If they were hoping to be wined and dined, these ladies were in for a disappointment!
Love at first FIGHT!
It was my 35th birthday and my friends and I had just finished a cocktail-making class.
Now we were on our way to another bar for a night of karaoke.
As we headed off, my phone beeped with a text.
It was from a guy named Neil.
Happy birthday! he wrote. I’m out with friends if you want to meet up?
I’d met him on some nights out previously, and there was an undeniable spark between us.
He was a bit of a geezer, but with a gentlemanly streak.
Neil arrived with
a few friends in tow, and everyone got to know each other over a few drinks.
‘I think me and the girls are going to head off now,’ I told him at around midnight.
‘I’ll come with you to the taxi rank,’ Neil replied.
But while we were waiting for a cab, a big guy approached our group.
‘Where are all the f***ing taxis?’ he slurred.
He was very drunk and becoming increasingly lairy.
‘Calm down, mate,’
said Neil.
Then the big man swore at him and a second later
he knocked Neil out flat.
I was in shock as I’d never seen anything like it!
The big guy’s mate showed up and pulled
him away, while I knelt down beside Neil.
He was out cold,
and blood seeped on
to my new white birthday dress from a wound
on the back of his head.
Worried Neil might be seriously hurt, I eventually persuaded a taxi to take us to the nearest hospital.
‘What’s happened? My head hurts,’ Neil mumbled in the back seat.
He fell in and out of consciousness while we waited in A&E.
We sat there for hours – not how I wanted my birthday night to end up!
In the early morning, they called him in for an X-ray.
Thankfully everything looked OK, and his mum came to pick him up at 9am.
Finally, I could go home!
Neil gave me a ring the following day.
‘I honestly don’t remember anything,’ he said, so I told him the whole story.
‘Thank you so much,’ he said when I was done. ‘I’m glad you were there with me.’
Sadly, I think that night killed any romance between us. As first dates go, I wouldn’t recommend a
trip to A&E!
'What's happened? My head hurts!'
Stacey Hill, 36, Torquay, Devon
The Best Medicine
Scrolling through social media, I grinned when I spotted a post from a guy named John.
Did anyone see that game? he wrote. Total disaster!
John was the admin for our local Cwmbran Facebook group.
We lived round the corner from each other, and saw each other out and about.
I knew from his profile that we shared a sense of humour and a love of football, and I’d always harboured a bit of a secret crush on him!
But it had never gone any further.
Plus, I’d been single for 11 years and was perfectly happy.
And when the pandemic struck, romance seemed even more remote.
Then, one day,
I was sitting down to lunch, when I had a message from John.
Sorry to bother you, but can I ask
a favour? he wrote. I’m isolating
at home, and wondered if
there’s any way you
could pick up my prescription for me?
I tapped out a reply at once.
Of course I will, I told him.
It was the perfect opportunity to get to know him better!
Before I left the house, I brushed my long hair and put on a little make-up and a spritz of perfume.
Don’t be silly, I told myself. It’s not a date!
But by the time I reached John’s flat, I was feeling really nervous.
I took refuge by a tall hedge, both to catch my breath and get my courage up.
Then my phone buzzed with another message.
What on earth are you doing by the hedge? he wrote. You’ve been there for 10 minutes!
Mortified, I scurried round to his front door.
Remembering the two-metre distance rule, I cautiously handed over the paper bag.
As John was wearing gloves and a face mask and I was a little deaf,
any conversation was basically impossible!
But when I got back home, he’d already sent me a message.
Thanks for that, he wrote. When all this is over, I’ll take you out for
a drink.
We had many more months
of restrictions ahead of us, so
I wasn’t sure if it would lead anywhere.
But the two of us ended up chatting constantly online.
I even fetched him a couple more prescriptions.
And when restrictions were lifted, the two of us got together properly.
It’s hard to think of a weirder first date
than silently handing over medication while standing two metres apart and wearing protective gear, but all I can say is that it worked for us!
'What on Earth are you doing by the hedge?'
Lynda Strong, 50, Cwmbran, Torfaen
Mum's the word!
It was a Nineties night in the pub, and Everybody Get Up by the boy band Five was playing on the speakers.
My new friend Nick knew all the dance moves and I was bent double laughing.
I’d met him earlier that night. He was wearing a tight T-shirt and jeans, and seemed like a bit of a party boy!
‘Do you fancy going for a meal on Sunday?’ he asked me before we left.
‘That’d be great,’ I said.
‘I’ll pick you up at five,’ he chuckled.
I was excited for our first date and decided on a little black dress and heels.
He arrived on the dot looking smart.
We made small talk in the car and I took the mickey out of his dance moves.
That’s when I realised we’d pulled up outside an old Victorian house.
He must have forgotten his coat or something, I thought.
But when he got out, he asked me to go in with him.
Inside, the house was extremely old-fashioned with dark wooden furniture everywhere.
This is a weird
place for a guy in his 20s, I thought.
There was a roaring open fire in the living room, and a selection
of tiny sandwiches, miniature pork pies, cakes and jam tarts
on the coffee table.
That’s when an older woman in an old-fashioned dress appeared, holding a jug of milk.
Nick introduced her as his mother and, feeling awkward, I sat down with him on the sofa.
Meanwhile, his mother took a seat on a little table in the corner of the room.
‘So,’ said Nick. ‘What do you do for work?’
I stared at him blankly for a moment.
‘Um, sorry, what was the question?’
I asked, disoriented.
For the next hour we made stilted conversation while his mother sat silently
in the room.
Something about the whole thing gave me goose bumps.
I kept imagining that all of Nick’s previous ‘dates’ were locked in the cellar!
Eventually I couldn’t handle it any longer.
‘I’m so sorry but I’ve got a training course tomorrow,’ I said. ‘I’ll order a cab.’
‘Lovely to meet you,’ said his mother. ‘Pity you have to leave.’
Nick walked me to the door.
‘This was lovely,’ he said. ‘We should
do it again soon!’
‘Yes, I’ll call you,’ I replied, shrilly.
I was so relieved to get away and, back home, I rang my best friend immediately.
‘So, do you remember that party boy from the pub on Friday?’ I asked. ‘You’ll never believe the date he’s just taken me on!’
She thought I was joking at first.
I did run into Nick in
town once or twice, but I pretended not to see him!
Gem McCarrick, 41, Sunderland , Tyne & Wear