It's all in the chemistry, darling!
Tom thinks Mingzhu could be the one for him. She’s just his type. She has beautiful long black hair, big brown eyes and a tiny waist. She is worldly and witty, has an engaging laugh and always dresses with style, as you might expect from a woman raised in Shanghai.
Tom even thinks he’s in with a chance. Why not? He has a great job. He’s not bad looking and he takes a lively interest in other cultures. He’s even lived in China and can speak a little Chinese. True, he does so much travelling that he doesn’t have much leisure time, but that’s because he’s a high flyer. Besides, he makes sacrifices. He’s managed to squeeze in quite a few dates since Christmas, even if it’s meant rushing to meet her straight from the airport.
But he’s losing heart. After all this time he still isn’t sure what Mingzhu feels about him. With any other project he’d be marking off his milestones week by week but with this grilfriend project he’s still trying to define the baseline.
He’s thrown out a few feelers. He invited her to join him on his business jaunts in Budapest, Rome and New York. (She wasn’t crazy about the idea of buying expensive plane tickets.) He asked her how she’d feel about nursing him through his recent cold. (It didn’t ignite any interest.) Most recently, he offered to buy her lunch in a swanky restaurant. (She claimed she was ill and didn’t feel up to it.)
Now he questions her commitment. Maybe it’s time for a little risk management. He’s wondering if he should bail out to avoid serious loss of face.
As for Mingzhu, well, she finds him very likeable. He’s a very decent guy. But the chemistry isn’t there.
When the chemistry isn’t there, what can you do? You just have to go on looking for the one who can create that vital spark.
