Third Date

Story:

What did she like about him? Her friends wanted to know. She raised her

tea to her lips as she paused to think, then smiled, feeling rather sheepish.

How could she choose any one thing and not list them all? She hardly

knew him, of course—tonight was only the third date. But there was such

familiarity between them, as if they’d known each other a lifetime ago and

were simply catching up.

Across the city, he stood over the bathroom sink brushing his teeth, thinking

of her, and noticed something he hadn’t experienced in years: butterflies

in his stomach. He shook his head to himself, laughing. They hardly

knew each other, yet she’d already made a giddy fool of him. He could

hardly wait to see her again.

On the train, she pulled her compact from her purse to check her lipstick

one last time. She brushed a few stray hairs into place, then ruffled her hair

again, wanting to appear thoughtfully—artfully—eĀffortless. She caught the

eye of an auburn-haired lady across the aisle, who clucked to herself, remembering

all the trouble she went to as a girl to look untroubled. The two

women shared a knowing smile.

His anticipation got the better of him, and he arrived to the restaurant

early. As he waited for her—giving his best performance as a levelheaded,

self-assured person—he noticed that the orange-blossom clipping in the

vase on his table gave off the most bewitching scent.

He was not one to notice the scent of a cut flower, typically, yet recently

he’d become attuned to these subtle pleasures. He realised that he’d become

acutely observant. The oxidised cufflink on the elder gentleman that

lives in his building, for one. The choir of birdsong emanating from the

autumnal foliage, competing with the rustling of leaves. The soft, yet

cracked, feel of leather on his well-worn boots. Amused that he’d gotten

himself lost in so many little details, since he was not much of a daydreamer,

he was hardly one to get lost in a reverie.

Then he felt a delicate hand on his shoulder, and he suddenly understood

why.

Pyramid:

Sizes: 100ml
Type: EDP