A friend, a stranger, or someone you might see at the supermarket?

Imagine your partner is curious about meeting someone new. Would you feel safer if it was an old friend? Or an absolute stranger? A stranger comes with fewer shared memories. A friend comes with familiarity, but also birthdays, mutual friends and the awkward possibility of running into one another later. Our keyword scan found mentions of friends, neighbours or colleagues in 3,153 of the archived threads. It does not mean all those people chose someone they knew. It means the subject enters the conversation. The question isn't simply whether you trust the third person. What happens if nothing works out and you still have to see them at a dinner party? And if you choose a stranger, what do you need to know before you feel comfortable meeting? There is no magically uncomplicated option.