The Sun That Kissed The Flower

The Secret Of The Sunflowers

3 MONTHS LATER

Kira's POV

"Don't forget your umbrella! The forecast said rain!" I retraced my steps to find Hannah rushing towards me with Laine bouncing up and down on the other side of her hip. While she passed me the navy blue umbrella I smiled and leaned in to kiss Laine on the cheek.

"It's only a 20 percent chance though."

"You don't want to get caught in the rain, trust me. It may feel a bit like spring now but you could catch a cold." I laughed at the thought.

"You worry too much."

"What do you think of your auntie, Laine? She's saying I'm worrying too much? Should I love her a little less?" I watched Laine giggle as Hannah gently rubbed the top of her head on her belly.

"Alright alright, stop corrupting my niece..." I chuckled while making my escape out of the front door.

"Kira!" I looked back at Hannah and Laine together once more while they both waved towards me. "See you later! Have fun!" I smiled again and then made my way to my car. While sitting inside I heard my phone jingle. I smiled to myself. I knew who this would be from...

Ren and I had plans for dinner tonight but he had to cancel them because of an unexpected meeting. So I decided that I would bring some food to his office.

While on my way to get some take out I saw some of the clouds darken a little. I smiled to myself... I wasn't going to hear the end of this from Hannah.

Hoping it wouldn't rain I finally reached his office just after 8pm. I greeted Vanessa while she was clocking off for the night and she pointed towards Ren's office to signal he was still there. I smiled to myself while knocking on the door.

"Is there anything else, Ms. Castillo?" while I stepped through the door Ren looked up from his desk. As soon as he saw me he stood up.

"Kira... what are you doing here?" I lifted up the bag with take out in it and smiled.

"You must be hungry, right?" I closed the door behind me and then approached his desk. I started taking out some of the warmed dishes from the bag. In between Ren reached out and held onto my hand. I chuckled and looked into his grateful eyes.

"Really... you need to eat better in the afternoon. Black coffee will not do, alright?" Ren nodded while sitting down.

"Thanks for coming Kira... I know we haven't been able to see each other much recently because of my recent projects."

"That's alright! Besides, we're only a phone call and short drive away from each other." Ren smiled and nodded as I spoke. While we ate we brought up a bit of how our days went. When we were nearly finished I spotted the same sunflower plant sitting on his desk.

"I've always been meaning to ask... why are sunflowers important to you?" I could see Ren nearly choke on his food.

"Are you okay?!" I stood up and rushed to his side. After drinking some water he composed himself and stared up at me. I didn't think my statement would be a reason to blush but he seemed a little startled.

"Well... you see..." Ren cleared his throat a little before piling some of the take out boxes on top of each other.

"I've always thought it was a coincidence that we both loved sunflowers... I'm sorry if I--"

"No no... it's just... a little... they were your first gift to me when we were in school..." I looked down at him curiously and he continued while intertwining his hands together nervously. "They... have a special meaning for us..." I nodded slowly.

"When you gifted me a sunflower you told me that I was like a sunflower in your life... your true joy. And that you wanted our relationship to be like a sunflower for as long as possible. It represented what you had hoped for... of endless happiness for us."

I suddenly felt my cheeks flare. I didn't think it held such a meaning... after seeing my nervous expression as well, Ren stood up. When I looked up at him I bit my lower lip.

"I think I was quite romantic in my youth... thank you... for loving sunflowers as much as I do..." he smiled and I reached over to gently touch the top of the bright yellow petal. "You might have to find another sunflower plant soon... it looks like it'll need to be changed soon."

While I spoke he reached forward and brought the sunflower up to his chest level. There was a gentle glint in his eye that seemed to spell out a kind of sweetness I had never seen before.

"Ren?" I asked while he picked through the sunflower's head and pulled out a seed.

"Kira... your hand..." I lifted my hand up automatically and he placed the seed in the middle of my palm. I wasn't sure what he meant.

"This is?"

"For the next plant... I suppose I can share this with you too..." I half-smiled wondering what he meant and he continued.

"Every time the sunflower needed to be replaced I used one of its seeds to regrow a new one. Every several months after we parted, the sunflower would eventually re-bloom again. So technically the heart of the original flower you gave to me lives on..." I looked up at him a little astounded.

"That means..."

"The one at home is the one I've been re-planting for 12 years. And this one... is the one you gifted to me recently. It's still growing..."

"Ren..."

"But this time... I think we can continue growing this together?" I clutched the sunflower seed firmly into the palm of my hand briefly before opening it up again and staring at it.

"If I was romantic a decade or so ago you are truly..." Ren smiled at me again and I leaned in to wrap my arms around his waist.

"I wonder if I'm the first person to fall in love with the same person twice..." Ren reached around my arms and held me closer to his chest. I could feel his hand gently caress the small of my back.

"Should we plant a sunflower garden in our future home?"

"Well you seem like an expert gardener so I trust you'll make it work..." I chuckled a little to myself. While parting away from him ever so slightly Ren's hand gently touched the side of my face. I closed my eyes feeling a sense of relief wash over me.

"I love you..." Ren looked at me with a serene expression while confessing his emotions wholeheartedly...

"I love you, too..." While I looked up at Ren he smiled at me with an endearment I had never felt before in my life.

He slowly leaned forward to press his soft lips into mine. After he placed the sunflower plant down on his desk we kissed deeply. Shortly after I moved my body closer to him and in seconds it was as though we were truly floating on a cloud. I couldn't help but smile as we embraced a little further. Our lips were becoming a little warmer and our hearts were racing... I couldn't tell our heartbeats apart from each other.

"Kira..." Ren said while our lips parted. He placed his forehead against mine while I caught up to the moment.

"Yes..."

"I will love you for the rest of my life..." I leaned in to hug him closer to my body.

"I'm a good kisser right?" I chuckled to myself and he let out a raspy laugh.

"Yes..."

"Ren..."

"Mmm..." I stepped back a little while grasping onto the side of his shirt. He looked at me curiously.

"Thank you for waiting... without knowing you would ever see me again... thank you for being by my side. Thank you for letting me come to you when I was ready. For letting me figure everything out on my own without any pressure... I'm truly... happy I was able to fall in love with you again."

Ren smiled once again and leaned in to kiss me a few times before holding me closer to him again.

I looked out at the dark skies at night being lit up by the moonlight overhead and I realized that this truly was our beginning... and it was no longer a dream.