The Flower Boy - Vreeze

A Rose A Day

Valeria had a simple life in her eyes. Never had she wished for anything big or extravagant. Always content to live as she was, even if some nights seemed lonely.

She had a slow paced but entertaining job at the local cafe, where she would often spend late nights cleaning and serving customers with the strong scent of ground coffee beans filling the calm air. Her days were occupied by the business accompanied by college life. Multiple early classes, with only a few afternoon ones, and off to home for homework and assessments that would pile up throughout the day.

What she thought of as home would be the small apartment not too far away from her college's campus. It was cheap and small, although she didn't need much room anyway. She had no need to fill countless rooms with little objects of interest, nor needed the feeling of freedom that came with large open spaces in one's home. No, she was content with the small but quaint home she called her own.

The minimal amount of time left in between meant she rarely had time for outings. Her friends still kept in touch through calls done while Valeria was deep in a pile of homework, or small meetups when one of her classes was canceled. But those moments were rare, leaving Valeria lonely during the nights when her mind hadn't quite quietened down enough for her to drift off to a dreamless sleep. In those moments, when it felt like all time had slowed just enough to allow Valeria to stop and think, she let herself dream of a world in which her busy life didn't keep her so occupied. Of a world where she had time to laugh with friends. To drink coffee in a comfortable and calm silence. To maybe fall in love.

Around then is when she would chose to shut off her brain. For she did not wish to sell herself on a fantasy that wouldn't come true. She knew maybe one day she would find someone who loved her. Someone to share a house with. But she also knew that the mind could play tricks. That what her imagination thought up - if she were to let her mind run ramped with hope and freedom - would make her life and any future seem bleak in comparison. For she knew that what was written and read in fairytales was nothing but a myth. Something conjurged from the depths of a mind so overflowing with creativity that it crested and spilled like ink over the many pages that would tell the story. So she wouldn't let her mind wander, and instead would welcome the nothingness that welcomed her back into the blissful numbness of sleep. And when she awoke, she would open her eyes to the bright but empty house she lived in and would prepare for the day and head out.

Except today, when as Valeria's hands curl over the handle to her door and pull, there lying on her small and worn rug was a single, red rose.

At first her mind spun with all the possibilities. Obviously this wasn't for her. It must have been dropped by someone passing, or someone mistook her apartment for another. Nonetheless, her tan hands quickly wrapped around the trimmed stem of the beautiful flower and stared. Maybe for a moment she wished that the rose was for her. But logic quickly hid that thought away from her, for Valeria was certain that she didn't know anyone who would do something such as leave a rose at the front of someone's door.

The flower twirled in her hand as her brown gaze searched the crimson petals before catching on a spark of white wrapped around the dark green stem.

There, a slither of paper remained tied, sporting a black line that swirled and curled into pretty writing.

'Roses are red
Violets are blue
I couldn't help, But notice you. (; '

Valeria sucked in a quick breath, spit getting lauched in her throat and making her coak. It was such a ridiculous thing that she was sure anyone watching would be cackling with laughter at the sight of a red faced girl, coughing while holding a red rose.

Once her lungs quietened and her chest rose and fell steadily with even breaths, her mind finally cleared. A joke. Her mind supplied her. It's a joke. Stop thinking something's there when it's not.

Feeling slightly down and annoyed, Valeria swiftly strode back into her house a roughly placed the offending rose on the grey countertop before walking back out and closing the door, her on the outside.

She continued her day as she normally would, although thoughts of the rose plague her, even despite how much she willed them away. Was it wrong to hate someone you didn't know? Someone you hadn't even seen nor met? Because she did. She despised the person who thought someone would enjoy something like that. Someone who would try to spring hope into the hearts of their victim only to never continue the gesture, making them feel foolish for thinking that for once, it was real. But Valeria was not that person. She had crushed hope long ago and was not fooled by the clever words of the one who decided to mess with her. Or at least, that was what she convinced herself of.

The next day, the girl with tan skin, raven hair and brown eyes opened the door only to find that again, a single rose with a note was left at her doorstep. She was quick to peer outside and let her eyes flick the halls of the building, but no one was there. Which makes sense. Valeria thought as she bent down to pick up the rose once again, staring at how it almost seemed flawless. There's nothing to say that the rose was left recently.
Once again she found her gaze flitter to the note and she read over the words again, written in the same pretty writing with the same black pen.

'If you were a pokemon i'd choose you'

And okay, Valeria wasn't that big of a nerd, but maybe - just maybe - the blood rushed to her cheeks, staining them a light red.

Crap. There's no way a pick-up line that bad actually worked on her. No no no no. It didn't work on me. It's just a stupid, lovely flower with a equally as stupid pick-up line on it. I'm not blushing. I'm not.

Again, Valeria's dark purple shoes thudded against the floor of her small apartment as she dropped the flower next to the one from yesterday and immediately stopped back out. Nope. There's no way this is going to continue for long, meaning there's no way Valeria's going to waste her time thinking about this like she did yesterday. She's going to continue like everything's normal. Like nothing's changed because it hasn't.

The next day, Valeria's class was canceled. She would usually stay inside all day, tending to the small space she lived in, because all of her other friends were busy too. And yet, she found herself opening her door with a small buzz of excitement that she hated herself for. Because she was obviously playing right into the person's hands. She had wanted to stay firm in her belief that this was just nothing more than a prank, but she couldn't help the flood of relief that hit her when she saw a rose sitting outside her door like the day before and the day before that.

She was quick to snatch it off the floor and even quicker to shut the door. She knew she was being ridiculous. How much more cliche could it get? But she couldn't help herself and her hand holding the rose lifted it to her nose and she inhaled deeply.

It was a heavenly smell, something so distinguished but was definitely something other than the rose. It was almost like it had been sprayed lightly by a perfume. Still, Valeria wasn't someone to dwell on something as small as the smell of a rose and instead searched for the piece of paper tied to the stem.

'Tie your shoes, I don't want you to be falling for anyone else but me'

And maybe Valeria allowed herself to admit that she did blush a bit at that. But she was quick to try and deceive herself again. The thing is, at this point Valeria knows she lying to herself. Knows that she's already started to fall. But she also knows how stupid that is. Someone left her roses with pick up lines and that's all it takes? It's ridiculous. And she doesn't want to admit it's true. So she doesn't, because she doesn't need to. The roses will soon stop, and everything will become normal again. She won't have to check outside her door for the special flower because it won't be there. But can't she let herself dream just this once? Let herself fall into the fantasy her mind supplies her?

No. She thinks, even as she begins to slowly walk back to her kitchen counter where the previous two flowers lay, the first has signs of deterioration growing at its petals.

"No." She says, even when she's carefully untying the slivers of paper and setting them to the side.

"No." She repeats, even as she fills up a medium sized vase that had never once been used and slowly lowers the three roses inside, it almost looking empty because of the size of the flowers compared to the vase.

"No." She tells herself, even as she stares at the glass vase holding three flowers with half-lidded eyes as she allows her mind to dream up a faceless person who left her them.