“Thanks, Add Me on Facebook”
A woman in the library asked to borrow my charger. She used it for an hour or so, then told me “Thanks, add me on Facebook” and literally guided me, looking at my laptop over my shoulder, to her profile. I sent a request because it felt awkward not to — and now I see she rejected the request.
My name is Alex. I was sitting in the quiet corner of the public library, working on my laptop, when a woman in her mid-30s approached me with a polite smile.
“Excuse me, could I borrow your charger for a bit? Mine died and I really need to finish something.”
I didn’t think twice. I handed it over and went back to my work.
About an hour later, she returned the charger and said warmly, “Thanks so much! Hey, add me on Facebook — I’d love to stay in touch.”
Before I could even respond, she leaned over my shoulder, pointed at my screen, and guided me step by step to her profile. It felt oddly insistent, but I didn’t want to be rude, so I sent the friend request right there.
She smiled, thanked me again, and left.
Later that evening, I checked Facebook out of curiosity.
The request had been rejected.
I sat there staring at the screen, feeling a strange mix of confusion and embarrassment. Why go through the whole performance of asking me to add her if she was just going to reject it? Was it a power move? Was she testing something? Or did she just change her mind?
The whole interaction left me feeling awkward and slightly used. It wasn’t a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but it stuck with me.
Maybe she was having a bad day. Maybe she felt obligated to offer friendship after I helped her. Or maybe she simply didn’t want to seem rude in the moment but had no real interest afterward.
Either way, it was a small but vivid reminder that not every interaction is as genuine as it seems on the surface. Sometimes people do things out of social pressure, awkwardness, or impulse — and then quietly walk it back.
I deleted the memory from my mind and moved on. But I still smile a little when I remember how dramatically she leaned over my shoulder to “help” me find her profile.
Lesson learned: Next time someone asks to borrow my charger, I’ll just say “sure” and leave it at that.
No Facebook required.
