People Are Confessing The "Missed Connection" They Still Think About, So I Drew Them — Internet, Do Your Thing

"I work at an escape room in a big city, so I see lots of different guests every day. I don’t remember most, if any, of them. However, one day, a friend group on a girl’s trip came in that I distinctly remember. The ladies were all super fun, but one was running very late, which was pretty annoying since we couldn't start without her. I was sure I wasn't going to like her at all when she got there. When she did arrive, my young gay heart flipped. She was gorgeous.

I played it cool and tried to get the group in the room quickly so they would have their full time to play, while also trying to give myself enough time to chat her up. She was the liveliest and funniest of the group by far, and before they all went in, she gave me a huge high-five — a 'good luck charm', as she put it. That high five gave me more of a thrill than any other physical act ever in my life.

They escaped the room and, yet again, her firm high-five trapped me in her orbit. I so wanted to ask for her number, but I had never even dated another woman before. I was only recently out. So, I ended up chickening out. I also didn’t want to be that employee who asked out a customer, so I let them be in their merry way.

It's been a year since that encounter, and I can’t get over it. I don’t believe in soulmates, but I’ve never felt that kind of initial attraction to anyone before or since then."

—hollyb31

"I was at a women's dance party, and hailed a taxi cab to head home. Another woman shared the cab with me because she was going the same way. We started flirting in the cab. When the cab got to my place, I invited her in, but she said no. So, we kissed goodnight, and I got out of the cab. 

Her name was Kim. I looked for her at every women's event I went to for the next couple of months, but I never saw her again."

—irisg2

"We met about 20,000 feet over the Sonoran Desert. It was early January in 2018. I was flying back to Arizona after visiting my family for the holidays. I'd recently moved across the country for a job in Yuma and was still getting used to being so far away from home. 

On my connecting flight from Phoenix, I was seated next to an attractive guy around my age. The plane was small, and I think he could tell I was a nervous flyer. He struck up a conversation with me via the Notes app on his phone because we couldn’t hear each other over the noise of the plane’s engines. 

He told me that he was a marine and that he was on his way back to the base after spending the holidays with his family in Texas. He offered to share his snack that he had bought in the airport with me. I typed that I'd share mine with him in return. We both pulled out our snacks. We'd both bought gummy bears. I felt like I was in a rom-com. 

When we got off the plane, he seemed to disappear. I still wonder if the universe was trying to set me up with my future husband, and I ruined it by not having the nerve to ask for his number. I hope he’s doing well." 

—Anonymous, 28, Arizona

"I got thrown out of a club after I removed my heels for a minute because my feet were hurting so bad. It was -10°C outside (14°F for you Americans), and I asked the bouncer if I could at least get my coat. He literally threw me and was extremely aggressive toward me. My friend had my phone, so I was helpless.

This guy saw the whole scene and begged the bouncer to stop. Then, he gave me his coat, hugged me while I cried, and let me borrow his phone to DM all of my friends. The bouncer wouldn't even let him in the club to look for my friends. He waited for an hour with me until my friends finally pieced together that I was outside. 

I never got his name, and I couldn't thank him properly cause I was bawling my eyes out. He was an angel that night and I often think about him."

—zabster

"In the final days of my semester abroad in London in 2017, I was walking through Kensington district on a self-guided architecture tour. I decided to 'feel' my way home and didn’t use a map, which led me to a pink coffee shop on a small street. It had no signage, no menus, nothing — except an open door. I never do this, but I walked in. 

No one was inside but the barista. He said there was no menu, but he could make anything I wanted. I asked for a latte and he said sure. I could tell he was an American like me, and after a semester where I was often exploring alone and not making a lot of connections, I asked him if he was from the States. He said yes — he arrived the week prior and was staying at a hostel around the corner after dropping out of UT Austin. 

He was honest and told me he ran away from his life in Austin because he was lost and felt he’d regret not traveling when he was still young. I loved his spirit. I told him a bit of my story too, and how I was leaving in a few days, but that I would come back. He said he was looking forward to making a new friend. 

The place was so out of my neighborhood, but I was determined to go back every day before I left just to know him better. But the next few days got unexpectedly busy, and I never went back. That's my biggest regret. 

I hope he’s well and that he found what he was looking for."

—Anonymous, California

"I kissed someone I had met at a holiday party this bar was throwing. It was by far one of the best kisses I’ve had. We never exchanged info, even though he wanted to. There were no cell phones at the time. 

I’m not looking to find him or anything, but I do still think about that kiss and compare others to it from time to time."

—panda_13

"I saw him during our family holiday in Istanbul. We were eating at a small local restaurant where you had to climb this cute staircase just to access it. The restaurant was small, and I immediately noticed this one waiter — I actually caught him staring. He was gorgeous, looked to be slightly older than me. As he moved around, we kept catching one another's eyes. He wasn't our waiter, but when there was a problem with the bill, he offered to come sort it out. 

As we left the restaurant, I turned to look back once I was at the bottom of the stairs, and saw him near the top. He was standing awkwardly, as if he had half the mind to catch up to me. I was so hesitant to talk to him in front of my parents, even though I was very much old enough that they wouldn't have minded. That was four years ago, and he still crosses my mind occasionally. 

The funny thing is two years ago, I was talking to my mother about this experience and she said she remembered that waiter, and noticed the vibe between us, too."

—annienava

"I was bar-hopping with my friends in New York in 2019 when we came to a gay bar with karaoke. After a few rounds, I decided to get up on the stage and started sing a song by girl in red. Another girl stepped up onto the stage and —this actually happened — a duet ensued. For a grand finale flourish, we kissed. 

We started talking after this and really clicked. She had long, blonde hair, and was wearing a short blue dress that was loose around her thighs. She was wearing star-shaped sunglasses tinted pink. I was in a Pixies shirt and my leather jacket, and I have shoulder-length brown hair. We looked good together. 

We eventually lost track of my friends and started bar-hopping — just us two. 

The rest of the night was a blur, but I remember certain moments: A drinking contest with a guy who challenged my musical knowledge, making out with her in an empty bathroom, and for some reason, meeting Samuel L. Jackson. 

I woke up in a crappy hotel room, and she was gone. Her sunglasses were on the nightstand, though. I still have them."

—Anonymous, 27, Maryland

"It was 2022, and I was on a bus in Brisbane City. This guy boarded and sat right across from me. I would look at him and he'd be looking at me, or he'd look at me and I'd be looking at him. Each glance and every little spark of interaction felt like warm butter being smoothly spread onto perfectly toasted bread on a Saturday morning while I rewatched one of my favorite comfort movies. 

He had big round brown eyes that drew me in. It's almost as though we were trying to communicate with each other through our eyes. 

After a while, he got off the bus. As the bus drove away, that was the last time I saw him. There was something there. I'm so upset I didn't take a chance."

— Anonymous, 17, Queensland, Australia

"Several years ago, I flew to Texas to visit my best friend and he took me to Lush for the first time. One of the saleswomen started talking to me almost immediately. 

She was super enthusiastic about helping me find something I liked. She ended up demonstrating a salt scrub on me and my poor gay ass was just standing there while a cute tattooed girl literally massaged my hand and arm. I just assumed she could tell I'd never been to Lush before, and did that with a lot of new customers.

But on the drive home, my best friend said, 'You know she was flirting with you, right?' 

Yeah...I think about that a lot."

—ljvincent