Red Roses ~ Roses are the quintessential flower to present to someone you love -- the red variety is actually known as the lover's rose. A multicolored rose bouquet could hold several meanings, however. White roses signify humility and innocence; yellow roses mean friendship and joy; pink roses tell a tale of gratitude, appreciation, or admiration; and purple roses (paired with white lilac flowers) are for someone you're enchanted with -- or fell in love with at first sight

Maroon came to the garden the following day, and the day after that, and the day after that. He was nothing like everyone says he is: he kind-hearted, funny, and overall amazing. We started to form a close friendship with each other, and even though it is wrong, I couldn't help but be excited at the thought of seeing him!

   But weeks have passed since I last saw Maroon. I went to the garden every day in hopes he'd come, but he never did...

   I don't know even know why I want to see him anyways. He's a demon, I'm an angel, we are complete opposites and yet...I miss his company.

   It was night, and I laid on my bed with my sheets all around me. The only warmth I had came from my wings that wrapped around my small figure. My body felt tired yet my mind was so awake. I couldn't stop thinking of...him.

   " What is wrong with me..?!" I groan, throwing my hands over my face," Why do I miss him so much..?!"

  " Aww...I missed you too princess." I literally shot up from my bed, falling onto the floor," Wow...jumpy."

   I look up to see Maroon perched on my window seal, his black wings spread wide, smirking down at me," What the- Maroon!" I scold," You scared me to death!"

   " If I knew you were so jumpy, I would've knocked." Maroon replied, smiling.

   I pushed myself off the floor, brushing myself off before facing Maroon," So what are you doing here? At this hour?" I ask, walking over to my closet and pulling out a thin silk robe to put over my noodle-strap nightgown; I had always prefered to wear it since I get hot at night, but it's embarrassing to wear in front of someone.

   " Well I didn't think it was that late..." he mumbled to himself, looking behind him at the night sky, filled with dozens of twinkling stars," Sorry, but I just...wanted to see you."

   " Couldn't you have come tomorrow?"

   Maroon shook his head," I hadn't been able to see you in weeks, and...I missed you."

   A light blush covered my face," I'm glad the feeling was mutual..." He smiled and jumped off my window seal, ticking his wings behind him, entering my room," But you do know we barely know each other."

   " Well...I know you're a princess, you have an amazing singing voice, and your wings tend to have a mind of their own." He states.

   I laugh and shake my head," That's just from observation, but I'll give you that." I say, smiling.

   " Well...tell me something about yourself."

   " What would you like to know?"

   He placed a hand on his chin, rubbing it as he thought," Favorite...poem?"

   I laughed a bit before replying," The Language of Flowers." I say, playing with my hair a bit," It was a poem my mother use to read to me before bed."

   " Lovely poem."

   " You've read it?"

   Maroon shrugged," If my memory serves me correctly...yes." he replied," If I'm wrong, you can always recite it for me. Or maybe we can read some together."

   I smile brightly at Maroon," That would be nice."

   He smiles back," So what have you been up to?" Maroon asks, leaning against the wall.

   " Nothing much. Just reading, painting, gardening." I reply, flopping back onto my bed," What about you? You have been gone for weeks now."

   He looks away from me," Nothing that concerns you..."

   I tilt my head to the side in confusion, but then shake my head, dismissing any thoughts on the matter; if he didn't want to tell me, then so be it.  

   A weird silence fell between us, the only sound in the room being the beating of our hearts," Sooooo....." I awkwardly begin, not knowing what to say.

   " Can I take you somewhere?" Maroon asks before I could try to begin a conversation," To, you know, make up for me being gone?"

   " Am I leaving the castle grounds?" Maroon nervously laughs in response. I sigh and shake my head," Maroon...you know I can't leave."

   " It'll just be for tonight." He states," We'll just sneak out, then we'll sneak right back in. No one will ever know you were gone!"

   I look down at my lap nervously," I don't know...."

   Maroon places a hand on my shoulder, causing me to look up at him," Come on princess," he smiles a toothy grin," live a little!"

   I overlap Maroon's hand with my own as I smile up at him," Okay...I'll do it!"

   Maroon's smile widens," Alright then!" He pulls me to my feet and walks us over to my window seal, still hand-in-hand. He looks out the window with a smile, his wings once again fully extended.

   " So what is the-" before I can finish my sentence, Maroon jumps out the window, pulling me with him," PPLLAANN?!?!"

   For a moment, I thought we were falling, but I soon realized we were instead flying. We flew over the castle wall, the nighttime guards not noticing us. I gasped at the sight of the town, all lit up like the night sky. It was so beautiful, and was a much better view than the one I got from my window seal.

Maroon must of seen my wondrous look, because I heard him chuckle through the wind," W-What's so funny?!" I ask, holding onto Maroon's hand tightly, afraid if he let go, I would fall.

   Maroon looked over at me and shook his head, still smiling," It's nothing!" he shouted, which I rolled my eyes in response; I know he was laughing at me. But he would be the same if he were in my shoes.

   I continued to look down at the town below me till Maroon spoke," Hey Jasmine?"

   I look up at him," Yeah?"

   He comes to a halt, flying mid-air now with me pulled to his chest," Do you...want me to teach you how to fly?" He asks.

   I look up at him in surprise," R-Really? You'd do that for me..?" He smiles and nods his head," Alright...teach me."

   Maroon smiles," Alright, here we go..." He slowly pulls me under himself, gently holding my arms as me wings touched the underbelly of his," Now stay steady, try to keep your arms up to help balance yourself for now..." Maroon instructed, as we glide underneath the moon's light.

   I do as I am told and begin to get the hang of it, flapping my wings slightly as we flew," You are doing great Jasmine," Maroon praised, which made my heart flutter for some odd reason," Now I'm going to let go of you..."

   " N-No! Don't do that! I'll fall!" I protest, starting to panic.

   " Hey hey hey, relax..." Maroon cooed, his breath hot against my ear," I'll be right next to you the whole time, ok?"

   I nervously nod my head, frightened," Alright, on the count of three."

   " O-Okay..."

   " Alright, one..."

   My breathing increases.

   " Two..."

   My heart begins to beat out of my chest.

   " Three!"

   And with that, Maroon lets go of me. I squeeze my eyes shut, continuing the same movements as before. I still feel the air rush by me, so I assumed I was still falling," Jasmine?" I hear Maroon say," Jasmine. Open your eyes."

   I slowly peek one eye open and realized I was still flying, BY MYSELF!

   " Oh my lord!" I say, a smile spreading across my face," I-I'm doing it! I'm flying!"

   Maroon chuckles and nods his head," Yeah you are!"

   " WOOHOO!!!!!"

   We continue to fly for a while, allowing me to adjust more. I flipped myself over to where I was flying on my back, staring up at the stars," Wow..." Flying out here made me feel so alive, so..free.

   " Enjoying the view?" I turn my head to see Maroon flying beside me, in the same position as I am.

   " Yeah, it's beautiful out here." I say, slightly looking down at the forest down on earth, which were covered in snow.

   " Yup. The best view is always in the clouds." He replies.

   " So is this what you wanted to show me?" I ask, looking back over at Maroon. He shook his head," Then what is it."

   " Patient princess, we are almost there." he replies, smiling back at me. We fly for a few more minutes before a meadow within the clouds comes to view," Here we are."

   We slowly glided down towards the meadow. Once we made contact with the grass, the flowers around us began to glow a light blue," Moon flowers!" I exclaim, gasping at the beautiful sight.

   " Heard of them?" Maroon asks, turning his head to the side to face me as we strolled towards large Wisteria tree, the flowers around us glowing bright like the stars.  

   " I have read about them in my books! I just..." I trailed off a bit,"...never thought I'd seen them..."

   Maroon took my hand in his," Well now you did," he stops for a moment, bending down and picking up on of the mainly glowing flowers. Once the flower was picked, the glow vanished, but a light sparkle seem to stay with it," for you m'lady." He tucked the the moon flower behind my right ear, causing me to blush bright red.

   " T-Thank you Maroon..." I stuttered, gently touching one of the petals with my index finger," it's beautiful..."

   He smiled at her, with pure joy in his face," Almost as beautiful as you~" He purred, my face flushing red. Maroon laughed," You're cute when you blush."

   I playfully slapped his arm, causing his cheeky smile to only widen," This place is amazing..." I states, walking and placing a hand on the tree's trunk," How ever did you find it?"

   Maroon shrugged," I really don't remember, but I knew this was the place to take you."

   I smile and embrace Maroon in a hug, my head buried into his chest," Thank you Maroon..."

   I could hear his heartbeat quicken as he returns the hug," It's nothing princess."

   I brightly smile up at him, my chin laying on top of his chest, before we pull away," I wonder how this place got here," I comment, circling the bottom of the tree, my hand tracing around the trunk.

   " This ain't normal?" Maroon asks.

   I shake my head," It isn't. Something like this belongs somewhere near the town, not by itself in the middle of nowhere." I reply,"...I bet someone got homesick..."

   " Homesick? I didn't know angels got homesick." He states, leaning up against the tree," I thought people who become angels have their...memories erased."

   " It's optional. At the orientation, new angels are given the chance to either start fresh, or keep the memories of their past life." I say," Many angels do keep their memories, so it doesn't surprise me that someone created this...because they know they can never go back."

   " Right...I forgot that..." Maroon nervously scratches the back of his neck," Angels can never return to earth...unlike us demons."

   I nod my head," Yes. The only way an angel could ever go to earth is if..." I trail off. I then shake my head," Nevermind."

   " Hey hey hey, you can't do that to me." Maroon states, pointing his index finger at me," You can not just start that and not finish it. You are leaving me hanging..!"

   A light smile graces my lips," Sorry, it's just...that topic is a little difficult to talk about."

   " What is it?" he urges.

   I fumble with my fingers before looking back at Maroon," Fallen..."

   " What's Fallen?" He asks.

   " It's the punishment for treason." I state, avoiding all eye contact with Maroon.

   " Well...?" Maroon says, urging for me to go on. I keep my eyes on the floor," Come on princess. Tell me: what happens?"

   " They...break your wings and throw you down to earth." I reply, finally meeting his gaze.

   His expression was shocked," W..What?" He shakes his head," That is just...unspeakable, even for me."

   " But that is why it is only for the highest order of treason." I say.

    Maroon crosses his arms firmly on his chest," Well? What is the highest order of treason?" He questions.

   I drop my gaze onto the floor once more,"...Association with demons." I finally reply after a long moment of silence.

   Maroon is taken back by my answer," That's mean, if they found out..." I nodded my head," That's wrong..."

   " It's the law Maroon. Even I, the princess, have to follow it. I am not above the law." I state, my gaze remaining on the grass below my feet. A pit begins to grow within my stomach when Maroon doesn't reply," I shouldn't have said anything..."

   " It's fine." Maroon replies, his voice sounding emotionless," I should get you back." I just nod in response, not trusting my voice. We both take off, back towards the kingdom. I was was a bit behind Maroon, due to my low experience with flying, but even from here, I could see his stone-cold expression, which worried me a great deal.

   In a blink of an eye, we were back in my bedroom," Maroon? Are you...alright?" I ask, looking at Maroon with concern in my eyes.

   He shamefully turns away," I'm fine, but I think...we should stop seeing each other." He states, keeping his gaze away from mine. An expression of pure shock overcame my face as I stared at Maroon," It's for the best."

   " Is this...because of what I said?" He didn't reply," Maroon please...Don't do this. I'm fine! I'm safe."

   He shakes his head, before finally looking up at me," But for how long princess? How long until someone finds out about us? How long until they take you away and..." He cuts himself off, his face now filled with fear," I can't...I can't bare to see something happen to you..."

   " Maroon..." I walk closer to him, placing my hand gently on his arm," Nothing will happen to me."

   " And how do you know that?" He shot back," Someone could have seen us flying, and reported it for all we know. It's best if I just leave-" I pull Maroon down to me and smash my lips against his. He was frozen for a moment as I kissed him, till he finally melted into it. He cupped my face with his warm hands and moved his lips in sync with my own. His lips were soft and warm against mine, making it impossible for me to pull away.

   Our eyes never left each others as we slowly pulled away," You are the best thing that has happened to me in a long time Maroon," I say, reaching my hand up to caress his face," I am not planning on losing you anytime soon."

   A smile spread across Maroon's face before he leaned his head down, stealing a kiss from me," I'm happy you feel that way princess." he says, keeping his one hand cupped onto my face," But I'm wondering..."

   " Y-Yes..?"

   " Was that your first kiss?" He questions, giving me a sly smirk. I could feel my face burn red," It was, wasn't it?"

   " W-Well...maybe..." I mumble, dropping my gaze onto the floor," I-I didn't know how to get my point across...s-so..."

   Maroon chuckled and placed a quick kiss on my cheek," You are so cute~"

   "S-Shut up..."

   " Aww...that wasn't nice princess~" I turned my back away from Maroon, pouting like a small child. He wrapped his arms around my waist, laying his head on my shoulder." Don't be mad, you can't help but be cute."

   Before I could say anymore, a yawn escaped me," Tired princess?" I nodded my head, rubbing my eyes a bit. I felt Maroon pick me up, cradling me in his arms," Alright! Let's get you to bed."

   I snuggled into Maroon's chest, loving the warmth radiating from him," I could have...walked myself..." I say, now half asleep.

   " I know. But I wanted an excuse to hold you in my arms." He replies, untucking my bedsheets. He slowly laid me down and covered my back up," Goodnight princess..." he kissed the top of my head before turning his back to me.

   I quickly grabbed Maroon's hand," N-No...don't go." I say, my eyes half closed. I uncovered my blankets again, scooting over to make room for him," Stay."

   " If that is what you want princess," he begins, slowly laying down next to me. He pulls me to his chest and hugs me close to him, hear his heart beat fast within his chest," then I'll obey."

   I smile to myself and snuggle deeper into his chest," Goodnight..Maroon..." I mumble, slowly drifting off to sleep.

   I feel his chest rumble, meaning he laughed," Goodnight Jasmine..." he placed another kiss on my forehead. Before I slipped into unconscious, I swore I heard him say," I love you."