When Eric insisted on paying for our first date, I thought I’d met a true gentleman. He showed up with roses, a small gift, and great conversation. Mia, who had set us up, might’ve been right—he seemed like a catch. The evening went smoothly, and over dinner, he declared, “A man always pays,” with a confident smile. It felt old-fashioned in a sweet way.

But the next morning, I got a surprise: an invoice from Eric.

Yes—an actual, itemized invoice.

He’d assigned prices to everything from the roses to “engaging conversation” and even “chair-pulling service.” At first, I thought it was a joke. Then I realized… he was serious. I sent it to Mia, stunned. She couldn’t stop laughing and immediately showed her boyfriend, Chris.

Chris, not one to let absurdity slide, sent Eric his own mock invoice: charges for “emotional labor,” “friend vetting,” and even a line item for “witnessing secondhand embarrassment.” Eric didn’t appreciate the humor. He fired off a series of angry texts before blocking us all.

It quickly became the weirdest date I’d ever been on—but also one of the most memorable. The keychain Eric gave me (yes, that was on the invoice too) still hangs on my bag. Not as a sentimental keepsake, but as a hilarious reminder: not all charm is what it seems, and sometimes the best stories come from the strangest nights.