It was summer time, a lady named Louise arrived to Abra for a vacation because her aunt lived there. She was the type of a woman who loved plants because her parents loved plants too. Every morning, she regularly visits her plants too see if they are still well.
One morning, she went out of their house to cool down, she saw a cactus right next to their door.
"Oh? Why is there a cactus right next to our door?" she starled. "Who put you here?" she asked the cactus. She smiled and took the cactus then went inside the house.
She searched in the internet for what the cactus meant.
"It is said that giving a cactus to a person means he/she is maybe attracted to you a person think you're strong, he/she cares about you, or the person wants to protect you." she smiled after reading the meaning of the cactus. She was glad that someone has given her a cactus.
The next day, she found a cactus right next to their doorstep again. She wondered if a secret admirer might have placed the cactus right in front of their door because she didn't know anyone in the neighborhood who loves cactus. She thought that her secret admirer might just be her neighbor because they were the only ones who always saw her taking care of her plants. She came out of their house and walked around to see if she had a neighbor who loves plants. Later on, she discovered a store near their house so she decided to go there.
"Knock knock. I would like five candies." she said. The man in-charge of the store had given off what she purchased and she had already paid for it. "Thank you. By the way, do you know any cactus lover here in our area?" she asked.
"There is. That's his house." he pointed to the one behind her so she turned around to look.
"Thank you." she said and went to that house. She was surprised by the sheer volume of cacti in that house. She saw a man looking at his cacti. She suspected that he was her secret admirer because he was her only neighbor with a lot of cacti.
The next day, Louise woke up early to watch out for her secret admirer who always puts a cactus next to their door. She was shocked to see the man she saw yesterday who owns a lot of cactus in his house, placing the cactus right next to their door. She was touched by what the man did. She pulled out her phone and pictured the boy for evidence. Later on, she decided to visit her neighbor.
"Knock knock. Is there anyone here?" Louise knocked.
"Why?" the man with a lot of cactus asked.
"May I visit?" Louise asked. The man nodded and brought her to his house.
"Hi, I'm Zeus." the neighbor introduced.
"Hello, I'm Louise." she introduced and shook his hand.
"What can I do for you?" Zeus asked.
"I've been receiving a lot of cactus lately. Do you sell your cactus?" she asked.
"No, I don't sell any of my cacti. Why?" he asked.
"If you don't sell your cactus, then what is the meaning of this?" she took out her phone and showed his picture putting a cactus to him. Zeus didn't answer her question instead he just smiled.
"I don't think you live here. Where are you from?" he answered, changing the topic.
"I'm from Quezon City." she answered.
"Would you like to come with me to enjoy the beautiful scenery here in Abra?" he invited.
"Sure!" she said excitedly. After all, they enjoyed the beautiful sceneries in Abra and while they were travelling they are always laughing.
The following days, there was always a cactus in front of their door. She knows that Zeus is the one who puts the cactus in, so she lets Zeus put the cactus because Louise can't stop him.
One day, there was a knock on Louise's door that surprised her. There has never been a knock on their door since Louise arrived. She slowly opened the door and was shocked by what she saw. She was surprised that she would see him in her vacation. He saw a man holding a container garden containing cacti.
"Ethan, what are you doing here?" she asked because she didn't expect that she would see Ethan. He is her co-worker in Quezon City that was secretly likes her.
"I'm here today to officially court you." he said smiling.
"Oh, really?" she was startled. "Thank you for liking me but... I'm sorry because I can't reciprocate your feelings. I have already liked someone else. Someone who is simple but has a big heart." she explained.
" Oh... I understand." He said. His voice became low and his eyes became sad.
"By the way, are you the one sending the cactus?" She asked.
" Yes, I just ordered my childhood friend who also love cactus to put cactus in front of your door every single day, because I can't leave from work last week." He explained.
" How did you know that I'm here in Abra?" She asked
" I just stalked you on social media. For your information, this is my hometown." He proudly said. Louise was startled. " By the way, please accept this even if you don't like me." He bitterly said.
" Thank you for all the cacti you've given me." She smiled.
The next day, she was surprised to find that she could not find a cactus in front of their door. She was used to have a cactus right next to their door. She felt sad now that Zeus was gone.
The next week, she tried to search Zeus. She visited all the beautiful scenery that the two of them went to. She walked around all the way until she came upon a large cactus garden. She saw a man meditating on the edge of the large cactus garden. She quickly approached the man.
"Hey, you! Why were you gone for so long?" She asked in tears.
" I didn't just show up to you for a week. Is it long?" He laughed. Louise was annoyed at what Zeus had done.
" I'm not joking. I will ask you a question so you must answer me honestly." She said and breathed deeply. " D-do you love me or not?" She asked. Her face was serious eaiting for Zeus to answer. " I'm not going to ask you about this again." She said.
" I... I love you. At first, I really have no feelings for you. I don't believe in love at first sight. But when I get to know you more, I... slowly fell for you. When I started to have my feelings for you, I forgot that my friend likes you too. So... I let you go. I tried to ignore my feelings but I couldn't. I didn't tell anyone about my feelings because I don't want my friend to know that I started liking you too." He tearfully explained.
" You don't need to ignore your feelings. I told your friend that I have already liked someone." She said. " ... And you are that someone that I like." She confessed.
" But I'm just a poor gardener. How can you like me?" He asked.
" I love you because you have a big and a good heart." She said.
The large cactus garden was full of love and they live happily ever after.
