A Chat Over Dinner
If you are the type who eats out regularly, one day a stranger might join you at the table. This stranger will always appear to be of your age and sex, and he (if it is a he) will only appear if you are alone. No matter what style of restaurant it is, he will always be carrying his own plate of food.
After a few seconds, he will look directly at you and say, “You seem like an interesting person. May I know you better?” Say yes, and he will begin to ask you questions about yourself in between bites. These questions will be innocuous enough at first: what your name is, what you do for a living, and so forth, but should you open your mouth to answer, you will be forced to tell the truth, even if you do not consciously know what the truth is. Remain silent, and the stranger will scowl at you, pick up his plate, and leave. You will never see him again. If you do indulge his questions, however, they will grow darker and darker as the food leaves his plate, and it will become harder and harder to resist answering. Do not attempt to leave the table before he does under any circumstances.
When his plate is clean, he will stand up to leave, but not before asking you one last, irresistible question: “What would drive you to take your own life?” You will instantly be aware that you will be able to lie in response to this one question, and I suggest you do, for whatever you describe will come to pass within the week. Those who are canny may use this chat to gain whatever they desire, but know that if the happenstance you name does not drive you to suicide, the stranger will start guessing as to what will. And consider how much he now knows about you.
–
Credited to Peter L.
Posted in Beings & Entities
October 2nd, 2008 at 1:32 pm
barely okay
October 2nd, 2008 at 1:32 pm
I liked this one. It was something I could easily imagine happening, since I’m not really secretive about myself that much, anyway….
Though, it wasn’t THAT scary.
October 2nd, 2008 at 1:37 pm
i lolled
October 2nd, 2008 at 1:45 pm
good thing i never go out to eat alone!
October 2nd, 2008 at 2:28 pm
I liked it. It’s similar to a lot of other stories on the site, but the last sentence was a nice touch.
October 2nd, 2008 at 2:35 pm
on the edge of ridiculous and cool
October 2nd, 2008 at 2:35 pm
ummmmmm…note to self,cancel dinner on my mental health day by myself,maybe take the girlfriend out to a movie…
October 2nd, 2008 at 2:49 pm
Damn, this guy is stealing my clientele!
October 2nd, 2008 at 3:55 pm
:c i knew that guy at the taco place was creepy >.>;
October 2nd, 2008 at 4:18 pm
I’ve seen better pastas…
October 2nd, 2008 at 4:32 pm
The ending couldn’t have been better.
I really, really like this one. (:
October 2nd, 2008 at 4:36 pm
Wait, what? I do this for a living. I am a professional come-sit-at-your-table-and-ask-you-random-questions-about-yourself-while-we-are-eating guy.
shit.
October 2nd, 2008 at 6:44 pm
Note to self: Bring gun whenever eating out alone.
October 2nd, 2008 at 6:46 pm
Better than most pastas about supernatural deals. This pasta offers both pro and con to accepting the contract while many others are overwhelming good, bad or nonsensical. I enjoyed it.
October 2nd, 2008 at 6:54 pm
But then….WHO WAS PLATE?
October 2nd, 2008 at 6:58 pm
Not creepy, but really interesting and definitely well-written. I liked it, despite the non-creepiness. And, Candlejack, sorry to hear about your cli
October 2nd, 2008 at 8:29 pm
This is an interesting one! I like it a lot.
October 2nd, 2008 at 9:24 pm
I really like this one. Kind of unlikely, but it calls back on older pastas, which I really enjoy.
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:34 pm
Pretty neat.
October 2nd, 2008 at 10:55 pm
note to self: ALWAYS carry mace.
[this pasta was ok]
October 3rd, 2008 at 12:28 am
I agree with Fund. It’s nice to see one that is actually a somewhat balanced risk vs. reward situation instead of YOU DIE or NOTHING BAD EVER HAPPENS.
October 3rd, 2008 at 4:07 am
not bad
October 3rd, 2008 at 5:25 am
Almost literally creepy pasta (depending on your meal).
It was OK.
October 3rd, 2008 at 11:18 am
lol. i ate alone once in my life at mcdonalds…it was so sad T_T. i dont think i have to worry about a stranger comin up to me, its unlikely to happen again:P
October 3rd, 2008 at 11:24 am
Good thing I wouldn’t talk to a stranger who randomly sits at my table asking personal question
October 3rd, 2008 at 4:47 pm
It carries a reward, but I don’t understand how you would obtain anything you desire from conversation with this man.
October 3rd, 2008 at 5:58 pm
at number 15 …..
*ahem* WHY!?
October 3rd, 2008 at 5:58 pm
Note to slef note lolol’s comment
October 4th, 2008 at 2:15 am
What happens if you tell him nothing would drive you to take your own life?
October 6th, 2008 at 2:45 am
The only right answer is of course “If you gave me 10 million dollars and then killed yourself.”
What happens if he ordered something better and you steal bites of his when he isn’t looking?
October 7th, 2008 at 2:22 am
Makes me glad I never leave my house.
October 9th, 2008 at 8:39 am
I didn’t like it up until the last sentence.
That part made it worth reading!
October 13th, 2008 at 12:38 pm
I liked it, I give it 7/10.
But what if you started asking him stuff?