Chapter 3 - Dating games

Things had not worked out and Blake had been sensitive enough at the time; promising not to plague Jared by asking him for explanations before he felt ready to talk about the breakup.

Jared and Rosette's relationship had lasted for only two weeks (an experience which had exhausted him immensely). 

Rosette had wanted to go out almost all the time. If it was not for a dinner date, then it was for a cocktail date or for lunch. 

She just wanted to be out and be entertained at a rate that he knew would leave him completely broke.

So, he had to come up with an excuse for a very abrupt breakup. 

He had tried hard for days on end, in-between the dating, to come up with the best way to do this. It hit him one night, just before he fell asleep. 

There was absolutely no sense in going on, since he was losing money and had made no progress in the 'bed scene'. 

So all this, he realized, would simply have to come to an end. He just could not understand how Rosette could eat so much and still be as thin as a rake.

Rosette was a beautiful girl with chestnut-brown colored hair, smoldering green eyes and long, shapely legs. She would often narrow her eyes alluringly when she looked at Jared across a table in some classy restaurant. 

This would invariably send him into a state of sheer frenzy, as he would fantasize about the prospects of the hidden promises held by those gazes. 

She seldom communicated with words. It seemed as if she was perpetually on a stage all by herself, being simply mesmerizing, because she knew all her good physical qualities. 

Rosette never discussed any matter at length. She changed subjects so quickly, that half of the time Jared had trouble figuring out what exactly they were talking about. Talking to her was perplexing to him. He had felt that the only way he could keep up would be in bed. 

But, how was he going to get there? 

The one moment they would be kissing and touching like pure magic and the next she would be rushing out of the car, because she had to go and get herself ready for a fashion photo shoot, which she had to attend on the following morning. 

The next day she would phone him from a photo shoot location and speak to him as if he was the only man on the planet. This would immediately overwhelm him, because of the promises held by her tone. 

Rosette would then suggest a date, complete with the place she had in mind and make it sound as if it was a matter of life and death to her. She had to see him or perish.

Jared had finally realized on a particular night, that he might never reach his ideals with Rosette. Not with the rate at which they were proceeding. He would simply end up broke and out of breath, probably in a mental institution, he mused, because the mental exhaustion was driving him crazy.

So, he planned on him asking her out on a date for a change. He decided to play the game according to his rules this time. This way he could get to take her out as well as "score" full marks. 

Financially it would be just what he could afford and all would work out well. He would insist that this was the only way in which they should date henceforth. 

She could accept his offer, or get out of his life.

So, he decided that he would ask her out on a picnic. This could be done at any time of the day or night, since there were many parks and open spaces around Pretoria and Johannesburg. They could even go to Fountains Valley nearby. 

This way he could start thinking about repaying his rapidly accumulating debts to his uncle. Frank was an uncle on Jared's mother's side and he spoiled his nephew, because he as an uncle, had no children of his own.

If the picnic date was not within her taste Jared would know once and for all, that he was not going to make much progress with Rosette. He would know that she was really just out to having herself a good time at his expense, whilst calling all the shots herself. 

Jared would then simply let her know that moonlight picnics were his "scene". Nothing else.

So, she had to accept that part of him, or face the fact that it was the end of the two of them as a couple.

However, without Jared ever even remotely anticipating it, Rosette was ahead of him in bringing the situation to an end.

He tried to call her at home in the morning, since she was not working that day and he had hoped that she did not already have plans for the evening. At the same time, he had also hoped that she would show herself out for being a fraud and just let him carry on with his life.

According to her mother, Rosette was not in when Jared tried to phone her at home. 

Later that day, he received an email from Rosette, notifying him that she had an important arts course to attend in Paris, France and that she was grateful of the great times they had shared. 

Just like that. Gone off scot-free with no guilt feelings, he thought. 

He just could not understand it. 

Jared had felt completely flabbergasted for the remainder of the day and well into the evening. 

For the rest of that week he had felt as if he was sleep-walking.

Jared had met Rosette at a party thrown by a friend of his University pal, Lance Petersen. 

He was not open to Blake about his relationships back then. Right now though, he felt the need to confide.

Only after asking her out on a date and her accepting his offer, had he discovered that nobody really knew Rosette well (not that the fact had perturbed him at the time). He had only been too thrilled when she had accepted his invitation to go out dancing.