a flower || l.s.

06 ♥ RIPENING

Louis nearly bumps into Harry, and Harry seeing Louis makes his eyes widen.

"You're back," Harry says.

"I'm back," Louis repeats.

"What are-"

"Okay, wait, lemme just get this out. I would kiss you if it were a movie, but it's not, and I just wanted to tell you that I read your letter and found every flower and every meaning and I had no idea and I don't know how your mind did that and how you thought to do th-"

"You kept the flowers?" Harry interrupts.

Louis nods while trying to catch his breath.

Louis kept the flowers? He kept the flowers. Harry thought he'd dumped them out all along. It creates a bit of warmth in him hearing that.

And that kiss part kind of gave him butterflies.

"I mean, I wouldn't throw a flower out unless it's completely wilted," Louis shrugs.

"If you put it in water that's just a little warm and then add some sugar and cut the stem a tiny bit, the flowers can perk back up," Harry tells him. "Just a tip."

"I'll use that for the asher and whatever that other one was," Louis says. "You're a lot smarter than I thought you were.

Ouch, but he's still in love with him. Nothing can change that.

"It's an aster and an anemone, and your low expectations of me kind of hurt," Harry replies.

"I just meant I didn't think you had this secret meaning behind those stupid flowers," Louis tries to explain.

"You think the flowers are stupid?" he repeats.

"No! No, no, no, no no, I'm just wording things wrong cause there's a lot going on in my head and I've been trying to figure things out for a while and turns out I'm actually in love with you, but anyway, then this comes along and I'm like 'what the heck, you know? But in a good way. Not a bad way," Louis rambles on and Harry listens, very entertained.

Turns out I'm actually in love with you. Louis said that. To him. It's mutual.

"Let's just- let's sit on the bench, yeah?" Harry suggests.

"Shit, yeah. Sorry," Louis agrees.

They walk out of the flower shop together and sit down on a bench outside.

It's beautiful, with all the light coloured flowers around it and the autumn leaves still falling and creating a layer of colours. And Louis just adds to it.

There was a reason Harry sent so many beauty-representing flowers. He couldn't send Louis himself, who he's sure would be the one person to represent beauty.

Louis sighs. "I can't word things properly right now, sorry," he says.

"I get it," Harry tells him. "I can't ever string words together and find the right ones to say which just makes me stressed and anxious all the time. That's why I used the flowers. No words."

Louis nods.

"The only reason I can sort of properly talk to you right now is because there's actually something to talk about and you're making me comfortable enough to feel stress-free. I don't know if that makes sense," Harry continues. "Every other time, I thought you hated me and it made it hard to talk to you."

"I did find you annoying before, if I'm being honest," Louis admits.

"I'm sorry I made it so difficult."

Louis shrugs. "I'm sorry I took your flowers away."

Harry looks at him, his nose scrunched as he goes through every movie possibility in his head.

"You gonna say something?" Louis asks.

"Will you go out with me?" Harry asks Louis, finally.

Louis looks at Harry for a few seconds, a tiny smile growing on his face.

"Sure, I'll go out with you."

"Woo! Yeah!" Niall and Zayn cheer from the front of the flower and record shop.

"Piss off!" Louis yells.

Harry laughs and Louis kisses him, catching him off guard. It's a short kiss that lasts a few seconds. Definitely on the top few seconds of his life list, though.

"I thought you were gonna do it, but you didn't so I had to make the first move," Louis tells him.

Louis is so close. Louis actually kissed him. And Louis' eyes are so blue, how is that possible? How is any of this real?

Harry hopes this isn't a dream. It would be the best dream he's ever had, but the worst one to wake up from.

Zayn and Niall clap and cheer from the doors and Louis runs to Zayn and punches him on the shoulder. Harry walks over to Niall and gives him the longest hug he possibly can.

One day, maybe, Harry will tell Louis he loves him with a tulip.

And eventually, he'll have to say goodbye with a chrysanthemum.

But for now, they can just focus on the roses.