Memories in Flowers

Chapter 6

Chapter 6

We added the finishing touches using Mrs Hill's own dried flowers the next day. The business was blooming better than ever before, and she had already hired some volunteers to help out. I could have gone to help out today, but Lauren was coming, so Aiden and I bid Mrs Hill goodbye before walking home.

Like the very first day, Aiden was walking backwards again, eyeing the little shop at the same time. He gave a hum of satisfaction. "It looks loads better now."

I took a deep breath, then blurted, "Thank you so much for your help, really. I wouldn't have been able to do it on my own."

He shot me a relaxed grin. "Happy to help. Besides, I got to know a little more about you. Emma Hollands, afraid of climbing up the ladder? I wouldn't have been able to imagine that." We had Uncle Alex to thank. He was the one who lent us his extremely tall ladder, in which he had helped to deliver to the shop early in the morning before he went off to work, one day after the miracle happened.

I wrinkled my nose. "Yeah, well, I've always been slightly afraid of heights."

"Slightly?"

I rolled my eyes jokingly. "Okay, fine. I'm terribly afraid of heights."

He chuckled. "Good to know."

I smiled to myself, thinking of how much had changed since Dad left, especially my opinions of him.

He was different from the Aiden I knew when we were younger. Sure, he was still as cheerful, still good at being the life of a party, and I always thought he was perfect that way when I was little. Me, who always had a hard time connecting so easily with strangers, always quiet, always the one sitting by the side at a birthday party of a classmate's. Perhaps it was the fact that a part of me wanted to be like him that contributed to my hatred towards him. But now I see there was so much more to him that made him human, just like me. 

He constantly looked for reassurance that he was doing a good job, constantly asking for opinions from Mrs Hill and I after completing a certain portion of the painting. When we took a second too long to answer, a look of worry would flash across his face, but when we did give him compliments, he would look so mighty proud of himself, I would almost burst out laughing everytime. Sometimes, when customers went to him to ask for some help, he would pale and look like he was going to have a break down. It was understandable. He barely knew a thing about plants, and it wasn't like he was very familiar with Mrs Pots' Garden yet, so I always made sure to help him out when he was in trouble. It turned out I liked looking at his usual Aiden face rather than that as white as paper, as grim as ever. It made me realise that he wasn't as confident in his own skin.

I felt I could open up to Aiden better than before, but not in a way that my barriers were completely down yet. The times I'd spent with him so far were too good to be true for someone who had hated him with all her might previously. I couldn't help but think something was going to change. Good times don't last forever, right? And I didn't want to get hurt — definitely not by Aiden again.

We walked in comfortable silence for a while when I paused in my steps. Right in front of me was a white envelope. It had been stepped on, dirty with shoe prints all over.

"I wonder who dropped that?" asked Aiden, who had also stopped beside me.

I bent down to take it. It was thin and light. I turned it over between my hands, but I couldn't find any address on it, apart from the words To: Lucy.

"Maybe you should put it back, just in case the owner comes back to find it." There was something in his voice that prompted me to know that he knew exactly what I was thinking, and was trying hard not to show it. I looked into his eyes, and saw that there was something in there that pleaded with me. I refused to acknowledge it.