After enduring a few short-lived encounters and even being deceived by profile information, I finally met a man I could date.
The first guy I met about six months after signing up for the dating app. He was older and ran a trading business. Back then, I used to post photos of low-carb dishes and my opinions on current events in the app’s diary feature. He seemed to enjoy reading them. When we first met, he showed up in a pitch-black Mercedes, wearing sunglasses and a black suit. At first, I thought he was involved in organized crime, but his enthusiastic greeting, “I’ve always wanted to meet you!”, made me decide to date him.
On our second date, he proposed marriage, which was shocking yet efficient, so I accepted and asked him to buy an engagement ring. On the third date, we went to a famous jewelry store his acquaintance managed, and we bought a ring. After that, we both visited each other’s parents.
Just when I thought things were going smoothly and we might actually get married, his enthusiasm suddenly waned. He began cancelling dates and even insinuated that I was after his money. One of his employees forwarded an email to me suggesting that the boss was being fooled, asking what I thought.
“Are you kidding? You’re the one who actively pursued me. And you’ve never seen my bank information, have you?” I was furious.
Eventually, he completely lost interest and started ignoring my LINE messages. I also stopped chasing him, and our relationship just faded away. Although friends suggested suing for emotional damages, I didn’t want any further involvement, so I left it at that. I sold the ring I received on Mercari but only got about one-third of its original value.
Regaining my spirits, I re-registered on the dating app. After meeting several people, about six months later, I matched with a man who was four years older and worked for a major foreign IT company. Our first date was tea at a café, the second was a shabu-shabu meal, and the third was a movie in the city followed by dinner at a Japanese restaurant. He confessed his feelings then, and we started dating. He proposed marriage soon after, mentioning he had been going to a marriage agency for three years with no luck.
We met 1-2 times a week, and he frequently traveled over an hour from his place or office to mine. We went on various outings and received gifts. After about six months, when I asked about his intentions towards marriage, he said he was interested. I handed him a proposal plan at the restaurant, but his enthusiasm again cooled off.
One day, he texted saying he was on a long-term business trip in Sendai with an indefinite return date. I had a hunch it might be a lie. Throughout the trip, he never initiated contact, only replying briefly when I reached out. I felt hurt and realized that he had no intention of continuing the relationship.
Despite initially dating both men with the intent of marriage, both relationships faded away. While this may seem unlucky, I learned a lot from these relationships and was relieved that I didn’t end up marrying someone fickle. In the end, I met my current husband and am now happily married. I never discussed my assets or stock trading with either man. My lifestyle hasn’t changed since my first job, and during my search for a partner, I lived in an old apartment far from the city center. Both probably fully believed my cover story about making a living through online auctions.
