Rose Red

It all started with a French movie. A beautiful young girl who had a double life as a prostitute hid it from her family and school friends. It was like a game. At the end when her game is exposed, there is a scene in which an older woman, wife to one of her clients tells her that she wishes she had been as brave as her in her youth, brave enough to make men pay to be with her.

Sofia watched this in her best friends’ bed, wearing flamingo patterned pajamas and eating cheese puffs, and all of a sudden, she craved the glamour of a hidden life. She was so bored by this time, always going on dates with men her own age who were trying so hard to impress her but never really doing so. She was so good at first dates, her deep black eyes and perfect figure would always draw them in, and she could always sense that the men she dated were intimidated by her. They were so desperate in the most unattractive way. She realized now she wanted to take this power to the next level, just like the girl in the movie. If she was going to go on dates she didn’t really enjoy and sleep with men she hardly liked, why not at least make it interesting and make them pay for it?

She now had her own game. She had done it twice before by now. First there was 55-year-old George, a recently divorced owner of a publishing business who lived by himself in a stunning Mayfair house. He still kept his wife’s pictures everywhere in the house. This had lasted for about a month of weekly dates in expensive restaurants, and thousands of pounds he gave her as gifts. Then there was Adam, a 49-year-old CEO of a consultancy firm who showed up to their first date in a white sports car and gifted her jewelry every time they met. He had to move abroad suddenly; she didn’t ask him why.

The novelty had not worn off and now she was texting her potential third. It was easy enough to find these men, there were so many websites for this kind of thing these days. She had been texting with Alan2479 for a week and tonight they would finally meet. These first dates actually made her a bit nervous. For the first time she felt like she had to impress her dates. They were successful men, not boys who worked in cafes and had no idea what they wanted from life. Alan2479 was an American fintech company owner who was in London for a couple of months branching out his business. Or at least that’s what he said he did, she couldn’t be sure until she met him. She had set up her game well by now, she always asked to have a first date on a weekday so she could use the excuse of having to get up early for work the next day if she wanted to leave. She would finish work at 6 and go down a few floors from where her company was in the building. She would change into a tight black dress, designer heels that the last guy gifted her and lacey lingerie she packed in her handbag from the night before. She let her hair down and put on deep red lipstick, fixing her makeup in the locked cubicle. She loved making the change from wearing her every day plain office clothes to this dress that made her feel so sexy and beautiful. She was like Clark Kent going into her own phone booth and emerging as Superman, only her superpowers were her beauty and charm. She would hide this dress under her trench coat while she left her office building, making sure no one would know.

She was now on the tube on her way to the restaurant in Leicester Square, her heart beating with anticipation. She had her evening planned; she had checked the restaurant menu online the night before. She would order a glass of velvety Merlot that would make her lips even a deeper red. She would have the venison and the sorbet for dessert. In her real life she was vegetarian, but this girl in the black dress was a completely different person.

She checked herself in her little round mirror one more time before walking in and ran her fingers through her long wavy hair.

‘Here we go!’

The parlor smelled of lime and mandarin. A young man greeted her.

Do you have a reservation?

He was the type she would date in her real life. Handsome and disappointingly dull, he would take her to the local pub and try to impress her with stories from uni.

I do. It should be for Alan; I think he’s already here.

Yes, follow me please.

There he was, sitting at a table in the corner, greying hair and crisp suit. His face lit up as she was shown to the table. She noticed a long rectangular box with a bow placed next to his glass. He was drinking a deep red wine. She liked him already. She could feel the judging look of the young waiter as he handed them the drinks menu.

It’s nice to meet you Alan, I’m Rose.