Dating as a late bloomer is hard -- but as Jael Cunningham (@jaellysandwich) soon worked out, the dating arena truly is the Wild West.
In a viral TikTok, which has amassed 823,ooo views, Cunningham explained that she grew up a Jehovah's Witness. She then left the church at age 18.
Naturally, one of the first things she does is get dating apps. It isn't long before she matches with what she describes as a "gamer dude" on Bumble. During their talking stage, she notes that he tried to mold her into the perfect gamer girlfriend. He tried by persuading her to download Discord and play League of Legends.
A month in, he asks Cunningham on a first date to the Cheesecake Factory. However, once he was half an hour away, he made a shocking revelation. Not only is his friend coming on the date, but he used to perform oral sex on him in college, saying that it was completely "platonic."
Being inexperienced, Cunningham decides to go with it. She got another shock when the car pulled out: there were four men in it. Her date claimed that they wanted to celebrate his college friend's birthday. Once again, Cunningham says she decided to go with it.
"Multiple times in this story, I could have been harmed," she noted. Cunningham got increasingly suspicious, given that the Cheesecake Factory near her was to be 20 minutes away. But the man kept driving and informed her that they were going to the one near his house. This one was approximately one hour away from Cunningham's home.
As they arrive, the trunk starts to open, and a fifth man jumps out.
During the meal, Cunningham interacted with a nearby baby, which her date noticed. He said that she would be a good mother to his children, and to add insult to injury, he says they should split the check.
Cunningham didn't immediately respond to The Mary Sue's request for comment via TikTok comment and email.
After the dinner, he suggests going to his house to "pregame." With Uber rides costing $80, Cunningham was left stranded, saying, "I'm literally stuck at this random guy's house."
He then asks Cunningham if she wants to go on a walk. She initially says no, but he then gives her a small pocket knife for safety. With this encouragement, she took the knife and walked with him, during which he talked about his breeding kink.
After this, the TikToker insists she wants to go home, only for the man to plant a kiss which, she says, tastes like Cheesecake Factory steak.
By that point, Ubers had gone down to $50, so she got one and went home.
"Looking back, it honestly makes me so sad that the girl I was then was so desperate to find love, and so desperate to be normal and be like doing normal [expletive] that I thought this was my best option", she said.
She added that the situation caused a strain in her relationship with her dad, and she didn't go on another date for two years.
In the comments, users were horrified by Cunningham's story.
"Okay you win this is the absolute worst 'first date' I've ever listened to on TikTok," one wrote. "I did not expect to cringe so many times omfg, I'm so glad you got out of that safely because that's so so scary."
"Yea this would've sent me right back to Jehovah's Witness," a second opined. While a third added, "I knew it was bad once I heard Bumble and Cheesecake Factory."
Fellow former Jehovah's Witnesses also commented, sharing their similar experiences.
"Girl, I grew up a Jehovah's Witness too," this commenter said. "Nobody talks about how different you truly feel from society, like ugh, I feel so behind, like I'm a grandma or something."
While a fourth commenter echoed, "No, growing up as a Jehovah's Witness, we all have horror dating stories."
Speaking of dating horror stories, TikToker Liv Tripoli (@probablyrunningerrandss) previously went viral for sharing how her first date with a man took a turn after he started masturbating in the Uber they were in.