inamorata // lucy heartfilia one-shots

flowershop lover | stinglu | fluff

As the hustle and bustle of Crocus quickly flew away like petals in the wind, Sting Eucliffe tried his hardest to resist the urge of puking all over the carriage floor. He'd be damned if this train could go any slower. But as the blonde gazed out the window while clutching his stomach and mouth, a sudden twinkle of newfound hope grazed over his heart. Sting knew there was something in Magnolia that was calling for him, and he only had one chance to find out.

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"Me and Lector can finally feast on something big tonight!" he beamed, holding up the pouch filled with the jewels he received from his newly completed job. As he strolled down the lanes of Central Magnolia, his eyes trailed over to the stalls around him. All kinds of splendor were sold, traded and bought in this merchant town. Anything and everything could be bought here, and the people here always looked so... joyful, in Sting's eyes. He continued walking on ahead, taking note of all the food stalls that he could buy from later tonight. As he entered a small alleyway deterring from the plaza, he noticed a shop that was filled with flowers to the brim. He glowered at the flora, the bright colours causing him an eyesore and the pollen messing up his sense of smell. Walking while pinching his nose, Sting cocked his head to take a glance at the flower shop. Nothing out of the ordinary, just another basic shop selling flowers. He was about to continue on his way until a foreign waft of peaches and morning dew caught his attention. And at the corner of his eye, he saw her.

A girl around his age, with hair resembling gold silk, tending to a potted plant inside the shop. Sting stopped dead in his tracks. She was so ultimately gorgeous, it actually made the almighty Sting Eucliffe weak in his knees! Just like a true sight to behold, he gazed at her dumbfoundedly, like she was a Baroque painting lost in the ages. The way she was trimming the leaves, her long, slender fingers holding the secateur, it could leave a man imagining other things! He continued staring at her, completely dazed by her beauty until-

"Are you looking for anything, sir?"

He flinched back in horror, his face showing embarrassment and mortification fused into one.

"Uh-ah-um," Sting stammered.

"You look like you were searching for something," said the girl's voice, as she appeared out of the flower shop, striding towards him.

Crap, think of something! Sting thought, peering at the voluptously framed lady as she stared back hardly at him.

"I um... want to buy some flowers."

Nice going idiot! Obviously you'd want to buy flowers at a florist!

She cocked up an eyebrow and tilted her head slightly. "Anything more specific?"

"Yeah, ah..." Sting averted his eyes from her and landed on a brightly coloured plant he knew too well. "I want to buy some lilies."

He noticed how all the tension was released from her shoulders as she broke into a wide smile. "Oh, I love lilies! Such gorgeous plants, aren't they?" The girl beamed brightly, as she clasped her hands together. It was during this moment of passiveness that made Sting totally lovestruck with her, even if he hadn't known at the time how his heart had melted into a puddle just by looking at her.

Ushering him inside her shop, the girl went and selected a few stalks of lilies while Sting studied the room he was in. It was small and girlish, with motifs of lace and crochets around the shop. Lavenders and baby's breath were hung from the walls to be dried, and ribbons and wrapping papers were placed next to a table, presumably her work table, where a teapot and a cup was placed next to papers filled with scribbles and drawings of flower arrangements. As Sting was studying the place around him, his eyes fell upon the girl wrapping the flowers up in a bouquet, her hands skillfully arranging the flowers one by one, which then was tied with a piece of ribbon. Looking at her brought some calm to his nerves, and he forced a fraught smile as he mustered up the courage to break the silence.