People Share Awkward Situations That Everyone Can Relate To

"When you're finishing up at the checkout and the cashier puts the notes on top of the receipt and then coins on top of that. Then the next person steps up and you're fumbling, trying to disassemble the stack in your hand, gather your shopping, say thanks and move away at the same time." ⏤ Dominoodles

I can feel my skin burning just thinking about this. I hate it when they say "Thanks bye," and you're still stood there for another 10 seconds and they're just staring at you and you can feel the next person's breath on the back of your neck. Kill me now.

"When you've had multiple interactions with someone but you can't remember their name but it's gone too far to admit you've forgotten it so you just have to call them love or mate forever." ⏤ Ells_Bells1

I am always forgetting people's names. As soon as they say it, the name goes straight into my brain, and straight into a shredder. One person did thankfully share a good tip to avoid this happening in the future:

"I have a trick for this. Start being more loving to them, eventually getting into a relationship. As this moves further, propose and they'll say yes, and then when you're getting married, wait till the pastor turns and says, 'and will you Persons Name, marry Your Name'. And boom you now know their name."

"When you’re having a conversation with someone and you don’t hear what they say so you ask them to repeat and they do. But you still don’t hear it and ask them to repeat again and they do. And you still don’t know what they said. Do you ask them to repeat again (and maybe still not hear it)? Pretend you heard it and nod your head and hope it’s an appropriate response? Stab yourself in the eye with a pen to create a diversion and change the subject?" ⏤ california_chrome

Is there anything more stomach-churning than just having to laugh and say "Yeah, I know," and move on with the conversation? They could have been telling you that they re incredibly sick for all you know!

"Saying 'hello' or 'how are you' to somebody and getting 100% ignored". ⏤ 2Alien4Earth

Someone else added on that, "Worse when someone else you know is there too and notices you getting ignored." Now, please excuse me as I curl up into a ball remembering all of the times that this has happened to me.

"When you think someone waves at you so you wave back, but they were waving at someone behind you." ⏤ ladies-pmme-nudespls

As long as humans have existed, there have always been people guilty of this. I can think of few more unsettlingly humiliating things that can happen to a person; however, it happens to all of us at least once. One person shared their own uniquely embarrassing encounter as such:

"Not long ago at church we were asked to turn and greet people. I turned around and the guy said hi to me and stuck his hand out to shake. I went for it and realized he was talking to the woman beside me. She and I both ended up with a hand in his hand at the same time trying to shake it. They both looked at me and I quickly turned around and pretended it didn’t happen, which made it more awkward."

"When you try to contribute to a conversation and someone cuts you off multiple times." ⏤ Vintage_Nightmare

This is also only made worse if you wait for your turn to talk, but by the time there is an opening, the conversation has moved passed being relevant to your story. Is it really so hard to listen to people guys? We can all avoid this kind of awkwardness together!

"You ever clogged a toilet in somewhere that wasn't your house?" ⏤ Tutlessss

That moment that you see the water level rising in someone else's house will instill you with more fear than the scariest horror movie. People took to the comments to share their own toilet horror stories, with one of the most horrific being:

"Me and my husband have been together for almost thirteen years. When we'd only dated for a few months I visited him in his studio apartment and successfully clogged the toilet. Like really bad! I tried using the toilet brush which only turned it into a mummy with toilet paper all around it. I cussed and walked out the bathroom, went by my husband sitting on the couch, into the kitchen and grabbed a plastic bag. As I went back to the bathroom I said 'don't ask!' and proceeded into the bathroom. I stuck my hand in the bag and unclogged the toilet with my whole arm feeling the cold and dirty toilet water through the bag. But it was successful, and we are still together."

"When you reply to a stranger who says hello, but then realize they were on the phone and not speaking to you. Happened to me just yesterday and I didn't get any sleep last night as I couldn't stop reliving the moment." ⏤ TheCobras

If you manage to do this when you are in an elevator, I can tell you that it is even worse. There is nowhere to run, you just have to stand there and stew in the awkwardness! People also pointed out how AirPods have made this an increasingly more common phenomenon.

"Being at a friend's house as a kid and the friend's mother starts yelling at your friend. Being at a friend's house as a kid and the friend's father walks in only wearing underwear." ⏤ TheBassMeister

This is only made worse if the parent tries to get you involved in their discussion, by saying things like, "Would you do this in your house?" I mean, how do you even respond to that?

"That awkward moment where you and somebody else try to let each other speak but you both try speak at the same time and just keep failing." ⏤ behind-enemy-limes

This happens a horrific amount when you're trying to talk to someone on Skype or Facetime. The second delay can really screw you over and then you're both just staring at each other, waiting for the sweet release of death to come for you both.

"When you're walking past coworker and you've already said hello earlier. Everyone's making that weird flat smile." ⏤ CammyMM

Another person managed to make the whole scene even more uncomfortable by writing:

"That walk down a long hallway toward each other where you've clearly seen the other person, but they're too far away to say something, so you do the awkward look around until you get close enough to say 'hey' and keep walking."

"When you’re saying goodbye to someone, and then you both end up walking in the same direction. Or when you turn and walk into a wall with people watching." ⏤ whatthedeafearhears

This happened to me once after a date that had gone terribly, it only served to make the terribleness of the whole evening even worse. Someone also added this little nugget of uncomfortableness:

"Also when you realise you've forgotten something and need to turn around, but you don't want to just turn around abruptly because that would make you look insane. So you do a little performance where you get your phone out, pretend to check a message, sort of mime 'aha!' and then turn around. Or cross the street and then turn around to throw any observers off the scent."

"Watching a sex scene with your parents." ⏤ heapsgoodyes

I can imagine that this one will hit home with a lot of people. Sitting in ear-splitting silence through a TV show or movie's sex scene with your family is a moment that everyone endures at some point. One person shared their own specific experience with this:

"Visited my aunt and uncle seven years ago and we were hanging out watching TV. My uncle clicks through channels and stops on Harold and Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay. Within minutes it's the shaved pussy party scene. My aunt and uncle sit there in silence watching not saying anything until the scene is over while I sweat bullets. If you put an acorn between my butt cheeks I could have cracked it."

"When you say a funny joke but all you get is silence..." ⏤ imperilis

This is bad enough if you're in the audience when a stand-up comedian bombs, let alone when you're the one who tanks a joke. There is no way to save these moments, you just have to sweat them out as the rest of the group painfully tries to change the subject.

"The fake smile on your face when you receive a terrible gift." ⏤ wapkaleem

There shouldn't be such thing as a bad present, and yet somehow there is. Some people are experts at the fake smile and the faux-enthusiastic, "How wonderful!", however, I have not yet mastered this art.

"Walking through a doorway only to catch your clothes on the handle and have it slingshot you backwards." ⏤ katyisanut

Why is it that this only ever happens when you are either in a terrible rush or already angry? These are the only two times that this ever happens.

"When you're walking and almost trip for no reason and look back at the invisible stick that you tripped on." ⏤ Hellboy32607

I've found that the best way to deal with this happening is to laugh and pretend that you're okay with what happened and also found it funny, all while you die screaming inside your own head.

"Standing there while two people talk about something you don't know about." ⏤ afrocircus6969

In these instances it is better to just wait for the topic to come around to something you know, trying to add something to the conversation only for it to bomb hard is even worse than silence.

"When you're on a public bathroom and someone tries to open the door even though it's locked."

I don't know what goes through people's heads when they try a bathroom stall door and it doesn't open so they decide to rattle it even harder, nearly knocking it off its hinges and giving the person inside an aneurysm. Guys, if the door is locked, it is locked, just wait!

"When you start to tell a story in a group but in middle of sentence realize that no one is actually listening and ever so slowly you get quiet and hope no one took notice." ⏤ aSadGirlsTongue

However, you know that no matter how quiet you get, there is always going to be one person at least who heard you and is dying inside also.