Coneflowers

The Attic

Lemon wakes with Carson in her arms. Hallie was asleep in the next room. She pulls Carson closer and kisses her forehead. Whispering I love you she kisses her lips. Carson opens her eyes.

"Lemon."she says

Lemon puts her fingers lightly over her lips and says "shh" as she tightly wraps her arms around her.

"Lem. I'm so glad that you're here."

"Honey.. I'm so glad that you are here.." Lemon says.

They suddenly hear footsteps coming from the steps.

"Lem?" Carson says, gripping her tightly.

"It might be Luna checking on us" she whispers.

Lemon's palms begin to sweat and she begins lightly shaking. Carson suddenly remembers what she had read from Lemon's book and she whispers in her ear.

"It's okay Lem, I have you." As she reaches down into her book bag next to the bed. She pulls out a switch blade.

"What the fuck Carson." Lemon Whispers.

"Sorry, there's no playing around anymore, whatever it takes to protect you."

Suddenly the footsteps stop but they are both unsure where the person had stopped.

"Lem, you okay?"

"I'm scared. Should I text Louie?"

"No. She whispers abruptly."

"Why not?"

"Because we don't need her to constantly come to our rescue Lemon." She says slightly angry and slightly aggravated.

"Okay." Lemon says confused but then realizing that maybe Carson felt threatened a bit by Louie since she had just found out about her.

The footsteps suddenly are joined with others in the hallway.

Luna raises her voice above a whisper, speaking to someone.

"Sorry I was just checking to see if you all were okay."

"We're fine.." Hallie says.

Luna heads down the stairs, and Hallie opens the door to Lemon and Carson's room.

"Lem."

"Yea Hal."

"How well do you know this Luna?"

"I lived here in this house for 3 years so I think I know her pretty well."

"Why was she standing in the hallway staring at the door."

"Maybe she was listening to see if we were awake."

"Why." Hallie says angrily.

"I don't know maybe she wants to know if we're okay?" Lemon says defending Luna.

"I'm sorry I can't help but to not trust someone I literally just learned about this week, after you ran off to fucking Alaska, leaving me and Carson worried sick if we would ever even see you again?"

"I'm sorry Hal." Lemon says, sweating and turning more red by the second.

"It's okay." She says drifting off.

She leans over the bed and hugs Lemon and hugs Carson. "Goodnight guys I love you both."

"Love you too" they both say as Hallie leaves the room.

"Carson?" Lemon asks

"Yea Lem."

"I'm sorry I never told you anything."

"I'm sorry I never asked."

"Are you sure you still want to be married to me?" Lemon says

Carson grabs hold of Lemon and looks deeply into her eyes.
"Of course I still want to be married to you Lem, I won't ever stop."

Lemon takes a sudden deep breath feeling as though for the first time she wasn't going to be abandoned.

"Lem?"

"Yea."

"What happened with Louie before you moved in with her"

"Oh."

"I liked to wander the property and find random places to read." She says as she begins to rub the palm of her right hand.

"Of course you did honey." She pauses. "The entire property is unbelievable, I don't know how you never wanted to tell anyone."

"I try not to think about that place."

"But the flowers Lily has planted, the printed cement walkways.."

"You saw my house?"

"Yes. I met both of your parents and saw both houses and the Manor."

"Oh" she frowns.

"Your mother told me about all about the Coneflowers."

"She planted those when I left." Lemon says unamused.

"They are beautiful and the story is incredible."

"I suppose so." Lemon says.

"The honeysuckle.." Carson says, grabbing hold of Lemon's right hand, rubbing the inside of her palm for her.

"Yes the honeysuckle. It grows incredibly in Washington."

"Of course it does." Carson giggles slightly.

"I dunno I was so shy I just tried my best to avoid everyone."

"And how did you do that?" Carson asks still continuing to rub Lemon's palm.

"Well eventually I started to paint the house."

"So I saw, it's wonderful."

"Thanks."

"Then I re did the attic in my house."

"Oh yea? What did you do?"

"There's a couch, and a desk up there. I painted the walls with honeysuckle and tulips and daffodils."

"I bet it's absolutely beautiful honey."

Lemon's sweating again.

"What's wrong honey?" Carson asks lightly kissing her cheek.

"It just, it was just. It was the place I wrote."

"Wrote what?"

"Yes, I have dozens of books up there. Poems, short stories, journals."

"Awh honey that sounds so amazing."

"I didn't have very many friends. So I sat up there all the time reading or writing."

"I'm glad you had your place honey." Carson kisses Lemon.

"So when Louie moved in, I eventually ventured downstairs more."

"How come?"

"Well obviously she was cooking for me so I had to go down to eat."

"True."

"Why couldn't she have had a job anywhere else at the Manor?"

"I think my mom didn't like how alone I was all the time."

"Did she suspect you guys would eventually become friends?"

"Probably not, I barely ever talked to anyone."

"Oh."

"So the loft; my place.. it was your attic."

"It definitely felt that way, especially with the bookshelf."

"Well I guess we better paint some flowers in my loft when we go back." Carson says holding Lemon's chin.

"All the flowers. Honeysuckle, daffodils, coneflowers, all over the Loft." Lemon smiles

Suddenly Lemon stops smiling.

"What is it Lem?"

"Will we ever get to go home?"