blooming {complete}

three: blue hyacinth

blue hyacinths mean sincerity.

Piper leaned over her desk and shifted her compass a little to the left. The mandala was coming out beautifully. Piper's mother's birthday was in three weeks, and Piper had plenty of money from the flower shop, but Ahana preferred homemade gifts. Piper had been a math fanatic since she was seven, and geometry was by far her favorite sub-subject. She'd gotten her mathematical compass for Christmas two years ago, and had been making mandalas ever since. Sometimes she sold them, but usually she hung them up in her room or gave them to Vanessa.

"Baby?"

Piper threw herself on top of her work and glanced awkwardly over her shoulder at her mother in the doorway. Ahana's full brows were furrowed, and a playful smile curved her lips. Piper gently eased the paper back into her portfolio and twisted around to face Ahana.

"Hey, Mama," she replied, tucking a curl behind her ear. "Do you need me?"

"We have neighbors at the door," Ahana said, running her fingers through Piper's thick hair. She began absentmindedly braiding it as Piper put away her colored pencils and compass. "They're new, apparently, and of course your dad invited them over for dinner. They have a son, Henry, but he won't be arriving until it's time for dessert and wine, probably. Will you come down?"

"Do I have a choice?"

"No," Ahana said. She tied off Piper's braid with a hair tie from her wrist and bent down to kiss her daughter's cheek. "You got this, baby. Did you take your meds this morning?"

Piper searched her memory and came up blank, but didn't feel any ardent desire to let her mother know. "Yeah, with breakfast. I'll be right down."

"Okay," and her mother turned and left, leaving the door open behind her.

Piper stood and glanced at her braid in the mirror before untucking her shirt from her jeans and jogging down the stairs. Ahana and Richard were standing at the door with their arms around each other, laughing with two men.

"This must be Piper," one of the men said, a lanky man with graying auburn hair and kind green eyes. He was standing with his hand in the other man's pocket and his smile wide and glowing. "I'm Isaac, and this is my husband Elliot."

The other man—Elliot, she guessed—smiled too, but he seemed tired and was leaning on Isaac. He was shorter and blonde, with fine features and crow's feet. Piper shook Elliot's hand and accepted the hug Isaac gave her.

"Elliot's son will be here in an hour or so, but he's with his mom tonight. We brought wine!" Isaac exclaimed, beaming as he presented Piper's parents with a burgundy bottle. Ahana smiled widely even though she didn't drink, and turned to walk into the kitchen.

"So, uh, Piper here works in a flower shop," Richard said, nodding his head at Piper like saying her name wasn't enough. "Don't you, Pipes?"

"Um, yes. My sister is in England right now, so I'm taking care of her store while she's gone."

"Oh, Elliot's son loves flowers. It's pretty strange because, in all other aspects, he's the straightest straight boy, but he's been obsessively searching for a good flower shop around here. I'll have to tell him about you," Isaac chattered. He seemed like he wanted to sit down, so Piper led them into the living room and curled up in the armchair closest to the door.

Piper's phone rang just as she found the comfiest spot in the chair, and she rose scowling to stomp up the stairs. "Yes, Juniper?"

"Hey, bub, the store is like weirdly crowded right now and the grumpy boy is back with lots of money. Will you please come?" her friend asked. Piper could hear the chatter of the shop through the phone. She cringed.

"I'm at a family dinner. The new neighbors are over. And is the store even open this late?" Piper knew Vanessa was trying to break even at the shop, but she didn't know her sister had extended hours.

"Yeah, Pipes, please. We'll finish this up so fast once you're here, and then you can get back home before appetizers are served. Please," Juniper repeated. Piper could almost hear her friend's leg shaking through the line. She heaved a dramatic sigh.

"Fine. But if my mother gives me her sad, disappointed look when I leave and I roll up to the store in tears, that's on you."

Juniper laughed and hung up.

"Hey, Mom?" Piper yelled as she jogged down the stairs. Ahana emerged from the kitchen and eyed the shoes and jacket Piper was now wearing. "Juniper needs me at the store, can I...?"

"Baby," Ahana said, exasperated. "We have guests."

"I know, Mama, but the store is really busy and Juniper needs help. Please?"

Ahana frowned but shrugged and walked back into the kitchen with her arms crossed over her chest. Piper willed herself to not feel the full weight of her mother's irritation. As she was walking out the door, she heard her mother's kind voice say, "Don't forget your helmet, baby," and Piper released the breath she was holding. 

a/n: thank you for reading! i'm sorry the chapters are so short, but i mean it's a short story so what did you expect.