So many of us have dating horror stories, but my worst dating story sounds a little different than most.
I enjoyed a few meet-ups with guys from Tinder. Whenever I got bored with one guy, though, I would move on to the next. One day, I scrolled my way onto the profile of a guy named Daniel. He seemed like a nice guy and served in the Navy, so I decided to meet up with him and see if things would go anywhere.
However, none of my previous meet-ups ever prepared me for this date.
The day we met, I drove forty-five minutes to a hotel where I met Daniel. The plan was to go get dinner then spend the night together. I left everything except my wallet at the hotel, and we drove to Outback.
Everything started smoothly with casual conversation and good food. Definitely a normal date, right?
Suddenly, his phone rang. He said that it’s a call from his superior, and he stepped out. As soon as he left the table, though, something felt off about the whole situation. When the waiter brought us our food, I text Daniel to let him know that his meal arrived. He answered me at first, but as I waited, my messages stopped going through. I was all the way through my meal before I realized that he ditched me.
I paid for the food and walked outside. Then, I sat on a bench behind the restaurant and called one of my closest friends so she could come get me. I kept thinking that this man probably stole my car. I knew my dad would kill me because I had told my parents I was spending the night at a friend’s house — not meeting a random stranger at a restaurant.
After I recovered from my initial shock in my friend’s car, I called the hotel. I told the front desk manager that I didn’t know the guy’s last name but I knew the room number. I explained that I had left my things in his room and wanted to know if I could get them back. She explained that Daniel had checked out because he had an emergency come up. When she went to check the room, lo and behold, he had put all of my things outside of the hotel room door.
Although I got my car back, I learned that I should probably investigate my Tinder prospects a little bit more next time.
That date could have gone a lot worse, but it definitely made me realize that you can’t trust strangers from dating apps… even if they say they’re in the Navy.
Featured Photo by Laura Chouette on Unsplash.
