Black Orchid | BEOMKAI

Epilogue

Fifteen Years Later

It was a Sunday Spring afternoon, twelve on the dot. At least it would have been if Maya hadn't known that the clock in the living room was ten minutes slow.

"Fuck, I'm late!"

She shoved a loaf of bread into the picnic basket, managing to squash it rather spectacularly.

"Maya Angela Huening!" her father shouted from the hallway. "Mind your fucking language!"

"You can't talk, Dad!" Maya giggled. "That swear jar Kai kept for you when I was a kid did nothing, you know that, right?"

Maya went to sprint from the house through the conservatory door, but her father stopped her as he walked into the kitchen. "And where are you off to?"

Maya might have blushed. "Just.. having a picnic with the neighbor."

She turned to cautiously eye her father and he wore a secretive smile.

"You mean your boyfriend?"

"Oh my god, Dad, he's not. He's just... the neighbor."

"He may as well be your boyfriend," Maya's father grinned. "You two have been glued at the hip since you were kids."

"Dad. Please. You're making this awkward."

Her father chuckled to himself and grabbed a cherry tomato out of a bowl, eating it happily as he wandered back down the hallway. "Have fun then! And use protection if you're gonna... you know.."

"Dad."

He laughed it off and Maya sprinted from the house with a sigh. She hauled the hefty basket and cumbersome red blanket through the garden until she came to the desired clearing. Sat there patiently with legs crossed, pitch-black hair greeting her 'hello' with its waves in the spring breeze, was Maya's neighbor.

"Sorry, I'm late!" Maya apologized and threw the blanket to the wind to straighten before it settled to the grass.

"No need to apologize," her neighbor calmed her.

"Sure I do. Today's-" Maya dropped her sentence, lest it made the scenario any more real than it was.

"This was a great idea, Maya," the young man said as he helped her set out the food on the crimson blanket. "We've never had a picnic before."

"Yeah... seemed like such a nice day for it though. The sun's not too hot right?"

"Agreed. You, on the other hand.." the man gave a small smirk before laughing it off.

Maya blushed and tried to calm her heart as the young man passed his gaze over the small bowls of cherry tomatoes, strawberries and grapes- all homegrown by Maya and her parents. She lifted out the teapot that was almost as old as she was and already filled with hot water and roses. The neighbor watched as she filled the teacups with the swirling, steaming water painted a soft shade of peach. He brought one of the cups up to his curious nostrils.

"Is this rose tea?" he asked.

"Yeah. My parents drink it every day!" Maya encouraged. "It's delicious, you'll like it!"

They both became instantly distracted by the sound of a truck beeping as it reversed and they glanced over to the old house on their left.

"Looks like you've got some new neighbors moving in, Maya," the man said. "You know, years ago, my uncle Oscar used to live there before he disappeared."

"Disappeared?" Maya asked. "Like he went missing?"

"Yeah. Apparently he just sorta vanished right after I was born. None of my family was even worried about it. They just kept telling me as I grew up that he 'went to a better place'.. whatever that means."