You never know where life's gonna take you.

One day you're working at flower shop, an array of flowers with different kinds of hues and scents would fill your shop as people come by.

But then-

Actually, you know what? I'll let you find out this one for yourself.

Our story begins in a kingdom named Corona. Your mother was a seamstress who owns a dress shop called Madame Carp's Dress Emporium. She actually sews dresses the Queen and the Princess, which is something you're truly proud off. (i'm guessing only a few of you will get this reference lol)

But it wasn't something you dreamed to be. Ever since you were a child, you've always wanted to own a small a flower shop in the town's square.

Your mother was of course, fully supportive of your dreams! As you grew up, the both of you saved up money to open shop.

You were always excited to set up your shop for the day. People would come by and tell stories of who they're buying flowers for, It could be a suitor, an old couple who wanted to reminisce their young love, or fathers buying their daughters a bouquet of flowers for their birthdays.

You couldn't ask anything more than this.

But then again, there was that one customer.

Everyday, he would come in the shop and he'd always somehow brighten up your day a little more.

He had a distinct blue streak in his ebony black hair that always had a pair of lab goggles on them and a set of mesmerizing blue eyes. Freckles blanketed his pink cheekbones. His buck teeth may seem like an imperfection to everyone else, except for you. It actually makes me a tad bit more adorable.

He always came by exactly at 4 in the afternoon. Later on you found out that he only visits you in at that time because he usually stays up all night, sleeps when the sun comes up and he'd wake up at noon when the sun finally hits his drooling face.

The two of you would share stories of how each other's day was going. You'd laugh at his corny jokes and he'd get all teary-eyed about one of your customer's stories. Sometimes, he would even bring ham sandwiches for the two of you to snack on.

At first, he only came by your flower shop to experiment on them, buying different kinds of flowers every day. But then, it turned into more than that, which blossomed into a wonderful friendship. It's been 3 years since then!

It became a daily routine for the both of you. You'd even take the time to sweep and tidy up your shop a bit more before he'd arrive. Sometimes you'd take the time to actually choose a decent outfit, rather than putting on the first thing you pull out from your closet.

Everything was going great!

But that was until this one unfaithful day.

At first, it wasn't actually all that bad. It actually started off great!

You hear the sound of the bell, indicating someone had entered the shop as you were cleaning. Your back was facing the counter, but as you looked over by the clock, you instantly knew who it was.

You turned around as you were greeted by a young boy with a large grin on his face.

"Hey (Y/N)! Guess what?"

You leaned on the counter with crossed arms, "Well, have you made any new scientific discoveries yet?"

He scratched the back of his head as he was embarrassed that he had nothing you yet."Uhh not yet, but I did wake up earlier today! I actually got up before noon!"

"What time did you get up?"

"11:59."

You scoffed as you grabbed a watering can. "Yeah, totally. You definitely did wake up early there."

"It's still progress!"

You began watering the flowers, as Varian sat down on your chair behind the counter as he watched you do your job.

You continued on nagging him, like you always do about his sleep schedule. "Look, how many times do I have to tell you dork? The only way for you to get up early is for you to sleep early."

"Well, I work better at night okay? I have better chances of making "scientific discoveries" by night when everyone's asleep so they won't bother me."

"But you also need to take care of yourself! I can even see your eye bags from here. You look terrible." You said as you were already at the entrance of the shop, watering the last few flowers.

"Aww! Are you worried about me, (Y/N)?"

"AM NOT." You retort back, trying to be casual. "Look, if you die from sleep deprivation, my day's gonna be so much boring without anyone to tease." You said as you try to steer it away from the conversation becoming too sappy.

Varian chuckles at your remark. "Don't worry, if I do die from that then I'll make sure to haunt you for the rest of your life so you won't be alone!" He says as he puts his hands on his head as he outs his feet on the counter.

"haha very funny varian." You say sarcastically as you hear Varian cough harshly from his seat.

"See? You're gonna get sick if you continue on sleeping when the sun's up." You tell him as he stands up from your seat as he walks towards you with his hands behind his back.

With a confused look on your face, you ask "Uhh Varian, what are you hiding? Don't try to sneak out anymore flower seeds from me. You know I need those!"

"No, it's not that. It's this." He says as he brings out his hand and gives you a single daisy.

You giggle at his gesture. "Thanks Varian, it's beautiful! What a pleasant surprise! But you do know I own a flower shop right?" You ask him sarcastically as your eyes make their way down to his gloves, noticing that they were red.

Varian quickly puts back his hands on his back, hiding them from your view. "I just wanted to drop that by to also let you know that my experiment's working!

You quickly became confused. "I thought that you're experiment with the flowers didn't work?"

"Well actually that's what I thought! It was a success after all!" Varian laughs nervously as he quickly tries to change the subject.

"By the way, what are you doing later this evening?"

"Nothing much, really. I'm just gonna cook some dinner for me and my mom and I then I'll probably head off to bed." "Why do you ask?"

He walk back to the counter as he grabs a white piece of cloth from his pocket, wiping of the scarlet red stain from his hands, hoping that you wouldn't notice.

"There's actually a ball later this evening and I the Royal Alchemist am invited! Everyone's allowed to bring a plus one, so I was kinda hoping it'd be you! Everyone's excited to see you again!

"Wait." You walk up the counter as you slam the watering can on it, splashing water all over the place. "I GET TO GO IN THE CASTLE, MEET ROYALTIES FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD AND ACQUIRE FREE FOOD?"

"Well yeah! You also get to go with the most handsome guy that you know." He says as he winks at you jokingly.

You snort at him. "Alright "Mr. Handsome", I'll go with you. You didn't have to beg for me to go with you, you know?"

"You wish! You know, quite frankly I only invited you cause I thought you'd be dying to go and you'd kneel in front of me and beg, just for an invitation to the dance." He says as a smirk forms on his smug face.

"Is that so? You little rascal!" Varian knew what this meant as he shot up straight from his seat and ran outside the shop as you tried to chase him down, trying to make him take back what he said as you heard him from down the street laughing his heart out.

You and Varian decided to go the castle earlier so you could help out with the party arrangements. The both of you agreed that Varian would pick you up at your home, which was only beside the flower shop!

You were wearing one of the gowns your mother had sewn together. It was one of her best works yet.

"Oh my sweet darling, you look so stunning!" Your mother said as she pushed you to a mirror, revealing your dolled up self. You were wearing an off shoulder gown in white with your hair laid down in curls.

You heard a knock on the door, knowing fully well who it was.

"I'll get it!" As you zoomed to the front door, you tried to put on your high heels as well. It was painfully hard to stand on, but you thought to yourself,

It's only gonna be for one night.

then NEVER AGAIN!

You open the wooden door, revealing a handsome young boy. He was wearing a white suit, highlighted with gold which coincidentally matched yours. Something in your stomach felt like they were butterflies flying everywhere. You tried to stop it but you couldn't help yourself.

He looked at you in awe. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. A simple flower shop girl had amassed beauty of a princess.

"Hi.."

"Hello."

"You look... beautiful."

"You don't look so shabby yourself, Mr. Varian."

He laughed at your remark. "Don't call me that, please. It sounds weird." He puts his hand on his waist, noticing that he was till wearing his gloves. "Are you ready to attend the ball m'lady?"

"I sure am, m'lord." You both crack up as you waved goodbye to your mother, ready to take in a wonderful night full of dancing and celebration. Yet, you were still worried about what you were feeling for Varian.

You both arrived at the castle as you were greeted by Rapunzel and everyone else. Everyone was wearing their formal attire and the castle looks great.

"Hey guys! Why are you both so early?" Rapunzel asked as she was clearly confused. "The party doesn't start in like 3 hours!"

"Well, we both thought that we'd like to help but it looks like you're all set." Varian said.

You grabbed Rapunzel's arm as you pulled her over to the side. "Hey, uhm can I talk to you? Like somewhere private?"

"Oh sure, no problem (Y/N)! Is there a problem?" She asks.

"I don't know yet, I'm not sure. But that's why I need your help."

"Hey guys! What are we talking about here?" Varian said, taking you by surprise. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm just gonna go check in on my lab here. While I have some time to kill, I'll probably do some last minute experiments."

"Well then, have fun!" You said as Varian entered the castle.

Rapunzel took you to her room to discuss about your problem.

"Is there something you need to tell me (Y/N)? You seem kind of stressed out" Rapunzel said as you paced around the room, back and forth while wracking your brain.

"Well, it's about Varian." You said nervously.

"What about Varian?"

"I think I'm actually starting to like him." You said as you hands started fidgeting.

"Of course, you like him! He's your best friend!" Rapunzel said with a big smile on her face.

"No! I mean like, LIKE HIM. You know? Romantically?" As your voice started to fade with the last word, hoping she didn't hear it.

"What?!" Rapunzel said in shock. But she tried to return back to her normal state to help you out. "I mean, what's the problem with that?

As you were about to tell Rapunzel , Varian happened to walk by her room as he was hoping to ask her about a pending royal project of his.

He was about to knock on the door when he heard your voice through the door crack.

"No Rapunzel! He's like a brother to me! He really is! I don't think I'll ever want Varian to be someone more than just my friend!

His eyes widened at your statement. Tears started forming in his eyes as his whole body began to shake. He ran to his lab as he quickly as possible, wishing he hadn't heard you say that.

"That's why I should be saying to you right now! But nooooo. My heart keeps on betraying me!

He's always been there for me through my ups and downs; he listens to my problems and, most of all, he puts up with me and all the crazy things I do. I love being with him and acting like fools, and I just love everything about him!

I can't stop thinking about Varian! I thought about all the good times we've had together, and I realized that it's not the other people I want to be with, it's him."

Rapunzel was left almost speechless. "Wow, I-," You could tell she was shocked and speechless about your confession. She wanted to hug you right then and there!

"(Y/N), that's exactly what you should be saying, but not to me."

"Then to whom?"

"To Varian."

Your eyes widen as you scoff at the idea "Pfft! No way! What if our friendship gets ruined? He could reject me and I'd be left with nothing but the memory of him coming to my shop everyday, only to know that it's never gonna happen again?"

She sighs as she stands up and puts her hands on your shoulder.

"(Y/N), rejection is a part of life. You can't keep on avoiding forever. As painful as it may be, it'll only help you become stronger.

If you don't take risks because of your fear of being rejected, you'll never know what might have happened if you only had the courage to speak up or act on something."

You look down on the floor, feeling tense.

"What if he likes you back? Have you asked yourself that?" She says as she puts a finger on your chin, raising it to face her.

You shook your head no.

"Then tell him. You never know what could happen."

You hug Rapunzel, thankful for her kind words.

"Thank you Rapunzel, I really needed to hear that." You said as she wrapped her arms around you, feeling her soothing embrace.

"Anytime, (Y/N). Anytime."

The party was now in full swing. People were chatting up, bottles of wine were being served and an orchestra was playing wonderful music for the dancing couples.

You tried to find Varian in the crowd. Searching at each table and every corner of the room. You wanted to do it tonight while you had the courage to speak to him about it.

But he was nowhere to be found.

You were about to give up as you left the ballroom, when you heard something shatter from the balcony.

You ran outside to see what it was, only to see Varian laying on the ground. He was surrounded by a mixture of glass shards and white daises, with a dash of red almost on every petal.

"VARIAN!" You scream his name as you ran to his side, carrying his limp body closer to yours. "What's going on?!"

His eyes were drooping

"(Y/N)-"

"Cassandra! Eugene! Rapunzel! ANYONE!" You try screaming for help, but Varian held onto your face. You felt his ice cold hand caress your cheek.

His crimson red was slowly seeping in your ivory white gown, though you couldn't care less.

He started hacking once again and every cough became more painful than the last.

"hey..."

You could hear how much hoarse his voice had become. He tried to talk to you, but every time he tried to open his mouth, a sea of white daises and pints of blood escaped from his lips. You felt so helpless, seeing your best friend die in your arms. You tried cradling him in your arms to help ease the pain.

"Varian, listen to me. Don't you dare close your eyes!" You were having a hard time getting the words through you without choking up. "Stay with me! I need you, Varian!"

"DON'T YOU GIVE UP ON ME PLEASE!" You say as a stream of tears rolled down your cheeks.

He had a hard time breathing as his lungs were filled with stems and flowers growing inside him. "I came out here to see the stars, but even they couldn't shine for me right now."

"What- what are you talking about?" You say as you tried so hard to piece things together, but your brain couldn't handle seeing him like this.

"I don't blame you, (Y/N). I-" He tried so hard to push through, he knew it was time. Even though shrubs of daisies began clinging on every organ of his body, slowly killing his heart and lungs, he was happy. Content.

The daisies slowly made their way throughout his entire body, his bloodstream contaminated with pollen.

To have you holding him in his arms was more than he could ever ask for. To have you long for him like this, like how he longed for you for so long. 

He felt at peace.

"I love you."

His eyes slowly started to close. You tried to shake him keep him awake, but nothing was working.

You could hear rushed footsteps behind you as the castle light illuminated three shadows on the floor.

You hear a high pitched shriek from one of them, a loud gasp, and a word you almost barely heard.

"Hanahaki."

After chasing Varian the street earlier that day, he asked you one question.

"(Y/N), do you know what daisies mean?"

You shake your head, as you put your hands on your knees, sloy trying to catch your breath. "Alright, what? After you explain you're seriously gonna regret what you said about me."

"Innocence and purity."

You tilt your head, confused as to why you're hearing him explain the meaning of this one particular flower.

"But I believe nothing is ever innocent or pure. Eventually, everything gets tainted. It's what we do after our mistakes is what really matters."

The memory of his laugh, his dorky smile, his blue eyes that shine and twinkle every time that you look at them and the way he made you feel before while forever be tainted by this moment. This horrifying moment of cradling his limp and cold body in your tired arms because you were too scared to admit your feelings before.

A crash of thunder and lightning filled the midnight sky as the cold pouring rain hits your skin. You didn't want to let him go. The harsh wind blew as the rain slowly washed the blood away. You held him close, close to your heart as the both of you were being drenched under the uncaring weather.

You knew how you could cure him, but it was probably too late. The damage was done. But you still tried, just one last time.

"I-"

"I love you too."

🌼