Flip Fantasia

Story Sent in by Gia:

Don contacted me online. I looked at his profile, and it made me curious, so I wrote him back. He was a part-time wilderness guide and part-time bookstore sales associate. He had traveled the world and liked going out to dance. We spoke for a bit and went out on a date not long after we first talked.

He took me out to a nice restaurant, and we ate and talked. He was pretty into himself, and barely seemed interested whenever I spoke, or else he'd take the opportunity to interrupt with his own story of how he had climbed a higher mountain, skied down a steeper slope, or swam in more piranha-infested waters.

Finally the bill came. He looked at it, and his eyes nearly bugged out of their sockets. I asked, "Is it that bad?"

He grinned at me and pulled out a quarter. He said, "Let's flip for it. Loser pays for dinner."

I nearly choked. I said, "How about we just split it?"

He ignored that and flipped a coin, catching it in his hand. "Call it!" he said.

I replied, "Let's just split it."

"I call heads," he said, then looked at the coin. He frowned at it, then looked up at me. "Two out of three," he said, then flipped it again. "Heads!"

He looked at it again, and his face scrunched into a comical pretzel. Flustered, he said, "Three out of five!" He flipped it again.

I took the opportunity to look at the check and kick in what I owed, plus tax and tip. He didn't seem to notice and kept flipping away and grumbling to himself.

When he didn't stop, I said, "I'm going to go."

No response from him, just fevered flipping and grunts and groans. I left the restaurant, and I hope that he eventually sucked it up and paid for his half of the check.