You swipe, you chat, you stress over your outfit, and you head out hoping for a connection, but sometimes, you end up with a story so unbelievable, you just have to tell everyone. We’ve all heard dating horror stories, but this one truly takes the cake with its sheer absurdity.
Imagine this: you’re sitting across from someone you thought was a decent prospect, the conversation is flowing (or maybe it’s painfully awkward, who knows?), and then, out of nowhere, they just… get up. They mumble something, maybe a quick excuse about the bathroom or a quick errand, and then they’re gone. Your heart sinks. Do you wait? Do you call? Do you, dare we say it, assume the worst and prepare to flee yourself? These moments are the stuff of legend, the kind of dating disasters that live rent-free in our minds, and now, they’re about to live in yours too.
Get ready to dive headfirst into some of the internet’s most jaw-dropping tales where dates literally got up in the middle of dinner and left. From what they surprisingly came back with, to the moments they vanished into thin air, leaving chaos (and hefty bills!) in their wake, these are the stories that will make you rethink every first date you’ve ever been on. Let’s unwrap these astonishing encounters, one unbelievable revelation at a time!
1. **The Case of the Disappearing Date with ‘Roommate Food’**
Picture this: a blind date, the kind where you’re already feeling a mix of hope and trepidation. Our story begins with a woman arriving at a “super nice restaurant,” only to find her date already there, and get this, he’d already ordered some food. His excuse? Oh, it was supposedly for his “roommates,” and he just needed to run it out to them before coming right back. Sounds a little fishy, right? But hey, maybe he was just being considerate and multitasking on his way to meet her.
That quick errand turned into an absolute nightmare. Thirty agonizing minutes ticked by, and her date was nowhere to be found, not responding to messages, leaving our poor date in a state of panic. As she confessed to the waitress, the initial polite small talk dissolved into a desperate hope that everything would somehow turn out okay.
Then came the truly gut-wrenching twist that made her stomach sink even further. The waitress, with a deeply concerned expression, delivered the terrible news: ‘No, it’s really bad. He didn’t even pay for the food to go yet.’ Can you imagine being left not only by your date but also with the bill for his mysterious ‘roommates’ at a fancy restaurant? It was a costly lesson in basic human decency.
2. **The Unbelievable Ranch Dressing Rescue Mission**
Prepare yourself, because this one is truly a modern dating epic. Lori found herself on what seemed like a “really great date” at an upscale restaurant, the kind with “white tablecloths on the tables.” Drinks were ordered, conversation was flowing, and they settled on salads. All very normal, right? Then came the waiter’s question about dressing, and her date’s simple request: “Oh, I’ll have ranch.” The catch? This fancy place made all their dressings in-house, and ranch wasn’t on the menu. He settled for no dressing, no big deal, or so it seemed.
Their salads arrived, and the date continued, but then he dropped the bombshell, “I will be right back,” leaving Lori to assume he was merely going to the restroom. However, her assumption was hilariously, and shockingly, wrong as she watched him walk out to his car and then drive away completely, leaving her bewildered and questioning if this was some elaborate surprise or a terrible emergency.
And when he returned? Lori was about to find out the emergency. He pulled back into the parking lot, and there it was, clutched in his hand: “a bottle of Kraft Ranch dressing. From the store.” Unbelievable! He left their high-end date to go grocery shopping for his preferred condiment. And if that wasn’t wild enough, after the salads were cleared, he proceeded to douse his entire expensive meal — steak, mashed potatoes, *everything* — in the bottled ranch. The only thing spared? His beverage. This isn’t just a red flag; it’s a whole red parade!
3. Meet Annie Goodwin from Seattle, Washington, whose “first date of 2024” quickly became a viral TikTok sensation and a complete “horror story” after her car wouldn’t start, prompting her Hinge date to offer a ride, a situation she reluctantly accepted due to her car trouble, unaware it was just the beginning of a wild night.
Upon arriving at the busy restaurant, Annie revealed the shocking truth through her phone camera, panning to her uneaten dinner and the empty seat beside her, with text overlay declaring: “He went to the bathroom and never came back,” detailing the surreal experience of being picked up, driven to a bar, having drinks ordered and consumed, only for him to vanish mid-sentence.
Later, Annie recounted the bewildering ordeal at home, expressing disbelief not just over the unpaid dinner bill but the cruel irony of being left stranded, knowing her car was the reason she needed a ride in the first place, only to discover he had blocked her on all platforms, adding insult to injury that this master of abandonment was, in fact, a therapist, prompting stunned reactions online and calls to delete dating apps.
4. **The Date Who Walked Back From a Homicide**
This one, dear readers, takes the cake for sheer, mind-boggling escalation. Imagine going on a date, and it turns into a crime scene. That’s exactly what happened to a woman on a date with 29-year-old Eric Aguirre in Houston. They were on their way to Rodeo Goat, a burger restaurant, when they encountered a man claiming to be a parking attendant. He charged them a hefty $40 for two spots. Already a bit off, right?
But the real shocker came inside the restaurant. A waiter, privy to the local scams, informed them they’d been ripped off. Now, most people would be annoyed, maybe call the police, or just cut their losses. Not Eric Aguirre. Witnesses watched as he “sprint[ed] to his car, grab[bed] a pistol and chase[d] after Nick,” the alleged scammer. A gunshot was heard, and Elliott Nix, the 46-year-old parking scammer, later died at the hospital. This was no ordinary date night annoyance; it was a deadly confrontation.
The most chilling detail? After committing what authorities would describe as a felony murder, Aguirre “nonchalantly walk[ed] back to his car with the gun in his hand” and then returned to his date. He casually told her “he just scared the guy and everything was fine.” Can you believe the audacity? The date, completely unaware of the horrifying events that had just unfolded, continued! They even discussed going to another restaurant because Aguirre suddenly felt “uncomfortable.” It wasn’t until police released surveillance photos that his date realized the true, terrifying nature of his mid-dinner disappearance. This story truly redefined the term ‘red flag’ in dating history.
5.Ah, the age-old first date dilemma: how much is too much to order? One woman’s experience at an upscale steakhouse, Eddie V’s, became a viral sensation for all the wrong reasons when, after expressing a desire for a steakhouse, her date took her to a “national chain prime/seafood restaurant” where she proceeded to order a lavish meal costing a staggering $159.
The internet, of course, had a field day with this, humorously speculating if the “third side of Brussels sprouts” was the breaking point for her date’s actions and sparking a debate on first-date ordering etiquette, especially at such an establishment, but regardless of the cause, her date clearly had his limits, leaving $100 on the table and walking out, abandoning her with the rest of the bill.
Imagine the sheer embarrassment! Having to admit on social media to “millions of people” that you were left to pay the rest of the bill. The comments were brutal and funny in equal measure, with many joking about the infamous Brussels sprouts. While some might argue she over-ordered, others questioned the date’s responsibility. It’s a tale that perfectly encapsulates the awkward, unexpected, and sometimes expensive reality of navigating modern dating, leaving us all wondering: what would *you* do if faced with a $159 bill and a vanishing date?
6. **The Ultimate Betrayal: The Date That Was a Setup**
Imagine putting yourself out there, enduring endless awkward encounters, and then you finally match with someone stunning, someone who feels oddly familiar. That’s exactly what happened to John, a guy who’d been on the relentless hunt for love, only to find himself across from Sarah at a cozy restaurant. The conversation was flowing, dessert was ordered, and then John dropped a bombshell question that shattered the evening: “No offense, but is it cool you’re going on dates while your husband’s deployed?”
The question hung in the air, transforming Sarah’s radiant smile into a mask of sheer panic as John, recognizing her, revealed he had confirmed with his college friend, Mark, that they were still together, exposing Sarah’s infidelity through an elaborate, heartbreaking setup, leading to her furious outburst, “How could you do this to me?” met with John’s calm retort, “How could you, Sarah? You’re the one who’s cheating while he’s serving overseas.”
The climax arrived as Mark’s mom, flanked by relatives and friends, marched to their table, declaring, “We know everything, Sarah. John told us. Mark deserves better than this.” Sarah’s desperate excuse — “while he’s busy being a hero, I’m here all alone” — fell flat in the face of their collective disappointment. With her face a mask of humiliation, she stormed out, leaving behind a heavy silence and a powerful lesson for John about true loyalty and integrity. What an unbelievable way to find closure!
