He brought me carnations on our date.

—Kimberly

Aftermath: There wasn’t one…we didn’t go out again.

When he told me his only sex partner was the stepsister he had been raised with. I figured he was over her, but he never slept in the same bed with me, even after the marriage.

—Notadopting

Aftermath: After I left he stalked me for 6 months and then moved in with his sister.

We spent the summer in love and avoided the inevitable. The day before he left, we cried for two hours straight. We didn’t kiss or touch, except to hold hands, and even that felt empty. He got in his car and I stood by the door, reality slowly sinking in. This was it. He was leaving, and he wasn’t coming back. “Goodbye,” he choked out, backing up his car. He turned to look at me one last time. I’ve never felt so much pain from one glance.

–Annika

Aftermath: We agreed on no contact. It’s been incredibly difficult. We’ve talked every single day for almost two years; now there’s nothing. I lean on my friends and family, let myself cry when I need to. I put his pictures, gifts, and everything else away. I’m not okay, but I’m alive.

He stood up to another guy who was treating me badly at a bar, which I thought was pretty chivalrous. When we got back to his place, he said, “I gotta see what I’m dealing with,” and bit me on the ass.

–Mel

Aftermath: After biting me, he disappeared into the bathroom for 10 minutes. I knew it was going to be a very bad night right then.  I never saw him again after that night. I heard he has a girlfriend now. Hope she likes biters.

Me: Divorced, over 40. He looked OK online, supposedly adult; some email conversations. He asked late one night to watch a DVD, The Last Waltz. Bored, hadn’t seen it; I said sure. He lives in father’s basement (bad); dirty sofa, ten remotes (very bad). He started the movie and two minutes later, lunged. He had a large erection; seemed he was working on it himself beforehand. I said no thanks. He argued, I got up, he hit me with classic sour grapes “You aren’t even that good-looking anyway.”

–veronica

Aftermath: 0 hours 0 minutes 0 seconds. I drove home laughing my head off and told all my friends. I mean, attempted date rape when you’re over 40 and a mother of a teen? Man, there is a time to be over this!!