i. Daffodil; A new beginning

Jasmine

She hated summer.

Even more than currently being stuck in her grandparents' hometown where all her friends weren't around, still not granted a mobile phone at the age of 16 because her parents thought it would distract her from her studies, and definitely more unbearable than facing her parents' high expectations of herself.

Summer's the worst.

"Aren't you sick of staying in for so long? You haven't taken a step out for days." Her mom walked into the living room and sat down on a bamboo chair beside her with a glass of lemonade in hand. "It's not like you're doing much anyway. You could go for a short walk. The weather's nice out there."

Distracted by the heat, Jasmine didn't immediately register what her mom just said.

She was staring at the lemonade that her mother was chugging down instead, and swallowed thirstily. Jasmine was very tempted for a cold, rejuvenating drink too, but she was feeling too sluggish to go get it from the refrigerator herself.

Honestly, the heat really wasn't the worst thing about summer. It was how it made her feel, unmotivated and not looking forward to anything. It sucks to wake up and go to sleep feeling that way. For days. And then weeks.

Being aimless wasn't a great feeling to have, she realized.

"Not happening." Jasmine fanned herself with a magazine that she was flipping through without paying much attention moments ago, frowning when that didn't help at all. Redirecting lukewarm air back to her face was only making it worse. "Mom, it's summer. It's burning out there. How is it possibly nice?"

Her mom took the magazine out of her hand, gaining a small whine from Jasmine. She was down with nothing to help ease the heat now. Sighing, she sank deeper into the couch.

Her dad spoke up behind the newspaper that shielded his face from her view, after her mom delved into the world of fashion. Jasmine had forgotten that parents came in pairs, always working together.

"Hey, this is the town I grew up in! Just a short walk won't do you much. Go take a look around. You'll like it."

Jasmine let out a small groan, bracing for what was coming next.

"Summer's a great time to have fun. The weather's always sunny, so you won't have to worry about the rain. When I was your age, all the kids were so excited to step out of the house to play during summer. We played in the river, went into the woods and caught many kind of bugs!"

Her dad went on and on about his childhood and how fun summer was. She rolled her eyes, not getting why her parents could be unaffected from the heat, loving summer entirely.

"We are staying for three weeks, no harm in getting to know the town." Her mom pushed a little more.

Jasmine sighed, remembering how her parents had received a call from her grandparents to come over during summer break, thus landing her in such a situation.

For the past few years, she dealt with summer better since she could hide in her room with air conditioners installed. This year though, Jasmine's grandmother expressed how much she missed them, so they had started packing just two days before the trip to make it back as soon as summer break began.

Glancing at her parents with mild irritation, she met their gazes that were expectant.

Guess I didn't really have a choice to begin with.

"Fine, fine. I'll get out." Giving in, she summoned all her willpower to push herself up from the couch with her elbows.

"Be back by five!" Her mom's face brightened up right away, as though expecting her answer. "Bring along your sunhat too, so your face doesn't get exposed to direct sunlight for too long."

By five? I'll be back in less than an hour. Who wants to walk around in a place where they know nothing of for hours?

Despite thinking that way, she knew it was better to not speak of it. Walking out of the living room, she gave a brief reply instead, "'kay,"

She dragged her feet up the stairs tiredly, passing by two rooms before getting to hers.

"Going out?"

A voice caught Jasmine's attention and she stopped her in her tracks.

Taking two steps backwards, she peered into the room she just walked past. "Yeah. Because summer is the best time to have fun outside, according to our parents." Jasmine said dryly. "You studying?"

"Yup," Trevor paused for a second and said, "Well, have fun outside. Try and get yourself tanned, okay? You're too pale for goodness' sake."

"I won't." She rolled her eyes. Her brother always hoped for her to get tanned because she was always fair no matter how long she was under the sun for, while he was always dark-skinned or tanned. Nowadays, he would always say that whenever she was going out.

He laughed, "Fine, fine. Off you go then!"

"See ya."

Jasmine ran down the stairs, hearing a distant 'yeah' along the way. She grabbed the sunhat that was hanging by the clothes' hanger and then bent down to tie up her shoelaces.

There. Ready for an exciting adventure in the outside world.

As soon as she stepped out of the house, the sun kissed her skin. She frowned, looking up at the bright ball of heat hanging in the sky through her fingers, blocking most of the sunlight.

Jasmine immediately regretted her choice, but there was no turning back. Plus, as unbearable as the heat was, at least she was alone. That meant silence and solitude. She loved that, having a time and space for herself.

And so, tossing her annoyance aside, she turned right from her house.

Walking around the town, Jasmine could hear some children's loud and bright laughter mixed with some yelling not far away, probably playing near the playground. As she passed by the park, the noises grew louder. Kids with slightly reddened cheeks were running around, chasing each other while screaming with their high-pitched voices. She didn't get how in the world do kids have such energy when it was so hot.

Cicadas were chirping away when she walked past a small garden. Her gaze lingered on the flowers and plants in the garden for awhile, recognizing a few of them, like sunflowers and daisies. They had blossomed beautifully, presumably under the precious care of someone. Jasmine resisted her urge to walk into the garden, even if she wanted to take a closer look at them out of her love for flowers. She would have posed as weird if anyone saw her.

There were people sitting outside their houses, watering their plants. Some had a plate of watermelons too and were just leisurely talking among themselves as they ate the refreshing fruit. Everything was so summer-like; the people and animals moving about at their own paces.

Beads of sweat formed on her forehead as they slid down her face. She sighed, feeling the exhaustion creeping in already.

Unsurprisingly, the heat didn't subside anytime soon. It wasn't long until her skin was sticky and sweaty, and her head was throbbing a little. She frowned at the headache that was bugging her, confused as she rarely had them before.

Maybe it was the heat. Jasmine wiped her forehead with the back of her hand. A little warm. Going home might be a good idea, but the heat was messing with her mind and she didn't feel like doing so.

Jasmine wandered aimlessly instead, turning wherever she wanted to go, feeling cranky with each step. Her mind was somewhere far, and when she noticed the lessening number of houses at her sides, she finally paid attention to her surroundings.

She had gotten far, probably reaching the outskirts of the town. She was standing on the uneven road that extended straight ahead, with wild grasses growing on each side. To her left was a riverbank. And to her right were a field with patches of flowers and bushes.

Jasmine stopped walking, all the complaints, thoughts of being exhausted and desire to go home slowly faded away, like ice melting under the scorching sun.

The river sparkled under the sunlight, shimmering like it was filled with blue diamonds and gems. She had never seen rivers that looked so bright. The rivers were always dull or dirty in the city she lived in so this was a fresh and mesmerizing sight.

Jasmine could have walked down if there were stairs or a road leading down to the riverbank, but unfortunately there was none in sight and she didn't want to jump off from the road now. The migraine was killing her, and she didn't want to risk slipping off.

And so she turned the other way.

The field on her right was equally as stunning. With the green grass growing at the right length now added with patches of different colored flowers, it looked almost like a painting. From a distance, it resembled a green canvas with white, red, yellow, pink, orange in different shades.

Despite how unpleasant summer was in the countryside, Jasmine did like one thing about it. The nature. She took in a deep breath, inhaling the grassy and earthy scent in the air, her headache disappearing with each second passing.

Most of her friends didn't appreciate nature as much as she did, but it was understandable since they lived in a city with skyscrapers instead of mountains and rivers as sceneries. And so there weren't many chances for her to express and enjoy her love for it.

Jasmine didn't know where she was, but for once, she was glad she stumbled upon this place. It was relaxing, comforting and above all, beautiful. This kind of peace was never found in the city where she lived in. Everyone was always going somewhere in such a hurry. There was always no time to stop and look around. It felt nice to be able to unwind and slow down like this, appreciating things the way they should had been.

Coming back to her senses moments later, she continued walking straight ahead, wondering if there would be anything else.

There was.

From afar, she could see a shop. It wasn't big and it was hidden from the town. She squinted to take a better look as it appeared a little blurry from far, but winced a little when the dizziness and headaches from before returned.

Shaking it off, she walked closer to the entrance and found a wooden sign with beautiful but worn out carvings hanging above the door.

Astilbe Florist Shop.

Jasmine caught a glimpse at the inside of the flower shop, though her view mostly blocked by the flowers on display by the large glass window. They were bright and colourful even through a layer of glass window. There were also small flower pots outside the shop, making it look very cozy and welcoming even from outside.

As simple as the shop seemed, Jasmine felt attracted to it, unable to keep her eyes off it.

She took two steps towards to the door, her hand reaching out to push open it with the intention to walk in, but she realized the 'Closed' sign hanging on it and stopped. Disappointment washed over her, but she refused to leave just yet. The flowers growing in the pots were beautiful, and she wondered how the ones inside would look. The desire to see the flowers was strong and she didn't want to leave before taking a glimpse at them.

"Hey," a voice came from behind her, causing her to flinch. "It's closed."

A pang of dizziness hit her as she turned around, and her legs grew weak.

Uriah

It never occurred to him that there would be a customer waiting outside his flower shop. It was usually deserted since it was located at the outskirts of the town where few would visit, save for some of his regular customers who always called before coming. He was sure no one called him today.

Uriah pulled himself out of his thoughts, directing his attention instead on the girl who was still waiting with her back facing him.

She was wearing a turquoise tank top and denim shorts. Her long hair fell on her back, with stray strands messily all over the place. What caught his eye the most was her hair colour, light caramel blonde. It resembled the golden brown shade when sunlight shone on trees. Coupled with her fair skin, it really stood out.

Uriah would have welcomed her in right away if it was any other day even without prior appointment, but today just wasn't the right time. Reluctance danced in his heart, but conscience tugged at it. Seeing that she was still staring at the door, without a choice, he called out, "Hey," she flinched. "It's closed."

The girl turned around and Uriah was ready to apologize as the shop wasn't open for business today, but the second their gazes met, he noticed her reddened cheeks and rough, shallow breathings.

She stared at him with glazed eyes, causing him to wonder if she even heard what he said. Uriah stood there awkwardly, not knowing what to do if she didn't understand him or refused to leave.

Much to his relief, she spoke again after a short pause, "When will it be open for business?"

Now it was his turn to not know what to say. Uriah looked down at his feet, frowning. When exactly? He wasn't sure either. Not after what happened. He didn't know if he should or needed to. How long could he keep this business running anyway? Everything seemed to have lost its meaning.

When his gaze flickered upwards, he found her still looking straight at him with her hazel eyes, but he had no definite answer yet. Feeling uncomfortable from her stare somehow, he hurriedly made something up, "Maybe in a week or two."

"Maybe?" She widened her eyes, clearly surprised but he didn't blame her.

He felt the same way. For the past two years, even when he was sick, he still opened the shop every single day without fail. He had nothing else but this flower shop left, so it became a habit or more like a drive for him in life. He never really envisioned his life without it, so hearing that coming out of his own mouth shocked himself as well.

His heart sank a little. Did the world wanted to take away the last thing that was important to him too?

"Uh, yeah," Uriah added, "Sorry about that. There are some issues with the flowers." It was a lie, but he was too tired to care about a lie or two. She was just a stranger and he had had enough of the day. Uriah wanted to make her leave, so he could go in, and unwind in his own safe world.

"Oh, okay." Her tone was flat, and she looked disappointed or possibly dejected. That look of hers made him feel guilty. He almost felt like opening the shop to let her in. Almost.

"Are you the owner?" Her question threw him off guard as he snapped out of his thoughts.

He nodded a little hesitantly, puzzled by her question.

"Since you're here, can I just take a quick look inside? I don't mind if there aren't many flowers."

"Well..." Uriah's steel blue eyes softened, his conscience tugging on his heartstrings in the form of a small voice, trying to convince him to just give in. Her eyes were so expectant and sincere. Rejecting her would be a decision he would surely come to regret when he could think clearly again.

Sighing internally, he gave her a small but weary smile. "Alright. Give me a minute."

Her face lit up, and for some reason, Uriah felt like he did the right thing, despite his day that were going terribly wrong. She looked more her age -- 15, he guessed -- when she smiled instead of being puzzled and troubled.

At least he could give someone a little happiness, right? Even if he couldn't smile today, maybe he could make her smile. It would be much better than making someone disappointed with his own misery.

With a more genuine smile, Uriah unlocked the door and turned around, wanting to usher her in. That was when he realized she wasn't standing there anymore.

His smile faded as she found her lying on the ground, unconscious.