When I was in college, I went on a date with a guy that didn’t go well. I told him I wasn’t interested in seeing him again, deleted his number, and moved on.
About six months later, I got a random text.
Bad Date: “Hey! How’s it going?”
Me: “Fine, but uh, who is this?”
Bad Date: “Oh, haha, it’s [Bad Date].”
Admittedly, I should have just stopped responding, but I was bored at work (I worked at an arcade in a mall and it was a dead time), and part of me was curious about what made him start texting me again out of the blue.
Me: “Oh. Uh, how are you?”
Bad Date: “Good. Listen, I’m wondering if I can ask you a favor?”
Me: “Um, no.”
Bad Date: “So, the thing is, my mom’s in the hospital, and my truck’s out of gas. And they’re saying they don’t think she’ll make it through the night, so I really want to go to see her.”
Me: “I’m sorry, that’s really unfortunate, but no. I’m at work. Can you take a cab?”
Bad Date: “Oh, I have no money. Come on. Can’t you help me out?”
Me: “I’m at work, so no. What about your cousin? Or a neighbor?”
Bad Date: “Cousin’s out of town and none of my neighbors are available. Please help me out?”
Me: “I didn’t even drive tonight, so no. And also, I’m at work.”
Bad Date: “Well, what if I get a ride to you? Can you give me a ride to the hospital then?”
Me: “Still no because I’m still at work. If you can get to me, then you should be able to get to the hospital.”
Bad Date: “Well, I was going to walk to you.”
Me: “Then walk to the hospital. I’m at work.”
Bad Date: “Oh, come on. I really want to see my mom. Can’t you help me out?”
I did stop responding then because I had a customer come up and need assistance. I also blocked his number as soon as I had a second.
Ten years later, I’m pretty sure he had other plans in mind, but why he’d use a sick mom to get me to him, I’ll never understand. Plus, with the way he was shooting down all my other options, he had to realize that I wouldn’t believe him, but maybe that’s just wishful thinking.
I did have a little laugh a few months later when he walked in with his cousin and a few friends. He saw me and immediately left the arcade. I pretended I hadn’t seen him because I was actually busy at the time, but I really wanted to ask him how his mom was.