The Hanahaki Club: Episode 23
Episode 23: Her Type
Apologies:
I’m really sorry for the sloppy episode last week. I had a bit of a nightmare week at work and completely forgot I hadn’t put in the teaser or the right ‘previous’ or ‘next’ episode links *face palm* . It should be fixed now.
So far…
Merryn has a crush on Sye, who is both her neighbour and her sister’s boyfriend.
Episode 23: Her Type
Merryn
Merryn’s love affair with clothes and fashion started with the wicker dressing-up box she had shared with Leah as a child. It had started with discovering that a pair of heels made her feel like a giant, a plastic tiara with paste crystals made her a princess and a red shirt that had belonged to her father, worn over her shoulders like a cape, gave her superpowers. The door of make-believe had been opened by these hand-me-down scraps and that make-believe had quickly become real-life possibility. Sure, a cape couldn’t really give her superpowers, but a tailored jacket certainly went a long way to making her feel invincible. And although a tiara couldn’t confer on her the rights of royalty, a giant bow or velvet headband never failed to boost her self-confidence. Putting on the right outfit was like putting on the qualities she needed for the day; it helped her become the version of herself that she needed to be to face the general uncertainty of life. The Merryn who was courageous, the Merryn who was playful, the Merryn who was approachable, the Merryn who wasn’t a push-over—they could each be called forth with the right dress, or jeans, or shoes. Her clothes spoke for her, of who she was, how she felt and what she wanted to be. And she believed that was true for everyone, even if they didn’t realise it. When anyone put on an outfit for a day or an occasion, they were sending a message to those they expected to be seen by. And this was why Merryn loved fashion design and why she usually adored helping others to dress up.
But she wasn’t adoring it today. Helping Leah pick an outfit for her date with Sye was not as fun as it was usually. It wasn’t fun at all, in fact, because all Merryn could think about was what Leah was hoping to say to Sye through whichever dress she decided on for the evening.
“Okay, I think it’s between the off-the-shoulder black knit-dress or the blue one with the three-quarter length sleeves and lower neckline.” Leah stood in front of her free-standing long mirror and held up both dresses in turn. “What do you think?”
“Are you going to wear tights?”
“Yes, it’s too cold not too. I’ll either wear ankle boots or my suede knee-length ones.”
“Wear the ankle boots.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, they make your legs look longer.”
“That’s true.”
Merryn watched her sister enviously as she turned to view herself at different angles in the mirror. Both dresses were gorgeous and it was clear that either would probably produce the effect she was going for, if her intention was to get Sye to fall even more in love with her.
Leah frowned at herself in the mirror and then turned to face Merryn who was sitting cross-legged on her bed, hugging Iceberg, the giant white teddy bear that their grandmother had bought Leah for her eighth birthday. “Black or blue?”
Merryn shrugged. “Both look great.”
Leah groaned. “I need you to pick for me!”
“It’s your date, wear whichever one you feel best in.”
“But which one is more date-like?”
“You’re only going to the cinema.” To see a film you promised to see with me—Merryn did not add.
“And then to the Blue Lotus for drinks—it’s a classy bar.”
“They’re both classy dresses… if you accessorise them the right way.”
Leah pouted and Merryn relented with a sigh. “Wear the blue. It brings out your eyes and shows just the right amount of cleavage. You’ll be cold if you wear the black one, Sye will just worry about whether your shoulders are cold the entire time, and then he’ll insist you wear your jacket, and that will defeat the purpose of wearing the dress in the first place, right? ”
Leah wrinkle her nose and turned back to the mirror. “Fair point. The blue it is then, with my sheer tights and ankle boots. But which jacket should I wear? Or would a cardy be better?”
“Please don’t wear a cardy.”
Leah snorted. “You’re wearing a cardigan right now.”
Merryn raised an unimpressed eyebrow as her phone buzzed on the mattress beside her and she reached for it to check the new message. “I’m not on a date,” she said, and it came out a little more bitter than she’d intended. Leah didn’t seem to notice though, simply heading to the wardrobe to put back the black dress and search for an appropriate jacket. Merryn swiped open the text message she had received and barely supressed a squeak of surprise.
Unknown number: Today, 14:57—Hey, this is Taran. From College. Are you free Monday lunch?
Taran was messaging her? And he wanted to meet on Monday?
Merryn frowned and hugged Iceberg tighter. She hadn’t really expected Taran to get in touch. She’d hoped her gesture might encourage him to try the hanahaki support group again, or join the group chat, but she hadn’t thought he would actually reach out to her personally, since he’d seemed so cagey and hostile each of the times she had spoken to him at college. But if he wanted to meet on Monday, he obviously had something specific he wanted to talk about that he didn’t to share over text.
Reply to unknown number: Today, 14:57—Hey! Yeah, I’m free then. M x
Merryn put her phone back on the mattress and buried her nose into the downy fur between Iceberg’s ears. From inside the wardrobe there came a muffled: “Ugh! I don’t have any jackets!” Merryn didn’t reply, but waited for Leah to re-emerge from between the curtain of hanging clothes, still holding the blue dress on its hanger in one hand and a forlorn look on her face.
“Help?”
“I probably have a jacket you can borrow.”
“The embroidered one?”
“Yeah… I’ll go and get it. You should put that on,”—Merryn nodded at the blue dress as she put Iceberg to one side and wriggled off the bed—“Then we can check you’re happy with the whole outfit.”
Merryn slipped out of Leah’s bedroom and down the hallway to her own room where she paused, just over the threshold, to take a careful breath. She tried hard not to imagine the kind of evening Leah and Sye were going to have, just the two of them together, watching the film the three of them had been talking about going to see for the past week. How they would have that as yet another thing to share together, without Merryn. How they would go the the Blue Lotus, get a little tipsy, hold hands in the taxi on the way home, lean against each other, and then kiss at the pillar that separated their garden gates, under the misty white light of the streetlamp. And Leah would be beautiful and alluring, armed with her blue dress and Merryn’s jacket—Merryn’s favourite jacket that she saved for special occasions.
Merryn shook the image from her head and turned to the back of her door to retrieve the garment. She smoothed it with one hand and admired the intricate embroidery on one sleeve for a moment before she headed back to Leah’s room.
“Are you decent?” she asked, as she knocked on the door.
“Never!” Leah quipped.
“Haha,” Merryn deadpanned, before pushing open the door.
“Can you get my zip for me?”
“Sure.” Merryn lay the jacket carefully on the end of the bed and then moved to stand behind Leah, who was holding her hair up off her neck. Merryn zipped up the last inch of the back of the dress and then watched Leah release her hair and tuck it behind her ears as she appraised her figure in the mirror.
“Does I look alright? Is it okay for a date?”
Merryn critically eyed her sister’s reflection in the mirror—the blue dress, her socked feet, the untidy strands of her hair cascading down her back, her face bare of any make-up and an anxious grimace on her face. It was an incomplete picture, missing the final touches that would bring it all together, but already the message was clear: I am desirable, it whispered. I am wanted. I am worthy of adoration and love.
“You look stunning,” Merryn admitted. “Sye is very lucky.”
Leah’s cheeks coloured pink and she gave Merryn a shy smile in the mirror. “I think I’m the lucky one.”
Merryn merely hummed in response and fetched the jacket from the bed. “Here, put this on.” She held up the garment so that Leah could slid easily into it. “There you go—perfect.”
“Thanks, Lil’Sis. I don’t know what I’d do without your help.”
“You’d ruin your outfit with one of your lacklustre cardigans,” Merryn replied honestly. “But you’d still look gorgeous.”
Leah chuckled and spun around so she could wrap her arms around Merryn’s shoulders and give her a squeeze. “Thank you, thank you, thank you! I know Sye doesn’t really care about this stuff, but I want to look nice for our date. I want it to feel like a proper date.”
“Well,” Merryn said, as Leah released her from the hug. “It will certainly look like a proper date—assuming Sye dresses his part too. He’d better bring you flowers.”
Leah made a dismissive noise. “Sye could wear his pyjamas and he’d still look great.”
Merryn didn’t even try to argue with that. “Want me to unzip you?”
“Yes, please.”
Once Leah was stepping out of her dress and and back into her joggers and an old t-shirt, Merryn retrieved her phone from under Iceberg and found she had another message waiting for her.
Unknown number: Today, 15:00—Great. 12:45 OK? Usual place?
The usual place had to mean the Old Gym roof, which made sense if Taran wanted to talk privately. She changed the contact information in her address book and then typed out a quick reply.
Reply to Taran: Today,15:10—Yep. Sure. See you then. M x
Merryn scoffed to herself as she headed towards the door and gave Leah’s date outfit, now hanging up on the front of the wardrobe, a last glance-over. What was an appropriate outfit for a clandestine meeting between two losers, sharing a humiliating secret, on a scummy, old gym rooftop in January? Was there an outfit that could help her fix her broken heart? That could make her feel a little less pathetic and unwanted? That could turn her from a pathetic loser into a winner and survivor of the cruelty of love? If there was such an outfit, such an armour, she was going to find it; and if she couldn’t find it, she would have to design it and make it herself.
Emery
Sent to The Itch: Yesterday, 19:00—Hey, Lila! Are you free next weekend? How about we go shopping. We could get some ice-cream too. You know… so we can get to know each other better… for our bet. Let me know when you’re free. Emery :)
Message read: Yesterday, 19:11.
Sent to MaisieDaisy: Today, 15:29—Still no reply. Should I text again?
MaiseDaisy: Today, 15:45—NO.
Replying to MaisieDaisy: Today, 15:46—Are you sure?
MaiseDaisy: Today, 15:45—YES. You’ll scare her off.
Replying to MaisieDaisy: Today, 15:47—:( Do you think she’s ignoring me?
MaisieDaisy: Today, 15:48—Yes.
Today, 15:48—Probably.
Replying to MaisieDaisy: Today, 15:48—:( But why? I bet she doesn’t treat her other dates like this.
MaisieDasy: Today, 15:49—Stop calling it a date!
Replying to MaisieDaisy: Today, 15:49—Do you think I’m her type? Do you think I CAN get her to like me?
MaisieDaisy: Today, 15:50—I hope so. I don’t see why not. We’ll find out.
Today, 15:49—She’s probably just busy. Stop obsessing. Go and play a game. Forget about it.
Replying to MaisieDaisy: Today, 15:50—:/
Today, 15:50—:( OK.
Next time: Episode 24—What Type?
Teaser:
Bats at a speed-dating event was now an image Remi couldn’t get out of her head.
She wished she was a bat: they could fly, had built-in sonar, didn’t get hanahaki and only had to rock up to a nice damp cave to find requited love.
If she were a bat Gio might actually take an interest in her.
Oh my god, I can’t believe I’m jealous of a bat.
The Hanahaki Club Index
Welcome to the index page of The Hanahaki Club. Please scroll down to find links to each published episode. If you need any help, let me know via the message button at the bottom of the page.
Author’s Notes:
Mum’s old tights + an old bedsheet = instant Batman!
Next time: Episode 24—What Type?
PJ
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