His reaction
When Mariah finally came back from the bathroom she took those few steps toward where Malik was sitting. He didn’t watch her as she came back, he was too focused on the game. When she sat down in front of him to continue playing, that’s when it happened, the magical moment.
Malik looked up and saw her for the first time and told her she looked beautiful. He didn’t make a big deal about it, he said that she was more or less crazy for thinking that he wouldn’t like her because of that. In his eyes, it only made her more attractive and unique to him.