Fran woke up earlier than usual. However, he remained in bed while reminiscing what transpired between Noah and him last night.
The two of them talked for a long time. It was the first time Fran experienced talking to someone over the phone past his usual bedtime. Noah was very vocal about how happy he was upon learning the truth.
Fran buried his head under the pillow when he remembered Noah’s laugh last night. He could feel his face warming up. So, before he could think of more confusing things, Fran decided to get off from his bed.
He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror. Fran could see how red his face had become. His heart was beating fast. He shook his head and tried to calm himself down.
It took a while before Fran could pacify his emotions. He was getting overly sensitive for nothing. He heaved a deep sigh and went to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth.
“Oh? How come you’re already awake, sweetie? Is there something wrong? Are you feeling sick?” asked his mother when she saw him going down the stairs. Her voice was full of concern.
Fran shook his head and gave his mom a smile. “I feel perfectly fine, mom. I just thought, I’d wake up early today to be with you longer before you leave.”
“You’re really a darling, sweetie.” His mom hugged him lovingly. “Are you sure you’re going to be fine without me, hmmm?“ She let him go.
Fran laughed. “I’m a big boy now, mom. Don’t worry about me and enjoy your vacation with Aunt Angie.”
Fran’s mother was scheduled to leave that afternoon. She was set to unwind with her sister in a faraway island for a week.
“I’ll miss you, sweetie. I’ll call you every chance I get, okay? Please always answer my calls.”
Fran chuckled. “What if there’s no signal on the island?“
His mother’s eyes widened in realization and said in a panic voice: “Oh, God, maybe it’s not a good idea to go on vacation at this point—”
“Oops, there’s no turning back, mom.” Fran interrupted his mother. “Just enjoy yourself. I’ll be okay.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Fran… why don’t you join us instead?”
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“Lwww…”
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And of course, Fran had another reason. An unexpected reason he never thought he would be having. Fran could not run away now. He was set to meet Noah.
I’m going to meet Noah tomorrow! Fran thought. A bit of excitement mixed with nervousness rose from the pit of his stomach.
“Fran, sweetie? What are you thinking about?“
He snapped out of his thoughts. “Ah, I’m just thinking about breakfast.” Fran lied.
“Okay, just wait here. I’ll start cooking your favorites for breakfast.” His mom left him and went to the kitchen.
Fran heaved a sigh of relief.
*****
It was a fine Saturday morning. The weather was nice and it seemed like everything in the world was on its right place.
But, Fran was in a dilemma. He had been standing in front of the mirror for almost an hour. And his problem? He was having a hard time choosing what to wear.
It was the day he and Noah were going to meet. So, Fran wanted to look presentable in front of Noah. To the point where he rummaged his entire closet just to choose what to wear.
Should he just settle for something casual like a shirt, shorts, and rubber shoes? Or something formal similar to a suit jacket and the like?
Ah! What was wrong with him? Fran grabbed a handful of his hair out of frustration. Shit. When did he care about what to wear? He was one who never cared about his appearance at all. Why now? Maybe it was because of Noah? Why? That guy was not that special, huh!
Fran bit her lip. Not special, really? Okay, fine.
He was still in the middle of his dilemma when his phone vibrated. Fran grabbed it in a flash and read the message.
“See you in an hour!“ said a message from Noah.
Fran panicked. He only had an hour left? He should hurry up! He didn’t want to make Noah wait for him.
So, Fran decided to wear his usual clothes—a black loose shirt, black jeans, and his worn-out sneakers. So much for his dilly-dallying in front of the mirror!
When he was ready, he went downstairs and looked for the car keys. The restaurant where Fran would meet Noah was a half an hour drive from his house.
Fran got out of the house and locked the front door. He went to the garage and got inside the car. However, another problem presented itself—the car engine wouldn’t start.
When he looked at the time on his phone, he only had forty minutes left. Fran cursed under his breath. He got out of the car and decided to just take a cab. He couldn’t afford to be late.
Good thing, Fran managed to hail a cab immediately. He told the driver about his destination. Fran grabbed his phone to send a reply to Noah. He wrote a simple “See you…” as a response.
However, just a couple of minutes on the road, a traffic accident happened. As a result, the cab Fran was riding got stuck in traffic.
“Mister, is there another route that we can take to avoid this traffic jam? I cannot afford to be late to my appointment.” Fran said to the driver.
The driver smiled at him. “Okay, just leave it to me.”
Fran informed Noah thru text message that he might be late because of the traffic jam. Noah replied with an “Okay, no problem. I’ll wait for you no matter what!” and a smiley.
Fran couldn’t help but smile. Oh, this guy!
When Fran thought that everything would be all right, he was stuck again in another traffic jam. This time, the driver could not do anything. Fran looked at the time. There were only ten minutes left before the appointed time.
Fran handed the driver his fare and got out of the cab. The meeting place was just a few blocks away from where he was, anyway. Instead of getting stuck in traffic, he would just walk his way there.
However, Fran did not expect the volume of people he would encounter while walking. It seemed like there was an event in a nearby store. Kids with their parents flocked the streets. Fran had a hard time passing through.
After successfully passing through the sea of people, Fran was stopped multiple times by several salespersons offering him to patronize their stores. Fran politely declined, though, deep in his heart he was starting to get irritated.
Fran couldn’t help but think something was up. It was as if there was a higher being who was against him meeting Noah. First, his mom’s car wouldn’t start. Next, the road accident that caused him to be stuck in traffic, then, the sea of people who gave him a hard time passing through. Finally, those salespersons who pestered him with their businesses.
When would he be able to see Noah? Fran felt tired.
But would he give up just like that? No! Fran walked faster without looking back.
Finally, with a minute to spare, Fran arrived at his destination. However, he didn’t expect to see a fascinating sight that put him in a better mood instantly.
Fran saw a tall guy pacing back and forth in front of the restaurant. He was looking at his phone, texting someone; concern was evident on his face. Noah was so oblivious of the fact that Fran was already there watching him.
Fran couldn’t help but smile. He didn’t check his phone while walking there, so, he didn’t know how many text messages Noah had send him.
Fran was about to walk towards Noah, when he noticed the thing the latter was holding on his left hand.
It was a single piece of sunflower wrapped in brown paper.
When Fran looked at Noah again, he found the guy looking at him, too. Noah finally noticed his presence.
Inevitably, their eyes met.
Aww I love how his relationship with his mom is so warm….
Man that sounds Soo exhausting…I think God’s teasing him…😆😆..haha
That last part had my heart beating like crazy!!❤️
Love it a lot..
Thanks for the chapter 🥰🥰
💕💕💕
So they are not just meeting again, it’s a date! OMG!
Dear author, I have 2 questions to ask you :
1) How old are they?
2) What do they do for a living?
Probably you mentioned it, but I can’t recall, and I’m too lazy to go back 😉😉
Noah is 21; Fran’s 19. They are both university students 🙂
Thanks 👍 I like it very much
awwwssshhh! I am excited for them!
thanks for the chapter <3
Thank you for the chapter <3
It just wouldn’t be right if everything went smoothly on the first date! It’s like a universal law or something 😄
this is so true