The Secret Admirer

Chapter One

"Not another one," you groan as you check your email. It was another coupon for an anniversary meal at you and your ex's favorite place. Well, one of them. You'd been getting them non-stop for the past two weeks, and you were so tired of these unhappy reminders.

It had been nearly a month since you'd broken up, but the wound was still fresh. It hadn't been a bad breakup, but it still hurt; you'd spent the last three and a half years together. 

It had been hell to discover that someone you'd loved so much didn't feel that way about you. Nothing felt the same anymore, and you'd been in a rut ever since. You kept thinking that maybe it was time to put yourself out there again, but you never could manage to do so.

Today, however, your irritation at the situation got the better of you, and you quickly got dressed and headed out, determined to do something to distract yourself from the pit of wallowing you'd dug yourself into. 

On the way out the door, you glanced at the email one last time before deleting it. It somehow made you feel better, and you stepped out with a smile.

You spent a good portion of the day visiting a few places around town, such as the museum and botanical gardens. Nice quiet places that weren't bustling with people, but were still out of the house. 

You started to feel pretty good, when halfway through a grove of cherry trees they all suddenly burst into bloom with the sound of a thousand tiny bells. 

It was amazing- but impossible, and it sent a chill up your spine. You shook off the feeling, however, as an amazingly sweet scent filled the air.

It was fantastically beautiful. 

You glanced around, looking if anybody else was around to see, but you were alone. 

A gentle breeze passed through the branches above, and a few petals fell onto your upturned face, as though kisses blown by the flowers. You caught a few in your hand and placed them gently in your pocket, planning to press them when you got home.

Glancing at your phone, you noticed how late it was getting, and sighed softly before taking a few pictures of the beautiful blossoms and setting off for home. You quietly set one image as your phone background, and you smile.

"Thank you for the surprise," you whispered over your shoulder as you left. 

A breeze passed through the trees and you turn back abruptly... as you could have sworn you heard a whispered reply. Shaking your head, you continued on your way.

Your good mood quickly faded once you got home, and you spent the evening eating ice cream in front of the television, watching terribly corny romance films. Sometime after midnight, you drag yourself to bed, sighing heavily. 

You fall asleep and dream of falling flower petals and a shadowy figure in the distance.

===

The next morning, you wake up to the sound of tiny bells chiming quietly. You don't think much of it (your neighbor collected the weirdest things) until you step outside in your normal morning routine.

Hanging over your door was a branch absolutely laden with the cherry blossoms from the gardens. As you stared, the wind danced through them, and that soft chiming sound was heard again.

"What on earth?" you wonder aloud, and carefully reach up to touch the flowers. They ring at your touch, and you smile in disbelief. "How in the world is this even..." you trail off, shaking your head. 

You take the branch down and bring it inside, placing the end in a large, heavy vase and setting it by the front window. You smile again as you go off to start your day.

Over the next few hours, the atmosphere in your home changes: from a sort of silent crypt of old emotions to a comfortable refuge with quiet hope for the future. 

You find yourself wanting to clean for the first time since the breakup, and tie a rag over your hair before grabbing your cleaning supplies. You spend the day sweeping and scrubbing, vacuuming and dusting, and even rearrange your living room entirely. By the end of the day, you're exhausted, but the house sparkles, and you're grinning from ear to ear. You decide to go to bed early, as you're tired from the activity. 

Again, you dream of a shadowy figure surrounded by flowers, but they're closer, more clear. You try to touch them, but they stay just out of reach.

You wake up the next morning wondering about this dream person; was it a sign? Who were they? What did it mean? You wander downstairs to make some coffee, glancing toward the branch by the window as you did so.

And stop dead in your tracks.

The branch had grown overnight. 

Upward and across the ceiling, the beautiful pink flowers now creating half an archway. You stared in wonder; how did this happen? And what was this branch made of to grow like that?

It took a few moments before you could pry your eyes from the sight, and notice something by your front door: a solid black envelope, with a single pink petal resting on it. Nervously, you pick it up and open it, retrieving a thick parchment card from inside. Written in a beautiful, but shaky, calligraphic hand, it read:

"I hope these brighten your days. You have a beautiful smile. -S.A."

You blink rapidly; S.A.? Who did you know with those initials? You thought rapidly for a while before it dawned on you: Secret Admirer. 

You blush hotly as you stare at the note; you had a secret admirer? And they must be responsible for the weird flowers... you glance at the arch of pink growing across your ceiling.

"I really hope this isn't... super permanent..." you quietly mutter. 

Still, it brought a smile to your face, and you nestled the envelope and the note carefully in the flowering branches. Even with the oddity in your living room, your mood was somewhat light today, and you decided to get dressed and go out once again, thinking that maybe you'd visit the botanical gardens and see the stunning grove of blossoms again.

As you walk past the door, you pause and pluck a flower from the closest twig and slip it behind your ear. A gleeful giggle bubbles up and you step out of your house laughing.