III. The Impact of Her

~ Nineteen ~

His brows furrowed as he grew confused.

I cleared my throat as I moved closer to him. "Do not be too certain, too confident that she will give you the answer that you want to hear."

His eyes widened, horrified. "Are you implying that I have no hope with her? That I will not win her heart?" he asked.

"I implore you not to twist my words to antagonise you, Benjamin. Like what I said before, you can have any woman that you want," I replied quickly as I wanted to explain everything right away. I didn't want for our relationships as brothers to be strained because of a woman.

I added, "I only ask that you do not be too complacent. We still don't know what she will say."

"Robert, she will be with me," Benjamin said as he looked into my eyes. He was full of certainty, utterly determined. He didn't blink as he continued, "There is no ounce of doubt within me. I know she will be mine."

Never have I seen him act in this manner. I could only wish that I had the same confidence when it came to meeting ladies at court.

I asked, "How certain are you?"

"My friends at home agreed that giving her flowers is already a step forward to success," he smirked as his confidence reached his head. "And second, to have you with me is already an advantage. You, being here to support me and my cause is a guaranteed win for us."

My brows then furrowed as I blinked rapidly in utter disbelief. "Why do I sense that you brought me with you for a specific purpose? Other than to help you pick the perfect bouquet of flowers, there is something else, isn't there?" I asked.

He chuckled. "Brother," his hand landed on my shoulder, "I want you to help me convince her that we are destined for each other."

I moved my head back, shocked. All he has ever told me was to accompany him. He said he wanted my opinion in choosing the best arrangement so he wouldn't have the worst. I was to only watch him from afar and wait for things to unfold on their own.

I didn't want to have a bigger part in this. But as his closest friend, I wanted to be physically present.

I groaned as I rolled my head. "Is that even necessary? You can easily do this without me. You don't need my help regarding this matter."

"Robert," he put his arm on my shoulder and pulled me closer, "You need to add more fuel to my fiery passion. You have to prove to her that I am a perfect match for her," he added.

I sighed in defeat. There was no other way out of this situation. I tried and I failed. I never liked to be involved in matters such as this. But it has to happen then it should happen.

"Oh, very well, then," I said after a brief sigh. "However, I am only agreeing to this because you dragged me into it. And there is no escape in sight for me right now."

Benjamin smiled before he messed with my hair.

~*~*~*~

A few minutes passed and the shop owner finally came out with Benjamin's requested bouquet.

We were immediately surprised with the amount of flowers squeezed into the arrangement. The bouquet was huge, the owner struggled to his path as he walked towards us.

"Here she is," he grunted as he came closer. As the bouquet appeared before us, we finally had a clear view of everything. In the middle, a red rose stood out. It was then surrounded by sunflowers, daisies and poppies. Small yet unfamiliar flowers were scattered all throughout the bouquet, which made it all the more exquisite.