The woman traveled over 1850 km for the sake of living together with the man, but he disappeared at the last moment
A woman flew 1,850 kilometers to meet a man she had been communicating with online for three years, but he never showed up for their date.
This was reported by SSPDaily.
River Blake, 23, flew across the country from Lafayette, Louisiana, USA, to Rapid City, South Dakota, with a one-way ticket to meet her "gentleman".
She says he paid for the eight-hour flight, but after the man did not show up, River was forced to pay $1,290 to cover the cost of an overnight stay and a ticket home the next day, which she bought at the last minute.
Since then, River has not spoken to him and promises to focus only on her career.
The model from Lafayette, New Orleans, said: "I spent three or four hours at the airport, and when I realized he wasn't coming to get me, I left. I booked a Hilton for two nights, met a nice guy through a friend, and he showed me around the city. It definitely still hurts, but at least I was able to see some of the sights."
The two met in 2019 when the man saw the model in a magazine and was struck by her beauty. They had a lot in common, including a passion for truck shows and a constant presence on social media, which gave them a lot to talk about. Even though they lived in different states, the couple talked almost every day for years and had many mutual friends, which made River believe he was genuine.
She said: "We used to FaceTime every night, but our relationship was a little weird - kind of fake. Sometimes he would disappear for a while and then reappear as if nothing had happened." On February 9, 2024, the boyfriend unexpectedly told her that he wanted to pick her up one way and move her to his place. According to her, he told her that he was building a house and wanted her to come and help him decorate it. He paid for her plane ticket, and on February 17, River left at 5:30 a.m.
"He must have created his dream life that he knew I would be interested in," she says. "And he set it up so that I would go. I had been packing for weeks and months-he wanted me to live with him."
River arrived in Rapid City at 3 p.m. that afternoon and spent the first hour in a cafe working on her laptop. Her date texted her that he was still packing and hadn't left for the airport. But after he sent her a selfie to let her know he was on his way, River noticed that her boyfriend was actually going in the wrong direction. She said: "The airport security kept checking to see if I was okay and I wanted to stay, just in case he actually showed up. He sent me a picture saying he was definitely on his way. But I noticed that the road signs showed that he was heading west, and I was in the east. I knew he had to be traveling in the opposite direction, so I texted him: "I don't think you're really going to pick me up." He didn't reply and we haven't talked since."
River waited at the airport until 19:00 and then paid $290 for a night at a local Hilton hotel. She called a friend who said he knew someone in the area and put them in touch. The couple spent the evening sightseeing, going to local parks, and buying ice cream.
"I still keep in touch with Tucker," says River. "He showed me some good places. I guess all's well that ends well."
She spent the next morning at the airport talking to the same security guard. And at 1 p.m., River headed back on the eight-hour drive to Lafayette. She spent another thousand dollars on last-minute return flight tickets and arrived home at 10 p.m. River said: "I'm a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. It just wasn't my time - and he wasn't my man, after all. Now I'm focused on my career and spending as much time traveling as possible."
