Translated from Japanese. The forum these are published on have mass participation from members, so there’s no “one answer”. I like translating these for fun, not for any real reason.
Original story: http://komachi.yomiuri.co.jp/t/2013/0309/578766.htm?g=06
I belong to a hobby club that does both volunteer work and sports. After club activities we go out for lunch together. There is a woman, I’ll call her A, who joined a few months ago. When we were about to leave for lunch I invited her along, but she said “No thanks,” and left. I guessed she had her own plans that day, so I asked her again the next time. She refused again. The next time someone else invited her, but she turned him down. After that yet another person asked to come along, but again she said no.
It occurred to us that maybe she had some personal reasons for turning us down, or maybe she just didn’t want to hang out with us. Anyway, we stopped asking her to join us.
Today after club activities, A came up to B (another member) and I and asked us why we weren’t asking her out to lunch any more. Her expression was sad but her attitude showed she was angry.
B and I told her in surprise that we had stopped asking because we figured it wasn’t convenient for her. B added, “But you can come along today if it’s okay with you,” but A snapped, “I’m not coming! And I won’t be coming to lunch in the future either, but it’s only normal to ask me anyway, isn’t it? I feel like I’m being excluded…” she told us with tears in her eyes. Then she walked off and went home.
Should we invite her every time even though we know she won’t come?
[do not reply]
