Before any couple can start planning their dream wedding, someone has to “pop the question” which can be its own intricate plan. But sometimes expectations don’t match reality or the proposer has an absolutely terrible plan and the whole thing falls apart.So one netizenasked people to sharethe proposal horror stories they had witnessed in their own lives. From fast food shenanigans to “borrowed” rings, people detailed plans that needed some more time in the over. So get comfortable, prepare to cringe, and be sure to upvote your favorite stories.This post may includeaffiliate links.
Before any couple can start planning their dream wedding, someone has to “pop the question” which can be its own intricate plan. But sometimes expectations don’t match reality or the proposer has an absolutely terrible plan and the whole thing falls apart.
So one netizenasked people to sharethe proposal horror stories they had witnessed in their own lives. From fast food shenanigans to “borrowed” rings, people detailed plans that needed some more time in the over. So get comfortable, prepare to cringe, and be sure to upvote your favorite stories.
This post may includeaffiliate links.
My high school sweetheart and I had been living together for several months when he caught the flu. It was the first time I’d ever seen him really sick and I was determined to take care of him but after a few days was getting worse. I tried to convince him to go to the doctor but since we didn’t have health insurance he insisted he’d be fine and I gave in. I try to make him comfortable on the couch since its closer to the bathroom and he cant keep anything down. Around midnight he’s getting delirious. He’s had a fever for days, dehydrated from throwing up all week and he’s spouting gibberish. He barfs all over the couch and can’t stand up. I tell him I’m putting my foot down and he’s going to the doctor first thing in the morning. He suddenly gets quiet and looks at me very seriously and says,‘You’re so good. You should marry me. You want to marry me?’ and then passes out. I was shocked but didn’t take him seriously obviously and just focused on bringing him around so I could get him off the couch and into bed. When morning rolls around his fever has broken and though he’s weak and pale, he’s doing much better. He asks how he got into bed because he can’t remember anything from the night before and I entertain him with the story of how I dragged him to bed after he proposed and passed out. I think the whole thing is funny but he doesn’t laugh so I look up and he says ‘Well, what was your answer?’ We just celebrated our 13th wedding anniversary. TL;DR - Vomit can be romantic under the right conditions.
I used to work the jewelry counter at Target. Two kids, probably 13 or 14 decide that it’s time to get officially engaged. They purchase a cheap cubic zirconia ring, 10k gold overlay, $9.99. The boy proudly pays in ones and a handful of change. He gets down on one knee, says he loves her forever and puts the ring on the girl. She giggles “Daddy’s gonna KILL me!”, then they run giggling into the night. I like to imagine they lived happily ever after.
Contrary to popular belief and the immense amount of media on the subject,the majority of proposals are not a surprise. As romantic as it might seem, marriage is a pretty serious endeavor and most proposers most likely want to ensure that the answer is yes before they even ask.Similarly, it’s quite common toask the parents for their blessingbefore even starting the process. If you think about your own parents, you will quickly recognize that they are not exactly the pinnacle of operational security, and will spill the beans pretty fast. Of course, most couples will now discuss the question “internally” before the actual proposal to avoid any unhappy surprises.
Contrary to popular belief and the immense amount of media on the subject,the majority of proposals are not a surprise. As romantic as it might seem, marriage is a pretty serious endeavor and most proposers most likely want to ensure that the answer is yes before they even ask.
Similarly, it’s quite common toask the parents for their blessingbefore even starting the process. If you think about your own parents, you will quickly recognize that they are not exactly the pinnacle of operational security, and will spill the beans pretty fast. Of course, most couples will now discuss the question “internally” before the actual proposal to avoid any unhappy surprises.
I saw one of those once at a baseball game. I was sitting I think about 2 rows behind them and the guy gets down on one knee and says his spiel….the girl gets up and throws beer in his face screaming “YOU DUMB F**K, I KNOW YOU SLEPT WITH ANNA LAST WEEK!” I haven’t laughed that hard since.
I proposed to my wife in Times Square at New Year’s Eve (I was going for maximum cheezy!) She was pretty emotional and took a while to believe I was serious (even though I had a ring). This being New York, strangers started shouting at her to “HURRY UP LADY, WHAT’S IT GONNA BE? WE DON’T HAVE ALL NIGHT”
While traditionally, the man proposes to the woman, same-sex couples have been found toactually perform two proposals, where each partner can take some time to surprise the other. This seems like a wonderful idea for any couple that puts a lot of importance on the whole “show” of surprising the other, getting down on one knee, and asking the question.
Pilot here. Guy ask me to fly him and his SO over a field, where 150 people had formed a heart and two rings. Huge show, I was really impressed. When she saw it, her response was: “Look at all those idiots! How ridiculous is that??“He did not ask his question that day.
Saw a couple in a jewelry store when my wife and I were looking. Guy asks to see a ring, kneels, “will you marry me?".She flips….ohmygod!ohmygod!ohmygod!ohmygod! yes yes yes!!He says “great!” then hands the ring back to the employee and tries to leave the store. He proposed with a borrowed ring. Tries to explain to the girl he couldn’t afford the ring but wanted to propose correctly. She slaps him so hard my face hurt (she put her whole body into the slap) and starts screaming about how her mother was right, etc. etc.No clue if they ever got together, but it was hard to watch.
It’s also worth noting that the man proposing is the norm, but not necessarily the rule. Queen Victoria, for example,proposed to Prince Albert, while folk traditions in various countries like Scotland and Finland“allow” women to propose on leap days. Of course, in the 21st century, there are no more rules about this sort of thing, indeed, many couples choose to skip marriage altogether.
During college (and for several years afterward), I rowed gondolas for extra cash on the side. I had seen about 500 proposals during that time. The only ‘no’ I’ve ever had came from a guy who pulled out all the stops. Dinner, Venetian gondola, roses…even a customized message in a bottle to be ‘found’ during the Venetian gondola ride. So when the time came, he knelt down and popped the question. After what felt like a full minute of stunned silence, she took that moment to inform him that she was already married.
I proposed to my wife in Dublin, which is more difficult than it sounds because it’s not a romantic city. After dinner, I decided that the Halfpenny Bridge was about the best place to get the job done. Right in the middle of my proposal, I hear the unmistakable sound of a drunk guy p***ing off the bridge not 10 feet behind me. Ireland has never let me down.
However, there are still people out there interested in a very public proposal, with all the risks that tends to bring with it. While public opinion may vary, one has to admit that it’s quite brave (or foolish) to try and ask such a question in public, where you can be very visibly rejected. On the other hand, many recipients of public proposals report saying yes and then declining later, to save their partner the embarrassment.
I was at Taco Bell with a few friends of mine, including a guy and a girl that had been dating for a few weeks. A few of us got tacos, but the girl only got a diet coke.So her boyfriend asks her, “Do you want hot sauce?“She says, “uh… No. I just got a Diet Coke, what the hell would I want hot sauce for?“He says, “I dunno. But I just think it would be really good if you had some hot sauce.“They argue about whether or not she needs hot sauce for awhile, until finally she just says “ok, whatever.“He goes over and gets some. Comes back with a packet, gets on one knee, hands her the package that says “Will You Marry Me?” on it, and pulls out a cheap looking engagement ring out of his pocket.Keep in mind they’ve been dating about 3 weeks at this point, and we’re in the middle of Taco Bell.She gets this look of absolute shock on her face. And then says yes. They got married a few months later. They got divorced a few months later. And that was the most humiliating trip to Taco Bell of my life.TL;DR - guy proposes to girl In taco bell with a hot sauce package and she says yes.
I wasn’t there for it, but saw the video.I work for a place that caters all sorts of events. We did this ridiculous rehearsal dinner for a wedding. I say “ridiculous” because I’ve never heard of a rehearsal dinner needing an auditorium and several other spaces for guests. The parents of the bride were loaded and just awful (Common, accepted practice is that after all the guests have eaten, staff get to have a little plate. The bride’s father chewed us and our boss out for it even though he was just going to have us pitch the leftovers at the end of the night.)Anyways, prior to the guests arriving the family of the bride handed me a DVD to play over the projection system. This DVD contained the couple’d engagement photos and music but it also contained video of the proposal. It was the most awkward thing I’ve ever seen.The dude walks into the house as her father opens the door. The guy looks so nervous, but not nervous like he’s going to propose, nervous like he doesn’t know what to do on camera. “Do I stand here? Where’s my mark?” The camera pans over and his fiancé is standing at the top of a massive staircase (these people are obviously loaded) in probably her most elegant dress. It takes her almost two minutes to descend the staircase. I know, because I timed it since it was on a constant loop all night. The guy awkwardly shuffles over to her and gets down on one knee and then ADJUSTS his position for the camera. The ring is placed on her hand and then they just sort of stand there. The video then starts looping again.It was the single least romantic thing I’ve ever seen.
I proposed a couple years ago, don’t think it was terrible, just different. I had taken her out to dinner and while waiting for our food i asked to see her promise ring, started playing with it and pretended it it got stuck on my pinkie, she starts to worry we will have to get it cut off when i said, “or we could just replace it” hands her new ring, “With this.. Will you?“She said yes :)
If these examples show you anything, if you are going to do a surprise proposal, at least try and make it happen outside of a fast food restaurant unless you are positively certain your partner will enjoy it. And if you didn’t get enough terrible proposal stories here, worry not,Bored Pandahas got you covered. Checkout our articleon the “That’s it, I’m proposal shaming” Facebook group.
I sure did. This happened three years ago. Some friends and I decided to road trip down to Orlando and go to the amusement parks like a couple of 21 year old children. Well we were in one of the Disney parks (magic kingdom perhaps?) and I saw one of craziest rednecky things ever. So we’re looking at a map figuring out the plan of action and all of a sudden we hear “Boy, what the hell do you think you’re doing?” Some guy, like 5 feet away, was on his knee with a ring out in front of a girl, and an older guy was next to him yelling. This is where it gets weird. The guy said “thats your damn cousin you f****n idiot, get off your goddamn knees before I beat the p**s out of you”. This obviously got our attention. The guy doing the proposal (who I will call George Michael from now on) started crying and said “but I love her and I want her to be my wife and you and no one else can stop this from happening. Mary, will you be my wife?” The girl (Mary I guess) looked at him and said “why are you doing this? don’t you ever talk to me again! I hate you for this!” And she ran off. Then George Michael ran in the other direction. The older dude was pissed off beyond belief and the rest of the family. I wanted to clap but I felt like I would’ve been killed.
So I had gone to a Dallas Mavericks game in March with my dad, and during halftime, they had this couple come down and play a game. The girl was very clearly not into basketball at all, and her partner very clearly was. In the game, the cheerleaders held chests with letters in them (they were supposed to be prizes). Eventually she opened all of them, and it spelled ‘Mavs’ and ‘Will you marry me.’ When they closed the chests, she turned around, he was on his knee…and she just kinda stared at him, not smiling, and picked him up off the ground and whispered in his ear. They left with her walking in front trying to keep it together while he nodded uncomfortably…most awkward experience ever.
I proposed on a dinner cruise and told her I was gonna throw her overboard if she said no. The couple next to us interrupted to ask if she needed help.
Well this might be a common one with a bit of a spin.I was with a few friends at Burger King at around 3 in the morning (yes Burger King of all places) and the only other people who were eating was a middle-aged couple. The woman got up to go to the bathroom and the husband slipped something out of a ring-box into the woman’s burger. When she came back she ate the burger without noticing anything. The man went wide-eyed and told her she just swallowed the ring, and then asked her to marry him. She said yes, and my friends and I burst out laughing.
I knew a guy who was at McDonalds with his girlfriend one time, and as a joke he wrapped a fry around her finger and said, “Will you McMarry me?“She started crying and called her mom and like started planning the wedding the next day. He hadn’t meant to propose but he didn’t have the heart to tell her so, so he just married her.Lost touch since then, but I would be very surprised if they’re still married today.
So my late-twentysomething sister was semiserious with a (slightly younger) family friend for a couple of years. He did landscaping and she worked in the film industry. He lived in a cabin in the mountains and she lived in the city. He owned cats and she was kind of allergic. She loved to travel and he wanted to stay where he grew up. He wanted lots of kids and she wanted her career. She loved him and adored his family, but she wasn’t ‘in love’ with him. From the beginning, he was talking about marriage and kids and what their life would look like together. She kept telling him that she had been really hurt before and wasn’t sure what she wanted long term. He decided to stay with her. One Christmas season, he was seriously pushing what their wedding would be like (his mom organized weddings/parties as a second job) and how many kids they would have, and so forth.My sister really had to sit him down and explain again that she didn’t think she was ready for marriage and might never be, and asked to please not push her into something he knew from the start she might not want. Cut to the Christmas Eve party with both families (because we are all friends), and he busted out a ring and got on one knee in front of EVERYONE. She leaned over and whispered in his ear, and he got up and followed her outside. They spent the rest of the night talking on the back deck while everyone ate, drank, danced, and exchanged gifts without them. They broke up a month later. They are both MUCH happier now!
I was on vacation with some family about five years ago. While on vacation, we ended up going to “Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede,” which is a dinner-and-show type establishment, and not particularly my cup of tea, but my family wanted to go and I didn’t want to be ‘that guy,’ and I’m glad I went, for what I saw was well worth the price of the ticket.Before the show started, the announcer listed of a bunch of happy birthdays and the like, and then says something along the lines of “And, now, a special announcement from blah-blah.” This guy is on the screen, pre-recording, and asks his girlfriend to marry him, and then the screen shows the guy, kneeling down with a ring in the audience at the show, asking his girl. His girlfriend is visibly horrified, and just shakes her head. You could almost hear the guy’s heartbreak.It was on that day that I learned not to do things like that unless (A) you’re absolutely sure she’ll say yes, or (B) you ask her in advance and just want to make a good story.
THIS HAPPENED TO SOMEONE I KNOW!!! A friend of mine ran a marathon and her boyfriend proposed to her right at the finish line. No chance to take take a breath, hydrate, or rest. Not only that, but he brought other people to photograph and videotape the whole thing. So now my friend has all these lovely photos of her looking sweaty and gross on the day she was proposed to. She did say yes.
I unfortunately didn’t witness it but my best friend just got engaged and when her SO proposed they were in a little french deli. She had just put a massive mouthful of pie in her face when she saw he had got down on one knee. She was so shocked she spat the pie out all over herself, all over him, all over everything. She just sort of nodded … it was very like her to do something like that so it’s all fine but still … I don’t think he was expecting pie in his face.
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I was once at a friends gig who plays pretty crazy distorted rock with a s**tload of synthesisers and stuff. It was really quite low key thing with only about 20-30 people there and this drunk guy gets up on stage halfway through my friends solo and grabs him to whisper something in his ear. My friend looks super confused but kind of nods and continues playing. Then after the song says, “Hey, so this guy here wants to say something” and lets the guy jump on the mic who then slurring every word asks his lady up on stage. She comes up (appearing no where near as drunk as he was) and as she’s looking worried and confused he gets down on one knee and grabs her hand, mutters somewhat of a proposal to her. She lets go of his hand, he stands up, she slaps him across the face echoing through the tiny hall and he stands bewildered as she storms off the stage. My friend then helped him off the stage and says to the crowd “Ah.. so. Lets go!” and continues a raging set.
I watched a man propose to his girlfriend at the top of the Willis Tower (formerly the Sears Tower) in Chicago. He got out in one of the glass boxes that allow you to look straight down, got down on one knee, and proposed. She wouldn’t go out on the glass. She got on the floor, scooted out over the glass on her a*s, and wept the entire time (not out of happiness). It was the most awkward thing I expect I will ever witness.
I didn’t witness it; I was the one who turned down a public proposal. It was entirely unexpected, since I had met the guy six days before. We were at Bible camp the summer after senior year of high school, and he immediately gravitated to me. I was a shy, bookish girl without many friends and was pretty but not in a flashy way, which was the style at the time. So I was flattered. I thought we might end up dating. On the last day, in front of the larger group (a few hundred teens), he dropped to one knee and proposed. I thought it was a joke and pulled his hands to have him stand back up, but he was totally serious.He had misled the camp leaders into believing that he and I were serious and this was a love match so that they would agree to the public proposal between two teenagers, but that was not the case. Once I realized he was serious, I walked away shell-shocked while he stood there crying. It turns out he was leaving for the Army the next month and wanted a wife before then.
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My brother proposed to his now wife two years ago when he graduated basic training for the army. They were driving out to dinner somewhere and they were in the backseat, he just looked over at her and said “so do you want to do this” without a ring in his hand she had no clue what he was talking about. After an excruciatingly painful 10 minute explanation of what he meant, she finally got the hint and said “i guess”.They’re happily married and having there first child as i type this comment on my phone from the hospital waiting room.
My now ex-husband called me while he was at work and said “If we get married, I get three paid days off that don’t count towards my vacation! Want to go to Vegas in October?“It lasted a whole three years.
I did one..my birthday, she was taking me out to eat and i couldnt find anywhere to hide the ring. She asked if everything was okay and i said , “might as well get this out of the way”. I proposed to her in our garage.
I was on the ferry to the Statue of Liberty a few months back, and suddenly we see a plane writing something in the sky… Extremely slowly. Like, ridiculously slow. I know it must take a while to write something out in the sky, but it seriously took like 25 minutes for this dude to write “MARRY ME SUE” in the sky.By the time he had written Sue’s name, the “MARRY ME” had faded from the sky.
My dad stuck the ring in a stick of deodorant, then told my mom she needed to use it. Small argument ensues when mom tells dad she does not need it :/
My favorite had to be while I was in Vegas at the Bellagio botanical gardens. Everyone is doing their thing, snapping pictures, oooing and awwing, when this one guy gets down on a knee and gives this little speech. Many, many, people stop what they are doing to watch, encircling the two while he finishes his speech. The girl, with hands covering her mouth begins to cry. Some of the crowd’s heart’s melt at the end of the speech, but there has yet to be a reply. The girl continues to stand there and at this point it begins to get awkward - there are some gasps and giggles from the crowd. You can see the dude’s mind racing and he begins to look at the floor realizing what he has done was probably a huge mistake. The masses begin to feel horrible for the poor guy - but the chick, probably realizing what was going on all around her, shakes her head but the words that come out of her mouth were, “ohhhh alright, yes.” The guy stands up and begins to wobble (probably some blood flow issues from the 5+ minutes of awkward kneeling) and he grabs a hold / falls onto / awkwardly hugs the girl.tl;dr: Dude proposes, girl takes an awkwardly long time to respond, responds with a head shake but says yes, hundreds watching.What I want you to takeaway: Make sure she’s ready for it.
I was working as a cashier at Walmart, in the ”express lanes”. Located in redneck suburbs, a gentleman, this description of him is a gift. Bought a $100 ring from me, the jeweler had to bring it to my register, and asked me to cut off the price tag with a pair of scissors I had at my register. He paid for it in crumpled change. Then he runs to his girlfriend and her family, this couple is either in their early 40s or just look that bad. He slides on both knees to her feet, yells out her whole name and describes how this woman is the most wonderful person in the world. Nobody is listening or even notices except for me. They hug and leave. I ask around to the other cashiers , if they had noticed what just happened. Nobody at all knew what I was talking about.
I didn’t witness this, but a redneck friend of mine proposed to his girlfriend in a Kmart parking lot because he “couldn’t wait till Red Lobster.”
I popped the question to my wife while we were in the car driving on the interstate to my sisters wedding. She acted hesitant and pissed at first but said yes. I didn’t even have a ring to give her yet.Went and bought her a ring later and asked the question again over a game of sudoku. If I could go back I would of done it differently. We eloped in New OrleansWe have been happily married for 5 years!
I was at university in a big lecture hall (room for 500 people). In the middle of a lecture, this guy and his friends came in throwing confetti and stuff. This guy knelt down in front of his girlfriend and proposed to her. She was shocked and said ‘NO!’ The guy and his friends left, broken.
I was at Fenway Park in 2017, and for some reason, the Red Sox had recently decided to make a nightly Jumbotron proposal a thing. With most, if not all, of the ones I’d seen, the woman clearly had the heads-up and went along with it. This one, the couple came on the screen and they were both waving at the camera, and the guy did his thing. She looked very surprised and angry and very clearly yelled, ‘What the f**k?!’ and turned her back to the camera, and they started arguing.
Yes. The way my best friend’s husband proposed.(They had a long distance relationship most of their relationship) He told her that when he would be visiting for Christmas leave that he had a surprise for her. She badgered him to tell her then and there (over the phone) what it was because she hates surprises. He finally gave in and was like, I’m going to propose.She promptly called me right after to screech in my ear about how he was going to ask her to marry him.
Used to work at the Olive Garden, any proposal there is a terrible marriage proposal
I work at Universal Studios in Orlando a few months ago and I watched a Fear Factor Live show. One of the stunts a lady is in a chair with a plexiglass box around her head. Her arms are strapped down as well. Someone spins a wheel and what ever it lands on goes on her head. Either snakes, scorpions, spiders or cockroaches.This girl is the contestant in the chair her manpanion spins the wheel. It lands on scorpions so they do the stunt. At the end her man gets the mic and says his spiel while the girl is still strapped in the chair. He didn’t get a real answer til the poor girl was out of the chair. Just super awkward.Great way to start the marriage.
I wasn’t there for it, but my parents' proposal was pretty anti-climactic. They had been dating for 5-6 years already and it was basically like “Well, I guess it’s about that time.”
Ah. Yes. A friend of mine proposed to her boyfriend remotely, via Skype, with a poorly edited video of pictures of the two of them with some song in the background, complete with terrible windows movie maker image transitions. The one thing that was missing was Comic Sans.She was so proud of it and showed everyone. Awkward as f**k.
No, but my brother and his girlfriend recently got engaged. She knew he had the ring, coz she had helped him pick it out, and she was soo excited. All she’s ever wanted to do was get married.One night, just after he bought the ring, they were in the kitchen cooking soup. He dropped the soup ladle at her feet and deliberately bent down to get it, as to if to propose.Well, she just went nuts. It was really bizarre. She was running laps around the kitchen, back and forth, screaming and flailing her hands around like a lunatic, all flushed in the face. Tyson didn’t even say anything, she was just that…excited.He was laughing so hard he was weeping.Then he walked over and farted on her wedding collage. She was very unhappy that night.
I proposed on the summit of a mountain that we climbed together. It was insurance against her saying no… She needed me in order to get back down.
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