"Welcome to 'The Lonely Rose' how may I help you?" Said the voice of a young girl working behind the cash register.

"Yeah gimme two of your famous 'forget me not's to go." Said a middle aged man as he started digging through his pockets for money.

"Alrighty then! Your total is 360 yen sir." She said as she started bagging up the blue flower shaped treats.

"Have a nice day!" she added as he walked out with the snacks. Today was a normal day for The Lonely Rose. A few customers now only because it was lunch time. But after that, oh boy. The bakery is usually full of customers asking for eclairs and doughnuts and the all time favorite; the forget me not. It seems the owner of the bakery was a big fan of flowers, which would explain why a lot of the treats have the names of flowers. 

"You ready for a break Hana?" said the cashier as she looked inside the kitchen. Hana looked at her for a moment before nodding and stretching her back; Her face, arms, and apron covered in flour.

Hana stood up, caramel eyes beaming with a smile forming on her rosy lips. She quickly washed her hands and face before letting her hair down from the bun it was in previously. Her wavy brown hair slid down to the middle of her back before she sighed and walked over to her friend Chiharu, the cashier, who already laid out some pork ramen  that was kept in the fridge.

"Lemme just heat it up and we'll be good to go." Said Chiharu as she walked over to the microwave that was in the break room. Hana preferred eating at one of the tables in case a customer came in.

This was Hana's daily routine: Wake up, bake, bake ,bake, eat, bake, bake, bake, take a break, and then bake until closing time. And she wouldn't have it any other way. Of course Daisuke and Akihiro came along and joined as helpers in the kitchen. The two males learned quickly and soon joined the Lonely Rose family. For Hana, life couldn't be better.

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At the Kazekage building, Gaara was rubbing his forehead as Kankuro began whining about the last mission he was on.

"Look just next time please don't put me on the same team as Ayame. Sure she's pretty but that attitude only annoyed me throughout the whole mission! She keeps butting heads questioning who's the leader of the mission and-"

"Was the mission a success Kankuro?" Gaara asked, an anime vein popping opposite of where his kanji symbol for love stood.

"Well yeah but-"

"Then that's all I care about. You're dismissed." he said indifferently. Kankuro only hung his head low in defeat before leaving.

Gaara looked toward his window to see his people outside;  there were children laughing and playing while kicking a ball, subtly reminding him of when he was a child and people feared him. Now everyone looks up to him. He is now their ruler and protector. And he should be happy, but for some reason he still has a part of him that feels alone. While he's glad no one sees him as a monster anymore, now they only see him as Kazekage. Only his siblings see him as Gaara, the shy, introverted loser who can't make small talk to save his life. Then again maybe that's why he chose not to have friends. He sighed before looking at a young couple holding hands, the young boy lifting the girl up in the air and twirling her around. The girls giggles when he sets her down and she rushes up to kiss him.

Gaara sighed even louder at the sight of that. Not only has he never felt love in that way before, but he knows for sure all the fangirls who say they're in love with him only want him for his title or for his appearance. He gently rested his head on his desk, deciding a nap was a better way to stop thinking about it.

"Gaara!" Yelled Temari as she burst through the door, startling her younger brother.

"What!" He yelled as he started groan. What a nice nap it would have been.

"You're never going to believe who I saw on the training grounds today."

"Who was it?" He asked disinterested.

"Shikamaru!" she said with a squeal. Shikamaru and Temari had been going out for the past few years, so these random surprises weren't new.

"And?"

"And...LOOK!" she squealed as she showed him her hand, which now had a marquise cut diamond ring on her ring finger. Gaara's eyes went wide at the realization.

"When?"

"We don't know yet, but we're hoping for a wedding here in a couple of months since we want to get married as soon as possible!" She went back to squealing before running up to her brother for a bear hug.

"I gotta tell Kankuro! Oh, and Shika's joining us for dinner tonight!" She said before running out of the room. Oh boy. He sighed before once again resting his head against the desk. Before his cheek can feel the cold touch of the desk, the door once again opens; this time to reveal a random shinobi.

"Kazekage-sama, I will be leaving the building for a few errands, is there anything you might request?"

"......Bring me cookies."

"Of course Kaze- pardon sir?"

"Did I stutter?"

"N-no sir. Right away sir!" He said before leaving once again. 

He decided to give up the thought of a nap and went back to the small pile of paperwork that was left to look over.

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"Hey Chiharu!" said Daisuke as he started rolling out the dough for the sweet bread that Hana named Sakura loafs, considering their pink appearance.

"Hey Daisuke! Where's Akihiro?" Chiharu responded while fixing up the counter. 

"He left on a mission today. But he should be back in two days. Why? You miss him?" He said slyly, smiling like a fox.

"Oh shut up, he's not that cute anyways."

"Am I cute enough?" He said innocently.

"Hardly." He whimpered like a kicked puppy before letting out a laugh.

"Chiharu's mean to me! I'm telling mommy, HANAAA!" He yelled mockingly. Chiharu joined in laughing as Hana walked in.

"Aww, did the mean girl pick on you again Daisuke?" she said babying him. They all erupted in laughter before they heard the bell ring from the door, signalling a customer. Chiharu tried to stop laughing as she made her way over to the shinobi who asked for the best cookies and treats. In the end he left with half a dozen 'forget me not's and two sunflower danishes. Once he left they went back to work: Daisuke preparing some of the treats while Hana works on decorating the big order that came in an day ago; a mother ordered a cake for her son who is currently obsessed with the latest superhero that's shown on television: Indestructo-boy. She carefully molds the boy with modeling chocolate before carefully placing the figure on the cake. Then makes sure the character is stable before placing the car on top of him, the boy holding the car. 

Hana POV:

'This is going to look amazing' I think to myself as I finish writing 'Happy Birthday Kyo' in icing. A couple minutes after I place the cake the in fridge to preserve the freshness I hear the door open and soon after Chiharu enters the kitchen to tell me the mother is back to retrieve the cake. I happily hand it to her, the shock and joy written on her face as she looks at it.

"It's perfect! He's going to love this isn't he Aki?" She says before looking to her husband.

"Of course he will my love, it's perfect. Almost as perfect as you are." He states before kissing her cheek, making her blush. They soon pay the amount necessary and leave happily with the cake. I can't help but lean on the counter and sigh.

"What's the matter Hana?" Said Chiharu, eyeing her with worry.

"It's just, did you see the way he looked at her? I want something like that." I stated, eyes fixated on the counter.

"And you will find it Hana, you just have to be patient."

"I wonder where my other rose could be." I mumbled, mostly to myself.

"What was that?" Chiharu asked, who heard her pretty clearly.

"Hmm? Oh, my other rose. When I was little my mamma always said we were born in a field where certain flowers grow. We were all born flowers, and I was born a rose. She said over time I'd meet beautiful and handsome flowers, but I would only be happy with another rose. But sometimes I feel like I'm just a rose born in a field of lilies and tulips and forget me not's that find each other. And there isn't another rose in sight. That's why I named the bakery "The Lonely Rose" in the first place."

"Aw, sounds like someone could use a night at the club!" Said Chiharu, the ever extroverted party girl.

"Mmmm, no thanks I'll pass." I say. I don't like the thought of random people rubbing up on me and their sweat landing on me. Ew.

"Fine fine. Hey Hana, it's getting late. Would it be okay if I-"

"Leave early to head to the club? Go ahead kiddo."

"Thank you thank you thank you!" she said before hugging me tightly and throwing a cookie at Daisuke, who caught in his mouth perfectly.

"Good doggy!" teased Chiharu as she headed out.  I just finished wiping the counter before walking back to the kitchen. 

"Hey Daisuke, you can head home early too, It's almost closing time anyways."

"Really? Thanks! I'll just clean up my side of the kitchen before heading out." He said happily as he started wiping the flour off his table with a wet rag.

I just finished baking the last batch of 'forget me not's when he takes his daily lavender cupcake. 

"Mmm, this tastes just as good as the first time I tried it."

"I'm glad you like it." I said with a smile as he walked out. Maybe I should start closing the shop...

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Back at the Kazekage building Gaara just received his portion of the treats, three blue cookies and a yellow danish. He took one bite of the blue flower cookie and his eyes went wide in shock. The flavor was subtly sweet, the cookie could almost melt in your mouth and it made him feel warm inside. He bit the center of the cookie to see what tastes like homemade fudge and it tasted like heaven. He slowly ate the cookies, savoring the moment. Soon after he looked at the danish. He took one bite and could taste peaches. The bread was flaky and soft, and once again he devoured the treat. He let out one of his signature smiles before frowning at his now empty plate.

"Damn..." He muttered before the same shinobi from before entered. 

"Kazekage-sama, were the desserts alright?"

"They were very good thank you. What is the name of the bakery?"

"They're from the famous 'The Lonely Rose' Bakery. They say the owner is obsessed with flowers, so naturally many of her desserts have flower names. What you had were the classic 'Forget me not' cookies and the sunflower danish."

"....I see."

"Is everything alright Kazekage-sama?"

"Yes. What other types of desserts does this bakery do?"

"Well they go from cookies and cupcakes to extravagant cakes for special occasions."

"I see. Thank you that is all."

"Yes Kazekage-sama." said the shinobi before leaving.