Song: "Conversations in the dark" - by John Legend.
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They hadn't walked for long, just a few turns here and there and finally, they reached a door, and Daxton smiled. This was his favorite room in the house and his alone. He usually never allowed others inside, but Mikayla's frantic moves earlier had hit him hard. He recognized her anxiety attack, causing sympathy to swivel fully within him. He knew too well what that was like. Mikayla's mood seemed to worsen at the sound of Annabelle's voice. To Daxton, it simply made sense to bring her to the room. It was where he always went to calm down.
"Where are we?" Mikayla asked once they reached the door. He had her hand in his and though he knew he could assist her with simply his elbow, holding her hand seemed far better. It was smaller than he anticipated.
He ignored her question and simply opened the door. "Don't let Nelly follow," he instructed Mikayla quietly. He waited for Mikayla to give her instruction and then walked inside. The room wasn't very large, but it was warm and smelled fresh. He led Mikayla towards the only bench in the room, right in the center where you could see majority of what was around.
Once they were seated, he finally answered her question. "We're in my secret hideout, also my favorite room in the house. It's a greenhouse actually."
He watched intrigued as Mikayla's mouth opened slightly in wonder. He knew she couldn't truly see the beauty of the room, but he knew she could feel it. It was why he loved the room so much. It was open, clean and without distractions. It was a place that forced you to calm down. It was also a place where you could often feel more than see.
"It smells strong in here," Mikayla commented, and he chuckled. He forgot about that.
"Yeah I uh-" he cleared his throat, "I'm still learning how to place the plants in a way that their scents blend and to use plants that can coexist together. I started this about two years ago. It's turned out to be far more complicated than I first thought."
Mikayla giggled. "It doesn't smell bad, just very fresh." He hummed and took a whiff himself. She was right, there was such a strong mix of plants - mostly herbs - that all you really got hit with was a fresh, wooden smell.
"What made you want a greenhouse?" She asked him.
He shrugged. "Not really sure if there was one specific thing. All I remember was that it was around the time Cameron's antics were really taking full speed and my headaches were becoming as frequent as our fights. I remember we had had a really big fight, so bad that I'd actually thrown a glass vase at him. When he looked back at me, so terrified, I knew I'd screwed up and I needed to calm down." He paused and thought back to that day. He'd always hated fighting with Cameron. He was always left feeling guilty and his brother was left feeling no shame for his actions.
"Anyway, I left the house in a rush and just started walking. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going and eventually, I found myself in the parking lot of this small shopping center. There were only two stores, and both looked run down. One was a liquor store, the other, a nursery." He chuckled under his breath. "I'd just had an argument about alcohol, so I walked towards the nursery. It was small but there was something comforting about walking about between fresh flowers, fruit and vegetables."
He cleared his throat and looked away from Mikayla as he awkwardly rubbed at his neck. "Well after that I began going to the nursery every time I needed a break and it wasn't until about three months after the first visit that a very sweet old shop keeper sat with me and asked what my business was walking about her store. That day she convinced me to make my own comfort place and I said yes."
Mikayla smiled brightly and he found himself smiling too. "That's a great story. So, tell me, what's it like in here?"
He took a quick look around the room and tried to think how best to describe it. He never was good with words. "Come, we'll take a walk around." He stood up and pulled her along by her hand. He began walking forward, deeper into the room, all the while, he tried to ignore how natural it felt walking with Mikayla.
"So, there's a lot of different things in the room. I've tried to organize it in a way that is visually appealing. I'm not sure I've mastered it, but I think the room is pretty to look at. There's a row of striking yellow on your left made by sunflowers. There's also some white, red, orange and a lot of green." He cleared his throat. "I don't think I'm explaining this right." He paused and looked at her quickly. "Do you even know colors?"
She laughed loudly and squeezed his hand. "I do. I wasn't born blind."
"So, what happened?" He'd been curious since he met her but asking her also seemed too rude.
"One day I'll tell you," she answered simply and began slowly walking towards their left. He watched her walk with her right hand out, in line with her hip. When her fingers reached the flowerbed, she stopped. He watched with fondness as she bent down and sniffed.
"Smells earthy." He chuckled.
"You're smelling an empty flowerbed. Here." He went behind her and turned her body slightly to the right. "Now smell."
She did and smiled. "Smells sweet."
"This is where I keep my Amazon lilies. They're small plants. The ones I have here have a small yellow bulb with white petals. They bring a nice fragrance to the room though many aren't in bloom yet. They're a new plant I introduced three weeks ago. They need a warm climate, so I've had to find a way of accommodating it without destroying others in the room."
He watched as Mikayla's eyebrows furrowed. "I never knew this process was so complicated."
He shrugged, "Neither had I. I told you I'm still learning. Come here." He pulled her away from the Amazon lilies and towards his favorite plant. He pulled it off its stem and put it against her pale pink lips. "Try this." She was hesitant and quickly pulled away. "Come on, trust me. Eat it."
She frowned at him before slowly leaning forward again. He watched her tongue peak out between her lips and tap it quickly. Her brows furrowed in confusion. Her tongue went out again, this time, she licked the whole thing before opening her mouth and eating it. She grinned and yelled excitedly, "It's a strawberry!"
He laughed at her excitement and watched as she continued to chew. The juices began to drip past her lips and the striking red liquid against her pale skin had his stomach tightening.
"Told you to trust me," he whispered before gently using his thumb to wipe away the excess dripping liquid. Mikayla jumped instantly; startled by his touch. "You messed a bit," he assured her.
He watched her throat move as she gulped. She licked her lips clean. "I wasn't expecting a fruit." She was whispering too. They were close to each other and he could hear her breaths fall past her now ruby lips. Tension filled the room quickly and he felt slightly dizzy.
He cleared his throat and stepped away; looking everywhere but at the tempting sight Mikayla made. "I grow more than just flowers here. Strawberries are my favorite and I like having a supply close at hand."
"I like strawberries too."
He grinned. "What else do you like?"
"Apples are my favorite though I only like the sweet, green ones." He laughed when her nose tuned up.
"I don't have an apple tree here, but I'll make sure we have apples in the kitchen for you." She smiled and Daxton wondered why it was that he had to step away from her. She was sweet, too sweet. Suddenly a low whine came through the door and Mikayla turned around at the sound.
"We probably shouldn't have left Nelly out there." He nodded and reached for her hand again, grateful to the dog for stopping him from doing something he'd regret.
"Thank you for bringing me here. I feel calmer here."
He smiled at her. "Then you can come here whenever you need a place to breathe."
"I thought you don't let anyone in here?"
"You're different."
"Why?" She asked.
"Because I know you'll appreciate this place the way I do. You're sacrificing a lot to be here, and I just want to make you comfortable." There were other reasons too, ones he tried to ignore and never utter.
She snorted at his answer and pulled her nose up. "I'd be more comfortable if Annabelle left."
He frowned. "You don't want her here?" They were best friends, why would she want her gone?
She shook her head. "I do, it's just that um. How do I put this so I don't sound ungrateful?"
He laughed. "I get it, they're a bit much. Always around you."
"Exactly! I don't feel like I can breathe."
"So how can we get them to leave?"
She sighed. "They'll only leave once they're sure I'm fine here on my own."
Daxton remained quiet as he opened the door. He watched as Nelly rushed to Mikayla's side and rubbed against her. Mikayla smiled down at him. She looked much calmer. More relaxed than she had when he found her in the hallway. He wanted her to be like this all the time. If the media saw this side of her, his plan would definitely work.
"Then we need to make sure you're okay here." He answered her. He wasn't sure how yet but, in that moment, he was determined to find a way to make the house more comfortable for Mikayla.
What he needed was a computer.