Corliss hunted around her apartment in search of Honjo who mysteriously disappeared from her bed without a word.

"Honjo!" she yelled, opening the closet. "Where in the world could you be hiding..."

She started to think of worse case scenarios like him running away or being kidnapped. They were definitely going to crack down on her about it if they caught wind. She continued her search inside a bit longer before deciding to head out and see if he had left.

Honjo opened the cabinet door and crawled out. He had a bit of time before she came back. He searched around for her phone, hoping she left it behind. He couldn't find it, so he settled with waiting for her to come back and getting her to give it to him.

Minutes passed and Corliss had come back into the apartment in full panic mode. Honjo looked at her as she nervously talked into her phone about him being missing. She turned around and dropped her phone in shock. She quickly ran over to him and held him tight.

"Where were you? I was so worried you ran away or were kidnapped..." she said, tears falling down her cheeks.

"I was hiding in a cabinet." he said innocently. "I thought you would've found me easily."

"Really... we need to get ready and head over to Sunny Side. Go on and freshen up." she said, letting him go. "And make sure I understand what's going on next time before you decide to hide."

He left his spot on the loveseat and snatched up her phone, holding it close to his chest. He took off towards the bathroom then locked the door behind him.

"Corliss? Are you still there?" a voice said on the other end.

"Mr. Zoldyck, hello!" he said happily.

"Honjo? Where's Ms. Steinbeck? Are you both together now? Do you know how frantic she was when she couldn't find you? She sounded as if she'd collapse at any given moment." Illumi scolded, making sure he was aware of his actions. "You can play around, but make sure you both are on the same page."

"I'm sorry. I just really wanted to talk to you but I couldn't without her phone." he confessed, sitting on the floor.

"Eh? Me? Why? Couldn't you just ask her to call me?" he asked.

"No! I uh, well... I wanted you to see you! Yeah, at Sunny Side! There's something I want to give you." he said, trying to get them to see each other without being obvious.

"I can't promise you anything, but I'll try. Really, you're such a sneaky little kid." Illumi said, shaking his head.

"I hope you come! Goodbye!" said Honjo before hanging up.

He placed her phone on the sink then quietly thought. What would he do if he didn't stop by Sunny Side later? There was still two chances. When she dropped him off and picked him up.

"Honjo, is everything okay? Do you need me?" Corliss asked. "Also, do you see my phone in there? I can't seem to find it."

"I'm fine! And it's in here, on the sink." he responded.

____

Honjo often looked towards the door, hoping Illumi would walk in. Aoyuzu tapped Honjo, wondering what was wrong.

"It's nothing..." he said, lowering his head.

"You can talk to me. We're friends." he said with a big grin.

"Can you keep a secret?" Honjo asked, receiving a nod from Aoyuzu. "I asked Mr. Zoldyck to stop by so I can get my mom to look at him."

"What does that mean, get her to look at him?" Aoyuzu asked curiously.

"I don't know, but Mr. Zoldyck seemed upset because he wasn't being looked at." he replied, looking at the door once more.

A few hours passed. No Illumi. Honjo sat off to the side with Aoyuzu as they watched the other kids play. He simply had to try again later. He noticed Corliss had gotten up, so he left his spot to follow her.

"Is someone here?" he asked from behind her.

"There shouldn't be." she muttered, knowing there weren't supposed to be any visitors.

They rounded the corner and saw Illumi standing with a small bouquet. Honjo ran over to him, giving him a tight hug.

"Illumi...? Why are you here?" she asked, perplexed.

"Uh..." he said, looking down at Honjo who shook his head. "Surprise."

Corliss blinked then let out a choked chuckle. It was obvious something was going on, but she decided not to pursue it.

"There's no special occasion, I just thought some flowers would look nice with you." Illumi explained, handing her the bouquet of chrysanthemums.

"Oh? Why thank you." she said with a smile. "I know this is really late but, I loved the white orchids."

"You did? Well that's good." he responded, chuckling uneasily.

They stood in silence, unsure of what to say to the other. Honjo looked at the both of them, wondering if there was anything he could do to get Corliss to look at Illumi again.

"Well, uh, I guess I'll head out." he said, stepping back.

"Wait! Read a story to us during story time!" said Honjo, holding him back.

"If you need to go, then go. I won't hold you back." said Corliss, prying Honjo off.

"Well when you put it that way..." said Illumi, stepping closer.

Honjo freed himself from her hold, sending her face first into Illumi. He caught her in his arms to prevent her from hitting the floor.

"You okay?" he asked quietly.

"He's so dead when I get my hands on him." she seethed then registered his hands holding her shoulders.

"Oh, my bad." said Illumi, taking his hands off of her.

"You know... I'm starting to think something's going on here. You suddenly coming in for a visit, Honjo constantly looking at the door, not wanting you to leave." Corliss said, letting her mind work. "Do you know anything?"

"He had your phone and asked me to come. He apparently had something to give me." Illumi responded. It clicked. "Oh god..."

"What is it?" she asked, looking him in the eyes.

"He's trying to set us up. Chuuya and I were talking about things and a topic came up then you did... basically he's trying to do that." Illumi explained, remembering two nights ago.

Corliss stared at him with a blank expression before erupting into laughter. She gripped the bouquet harder as her laughing started to leave her in tears. She calmed down then gave him a smile.

"He really is a piece of work." she admitted.

"Sure is..." Illumi replied weakly.

"So, what exactly did you say?" she asked.

"I said you wouldn't look at me." he confessed, figuring being honest would make things less complicated.

"Look at you? In what way?" she pressed.

"The romantic way. But I wasn't serious. Chuuya was being annoying." Illumi said, not wanting her to think he was interested.

Corliss's smile faltered slightly. "I see" was all she said in response. Was this disappointment she was feeling? Why? She placed the bouquet back in his hands then gave him a warm smile.

"Give them to someone you're interested in." she said before turning on her heel.

"Lin, wait." he said, pulling her back. He gave the bouquet back. "I'll see you later."

Corliss quietly watched Illumi leave, loosely holding the bouquet.

"Give them to someone you're interested in."

He gave them back after she said that. He gave them back. Her face flushed. Was he actually interested? Her face flushed more and she started becoming jittery. She was overthinking it. He just didn't want the flowers. For as long as they've been friends, he never gave off any signs of being interested. Just what did he mean by his action?

____

"Eh, you seemed rattled. Did a pretty lady turn you down?" Chuuya asked as he lied on the small sofa.

Chuuya sat up as Illumi remained silent.

"No way, did she publicly humiliate you?" he asked, mouth agape.

"Corliss thinks I'm interested in her now because I gave her back the flowers after she told me to give them to someone I'm interested in and it's not like I like her but I don't dislike her either and I left without explaining and-" Illumi rambled then was silenced by Chuuya.

"You know you can text her, right?" Chuuya pointed out.

"Oh, right. Ah, how should I start this..." Illumi mumbled.

"Then again she'll be here to drop the brat off in a few minutes." Chuuya said, laughing at Illumi's horror stricken face.

A soft knock was heard. Chuuya opened the door and revealed Corliss and Honjo. She tilted her head, wondering where Illumi was.

"Is he out?" she asked, holding the small bouquet in her hands.

"Huh? You've got to be kidding me." Chuuya spat, pulling Illumi out of his hiding spot.

"Before you say anything, I didn't mean anything by giving back the bouquet." he quickly explained.

"Ah, I see... thanks for clarification..." she said, tightly holding it. "I'll treasure it."

Honjo looked between them. They weren't happy, but they were looking at each other. That was a start. Chuuya sighed then stood beside Illumi.

"Why are you getting so worked up over a mistake? Unless there's something you aren't telling each other?" he asked, narrowing his eyes at them.

Corliss felt powerless under Chuuya's look. It was as if he was challenging her. She sometimes forgot Illumi was Chuuya's.

"Hey, Chuuya. How exactly did you two become a couple?" she asked, shifting the spotlight.

"Huh? We aren't a couple. He was just posing as my boyfriend. He's free real estate now." replied Chuuya with a shrug.

A wave of relief washed over her. What was she so relieved about? That he wasn't challenging her? That they weren't a couple? That she could rest easy?

"Anyway, I'm sure you need to get to work." said Illumi, walking her to the door.

"Wait, can you bring Honjo home? There's something I want to discuss with you." she said before leaving.

Honjo quietly cheered while Illumi started to overthink. Chuuya stared at Illumi, wondering if he should tag along some of the way for support. He figured he wouldn't, seeing as how it could be a big step towards their relationship further developing.

____

Honjo got out of the car and waited for Illumi. He tilted his head as Illumi wasn't moving. Was he unwell? He moved to go see just as Illumi got out of the car.

"Mr. Zoldyck, are you feeling sick?" he asked as he came from around the car.

"No, I'm fine. Let's head upstairs, yeah?" he said with a smile.

Honjo hurried up the stairs and reached the door nearly out of breath. He pressed on the doorbell and waited for Corliss to answer. Illumi soon arrived after Honjo had been waiting for a few minutes.

"Did she answer?" he asked curiously.

"No... she should be home..." said Honjo, pressing the bell again.

The door suddenly swung open and Corliss looked at the two boys. Honjo happily went inside while Illumi quietly stared at her.

"You uh, came back earlier than I expected..." she said, lifting up her towel some.

"I figured he wanted to see you sooner and uh, there wasn't a lot of traffic..." Illumi replied.

She nodded then had him come in while she got dressed. Honjo launched himself onto Illumi who wheezed as pain hit him full force.

"Honjo!" he hissed, giving him a hefty slap on the rear.

"Sorry..." he whimpered, tears threatening to leave his eyes.

"Honjo, Mr. Zoldyck and I need to have an adult conversation. Could you-" she said then watched him scurry off into the bedroom. "That was... easy."

Illumi shifted over, distancing himself from Corliss. She sat down then cleared her throat.

"I've been thinking..." she said, locking eyes with him. "About earlier today. The flowers and all."

"I'm really sorry about that. I didn't intend to-" he said then was silenced by her finger.

He quietly waited as she moved closer to him. Was she going to whisper it? Was she trying to make him flustered?

"Lean closer." she said, having him lean in really close.

"Now what?" he asked, praying to any and every being that Honjo wasn't looking.

"Tell me honestly, are you really not interested in anyone?" she whispered.

He quietly blinked. He wasn't sure what he was expecting, but that certainly wasn't it. He sighed then gave her a weary smile.

"No." he replied.

She smiled then gave him a quick peck on the lips. He stared at her wide eyed. She chuckled as she pulled away.

"You're so easy to mess with." she said.

"You know what." he said, starting to tickle her.

Illumi listened to her laugh and her quiet pleas. She was beautiful. He slowly stopped tickling her, giving her a chance to look him in the eye.

"You're beautiful." he blurted out, gently touching her face.

Her cheeks heated as her mind processed what he just said. Beautiful. Even after knowing her true self, he still saw her as beautiful. She smiled softly then pulled him into her arms.

"Thank you..." she whispered, closing her eyes in bliss. "Thank you..."

To her, he was like a poppy flower. Her discordant life had finally found its balance and peace when he entered her life. A lone peony in field full of coriander, standing short and trying to show off its immeasurable beauty. She wanted to protect that poppy and help it grow.