The most cringeworthy ways guys have asked us out

Picture this: you’re out, having a fun, fit, treat yo’ self type of day, and you decide to buy yourself a ticket to the latest Broadway show. About 15 minutes later, your phone buzzes with a message request from someone you don’t recognize, who got your name off your credit card. The message:

And just like that- you’ve got another cringe-worthy way of asking you out. It happens to the best of us, so we collected the best-worst stories:

Lauren, 22, Newcastle

On Tinder someone sent me a GIF of Ainsley Harriott shaking a slice of ham as a conversation starter.

Darrian, 23, Maine

It was after a funeral. There was a reception, and he asked me in front of my entire family. Even worse, he was about 15 years older than me.

Tiana, 20, Los Angeles

In high school I was at an AP Calc study session at Panera Bread. At some point, my friend was telling me privately about this guy who had asked to kiss her on a date, and I mentioned off-hand that I prefer when guys don’t ask for permission.

Then, once the study session had ended, my friend and I were walking back to our cars around midnight, and then this guy who had been at the study session but wasn’t really close friends with any of the rest of us comes up to me and my friend.

“I heard you don’t like it when guys ask,” he said and then immediately tried to kiss me, obviously looking incredibly sexy in sweatpants and no makeup in the parking lot of Panera Bread, only to be thwarted by me swinging my backpack wildly in his direction and maybe yelling a little bit. I told him that I was emotionally unavailable.

Cathy, 19, Nottingham

A guy in the gym (it was only him me and my mum in there at the time we were all working out) took my name off of the sign in/out register, found me on Facebook and messaged me saying my ass looked great on the treadmill. He was 24, I was 17 at the time. Bit weird, he might’ve checked my mums Facebook before mine.

Ece, 19, Cambridge

I was a regular in a restaurant and I always went with the same friend, one of the waiters get my friend’s number out of her phone – while it was on charge in the restoration and asked her my name. She didn’t say it anyway we went the next weekend and i gave my phone to a waiter to put on charge and he got my number out of my phone like he did to my friend, and then texted me one dat after to ask me out for a coffee. None of us had passwords in our phones, maybe should have. 

Layla, 18, New York

There was this one guy who stopped me on the street of Jerusalem, and asked me how old I was. I told him I was 18, and he replied “18?! You look 16!” He asked if he could have my number. I said “I think my phone is on really low battery, if it’s not already dead.” He said “Let me see.” When I took my phone out, he took my phone  from me and called his phone.

Caroline, 20, Pennsylvania

In eighth grade a boy asked me out via Facebook message. He said he wanted his friends to think he was cool by having a girlfriend, so he promised he would buy me 20 chicken nuggets if I said yes.

Erica, 21, Maryland

In NYC this summer I was walking down Madison and a guy stopped me and was like “You look like an injured cat; you’re not walking fast like most New Yorkers.” I replied “My ankle hurts,” and he said “Oh, that makes sense. So I’d like to take you out some time and get to know you better.”

There you have it. The most cringe worthy ways we’ve been asked out. While they may have seemed weird and intrusive at the time, at least we can share a laugh about it now.