About a year ago, I went out for coffee in the Hague with an acquaintance. We had a pleasant chat for half an hour or so, and when we parted ways my companion kindly picked up the bill, which came to about six euros. I thanked him, of course, but thought nothing further of it: paying for someone’s coffee seemed to me a minor gesture of kindness, a bit like holding the door open for a stranger. On the tram home afterwards, however, I was amazed when my phone pinged with a message from him: a payment request…

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