The Flower Shop [A Gaara Love Story]

24: Time

A/N: This is a very long chapter, but I think it'll be worth it.

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"Sorry, I'm a little behind!" Momoko called down to him, her head having popped out from behind her front door, "You can come up, if you want!"

Gaara watched her disappear behind the now open door, then his eyes dropped down to the steps in front of him. Though it had been nearly two months since they had started seeing each other in this new way, they had yet to come into each other's homes. Most of their time was spent going out or being in Gaara's office, so there had never really been a cause for it yet. He was a little taken back that she so casually invited him in, but he was probably thinking more into it than he should have. Gaara made his way up and into the home, shutting the door behind him.

It was exactly as he imagined any home of hers would look like. Her window sills were lined with plants, some well grown and others just budding. The living room was wide with walls painted a deep teal and well furnished, two fluffy looking sofas situated in the middle on either side of a coffee table that also had a flower on top of it. There was a colorful rug taking up most of the floor space of the living room, its colors tying in the furniture and various decorations that littered the walls. There were a couple simple things just for ambiance, but Gaara noticed quite a few pictures as well.

"I'm in here!" She called from somewhere on the other side of the dining room where the sliding paper door had been left open for him.

The dining room was just as colorful, with a pretty dark colored dining set and orange placemats. Had she not called for him, Gaara would have liked to stay and observe the front of the house for just a moment longer. It was all so very her, with beautiful colors and some kind of greenery in every corner. It crossed his mind that it smelled like her, too, in a sweet and comfortable kind of way.

As he walked through the hallway, he slowed down a bit to look at the pictures that hung on the green walls. They were mostly from Konoha, of her and various shinobi that he vaguely recognized. Sakura was in many of them, either hugging to Momoko or in a group with her in some way. There was one or two of her when she was younger, holding a fluffy cat in her arms and grinning with a mouth full of braces.

There were many, also, of what he assumed were Kimiko and Toshi Akiyama. Her mother was a tall woman with a round face and kind brown eyes. Her pale blonde hair flowed in waved down to her hips; just as Momoko's did. Kimiko's smile was warm and kind, and she looked every bit the wonderful mother Momoko had praised her to be. Her father towered over the two of them, his pale eyes always wide with a childish wonder had never quite grown out of. His hair was the color of chestnuts and hung pin straight to his shoulders. Freckles decorated the bridge of his nose and his tanned cheeks, and his lips were pulled into the bright grin that she had obviously inherited. Each picture of the three of them looked so perfect it could have been staged. There was one of Momoko on her 10th birthday, her parents surrounding her, and another of the opening day of her parents' shop when she was just three. The largest picture on the wall was of the three of them, all dressed in their best traditional clothes for the festival that carried on in the background; Momoko looked the same here as she did now, so the picture couldn't have been too long ago. He took his time, stared for a little longer at braces and grins and a happy life, and made a goal for himself to end up on this wall soon.

"I just need a couple minutes," She said when he finally reached the door of her bedroom. "My nap was a little longer than I planned!"

"It's alright," He reassured her, watching her put on earrings in the mirror hanging on her wall. Gaara let his eyes drift to the rest of her room, and this time he paid especially close attention to his surroundings.