They reached for each other yet never quite touched because of similar dreadful history. They were a pair of abandoned apricots. Leftovers, spares, uneaten, untouched, unwanted. Not enough.
Too scared of abandonment, so instead, they made agreements...
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"Nea?" Joris – another man occupying the apartment, called her name as soon as she returned from work. Joris was a laid-back Dutchie with a weakness for German guys, as Nea learnt. So, she wasn't that surprised when his boyfriend Finnley felt like an honorary flatmate by now.
"Yeah?" she shouted from a hallway, wondering what was on Joris' mind. "Did you and Fi-" she stopped in the middle of her sentence when she entered the kitchen and saw a huge bouquet of flowers on the kitchen counter - neatly put in the vase. Nea blinked, taken aback by the sight of the large bouquet. Roses, lilies, and delicate wildflowers spilt over the rim of the vase.
"Did Finnley ask you to marry him?" she asked, half-joking, as she finally collected her thoughts.
Joris snorted, looking up from his phone with an amused smirk. "As if I'd let him be that romantic without me knowing," he teased but then pointed to the flowers. "Actually, those are for you."
Nea's brows shot up in surprise. "For me?"
The Dutchman nodded, still grinning. "Yep, delivered about an hour ago. Finnley isn't even home yet, so no, not a grand proposal from him."
Nea stepped closer to the flowers, still stunned. Roses, lilies, wildflowers—all her favourites, somehow arranged in perfect harmony. "Who would send me flowers?"
Joris shrugged, putting down his phone and folding his arms, now fully engaged in the mystery. "Well, you have to have an idea. People don't send expensive bouquets for nothing."
"I honestly have no clue," she said, her voice still full of disbelief as she reached out to gently touch one of the lilies.
Joris leaned against the counter, watching her with that trademark smirk. "Oh, come on, Nea. You must have some idea. Guys don't just send flowers like this for nothing."
Nea's eyes flicked toward the bouquet again, a small wave of anxiety rolling over her. There was only one person she could think of, but it seemed... unlikely.
Still, she reached for the small card nestled among the flowers, her fingers trembling just slightly as she opened it.
"Thanks for last night. It helped more than you know. – L"
Nea blinked at the note, her mind immediately going to Lando. The late-night call, their long conversation, his unusual vulnerability... Of course, it was him.
Joris was already at her side, craning his neck to catch a glimpse of the card. "Well? Who's the secret admirer?"
The blonde smiled, folding the note and slipping it back into the envelope. "It's from a friend. Just a thank you for helping him out with something."
Joris raised an eyebrow, looking less than convinced. "A friend," he said, making quotation marks with his fingers in the air.
Nea rolled her eyes, laughing softly. "It really is just a friend. He's thoughtful, that's all."
