Trials & Turmoil: Part 3 - Down By The Harbour

[As promised, Part 3 is finally up after just about 1234567890 years. If you have not read Parts 1 and 2 yet, you can go ahead and read them here and here. Otherwise, please enjoy the third instalment of "Trials & Turmoil"!]

Leaning up against the wall of the minuscule campus was a slim European male of average height, with a thin frame. He looked up and I could see everything that constituted his attractive face. His eyes were a greenish-brown hue that exuded kindness, set into a fairly pointed face. Oh, and his nose. A nose with such a high bridge and sharp tip, it put Julius Caesar to shame. All those beautiful features painted onto a pale canvas, crowned by short, wavy locks of a dark, ashy brown tone.

I thought he was cute in photos, but he was much cuter in person. I'm pretty sure I felt a flush from the pits of my stomach. I tried to suppress it, yet a sheepish smile still managed to creep right onto my face. As an open-mouth smile curled up on his face, I noticed he had a good set of ivories, despite the visible gums, set within lips that were rather thin. I'd envied how straight and even his gnashers were, and I was positive he never had any dental work done in all of his 25 years.

He very happily greeted me, arms reaching out for a hug. After getting over that slight bit of initial giddiness, we briefly discussed the preferable location and/or activity for our date.

"So, where do you want to go?"
"I'm not really sure, is there anything in particular you want to do?"
"Want to go to Darling Harbour? Are you okay with that?"
"Sure! I finished a major assignment over the weekend, so I don't mind mucking around till a bit later tonight."

In all honesty, I was up for pretty much anything. Even if I didn't just finish a major assignment over the weekend. I'd like to think I'm chill like that. I also just really didn't want to give off a "fusspot" vibe on a first date. Besides, there was something about taking a walk down by the harbour under moonlight that gave that added air of romance. We're romantics, both he and I. This was going to be perfect.

It happened to be a slightly chilly, but very much windy day. I completely regretted not bringing a thicker jacket along for the day. Having reached the harbour and not being able to stand another sudden gust of wind, we decided there and then to hide inside Harbourside Shopping Centre and have a cuppa.

We walked right through the food court, and stumbled upon a Gloria Jean's. I very much appreciated being able to plonk my tush onto comfy single armchairs within the confines of a warm and cosy, albeit generic (sounding hipster, much?) franchised cafe, sipping on a freshly-brewed chai latte - my ultimate favourite. This guy on the other hand, was having a Cookies 'N Creme Chiller. Seriously, as if the weather wasn't cold enough as it was outside.

Making small talk over milk-based drinks was my idea of a simple, pleasant first date. Less distractions meant that I had the opportunity to observe a person's speech pattern and mannerisms, which are two things that keep me focused on the person I am talking to at any one time. A more important determinant in keeping me interested is, of course, the topics they enjoy are similar to mine. We mostly talked about places and cultures we've visited and experienced - we overlapped on Singapore. There was some amount of discussion since his last flight to Sydney was in transit there, and he had 15 hours or so to explore the place. Also, my home town was right across the border from the tiny island in South East Asia, that was also a state and country in itself.

First impressions always count, and I must say that he left a pretty good impression on me. He was quite humble, and very much a gentleman - a very "ladies first" sort of man. From just a first date, I could already tell that he was nowhere near being a condescending, self-obsessed douche bag. I found myself pleasantly surprised with how comfortable I felt around him. Nevermind that he was unusually quiet and I was doing most of the talking, we both felt comfortable enough to take a sip of each other's drinks. Though my chai was slightly diluted for my liking, the spice and cinnamon in it was enough to overpower my taste buds, making his drink seem overbearingly sweet in comparison. My chai latte wasn't quite his cup of tea either (pun intended), so we switched our drinks back around.

After sitting there for a while, long after we'd both finished our drinks, we decided to get out of there. The sun had set, so we had the privilege of taking a stroll along the moonlit harbour. We ended up near a dock just outside the maritime museum, which was already closed for the day. It was a dead end, so we headed back the other way. Water glistening under pale moonlight, he joked about jumping in for a swim.

"You go first."
"No, no, ladies first."
"How about you take the lead?"

We were both kidding, if it wasn't obvious just yet. If your aim was, perhaps, to catch pneumonia, diving into the sea during early spring in New South Wales is a splendid idea. Otherwise, no. Just no.

Nothing much was said afterwards, but I was walking very closely beside him. I even held onto his sleeve, but somehow not onto his arm, and that baffled him somewhat. As we walked along the harbour, we pointed out to each other the restaurants of various cuisines, mainly those of the European variety (because you know, he's European). By the time we started walking across Pyrmont Bridge to the bus stop for me to get home, we found ourselves holding hands - fingers interlocked.

There was most definitely some chemistry happening already.

As he waited with me for my bus to arrive, I was even gifted with a kiss on my right cheek.

"So...do we see each other again?"