moonflowers and jasmines

• eleven •

merrick slung over a black crossbody bag as he checked out his outfit in the mirror. "looks good, feels good. now, let's not get all wound up about the date. stay cool, stay real, and let's see where the eve goes," he told himself.

his outfit featured an unbuttoned grey button-up shirt, revealing a white t-shirt underneath. the shirt was neatly tucked into a pair of sleek black cargo pants, which gave a slightly edgy feel. complementing the look was a black sling bag, worn across his shoulder, which served an aesthetic and functional purpose. the overall effect was effortlessly cool, with each piece of his attire working harmoniously to create a stylish look.

he locked his dorm room, slid the keys into his bag and headed to their meet-up point - the emrys swings.

yes, their university had face-to-face gliders. these swings were painted maroon and grey, reminiscent of the building's exterior colour. the gliders were lush green, as if in the middle of the woods. and so, while waiting for his crush, merrick admired the delicate white jasmines.

merrick may refrain from socialising with people but, these flowers always gave him company. strangely enough, he has always craved a lover. beneath his cold, mysterious mask lay a vulnerable and soft Merrick. he has always been introverted for as long as he can remember. he didn't feel the need to befriend everyone except one. he had one friend throughout high school who was very close to his heart. But as we age, circumstances change; and his friend parted away from him. 

he was swinging his sentiments away, eyes closed, feeling the breeze plant soft kisses on his face.

suddenly, there was a subtle shift in the air. merrick sensed a presence nearby. instinctively, he opened his eyes, wondering if it was jihan.

there he was, standing a few feet away, scratching his nape.

he wore this beige sweater vest that looked super comfy, layered over a thin white shirt. he paired it with these wide-leg beige pants that matched the vest perfectly and, he had this tote bag with a coffee cup doodle slung over one shoulder. overall, merrick thought he looked super cute and cuddly like a hamster.

he quickly stepped off the swing, his heart skipping a beat. "hey!" he greeted, his voice warm, trying to ease the nervousness in jihan's demeanour. his shy smile in response was so cute that merrick would kiss him right at that instant if he could.

"cute," he commented, adjusting jihan's bangs. "your eyes were covered," he added justifying his actions as if he totally didn't want to feel jihan's soft hair and get a closer look at his tender eyes.

jihan was taken aback by the sudden approach, but he remained still.

whereas merrick, who seemed to put up a confident upfront, was exploding in the insides. his valves would be burst by now for the rate of his heartbeat. so, he slipped his hand back into his pockets to calm himself down.

"shall we go to the cafe?"

- .. -- . / ... -.- .. .--.

on their way to the cafe, merrick was shamelessly waiting for their hands to brush, but jihan's hands were tightly holding onto his tote bag and merrick was also fidgeting with his fingers underneath his pockets.

while waiting for their order in the cafe, merrick was pondering how to strike up a conversation.

should i just ask him if he's into guys?

at last, he decided there needs to be some sort icebreaker before that could happen. he did not want to scare off the already nervous-looking jihan.

oh yeah, his scent, he recalled when he had leaned in to fix Jihan's hair. he could use it as a small talk topic.