I met a guy on a dating app who seemed refreshingly normal—calm, funny, attentive, and actually interested in who I was. We bonded over voice notes, inside jokes, and long conversations before deciding to meet. He showed up kind and charming… but absolutely drenched in overpowering cologne. Not bad hygiene—something chemical, heavy, unforgettable in the worst way.
I ignored the red flag. He was consistent, emotionally available, and felt like a rare “grown-up” after a string of flaky dating experiences. But the smell never faded, and neither did the subtle discomfort it caused. Eventually, during a weekend trip, I discovered handwritten letters from another woman—recent ones—revealing I wasn’t the only one. When confronted, he admitted he liked being “remembered.”
That’s when the truth came out. He wasn’t just cheating—he was collecting women. Multiple exes came forward, all with the same story, the same charm, and yes, the same cologne. What started as a bad dating app experience turned into a shared warning among women who realized the pattern too late.
