Mel wasn't meant sure what feeling was bubbling up inside him when he met Mary. He'd always been able to feel a range of emotions, despite his lack of expressing them but with Mary, it was a whole new feeling altogether. Or maybe a mixture of so many - yes, that's it. He didn't know how obvious those feelings looked to other emojis, with a select few teasing him about it, saying a multitude of things like how he 'lights up' whenever Mary comes in the room and how he 'dulls down' whenever she leaves, others even pointing out the awkward and nervous mannerisms that emerge whenever he builds up the courage to talk to her.
He ignored those comments, naturally, though that doesn't mean he didn't believe they were true. Because they were, admittedly. He did feel a sense of nervousness when talking to her, a tiny bit of insecurity welling up inside him whenever he said anything that he would scold himself about later due to it being so embarrassing. He also felt a lot happier whenever she came in the room, like his day had just been made brighter due to her presence, despite her not seeming all too interested in being in the room in the first place.
It was...weird. Confusing, even, for him to be feeling such strong and flurried emotions around her. After all, there wasn't anything special he could think about her that could've possibly made him swoon and yet-
Mel's train of thought stopped when he felt a presence beside him. Curious, he peeled his eyes away from the wall to find-
"Mary."
The short-haired emoji turned to look at him with a rather bored expression on her face, waving politely at his call before looking away just as quickly, focusing on the magazine in her hands instead and Mel continued staring at her dumbfoundedly.
Mel's heart raced at the close proximity between the two of them. Normally, Mary would be doing her own thing, be it reading a magazine like how she was doing now or talking to someone else, and Mel would be off in the distance stealing glances at her discreetly but this time, Mary was sitting right beside him, the small couch making both their shoulders and legs touch in a way that shouldn't be so nerve-wracking for him but, unfortunately, it was.
Mary didn't seem to notice, too engrossed in her magazine to sense the screaming aura of Mel but then that just made him feel worse because of that would mean he could only suffer in silence while his mind rewired itself as if he were back in his hormonal highschool phase crushing over every person he found attractive. He wondered why Alex hadn't pulled up his phone yet so he'd have an excuse to leave.
"Your leg is shaking." It took all of Mel's willpower not to flinch at the familiar and oh so clear voice of the woman beside him and he turned to face her, his face bearing a similar mask of indifference, in contrast to his actual feelings deep down
"It calms me down." He admitted, omitting the other details regarding his growing affection towards her and how it's affecting every single thing about him.
As the minutes continued ticking by, the room seemed to grow both larger and smaller at the same time. Larger, because Mel's awareness of Mary's presence consumed his thoughts, making every second feel like an eternity and smaller, because he was acutely aware of the confined space they shared on the couch, the closeness amplifying his awareness of her every movement, taking note of every breath she took and every page she turned.
With his heart pounding like a drum, Mel shifted his gaze back to the wall, his fingers fidgeting ever so slightly. He willed himself to appear calm, to not let the emotions inside him show on his face, both for himself and as not to freak her out.
A few moments passed in silence, with the only sound in the room being the rustling of Mary's magazine pages. He yearned to start a conversation, he really did, but his words remained trapped behind the wall of nervousness he wished he never built for himself. Curses, Mel. He thought to himself. At least say hi!
