Dating Series: The Guy Was Too Cheap to Buy Me Coffee
Four dollars at Starbucks were a deal-breaker

You can find the first part of the story here:
After telling Kris I should probably stay away from dating, I deleted my dating profile and carried on with my life. We continued talking. Sometimes we’d talk every day, and it was always via texting. At some point, we decided to meet for dinner and talk. Unfortunately, it wasn’t as easy as it sounds — this story describes what happened to its details.
According to Him, I Was the Best Woman He Has Ever Met
I need to point this out right away: Kris was persistent. First, he said it was okay for us to be friends, but then he kept trying to convince me to date him. It was not aggressive, but it was constant. I felt somewhat uncomfortable, but since I felt guilty for turning him down, I kept talking to him.
I told him multiple times that I’ve decided not to date anyone right now, and he said he understands; but judging from the way Kris was talking to me, he didn’t. Kris would shower me with compliments, and that made me feel even more guilty. He would tell me I’m the best girl he encountered in his life, and while it sounded sweet, I found it to be disingenuous. I’m sorry for saying this, but I don’t see a reason why would someone I’ve known for a week at most and whom I barely sent a hundred messages to would describe me as the best woman ever. It was another red flag: either Kris had a pink unicorn-like picture of a perfect girl in his imagination, and he projected it onto me, or he was not honest.
Despite all that, I continued to text him, mostly out of guilt.
I felt somewhat uncomfortable, but since I felt guilty for turning him down, I kept talking to him.
I Wanted a Dinner, and He Wanted to Ensure He Won’t Have to Pay for Me
So, we decided to meet up for dinner. He was charming and offered me to pick the place. I’m not a fancy diner; I prefer to meet with friends for coffee or share a few appetizers at most. I’m also a weirdo who doesn’t like fries, which means the person going out with me will get to eat an extra serving of fries or take it home.
I chose a simple restaurant close to where Kris lived. It was about an hour commute for me and lesser commute for him — again, I felt guilty about turning him down, so I figured I could be the one doing most of the travelling. We agreed on a place and time. But Kris decided to ask me a question I wasn’t prepared for.
“Are you going to be okay paying for yourself?” he said.
He couldn’t see me through the phone screen, but my eyebrows moved up. I was surprised.
“Of course,” — I replied. “This isn’t technically a date; we’re meeting as friends. I wouldn’t expect you to pay. I always plan to pay for myself, even when on a date”.
He was happy to hear it. Then, he proceeded to tell me he spent much money on work tools last week, and he doesn’t want to spend any more. I understood — again, even when on a date, I always take out my wallet and get ready to pay.
Starbucks Was Too Expensive for Him
Kris messaged me the next day, asking if we can meet for coffee instead of going to a restaurant. I was surprised, but that sounded reasonable. It’s sometimes better to talk when you’re at a coffee place instead of a formal setting.
“I want it to be cheaper,” — said Kris.
My eyebrows jumped up again. Please don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t planning to spend much money at a restaurant, nor do I like wasting money on a ton of take-out food. I cook at home most days, and I’m a pretty frugal person. Even when meeting with friends and family, I’m not burning through cash. The restaurant I picked with Kris was a relatively cheap place offering $8 burgers and reasonably priced appetizers. My plan was to order a $5 frozen coffee and a $7 dessert. I wanted to share the dessert with Kris and then pay for it. In fact, I was contemplating paying for this meet-up myself. I felt really guilty about changing from a “yes” to a “no” with him.
But his request left me confused. I didn’t want to refuse, so I offered to go to Starbucks. I figured I can order a $4 Frappuccino, sit there and talk to him. Kris agreed. The meet-up was set. Or so I thought. I went to bed the night before we met and received another text from him:
“Can we do something cheaper than Starbucks?”
I wasn’t sure what to respond, as the average coffee price anywhere was $4 back then. The only other alternative was to visit McDonalds and get their $2 coffee, or go to the Canadian coffee chain Tim Hortons that sells a large coffee for $1.50. I offered the second option to Kris and he accepted.
“This is going to be a fun experience,” — I thought as my head hit the pillow.
I woke up the next morning, got ready and left my home to meet Kris for the first time. It turned out that his cost-related requests go much further than I expected. Sometimes I wish I didn’t meet him at all, but at least I got a sad and funny story to tell my friends.
I broke this story down into three pieces, so it’s not as overwhelming to read. Check out what happened next in the third and final part: