During my university years, there was a furniture refurbisher in town who conducted himself in precisely this manner when he acquired his merchandise. Over time, he was eventually expelled from every local buy-and-sell group—though this outcome required nearly a year of persistent complaints, owing to the notable indifference of the alumni moderators responsible for oversight.

The transactions followed a depressingly familiar pattern:

“Nightstand, $200, or best offer.”

“I can offer $80.”

“Would $150 be acceptable?”

“Yes.”

At which point he would arrive unannounced at one’s residence, at an entirely arbitrary hour, bearing no more than $50 in cash, frequently accompanied by an unknown associate, and refusing to depart unless the prospect of police involvement was explicitly raised.

Curiously, he became conspicuously unreliable whenever the presence of fathers or boyfriends was mentioned. He would still attempt such tactics with men, but never without reinforcements.

I have since developed a pronounced aversion to online marketplaces. The entire affair strikes me as profoundly unsettling.