flower shop || lashton [on hold]

five

[listen to the song while you read this, thank you enjoy]

luke

After we left the cafe, we had been walking for about 20 minutes before we came across a cemetery. I was really confused thinking maybe Ashton took a wrong turn as we walked down the secluded road, but when he went inside I knew this was no mistake.

We walked through the headstones until we came across one that was surrounded by flowers. Some not as new as others but still there were a lot of flowers. Flowers from my shop to be specific.

I looked over at Ashton when I heard him sniffle. He sat down in front of the headstone before wiping his eyes. I heard him softly say, "Hi mum, there's someone I would like you to meet." He looked up at me before reaching out for my hand.

"Will you sit with me?" Ashton asked in a small and broken voice. I nodded and quickly sat beside him. "This is Luke mum, he owns the flower shop you loved so much." he said softly while placing my hand in his.

"I know this is might be a terrible first date, but the next one will be much better I promise." He said while laying his head on my shoulder.

"Ash what are we doing here?" I said quietly. He exhaled slowly before turning to face me. After a few minutes he spoke up.

"So about a year ago my mum started to get very sick. She was in an out of the hospital for weeks, she was barely home anymore and every time she did come home she only got worse."

He sniffles and took a deep breath. "We later found out that she had stage three breast cancer. It was diagnosed too late so no amount of chemotherapy could have saved her. She stayed in the hospital for about three weeks before she passed."

"My mum loved flowers, she had her own garden that she tended to everyday. She gave me a note a few days before she passed. It gave me the address to your shop. She said she used to go there and spend hours shopping for flowers."

As he spoke I quietly wiped my tears from my eyes. I knew exactly who he was talking about. I would help her for countless hours and she would talk about her beautiful garden and about her two children.

I reached forward a shaky hand and moved one of the flowers off the headstone so I could see the engraving.

Anne Marie Irwin
loving mother and friend
"beauty will remain despite how ugly the world may be"

I looked over to Ashton and saw he was crying. I couldn't help but let a few tears roll down my cheeks at the sight. His mother was just as wonderful as him.

I reached out and pulled him into a tight hug. He sobbed into my chest and clutched onto my shirt. I didn't realize I was crying until I felt my wet tears fall onto my forearm.