We have all heard horror stories of dates gone wrong, but some embarrassing situations are unavoidable when it comes to first dates. Here are just a few of the awkward yet inevitable things that can happen on a first date.

Your Date is Late:

Your date is running late, which leaves you just awkwardly sitting at the table pretending to text and trying not to notice the looks of pity your getting from people around you who think you've been stood up. Even your waiter is trying to give up your table at this point as you try to convince him your date is on his way.

The Greeting:

Since you have never met your date before, you're unsure whether to kiss or just shake their hand or hug, so you're overthinking it and anticipating what the other person is going to do. Things may get awkward when you're not on the same page and they go for the handshake while your already in for the hug.

Catfished:

If you are meeting this person through a dating or social media site, there is always that chance that you end up getting catfished and end up across the table from someone who looks nothing like their profile.

Getting Acquainted:

After the small talk dies down there's that awkward silence before your date cracks the lamest joke you've ever heard, leading to that awkward forced laugh and the feeling that you would rather be anywhere else in that moment.

The Ex:

You get a little weirded out when your date starts telling stories about their ex and you're not quite how to respond. Do you agree with his arguments or do you just kind of nod along silently? It’s the ultimate mood killer when you realize he is more interested in talking about his ex than the date he's on.

Eating Habits:

Ah, that glorious moment when you're actually starving and the food arrives...you start inhaling everything on your plate only to realize your date has been watching you looking slightly alarmed. Or worse, you notice that your date has an annoying eating habit like chewing with his mouth open, and suddenly that’s all you can focus on for the rest of the date.

The Touchy Subject

The date starts out with some joking and flirting around, until a topic comes up that strikes a nerve and World War III breaks out. At this point you are so heated you are done trying to play nice and the rest of the dinner is straight passive aggressiveness.

The Background Check:

When you ask them about their new puppy...but realize that is a detail that you learned from stalking them on Facebook or Instagram. Might as well just try to change the subject because there is no digging yourself out of that hole.

Name Check:

You get halfway through the date and realize you forgot the person's name. You try to ask them a question to get them to mention their name, yet they manage to come back with a five minute answer without saying it once. You can only ask so many questions about their name before they start getting creeped out.

The Check:

There's always that slightly awkward moment when the waiter brings the check and drops it right in the middle of the table. Being the girl, you expect that the guy is going to pay for dinner, but you try to be polite and offer to pay anyway. This is all good and dandy...until
the guy comes back with, “Wow that’s so nice of you, thanks!” and hands you the check.

Second Date?:

You're not too sure whether either of you were feeling each other, and when he brings up the second date your still hung up on the fact that he let you pay the bill. You either have to try to let him down easy...or continue to come up with fake excuse stories of why your calendar is booked for the rest of your life.

The Goodbye:

Here we go again, the awkward goodbye. You play it safe and go for the hug, but he already has his eyes closed going for the kiss. When your best attempt to avoid this ends up with his face in your hair kissing the side of your head, you embarrassingly pull back, panic, and throw up a high five that you will continue to regret for the rest of your life.

There are many ways you can try to avoid these situations when you are on a first date, but there is one solution I can offer to ensure that you don’t ever have to deal with any of these awkward encounters. Don’t date, get a pet and call it a day. If that's not enough for you, embrace the inevitable, and enjoy your awkwardness,

knowing it could lead to something great. Good luck and happy dating!