This is about dates after the second one, so it may not have anything to do with the club, but has the quality of women at clubs been declining lately? Are things becoming more like dating apps? I feel like there have been a lot of last-minute cancellations. This is my second last-minute cancellation this week.

I’m Dai, a male member. Having your date cancel at the last minute for the second time this week is certainly a lot. Before questioning the quality of the women at the club, it might be worth considering why they’re canceling on you. You confirmed the date the day before and everything seemed fine, but then you were blocked right around the scheduled time on the day of the date. Could it be that something urgent came up at work and she couldn’t make it, but she was afraid you’d get angry if she suggested rescheduling, so she blocked you on LINE instead? From a professional standpoint, you’d think she should apologize properly, even if it meant being scolded. But I think some women may decide it’s easier to cut contact if they’re going to get yelled at anyway. I’m not saying this applies to all of them, but it does seem to be more common among women without much experience as working adults.

There may be various factors, but the problem lies with the person who cancels at the last minute. A sensible woman would already know from the start if she found you unattractive or thought the allowance was too low, so she simply wouldn’t make plans in the first place. The kind of person who thinks, “I’m not really interested, but I’ll keep this appointment as a backup. If something else comes up or I don’t feel like going, I just won’t show up,” is the kind who cancels without a second thought. You may be focusing on women who seem likely to pose that kind of risk. At the very least, why not look toward women who are old enough that you’re more likely to find someone with basic common sense? As for your own appeal and the allowance you offer, that’s a separate issue—you can work on improving those yourself.

I’m Maezawa from the CEO’s office, and I’ll answer this as well. > Were you told about something like a cancellation policy for the second date onward? The way you phrased that gives off a slightly overbearing vibe. You don’t seem very gentle, and you come across as the type who pushes things through on your own terms. Was there actually a work contract involved for you to be talking about a “cancellation policy”? You’re dealing with a man and a woman, so I think you also need to make more of an effort to meet the woman halfway. > We discussed and agreed on the terms before this date. What were those terms? I suspect they were terms she really couldn’t accept. You may think, “Then why didn’t she just say so?” But apparently, it’s not that easy for her to say. Once she had made the promise, she probably intended to go, but eventually decided that she really couldn’t do it after all. That’s likely why she canceled at the last minute. First, if you can’t change your overbearing attitude, you need to offer a higher allowance than other men. That’s important. Use your allowance to make up for your lack of appeal. If someone else tells you that, you may think, “That can’t be true,” but that’s simply how reality works. Being canceled on at the last minute is proof that you weren’t appealing enough, and I imagine your allowance was low as well. If either one of those were better than what other men offered, she wouldn’t have canceled on you. When the subject of increasing the allowance comes up, many men seem to think that’s not the point. If so, then improve your character. Improving your character is difficult, which is why I’m suggesting increasing the allowance instead. If you lack character, try to be stingy with the allowance, and refuse to listen to what others tell you, then you should probably accept that things won’t go well with women in the future either. That said, there’s no accounting for taste, so if you make offers to around 100 women, you may find one who works out. What you do is up to you.

I’m Paper Airplane, a male member. People often say pitchers and athletes from the past were amazing and fast. That said, pitch speeds and 100-meter sprint times are actually far better now. The overall quality of everything may have improved. If anything, us papas who haven’t changed may be the ones who’ve regressed. With papa-katsu (compensated dating in Japan), I think it’s best to assume that if you get stood up, it was partly your fault—you made them feel so reluctant to meet that they couldn’t even be bothered to message and cancel. If they felt even a little grateful, they probably wouldn’t stand you up on the second meeting. If you keep blaming the other person, you’ll probably get stood up again.

I’m Flag Maker, a column writer. I understand how you feel. Someone once canceled our second date at the last minute, then apologized afterward. So I agreed to reschedule—but they canceled our third date at the last minute too. I got hit with a double dose of last-minute cancellations. For the full story, check out the column and the comments here: https://universe-club.jp/column/consecutivedefeats The first last-minute cancellation is pretty upsetting, but for some reason, the second one just made me laugh lol. Whenever a date gets canceled at the last minute, I have a habit of treating myself to Tenkaippin’s rich, heavy ramen.

I’m columnist Fuu. There will always be some last-minute cancellations, but having one happen on a second date is pretty unusual. I’ve experienced a few last-minute cancellations after an initial offer, but a second time is rare. Usually, they’ll at least let you know they can’t make it or ask to reschedule, right? I completely understand why being stood up makes you wish you’d offered to meet someone else. Unfortunately, luck plays a part in these things. Don’t let it get you down—if you keep making offers, you’ll meet a great girl eventually. With the financial means of a black-tier member, I think you could date someone who would still come meet you at short notice, even on the same day as a cancellation. I can’t do that myself, but from reading other members’ columns, some of them have built relationships with girls who have enough flexibility to come when a cancellation happens. P.S. Flag-san, Tenkaippin—haha, I totally get it! I stop eating garlic about three days before a date, so I’ve been craving some rich ramen like crazy. I used to drink away my frustration, but from now on, I’m going to hit Tenkaippin after a last-minute cancellation!

I’m Nana Ayase ♡ Last-minute cancellations… They really do happen, huh? (sweat) Could it be that you’re offering to meet girls who are very young? Maybe they’re so young that they don’t understand the value of time and money. Why not try offering to someone a little older?

I’m in Seattle. If she canceled at the last minute after you’d already made plans, then she’s in the wrong. If she’s still a member, leave feedback even if it was only your second meeting—for the sake of future members.