The narrator recounts a story from his college days when he was socially inept and trying to emulate anime characters. He decided to practice his flirting skills by telling a female GameStop employee that she was beautiful. He spent hours preparing for the encounter, putting on a necklace and styling his hair with gel. When he finally worked up the courage to approach the counter, he became flustered and nervous, unable to deliver his line smoothly. After the employee asked him if he wanted a receipt, he finally blurted out "thank you, beautiful" and quickly ran away before she could respond. He later reflected on the incident, realizing that his behavior was likely to have made the employee uncomfortable and advising his listeners not to make the same mistakes he did.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. The narrator was a socially inept college student who tried to fake confidence.
2. The narrator used Reddit for advice on how to interact with women.
3. The narrator decided to practice his newfound confidence by flirting with a girl at GameStop.
4. The narrator chose a GameStop location with only one female employee.
5. The narrator planned to tell the employee she was beautiful as he was checking out.
6. The narrator was nervous and unsure of how to react when the employee asked him questions.
7. The narrator did not know how to respond when the employee asked if he wanted a receipt.
8. The narrator eventually told the employee she was beautiful as he was leaving.
9. The narrator ran away before the employee could respond.
10. The narrator heard the employee say "oh" as he was leaving.
11. The narrator felt embarrassed and uncomfortable about the situation.
12. The narrator never went back to that GameStop location.
13. The narrator was a virgin at the time of the story.
14. The narrator was 18 years old when he bought a fake cigarette.
15. The narrator used anime as a reference for his social interactions.
16. The narrator was using a subreddit for relationship advice.
17. The story takes place in 2011 or 2012.