15 Ways To Get Out Of A Date That You Haven't Thought About
For most people, the phrase "first date" is absolutely horrifying. It conjures up images of sitting awkwardly across from a stranger in a crowded restaurant, trying to find things to talk about and wondering if you sound totally silly. There are so many awful things about a first date. You don't know if the person feels the same way about you. You don't know how to end the date. You barely even know what place to suggest and what you should do. Do you grab a casual coffee? What about a drink? Is meeting for dinner totally out of the question or a great way to actually get to know someone? You don't have the answers to these questions and no one else does, either. You just have to figure it out and hope that you're doing the right thing. So what happens when you're on the date from hell and have to leave ASAP? Don't worry, you're in the right place. Read on to find out 15 ways to get out of a date that you didn't know about.
15 Ask Your BFF To Come Into The Bar
You probably know that you can claim that you're about to meet your best friend for a drink or a movie and you have to leave. So why not take that up a notch? Ask your BFF to actually come into the bar. You can text her discreetly (or head into the washroom and do so) and ask her to get to the bar or restaurant immediately. She will definitely do this for you since, come on, you're the best of friends. You would totally do the exact same thing for her because saving a friend from a bad date is a heroic action. If you want to make sure that she will actually do this (and is actually free), ask her in advance if she would be up for this. Chances are, she's going to say that yes, of course she will do this for you. You will have a much easier time politely leaving the bar when your best friend shows up, totally freaking out that something has happened. Because of course she can make up a totally legit and yet totally fake excuse for why you have to leave.
14 Call Yourself
Yup, you can totally call yourself. You can download a few different apps that have this feature and that's actually a really great way to get out of a date that you didn't know about. Your date won't be able to argue with the fact that, yup, your phone has just rung and clearly something has happened. You can say that you're very sorry but you have to go. He might ask you a few questions and you can just answer them super fast or not answer them at all. What do you care? If you feel weird about this, you need to remember that you're most likely never going to see this person ever again. So you can say anything that you want to him and just get out. Tell your family and friends about this tactic and they will definitely agree that this is a great way to leave a bad date. What, would you rather stick around? Definitely not.
13 Say You're Leaving And Put Money On The Table
If you say that you have to get home immediately but offer to pay for dinner or drinks, your date isn't going to have a problem with that. Wouldn't you want a free beer or free dinner? Yeah, of course, you would. Sure, this could get super pricey if you do go on dinner dates, so maybe it only really works if you're grabbing a few beers. But if you're in a really horrible situation and need to get out, then just throw money down on the table and head out. You can also just put down enough cash for your own order if you're really broke and/or don't want to pay for this guy who is clearly a total jerk and loser and whatever other negative things you want to call him. You may feel strange the first time that you do this, but don't worry, you'll get used to this and it will become one of your go-to ways to leave a bad date.
12 Get The Urge To Book A Spontaneous Trip
Sure, this one might make you seem like a weirdo or someone who is a bit crazy… but that's kind of why it's such a great way to get out of a date. If this random guy who you're never going to see again thinks that you're strange, are you really going to care? Probably not. You can randomly say that you got the urge to go on a trip and book the train or bus or air travel on your phone… while you are sitting across from his guy. AKA while you are on the date. Then you can jump up and say that you have to go because you have to pack and head out. If you really want to sell this, you can act super happy and enthusiastic about this and act like you just can't possibly contain your excitement. You can even cement the lie by saying that you believe in living life fully. Before you go, say "YOLO" and smile.
11 Act Like You Have An Epic Cold
You have to really sell this one since faking sick is the easiest excuse in the world… and also the worst one since no one ever believes it. It's super obvious when you're literally canceling on someone so you can stay home and watch Netflix and eat your weight in pizza. If you really want a creative way to get out of a bad date, then act like you have a truly epic cold. Blow your nose a million times (bonus points if you use the cloth napkins on the table -- yeah, it's gross, but hey, you're desperate). Cough a billion times. Keep saying you have a headache and feel kind of faint. Eventually, this guy is going to suggest cutting the date short so you can go home and rest. This is the best thing ever since you won't have to say anything at all. You can just shrug and say that yeah, going home is probably a good idea.
10 Say You Ate Something You're Allergic To
This only works if you order food or dinner but it's a good one to pull out in those cases. You can say that, oops, you ate something that you're totally allergic to and are feeling the symptoms. You can say it's your stomach, your head, or all of the above. Your date is going to be annoyed, concerned, or a combination of the two. He also might want to leave immediately because he's not going to want to hear your whining and complaining about this. And saying that you're dealing with some stomach pain is a surefire way to gross someone out. So if your date seems grossed out and says that you should go home, then you can also be sure that things wouldn't have worked out anyway. He'll just prove that he's pretty immature and can't deal with anything. The right guy would be worried and reschedule pretty soon, so that will tell you something as well.
9 Say You're Going On Another Date
Why not? This may not be the nicest thing to say to someone… and yet if you're going on a ton of really bad first dates, you might not care. You might be super frustrated with your bad dating luck and want to go home and watch TV and forget about your single status. And honestly, there's nothing wrong with that. You seriously deserve a medal or something if you go on a ton of dates and have nothing to show for it (well, besides being really sick of dating, of course). When you really want to be back home in your cozy apartment and far away from this ridiculous date that you're on, say that you have to leave because you scheduled another first date. This is a surefire way to piss your date off and make him think that you're the worst person ever. And that's totally fine. Who cares what he thinks?
8 Go On Tinder
Can you imagine going on Tinder… on a first date… in front of your date?! Talk about crazy. And talk about the best way to end a date ever. When you're feeling really desperate, go ahead and use this tactic. Pull your phone out of your purse and put it on the table so you are super obvious about what you're doing. Swipe right, swipe left, and loudly talk about the guys that you're seeing. When your date inevitably asks what you're doing, you can say that you're trying to line up some dates for this weekend because hey, you're young and single and don't have any time to waste. He's going to walk out on you pretty much right after you finish talking. You can be absolutely certain about that. You might use this strategy on all your bad dates after you see how totally effective and efficient it is. And you will make your BFFs laugh their butts off when you tell them about it.
7 Pretend To Be Pregnant
Does a guy want to find out that his first date is pregnant? Of course not. Which is exactly why this is an amazing way to get out of a date. He's not going to want to stay to find out what's going on. He's literally going to run out the door of the bar or restaurant. What if he's actually a good, decent guy? Sorry but he's still going to want to leave. He just won't be ready to get this kind of serious information. Of course, you're not actually pregnant, so you won't be offended that your date wants to run in the other direction when you tell him that you're expecting a baby. It's up to you how often you want to use this approach. You might want to just bring it up when you're on a truly bad date… but if you're going on a lot of first dates, you might realize that most of them are really horrible. So you might want to use it all the time. Sigh.
6 Sign Up For A Workout Class
You can tell your date that, oh no, you just realized that you haven't worked out in so long and you literally have to this moment. You can pull out your phone and sign up for a yoga or barre class (or whatever workout you're into) and tell your date that you have to go. It's totally not your fault -- the class starts in an hour and you have to go home and grab your exercise clothes so you're not late. He's going to think that you're a horrible person and a total diva… and that's just fine. You won't give a crap what he thinks about you. If he's pretty fit and athletic, he might ask to join you, so just be prepared for that and know your audience. If that does happen, you can say that you're meeting a friend or your sister there so it might be super awkward. He might not believe you since you did just book that class in front of him, but hey, the point isn't to create a super believable situation. The goal is to just leave.
5 Go Grocery Shopping
Right there in front of your date. Yes, really. How? You can totally order groceries online and have them delivered to your apartment building. Isn't this the most creative excuse ever? You can talk about your purchases as you order them and you get bonus points if you say that you only buy vegan, organic, gluten-free, sugar-free, and soy-free food. Your date will think that you're super high-maintenance and kind of annoying, which is exactly what you want him to think. You can also talk about how crazy busy you are all the time and that you only have time to order groceries when you're on a first date. Yeah, you're the queen of multi-tasking and you're actually pretty proud of it. You can totally give your date some pointers on how to live his life better and be more efficient and productive with his time. He's going to love the free advice (not). When you're done, go home so you can meet the delivery guy. Problem solved.
4 Have Take-Out Delivered
If you don't want to order groceries online and have them delivered, you can totally have some take-out delivered. There are so many apps and websites that allow you to order any kind of meal under the sun. You can literally think of any restaurant in your city or town and they will deliver right to your door. Tell your date that you have a sudden craving for pizza/Thai/etc. or that you're going to faint from starvation so you have to order some food and head home. Hey, it's not your fault. You have a delivery coming so you obviously have to go right now so you can beat the delivery guy. When your date says that you could just order food right there since you're at a bar or restaurant that, you know, serves food, you can laugh and tell him that you're allergic to everything on the menu. Yes, every single thing. Yes, really. He will think you're so weird, he won't ask any more questions.
3 Tell Him That You're Moving
He's never heard of someone moving at 9 p.m. at night? You can totally laugh when he asks you that question. Because you know the truth: that the coolest person moves apartments at night. He's going to ask some questions for sure so be prepared to answer them, and then say that you're really sorry but you have to go meet the movers and get started. When he asks why you didn't book time off work to move or wait until the weekend, like most normal people do, you can sigh and say that you have a really mean boss. Or you can say that you couldn't take time off work because you're the most important person in the office. That won't go over well and he's going to hate you, which is perfectly fine since you don't want him to ask you out again. Just make sure you're really annoying and obnoxious so there is no hope of rescheduling at all.
2 Map Out Your Entire Dating History
A guy's worst nightmare is finding out your entire romantic past which is why this is a great way to get out of a bad date. Start at the very beginning. Yes, you can even complain about the way that your crush treated you back in first grade. Okay, so you might not want to talk for too long since you want to leave this bad date as soon as possible, so you can talk about the past few years only. Your date is going to start looking super bored pretty much instantly. You're going to see how annoyed he is written all over his face. Eventually, you can say, "So clearly this isn't going to work out because as you can see, I've been hurt a lot in the past." And he's going to totally and completely agree with you. This might seem like a strange thing to do and yet it makes a lot of sense. After all, people always say that bringing up an ex is a deal breaker.
1 Tell Him This Is The Worst Date Ever
Did you know that you could just flat-out tell a guy that you're having a horrible time? Yes, of course you can. Sure, it might not be the most polite thing in the world to say, so this is the ultimate way to get out of a date. You should definitely save this one for when you're really having a terrible evening and need to leave ASAP. So that means this is not an excuse to use when the guy is nice enough and a pretty decent person but you're just not feeling any sparks. Sorry but you're going to have to be more polite to that guy. But if your date is clearly an awful person, then go ahead and tell him that he is. Say that you'd rather be at the dentist right now, that's how bad this evening is. Then leave. Simple as that. Chances are, he's going to be kind of grateful that you said this because it takes two to ruin a date. Phew. Aren't you glad that you know the best ways to get out of a date now?!