4. Chapter Three

Chapter Three

T he next day, after meeting my new neighbor, was my shift at Mary's flower shop. I usually worked the register, which meant that I greeted people and helped them find the right flowers for whatever special event or occasion they had. At first, it was difficult to talk to the people who came in because I still felt so incredibly broken on the inside. Slowly, I was able to find a balance, though, and I did fine at the flower shop I had always adored. At least there, things had not changed.

The bell on the door chimed around three in the afternoon as I was helping Mr. Lukas with his monthly order of flowers. That day, he chose twelve lilies for his wife. I was always a sucker for Mr. Lukas; he was pushing eighty years old and always came in with a beaming smile, a straw hat, and suspenders. Without fail, every month, he bought flowers for his wife. We had many "recurring" clients as Mary liked to call them. Some of them were not so honorable and as endearing as Mr. Lukas. There was one man in his thirties who never left his name and always paid in cash, but who purchased lots and lots of flowers with notes attached, saying he was sorry . I didn't really know what to make of him, but I left it to my imagination each time, and the answer wasn't ever good. But, I loved Mr. Lukas, and it was the best to get to help him, myself.

"Thank you, Emma. Dottie will love these," he said with a smile.

"You're welcome, Mr. Lukas—Only the best for Dottie!" I waved as he walked out the front door, lilies in hand. What would it feel like to be loved like that? I sighed and leaned my arm on the counter, thinking about how incredible their lives must have been together and wondering if I would ever experience a love like that. Happiness flowed through me then, and I embraced the feeling, although it felt new and odd.

"Excuse me, Emma," I glanced up at the voice.

"Oh, I am sorry, sir—" I began to say—then, once registering who was in front of me, my mouth dropped open. It was him, Shad, my new neighbor. I felt my body jolt a little at seeing him there, being near him again. My heart had not quieted since I had seen him the day before when I bumped into him, literally. His presence sent my heart racing. Then a song, a melody, floated to me, the one I had created just for him. The melody was so beautiful that I had to fight the urge to hum each note.

His black hair fell flawlessly to his eyebrows on either side, parted in the middle with volume that made it look effortlessly styled. His jaw was perfectly defined, and his eyes looked into my own. He held himself with ease. Confidence radiated from his entire being. My heart started to beat even quicker, like it was about to explode from my chest. Clearly I was very attracted to Shad. That's all this reaction is.

"Hello again, Emma. I need to buy a flower. I was hoping you would not mind assisting me?" His voice was like hot chocolate: rich and warm. He put his hands in his pockets, legs spread apart a little, in a stance that seemed to demand attention. He wore tan dress pants, which fit his body as if they were tailored to his specific dimensions; tucked into those pants was a gray, button-down, collared shirt with a black, tie. I rarely had ever seen a boy my age dress that way, other than for a formal dance.

Perhaps he goes to a prep school that requires a uniform? But it is summer–

Maybe he isn't my age , I thought. He looks absolutely perfect. Did he just step out of a magazine ad?

"Oh, yes. You have come to the right place, then." I tried to sound professional, but instead, I sounded like I'd just been running. I was so out of breath, and I was sure that my heart wanted to attack me from the inside out, just to reach him, which made it kind of hard to speak.

I looked down at my chest, thinking: this is such a strange feeling . For so long, I had felt nothing. Now, my body is trying to kill me. Is this what heartbreak means? Like, your heart literally breaking away from your chest ? I shook my head. That is a little gruesome—tone it down, Emma. Everything is alright; he's just a boy.

Is he, though? I pushed that thought away.

"I have heard that this is the place." He leaned his elbows on the counter, his face still far from me but close enough that I needed to step back to get some space. "I still haven't gotten my wish yet," he smiled. "I'm not sure that the wish granting pixies like me very much," he said with a handsome little smirk as if he wanted to smile but held it back. It was incredibly attractive–everything about him was.

"Oh, well, it can take some time," I said just barely, trying to steady my breathing at his reference to the pixies' dandelion wish from our first meeting.

"Well, I am counting on that wish." He winked at me, and the annoying heat beneath my cheeks crept upward, and I knew they were probably a bright, unpleasant, and obvious crimson color. "A flower shop in a city named Roseville—that must not be a coincidence, Emma," he said with a smirk. As he spoke, all my insides turned to goo. The sound of his voice saying my name made me lose all of the cool I had managed to retain.

Something is wrong with me. I need to see a doctor.

The name of Mary's flower shop was The Rose Village, so obviously, it was very much inspired by the name of our city.

Come on, Emma, get a grip on yourself, and don't look like a complete idiot, please. I begged myself, Please, act cool.

"Yes, well, I guess my aunt was inspired. I love roses," I blurted out that last part for no apparent reason and wanted to hit myself in the head for it. Why is speaking so difficult?

"Roses are very beautiful. Can I get one rose, please?"

I nodded as he pulled his elbows from off the counter.

"We have a fresh selection right over there," I said, pointing to a display.

"I saw that. Do you think you could pick out the best one for me? I am not sure which one I want."

I walked from behind the counter and was grateful that on that specific day I had worn a cuter outfit than just a t-shirt and cut-off jean shorts. I wore a light pink floral summer dress, simple but pretty enough. It was incredibly hot in the summer, and I had learned that dresses were always the way to go when the heat made it unbearable. Mary warned me that it would be over one-hundred degrees that day, so I had also pulled my hair up with a clip haphazardly, which I hoped, at that moment, looked halfway decent.

"Of course, that is what I am here for. So, to help you, it would be good to know what the rose is for—" I trailed off. Why do I wish that it isn't for some girl? Maybe, it's for his mom. I laughed on the inside. Who bought a single rose for their mom? Well, maybe it's her birthday, I told myself, hopeful .

"Oh, it's for me," he said, emanating confidence as if it was the coolest thing in the world for a guy to buy himself a flower.

"Yourself? You have a habit of buying yourself roses?" I raised an eyebrow, unable to stop my curiosity.

"I wouldn't call it a habit so much, but a hobby, yes."

I couldn't get enough of his voice. Now, that is a man, a man—buying himself a rose. "A hobby?"

"Yes."

"Never heard of that one," I said, tucking a loose strand of hair behind my ear.

"It's new," his eyes captured mine, and I thought I would faint. I tried to act normal, but who was I kidding? Normal? I was not normal.

"Well, then uh, any flower should work then, uh sir ." I motioned to the flowers in the crates beside us.

"Shad," he said, looking into my eyes, and he seemed to take a glimpse into my soul, making me think that quite possibly, the eyes, very much, were windows to the soul .

"Excuse me?" I gulped.

"My name, Emma. It's Shad."

"Oh, Shad, right—sorry." I tried to keep my mind off of his soul as well as mine and back onto the subject of flowers and roses. We are talking about roses. Breathing in deeply to clear my thoughts, I continued: "What is your favorite color, then?"

"It just recently became green," he answered with what was becoming a familiar look from him–his lips pulled up on one side, as if he knew something about his statement that I didn't.

"Oh, well, there are no green roses. Oh, I know!" I smiled as I awkwardly ran-walked to the register. We had a pamphlet that showed each rose along with the meaning behind each color. I pulled the paper out from a stack behind the counter. "I made these last year and totally forgot about them." I handed the pamphlet to him, a little out of breath, tucking another strand of loose hair behind my ear. Shad read it over. He wandered over to the display of roses for a little while, and I remained at the register, watching him. He had an air about him, which I couldn't really put into words, and I wanted to know him, really know him.

Who is he?

It had to be what it felt like in those books I had heard about. I read one vampire and fae book a few years earlier on my best friend's dare. It felt like that. Was Shad a vampire , luring me to him only to drain my blood?

No–

He couldn't have been a vampire–the sun was shining on him. That was a thing I read about in the book, and let's be honest, I read the entire six book series because there was a love triangle, and I had to know if she ended up with the boy who I wanted her to end up with. She did; it was a good series, and it fascinated me, all the emotions that were portrayed, all the feelings, feelings I had never had for anyone but secretly wanted to have. Of course, I didn't tell Ryker my best friend, that I had read the whole series. He only made fun of it, anyway, and I did not need him to pester me daily about liking a vampire, fae romance. Ryker may have been my best friend, but he was a boy, and not someone who I could gush about book boyfriends with.

Anyway, things like vampires and fae of course were not real. They were fiction. Yes, Shad was just a normal human being, and I was crazy. Hopefully, I could keep my crazy to myself. He did not need to know what was happening within my mind–that I wondered if he was a vampire or some other magical being, putting some spell upon me–which made me insanely attracted to him.

"I think this one is perfect," he smiled, waving a lavender rose in his hand.

You're perfect— I pushed that thought away, worried that it might spill from my mouth.

"Great choice. It's a beautiful one," I noted as I rang him up. He caught my eyes again and gave me a wickedly beautiful smile. This boy is going to be my end for sure. Gah, I love his smiles and smirks. Those lips–

"Yes, Emma, beautiful indeed."

A shiver danced through me. What is wrong with me?

He left, stepping through the door, and while my heart moved to a normal rhythm after his departure, I could not help but remember how he had jump-started my heart only a day earlier. Could he know what a gift that was? That was magical in and of itself. I could not help but stare at the door, the space where he had just been a moment earlier, and I missed him. I shook my head in embarrassment.

This is crazy. You cannot miss someone you don't even know, Emma.

Two hours later, I closed up the shop for the night, feeling lighter and happier for the first time in months, all because of Shad's visit. Summer meant it was still light out when I locked up, which I was grateful for, especially since my mind was thinking about all kinds of fantasy creatures lurking about. Maybe I should stop reading fantasy—but I loved it.

I reached the car as I was still debating the possibilities of Shad being magical versus me needing to lay off fantasy books when I noticed there was something on the windshield of my car. I stopped dead in my tracks as I looked and saw there, lying upon the car, a lavender rose. Underneath the rose was the pamphlet I had given Shad, folded carefully to reveal the meaning behind the lavender rose, which I had not remembered until that moment:

Lavender Rose: Love at first sight, enchantment.

I dropped the paper.

No. No way! He did this?

Joy and excitement raced through me.

I could not move for a full five minutes with my mouth hanging open. I stared at that delicate blossom which had been left on my car. I was partly in shock again because what seemed like my new heart, which liked to thump and pump incredibly loud in my chest, began pounding again. The new song I had created in my head just for Shad, played loudly, swirling within me. Finally, shaking off the stupor, I opened the car door and got inside. I sat down in the driver's seat, with the lavender rose clutched in my hand. I closed my eyes and listened to the beating of my heart, keeping perfect time to his song I made up inside of me.

Maybe magic was just in books, but this feels magical to me.