long. Like, maybe he stalked me long before he started coming into the restaurant, and maybe he only started coming in there because he felt "braver" to approach me.
How many of my private moments throughout my life were actually not private? Also, I have never once stopped feeling scared that he might have kept stalking me and knows where I am now. I doubt it, but the fear is still there. I have never felt comfortable being alone. Ever.
Most of this would have still probably happened even if I didn't agree to give him a chance. But, if he hadn't slipped up about having my phone number when he shouldn't, I would have gone out somewhere with him and who knows how badly that could have ended.
5. Gone Abroad
I met him when I worked as a cashier in a small downtown shop. He wasn't my type and he seemed a little off, but I was young and had zero real dating experience. I agreed to grab a coffee as a friend and made it clear I didn't have a romantic interest. He became convinced he was Gatsby and I was his Daisy (The Great Gatsby film had just come out that year).
Then things started to get really scary. He started stalking me, sending letters and gifts to me at work, and describing how we were “fated to be together”. When I confronted him to stop, he started having his friends follow me at work or drop by to "check-in" on me. He prowled outside on nights when I had to close shop alone. I ended up quitting that job and things fizzled.
Seven months later, I got a call from a number I didn't recognize. It was the same dude—apparently, he just got released from a short prison sentence. He was letting me know he thought of me every day and that he was going to find me so we could finally be together. I made up a story that I was traveling abroad for college and would be gone indefinitely. I changed my number and luckily haven't heard from him again!
6. The Cherry On Top
I knew he was weird before the first date. I was sad and thought maybe he’d be different in person. But when he showed up on the date, he walked with a crazy limp, told me he was into freaky stuff, wouldn’t pay for dinner, and tried to kiss me three times. But the cherry on top? When I got home that night, he sent me an inappropriate picture completely out of the blue.
I never saw him again. He texted me three months later to tell me I was the worst human being and the most selfish person he’s ever met. And then he blocked me.
7. Wish You Well
This guy was handsome but way too into me considering he knew nothing about me. It wasn’t like when we spoke I was an open book or I felt a strong connection that would lead me to want to share information with him. This was not a, “I feel like I’ve known this man forever” connection. I just had a gut feeling something was off. He talked to me like I’d been his girlfriend for months even though we only went on three dates total.
After the third date, I made my decision based on our short time getting to know one another. I let him know I had no interest in continuing to date and that I didn’t see us being compatible long-term. That's when my fears were solidified—he locked me in his car, proceeded to ask if I wanted to move to California with him, and started begging me to “work it out” with him.
I tried to be very nice but it got to the point where I was scared and I wasn’t sure how this was going to go since he was virtually a STRANGER. I hit his dashboard and said if he didn’t let me out of the car immediately I would call for help. Then he threatened to hurt himself if I didn’t spend the night with him at his house. I’d never even been to this man’s house.
He finally let me out after like an hour or two, but he stayed in the parking lot of my apartment almost the entire night and called me non-stop. About a month later, he texted me out of the blue a really long paragraph apologizing profusely, and saying if I ever change my mind to call him. I just said thanks for the apology and wished him well. I hope he’s doing okay but I wanted no part of that.
8. A Dark Place
I bought him a coffee one time and we chatted about our music tastes. Three days later, I was sitting in my dorm and I got a text from him that was just a selfie. I sent one back and the conversation got really boring, so I sent him a Snap of a black screen. He responded, “Are you in a dark place”? I just said, “Yeah lol”.
His response was chilling. “Well, you’ll have to leave soon because you have class in this building with that professor at 6 pm”. I literally never told him anything about my classes, so he just somehow stalked me until he learned my entire schedule. It turns out he was a serial creep, preying on freshman girls.
9. Just Say No
I went for just drinks with a guy and the red flags were immediate. He didn't look anything like his profile, and he got handsy as soon as we sat down. I wasn’t into him at all, but we had a shared interest in horror novels, so I decided to extend the date into dinner. During dinner, he had several drinks while I nursed a single one. He then told me he thought we were soulmates, and that we were going to fall in love.
Then, he revealed a shocking personal tidbit—he told me his pregnant ex-girlfriend was going to get rid of their child the next day. At the end of the date, his portion of the bill was significantly more than my portion because of all his drinks, but he asked me to pay half, which I did. On top of that, he gave me trouble for driving to the date even though it was only a mile from my house (I didn’t want to walk in hot weather in my nice dress, and I had twisted my ankle earlier that week).
But even after giving me trouble for driving, he asked me to give him a lift home. Which I did! Once we were in front of his place, he refused to get out of my car unless I went inside with him for a nightcap. I said absolutely not. He begged me to just enjoy a drink on his front porch, but I still said no. I told him to get out of my car. He finally did. The next day, he texted me telling me that was the best date he’d ever had and that he couldn’t wait to see me again.
I told him no thank you and walked away with one lesson learned: I need to say no from the beginning.
10. Container Store Diaries
One time, this guy took me to The Container Store and asked me what I’d put in each of the containers we saw. Then he asked me a question that had the alarm bells ringing in my head: “How much of a person do you think would fit in this”? I knew it was time to end it.
11. Married but “Separated”
He was older than me, he wouldn't respect boundaries, he pressured me to do things, he texted me hundreds of times a day, and then, the next day after our date, he completely iced me out. He phoned 10 times one afternoon, so I tried the same thing back to him and he screamed at me saying to never call him again. It got creepy when he asked me to go into the woods with him one day. I ran away from him as fast as I could.
Later, he threatened self-harm if I didn't talk to him. The worst part? He was married the whole time, but he alleged that they were “separated”.
12. The Age Factor
I used to work in a small store and this creepy dude would try to flirt with me like once or twice a week. He seemed like someone who didn't have any friends and never socialized. One day, he asked for my number, and it wasn't aggressive but pretty straightforward, so I was like, sure I guess. I thought he was weird, but he knew where I worked, so I couldn't really reject him outright.
There was no way of knowing how he would react so I had to keep talking to him from time to time to make sure he didn't flip on me. After a few weeks of occasional short text convos (like maybe two or three few word texts), he asked how old I was—that was the nail in the coffin for him. He finally stopped talking to me because he was disgusted that I was 24 years old. He thought I was only 16. He was 28. Creepy…
13. Just A Phase
He was sort of creepy, weird, and neck-beardy. We hung out and I sort of flirted with him because didn’t want to be seen as shallow or that I didn’t know how to hold boundaries. I wasn’t really interested. I eventually just sort of stopped giving him attention and giving off signals. His retaliation was uncalled for—apparently, he made a couple of snide comments to people we both knew about how I don’t date monogamous people.
A few years later, I saw him at a convention and he waved me down. I was nervous, but he was like, “Hey I wanted to apologize, I was a real jerk to you to your friends. I’ve done a lot of work on myself and realized that women not liking me isn’t a ‘them’ problem, it’s a ‘me’ problem”. I forgave him and we hung out a couple of times after that. Good guy. He had just been going through a creepy phase.
14. The Looney Bin
He had terrible hygiene. I was 16 and he was old enough to buy drinks for my friends. He had a friend who was part of some sort of makeshift gang and he threatened to hurt me if I ever left him. I stayed with him longer than I should have. He would follow me to school on the city bus and then walk around leering at women and pinching himself. I tried to break up with him so he bought me Looney Tunes jewelry and insisted we get engaged.
He finally had to get out of town for some family stuff and he stayed gone for months, so I considered us broken up and I moved on. When he came back, he acted absolutely crazy. He would go to my job, follow me around, and try to corner me in the bathroom. His dad was the chief of officers at a university and he knew I was 16. My parents also knew about the relationship.
I feel like they should have intervened to keep me from feeling trapped in that relationship.
15. Don’t Touch My Leftovers
Oh boy! My first ever date from an app. Red flags were waving right from the get-go. He had me take transit an hour and a half to a mall he worked at because he had to drop something off. We got food and he INSISTED I take home a piece of a pie despite not wanting it, then he ate the leftovers that I actually did want. He took me to his house and forced me to meet his mother, and I had no idea he lived with her).
He also spent the night crying on my shoulder and telling me too much information about things I didn’t want to know. One date, never messaged him again. A month later, I got a long text from him telling me he’s moved on and met someone so much better than me. Good riddance!
16. Eyes Wide Open
He showed up at my house without telling me beforehand and demanded a kiss before he left. He kissed with his eyes open and he had a cold, emotionless expression. Then he showed me his true colors. “I don’t like black people, but you’re okay”. This was in high school, so luckily I learned fast to trust my gut when it comes to guys.
17. Snapchat Tracking
I got bad vibes from this one guy. On our second date, I had to cancel because my dog was sick and I had to take him to the vet. I told him I was sorry. He asked to meet me at the vet, but I told him no and that we could reschedule instead since I was really stressed out. He showed up anyway which was really weird, but I didn’t think much of it (even though I hadn’t told him which vet it was).
I was so focused on my dog that I didn’t really register it beyond a fleeting thought. I didn’t want him there, and as much as he tried to be supportive, I was panicking because I barely knew him. It was so weird. I kind of ghosted him after because of the vibes. I don’t like to ghost, but he sketched me out and guys like that don’t always take overt rejection well.
A short while later, he asked to go on another date. I told him no thanks, and that I wasn’t interested. His response made my blood run cold. He said he was coming over to my house (he had picked me up for our first date, I know, I know). I told him I had moved, which was true. He said he was coming anyway. I was so startled and frustrated. I told him he was scaring me.
A few minutes later, I got a picture of my car. And my house. And my window. He had found my new house. Apparently, Snapchat had a feature where it just…SHOWS PEOPLE YOUR EXACT LOCATION. And he was just watching my movements all over town? What an awful feature from an equally awful app. I told him that was weird and scary. I couldn’t sleep soundly for weeks.
18. The Frog Before The Prince
We worked together. I wasn't super into him but I decided to give him a chance because it's not like I was dating anyone else. In fact, I had a bit of a crush on another co-worker who was in a somewhat supervisory role over me, so I thought better to move on from that! We had one "date". We met, chatted, and hugged at the end; we didn't even kiss. We had agreed to keep it between us because I didn't want work drama.
What he did next was totally unexpected. He went on to tell most of our co-workers about us, and he wrote me a letter that he left on my car telling me how he could see the whole picture with me: marriage, kids, growing old together, etc. But hey, I can say one good thing. One of the people he told was that guy I mentioned earlier in this post that I had a crush on. Turns out, it wasn't one-sided and he made sure to step up and let me know it.
I guess I shouldn't call him my crush anymore, since he's my husband now. I ghosted the creep, and good thing I did. He tried this with every other woman in the store too.
19. Fedoras and Trench Coats
We hung out once. I left because he wanted to hug me and give me a back massage even though I barely knew him! He basically ended up stalking me. The red flags were so obvious: fedoras and trench coats. Particularly if he complains that the hat is not actually a fedora.
20. Sweet Thing
He was the drinks waiter at a restaurant I had been going to with my family for special occasions since I was 16. On my 21st birthday, my flatmate gave him my number. We went on a date, meeting at my apartment complex, and he bought me and my flatmate flowers and chocolate. Sweet, right? Now he knows my apartment number. This will matter later.
We went on the date a week after my 21st birthday. He told me to order whatever I wanted, so I ordered a pizza for us to share. The problem was that it had something on it that he couldn’t eat due to his religious beliefs. I felt so rude, but also like he could have said something when I picked it out. Anyway, I end up eating the whole pizza because he couldn’t, and then he said he wanted dessert. That's when things started to get annoying.
I was so full already, but he pushed and pushed so eventually I gave in. The restaurant waiters come out with the dessert with a candle in it, singing me happy birthday. It was all very sweet, though our conversation was mostly forced. Anyway, when the date ended, he walked me back to my apartment complex. We said good night with a hug and a kiss on the cheek. 10 minutes later, I heard a knock on my door. It was him telling me he forgot something.
He looked inside my apartment and then stared me right in the eyes. He said, “It’s you”. He pushed me up against my door and tried to make out with me. He then looked at me again and said, “I love you”. Mind you, this was our first date. The only thing I managed to say was, “Big words”! followed by “You should go”. He then left, thank God.
The next night, I was sitting on my balcony and heard the buzzer for the security door ring. I could see the front door from the balcony—it was him. I could tell he had a few drinks and he was emotional. He wanted to say he was sorry, but I just told him to leave. I also texted him that I was no longer interested, but he continued to show up at my apartment complex.
One night, as I was coming home in the dark, he emerged out of nowhere and scared the living daylights out of me. It was so bad that I went into a panic. I lost my keys and started freaking out. I got upstairs and settled myself down, making sure I had all my keys, and then I went down to confront him. I told him if he ever came near me again, I will call the cops. He told me, “Friends don’t have to always call ahead”. I just screamed at him to leave me alone.
21. The Sound of Horrible Music
I went on a Tinder date at the movies when I was 18. He picked me up in his truck and played terrible, loud, depressing music. In the theatre, he was on his phone swiping on Tinder the whole time. Then he leaned over and he uttered a statement that made me roll my eyes—that I was lucky to be out with him because all these other girls wanted to be with him. YIKES. My roommate picked me up when I excused myself to the bathroom.
22. Another One Bites The Dust
I told this guy I played the piano, and like half an hour later, he said the most disturbing thing ever: "if I wanted you to always remember me, I'd break your ring fingers. You know, 'cause they don't heal well and then you'd always think of me when playing". Suffice to say, I left the restaurant fairly quickly.
23. All The Wrong Reasons
He was a Canadian serving his country. I asked him if he ever did any volunteer work overseas during his service and his response was absolutely pathetic. "NO! I joined to end people, not to help people". Chugged my drink and got out of there as fast as I could.
24. Never Leave The House
I once agreed to go on a date with one of my stepdad's clients, the son of a very rich luxury yacht builder in a country I won't name. The country is known for extremely strict rules, some of which border on human rights infringements. He took me bowling, hired out the alleys either side of us so we'd have some privacy, and started telling me about the lessons he'd had from someone who'd coached several world champions.
Afterward, he showed me pictures of his house–his bedroom alone was the size of a swimming pool, and his garden was a literal zoo with several monkey species as pets. He even started telling me a bit about his family. He gave me a few little interesting details about each of his family members until he got onto his older brother's wife, and it was pretty clear she was the main subject of the conversation.
He told me his brother had studied here, met a nice English girl like me (I'm Irish, not English), and fallen in love. He'd taken her back to his home country and asked her to marry him, but only if she moved into his parents' house with him and lived by their strict rules. She'd been reluctant at first but had eventually agreed. After hearing all of that from him, things started to go downhill.
He started saying things like, "Her life there is so good that she never even wants to leave the house! She stays home, has babies, wears Prada, and looks after the horses. She's so happy. Who would ever even want to leave a house like my family's house"? Then he started asking me if I'd ever like to go there and meet his family. Alarm bells were going off at a rapid rate.
When I got home and told my stepdad, he immediately took the guy off his client list and we haven't seen him since.
25. Catfish Crazy
So, I got catfished by the craziest woman I'd met. I don’t mean like regular crazy; I mean every time she reached into her bag, I thought she was about to pull some sort of dangerous good out, the way she was frantically rummaging through it. She seemed off from the jump the very first time we met. Fast forward a bit into our date—at one point she looked at me and said, "Do you ever wonder what your kids will look like"?
I replied, "I already know. My daughter is right there and she's perfect". The crazy lady replied, "No, I mean our kids since we are going to get married and have a house in Texas". And here's the kicker—I had literally just matched with her on Tinder the day prior. We never once spoke of anything more than normal conversation topics. Nothing in the slightest related to either topic of marriage or kids.
I faked a phone call from work, got in uniform, and told her she needed to leave. I waited for her to leave and then drove around the block.
26. Katana In His Trunk
I don’t know if it fits the “creepy” category but my first Tinder match got me to sneak out of my house at midnight. He led us into the hills and at one point he said, “What would you do if something jumped out at us?" Then he just stared at me. Keep in mind it was a cold October night and I was in a sweater and sandals. I also had nothing to defend myself with.
I can’t remember what I said in response, but he laughed and started talking more about different scenarios, like running out of gas or getting jumped. But the worst thing he mentioned was that he had a katana in his trunk, and at that point, I really wanted to go home. Needless to say, I never went out with him again.
27. Hold The Vegetables
A few months ago, I matched with a guy on Tinder. Things seemed to be going well over chat, so we ended up meeting for a date. As soon as we met, I had a bad feeling about him. I just had a vibe that we weren't going to progress further. He seemed a bit off and not as friendly as he appeared online. I thought I might as well have a meal and chalk the whole thing down to a lesson learned if it didn’t pan out.
Anyway, during the course of the meal, alarm bells began to go off. He started referring to women as "stupid and pointless" and only good for "one thing". I began to get really uncomfortable and I was trying to think of a good excuse to leave. Of course, I got naturally defensive and said talking about women like that was derogatory. He then complained that there were vegetables in his burger and proceeded to pick them out.
He called the waitress who took our order a "dumb girl" because he specifically said no vegetables in his meal. The lettuce he picked out ended up landing in my handbag, which completely annoyed me. At that point, I finally said that I had to go. Honestly, I felt like shoving the lettuce in his fat misogynist face. To say I ran as fast as I could to my car is an understatement. Luckily, I got to the restaurant before we met up, so he didn't know my parking spot.
As soon as I got in my car, I ended up unmatching him from Tinder and blocked his cell phone number. Later on, I still received a text from another number of his, and its contents really creeped me out: "Hey it's me from Tinder. I know pretty much all I need to know about you so let’s get together, yes?" Like what? It sounded as if he was analyzing me to see if I was suitable to sleep with.
The way I ran off like I was on fire and blocked him should've told him I wasn't interested! I didn't reply to him and blocked that number. Then, I got another message from yet another number, threatening: "I'll see you again one day and then I'll have my moment". That was the last thing I heard from him. Not only was he an utter misogynist, but he was creepy too. And he had a face the size of a planet.
28. Good Dog
I had been out of the dating game for roughly a year, and being the awkward mess that I am, my best friend had convinced me to try out OkCupid. I also figured I could get to know people online and then try to date. Terrible idea. I’m still mad at her. So, I met this guy on the site, and we spent a few weeks chatting and getting to know each other. He seemed really cool. He asked me on a date, and I said sure. Here’s the part where I’m a moron and am surprised I’m still alive.
I told him I preferred low-key dates, so he suggested that he cook us dinner and we watch indie horror films at his place. I agreed, stupidly. Side note: my best friend and I have a code system that we use for our safety, giving details about my location and current situation. I arrived at his place and he met me outside. I realized I tower over him...at 5’7”. That rarely happens to me, but I shrugged it off. Can’t help your height, right?
We went up to his flat and he showed me around, emphasizing the bedroom. Then took me to the kitchen to show me the four bottles of a very expensive drink he bought for me…and no dinner prepared. He poured me a glass, and I awkwardly pet his dog. We sat on the couch and he put on this weird Italian art film; with no subtitles, in all Italian, and neither of us know what is happening.
So I just sat there, feet flat on the ground, spine rod-straight, sipping my drink, when he decided to basically curl up in my lap. But it gets even weirder—he started nuzzling my face. Like that thing cats do, but with his face on my face, for at least 10 straight minutes. Even his dog looked at me with pity. At that point, I excused myself to the bathroom and texted the bestie to call me and get me out of there.
After taking her call 20 minutes later, I politely thanked him for the drink and made my way off the couch. He lied across me and forced me to cuddle. He wouldn’t let me leave, so I just stood up, and he plummeted to the floor...because like I said, I am an Amazonian compared to him. He popped up off the floor to help me put my coat on, and gave me one good sniff right at the nape of my neck.
Pretty sure some of my hair is still infused in his brain from how deep an inhale that was. I made no attempt to hide my running down the three flights of stairs and up the block to my car. I deleted my account that night. Never again.
29. Third Time’s A Charm?
I had three doozies in a row. The first seemed pretty decent and if he had just stuck with a light drink, he probably would have been fine. But, I like a hard drink and he opted to join me. He started drinking and making crazy confessions. First, he was looking for an older woman to take care of him financially. Second, he needed a very sensual lover (shouted this, slurring in my ear), much to the amusement of the people next to us. And last but not least, he was desperate to have children very soon. Weird.
The second guy took me to a party and sort of ditched me with a group of his friends who were very nice and all polyamorous. I learned quite a bit about their lifestyle, which was interesting. But, every time I glanced up, he was watching me intently. I immediately got suspicious. It was like he was hiding behind posts and creeping around corners just to catch a glimpse of me. When I finally approached to say goodnight after having had zero interaction with him, he launched into this spiel about needing to be sure I would be down with his lifestyle. He was just odd, that one.
The last one unfortunately got fired the day we went out and we really should have canceled our date. When he found out about my job (sucking the corporate American teat all the way to the bank) he just lost it completely. I mean, I would have been insulted, but it was also amazing to see someone completely break with all social norms and just spew every insecurity for the whole pub to witness. I paid his tab and scooted out of there. I felt really bad for that guy.
30. Scientologists Unite
I can't remember if I've posted about this before, but I had a guy who took me on a date, saying that he wanted to show me a good time and talk to people who would sympathize with my recent divorce. Where he ended up taking me was shocking—he took me to the Church Of Scientology headquarters. I was shell-shocked, so I let them give me the personality test or whatever and even took a tour.
Then they asked me to be in a photoshoot holding the cylinder test thingies, so I obliged again out of shock. It was 11/10 creepy.
31. Therapy Sessions
I met this guy on Tinder and we hung out a few times at his friend’s house. It was pretty chill, so no complaints. Then, I invited him over to my house to hang out and play board games. Mind you, we hadn't even kissed at this point. It was always very casual, the way I like it during the “getting to know each other” phase. So we were at my house and there was a pull-up bar. He insisted on seeing me do a pull-up even though it's not mine and I told him I couldn't do one.
I think now I should have just said no, but I grabbed the bar, struggled a bit, then looked down and said, "See? Can't do it”.
Then he said something about me being cute, and I knew he was going to try something. He grabbed me around the waist, pulled me off the bar, and started making out with me. I pulled away feeling embarrassed and suggested we play a board game instead. He tried kissing me again and I said I was uncomfortable, so he stopped and we started playing this trivia game.
He kept trying to push the board out of the way because it was in between us, but I put it back and told him to stop. After the game, we chatted for a bit. He mentioned before that he had a class on a certain day, but we didn't really discuss it anymore than that. He then told me that sometimes in his class they have him talk about "what he's done to women". I was immediately like, "Wait, what are these classes for?"
He responded, "Well that's so rude, I don't ask you what you go to therapy for". I tried to calm him down and change the subject but then a bit later he started kissing me again. He grabbed my leg and pulled me on top of him while I was literally yelling at him to stop, which he ignored. I then told him that I was tired and that he needed to leave and he was like, "Are you sure you don't want me to stay with you"?
I said “YES” while shooing him out the door and he finally left. I pretty much ghosted him after that which I know is frowned upon, but I just didn't know what to say. I still wonder what that "class" was and what he did to other women.
32. Tales of A Stalker
This guy had serious untreated mental health problems. He spent four years stalking me and I resent ever giving that one chance. I made multiple calls to the paramedics because he would call me up threatening to hurt himself unless I would help him. He still finds me on social media profiles and random gaming apps to say, “Hi, I miss you”, but I now live more than 1,000 km away.
33. Missed Connection
I did one video chat with him during which he asked if he could video call me again later in the day. When I told him no, I started getting random text messages throughout the day that said, “Are you okay? Just let me know you’re okay”. The first time, I responded. I said, “Hey yeah, I’m fine. I just hung up with you 30 minutes ago, bud”. He took that as a sign that I wanted to talk more, so he attempted another video call. It just snowballed from there.
When I didn’t respond, he started again with the texts. I didn’t even bother responding to the rest. Up to 20 unread messages later, I was able to block him while leaving him on read.
34. Looking Over My Shoulder
He purposely got me pregnant after one month of dating and then threatened to hurt me if I got rid of the baby. Then, my neighbor caught him breaking into my apartment and he called for help. What the officers found was disturbing—they caught him with a tire iron, hiding in my closet. He did time for five years and I never saw him again, but I'm still looking over my shoulders 20 years later.
35. Gone Like The Wind
She was driving us back home from the restaurant and she said things like, "You know, you're in my car now. I technically can take you wherever I want. You're like my prisoner". I laughed the first time she mentioned it because I'm into dark humor, but then she kept going on with it. I started getting spooked. Little did she know, once I got out of the car that would be the last time she'd ever see me.
36. The Conversation Ender
This guy I went on a date with didn't talk at all. I had only brought a few talking points because normally my dates talk the whole time. I didn't have anything else to say, so I asked him to start talking. His response gave me chills. “What I want to talk about can't be said in public". When I ended the date, he thought we were going to go to my place to "talk" and I said no. I got in my car, noted what car he got into, and took a few breaths to calm down.
I looked around and his car was still there. I waited 30 minutes before he left the parking lot and stayed another 15 before I left.
37. Botched Billy
This is not my story, but my mother’s. My mom was a “pioneer” in online dating. She was really interested in finding that “someone special”. She agreed to meet a guy for dinner and went in to be seated at the restaurant prior to his arrival. He came in, the waitress brought menus, and he set down his menu. The first words he spoke were appalling—he asked my mom if she had ever known anyone who had enlargement surgery...down there.
He then went on to explain that he had flown cross-country for this operation and it had gone wrong. He also went into great detail and absurd specifics about just how wrong it went. My mother excused herself to the ladies' room and left out the back door. We still laugh out loud when she reminds us of her search for Mr. Right.
38. Strange Conversations
He spent most of the date talking about the dark web and how you can buy restricted substances and human organs through it. I was thoroughly spooked, but I stuck with it. Big mistake on my part, because the next day he called and invited me to go hunting in the desert. Nope!
39. First Date or Horror Movie?
I was new in town and browsing on Tinder because I was bored. I will never forget this one conversation: "Do your friends know you're on a date”? I replied, “No?" … Then out of the blue, he said, “I could end you and no one would know!" There was no second date after that.
40. Welcome Home
I went on what was meant to be a casual lunch date and ended up being driven around different open houses that were up for sale. Sounds cute right? Wrong! We walked around inside the houses (yes, plural) and he'd pretend we're an actual couple telling the realtors what sort of space I'd prefer and making jokes as if we were married. This was our second date and the last time I saw him.
41. The Dreaded Tinder Date
On our first date, this guy told me how he got into a fight with a homeless guy who managed to bite his nipple and break the skin. That was already concerning, but then he opened his mouth again and said he was worried that he may have gotten a disease from that fight. Yes. It was a Tinder date.
42. Call A Friend
I was asked out on a date to a local diner. Definitely nothing wrong with that. I was in my car waiting for him. He pulled up, rolled down his window, claimed he had no money, and mentioned going back to his house instead. I knew him, so there was no issue…but wait, there’s more. We pulled up to his house and he was on the phone with another girl. When he got off, he mentioned to me that it was between me and this other girl, so if the date goes well, he’d choose me.
Now, I had told my friend to bail me out if things started going sour, and boy it was heading that way. We went into his parent’s house and he was digging through his fridge trying to offer me something to eat. The nectarine was delicious, thank you. We then sat on his couch, watching Spongebob. I eventually decided to text my friend and she called me. Now, I stressed to her that she needed to make it seem like there was some sort of emergency, so I can rush out of there.
43. Just ONE drink
The first date was at a mall, just walking around talking and trying to get to know him. He asked to see my belly button. I tell him no because that would be just freaking weird. The dude then continued asking me to see it multiple times and he even tried to lift my shirt! I should have ended it then and there, but I still decided to go on a second date with him, God knows why.
He spent the entire time at dinner talking about how he wanted to take it slow and get to really know each other as friends first. Then, we got out of the car and his next move started me—he started making out with me, saying he wanted to give me a "goodnight kiss". On our third date (because I really didn't learn my lesson), I was going to go bar hopping for a friend’s birthday. It was just supposed to be casual. He asked before we went if he could crash at my place after (he lived in the next town over, maybe 20 min drive).
I told him no since wasn't comfortable with that, and he agreed. So we went out, and he had ONE drink at the beginning of the night. Then, several hours later, we were about to leave and he had no less than eight missed calls from his mother demanding to know where he was. On the drive back to drop me and my roommate off, we literally had to remind him that it was okay to turn right even if the light was red, and where to find his defrost so that his windows didn’t steam up.
As soon as we were almost back, he announced that he was going to stay at our place for the night. Dumb me said, “I guess we have a futon you can stay on”. Thank goodness for my best friend who convinced him there was nowhere to park at our place and that his car would be towed overnight if he stayed. The next morning, he tried to arrange another date but I told him that I was not interested.
He then went to my Facebook and started posting about how I pretend to be a nice girl but it’s all a lie. Also, his mother was mad at me for letting him drink and drive.
44. The Creepiest Duet
My creepiest experience was from a date I didn’t even realize I was on! I was in school for music and a guy my older sister knew (from a musical she did) asked me if I wanted to go to the library. He said we could check out duets to work on together. Since I liked singing and I was up for it, I offered to drive us to the library on campus. On the way to the library, for what I had assumed was a totally platonic afternoon excursion, he suddenly asked me a totally loaded and inappropriate question.
"How many men have you been intimate with?” Younger me was a lot less confident, so I remember saying “one” and changing the subject after he said he’d only been with one woman. Of course, I was lying and of course, it was none of his business. At the library, I remember chatting with the librarian as much as I could and when he wanted to get coffee after, I told him I had something else I had to do. Needless to say, we never sang duets together…
45. Too Much, Too Soon
I went out with this guy for the first time. I knew him from school. We went to his house (bad idea right there) and hung out in his room. He proceeded to have me lay in bed with him, and then take my glasses off because he "didn't want to break them while we were making out". At that point, I was freaking out because I had never done anything besides kiss someone, and I didn't want this. I was not comfortable. Unfortunately, It gets worse.
He kept sloppy kissing me which was so gross. I tried to stop it without saying “stop” (because I was so insecure and just wanted someone to care about me). It was horrible. Eventually, we stopped because his parents came home. He kept trying to do more with me. It wasn't until this very moment that I realized what he was doing was wrong. I should've said no, but I didn't. It was all wrong.
46. First and Last Date
I went on a lunch work date. He was sitting on my left. I was eating and suddenly felt something on my elbow. When I looked over, a chill ran up my spine. He was licking my elbow, up towards my shoulder. I was wearing a short sleeve blouse. Glad we didn’t work in the same department. First and last date!
47. The Gentleman
It was our third date and it wasn't anything special, but we still ended up at her place. We were making out and she was kind of excited, so one thing led to another…and then, in the middle of it, she asked me to do her an outrageous favor—she wanted me to hit her face! It was very weird for me, but I managed to do it gently, just to make her happy. I didn't enjoy it at all. I was out of her apartment in about three minutes afterward…
48. Three-Page Emails
At the end of a weird and terrible date, he asked me for a hug as I was turning to leave. I obliged just to speed things along and get it over with. As I was pulling away, he caught me completely off-guard—he forcibly grabbed the back of my head and shoved his tongue in my mouth before I was able to break free. The next morning, I had a three-page email in my inbox telling me all the things that are wrong with me, and why he was not interested in a second date.
49. The Flat Across The Street
The neighbor in the flat across from mine started off as a really nice guy. He introduced himself and offered to give us his meals when he'd cooked too much. He was just a great guy all around. But within a few weeks, it was made clear that he frequently drank too much. I have a recovering brother, so I really sympathized with him. I went out of my way to sit with him, and eventually, I called him an ambulance when he went through withdrawals.
This carried on for a little while, until one night after he had a fit, he kept grabbing me. I was already on the phone with the ambulance service, but the woman heard me telling him to stop and she sent for help as well. He was carted off, and just like usual, I grabbed his keys and told him to knock for them the next morning. Well, the next time I looked after him, the touching got worse—and then slowly, so did my life.
Suddenly, I had fires set outside my windows and mutilated rat corpses left on my doorstep. Officers were called after every incident, and I got to know one officer who was put on my case. He suggested I put up cameras, so I did. There was footage of the neighbor standing outside in the yard at 3 am, just staring into my window, multiple nights in a row. Terrifying yes, but technically not unlawful.
Well, two weeks after that, my neighbor snapped. There were builders in the garden next to ours, and they apparently woke him up at 4 pm. He ran out and ended up hurting two of the builders and the neighbor's dog (everyone survived). He also slashed a whole bunch of tires on our street. When the officers came to search the dude's flat, my officer friend told me (off the books) that the neighbor had been faking being a drinker the entire time.
He'd get in the ambulance, ride to the hospital, and then check himself out and walk home. Also, they found half a dozen decomposing rats in his bathtub, plus a bloody hammer under his bed. Yeah. Never going to make the same mistake again.
50. Welcome To The Fam
I matched with a man on an online service, which I won't name. Within 10 minutes, I got a shocking email from his mother...She was welcoming me to her family and asked about my plans for a wedding date. Blocked. Immediately.
Sources: Reddit, ,
