The Flower Shop [A Gaara Love Story]

10: An Arrangement

Momoko wasn't nervous, per say, but she definitely felt a bit unsure when she woke up the next morning. It was still early outside, early enough that most of the village still slept and the streets were decently empty. The shop wasn't supposed to open for another hour or two- just enough time for her to get ready, put together a bouquet, and deliver it to the Kazekage. Remembering just who she was taking the flowers to made her pause and sit a little longer on the edge of her bed. Maybe it was nervousness? It was the Kazekage afterall; the embarrassment of having just blurted out that she would bring him more flowers the very next morning swelled up in her throat just like it had the moment she actually said it to him. Though he had given her an odd look, it was a relief when he had agreed nonetheless.

After working up the nerve by giving herself a rather long pep-talk, Momoko hopped up from bed and set out to get ready for the day. She would have to work after she got back from delivering the flowers, and she should have kept that in mind when she picked out her clothes for the day. However, the fact that she was going to the Kazekage Tower made her want to put a little more effort into what she wore today. It occurred to her then that she's been putting more effort into her appearance a lot more recently; the thought of having so many things to look nice for made her happy.

She settled on a knee-length sundress the color of strawberries, the hem decorated with little white ruffles. She wore a pair of pearl earrings with it and picked out white sandals as well. Momoko did her makeup like she usually chose to, but this time she put on lipstick the color of her dress. She didn't often wear lipstick, usually going for a gloss of some kind or nothing at all, but it just felt right this morning. Momoko was going to put her hair up in a high ponytail like she had the day before but after finishing her makeup, she found she rather liked the look of her hair down. Brushing through her hair left the waves loose and she admired the way they fell down to her waist.

With getting ready out of the way, Momoko grabbed a few dorayaki that she had made the night before and made her way down to the shop. She still hadn't decided on what kind of flowers she wanted to bring him but did keep in mind that he didn't seem too fond of how bright the last bouquet had been. Of course he wouldn't care for the bright yellows and whites, she lightly scolded herself, so instead she focused on the darker blooms in her backroom.

Daisies were too bright, as were sunflowers or daffodils. Roses seemed too romantic and tulips seemed too simple. She was almost stumped about what to give him, until a bundle of mapira lilies caught her eye. They were a deep maroon, almost purple, and they were fully open already. She only had the one bundle of them; they were beautiful, but not her most popular flower. They seemed more in the Kazekage's taste than the yellow globe flowers, so Momoko grabbed them and set to work arranging them.

She was tempted to accent them with a few stems of baby's breath, but ultimately decided that more green would fit best. After fitting some bells-of-Ireland around the mapira lilies, Momoko set them into a clear vase and tied it up with a maroon ribbon. Not all of her bouquets were wrapped up with ribbons, but something about knowing it would sit on the Kazekage's desk made her want to dress it up a bit more. Once the bow was tied neatly around the vase, Momoko paused for a moment as her gaze shifted to the small stack of blank cards on the table.

It probably wasn't necessary to write a card- these flowers were just-because, after all. They weren't thanking him this time or celebrating anything, they were just flowers for the sake of giving flowers. Still though, Momoko found herself grabbing a card from the stack as well as a pen. She thought for a moment before a little smile came to her lips and she jotted down her message on the little white card. After tucking it a little deeper in between the flowers, Momoko collected the vase and left the shop for the Kazekage Tower.