First dates can be stressful enough and even more so if you go on a blind one, never having met the other person.
And one woman has shared details of one of the most awkward first dates she's ever been on, which saw her get into a car accident before meeting her blind date.
When she was 32, Emma Parsons-Reid, headed out for a blind date at a pub and was feeling rather tense when she drove into the car park after dropping her daughter Hannah off at a friend's house.
Unfortunately, things only got more stressful when she crashed into the back of an expensive BMW with her Toyota Corolla, leaving a large dent.
The mum-of-one, who describes herself as "the Queen of bad first dates", had been looking forward to the evening ahead, having arranged her date through a newspaper ad.
However, little did the now-retired civil servant know that she'd wind up wracking up hundreds of pounds in insurance bills, on top of suffering through one of the most awkward dates on public record.
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Now 54, Emma, told The Sun: "I thought 'oh my God, this is all I need right now'. It was a dark, miserable night and I was tempted to drive off if I'm honest, but I thought 'no I've got to do the right thing'".
Knowing she had to own up to the damage, Emma walked into the pub and asked the barman to find out who owned the car. Sadly, the answer would only make things worse.
Emma continued: "This young man came towards me and I said ‘I’ve just bumped into your car’. He said ‘oh God, I’m meant to be meeting somebody’ and I instantly realised what had happened. I asked ‘are you meeting Emma?’ and he said ‘yeah’. When I told him who I was, his mouth fell open in shock. The barman found it hilarious".
They headed out to look at the car, the damage evident even in the darkness. Her date was clearly not best pleased, especially given that his car had been parked up in a relatively empty car park.
After swapping insurance details, Emma asked if he wanted to head back inside for a drink. He agreed, but looked at her as though she was "a madwoman".
Sadly, romance was not on the cards that evening.
Emma added: "We tried to pick back up the date but instantly I didn’t fancy him and he didn’t find it amusing that I’d gone into the back of his car. Obviously, I was going to sort it out, so he wasn’t at a loss. I prefer a man with a sense of humour and felt he could have taken it better than he did. It’s not like I’d driven off without telling him".
After 45 excruciating minutes, the man decided to call it a night and head home. She claims she never heard from him again, with all the insurance getting sorted out without them having to be in contact with each other.
Thankfully, Emma's next blind date turned out to be much better as she met the man who would become her husband.
Emma is still happily married to retired chemical engineer Kevin Reid, 60, and, believes that it was "destiny" that her previous date turned out to be such a literal car crash.
So all's well that ends well folks!
Do you have an awkward dating story to share? We pay for stories. Email us at julia.banim@reachplc.com
