my moonflower. - damie.

four.

as the day went on, dani and jamie kept "coincidentally" bumping into each-other around the grounds of bly manor. 

whether it be in the kitchen, out in the lawn, in the chapel, or just inside the manor itself, they were always happy to see one another. 

the au pair was sitting in the grass in front of the manor with flora, the child was showing dani a few of her homemade dolls. she'd taken the time to make all of the staff who worked at the manor, past and present. dani actually enjoyed spending time with the children, a quality she'd most likely gained from her few years being a teacher. jamie on the other hand was not the most kid-friendly character.

but, jamie could straighten up when needed. like she'd always say, "there's a reason i chose to be the gardener and not the nanny." 

that saying would always make dani chuckle. the thought of jamie fumbling around the children ad getting so easily annoyed could always make her laugh. it was definitely best that jamie stick to plants. it balanced out quite well when you think about it, dani dealing with the children and jamie tending to the plants. jamie would never understand how dani kept sane whilst watching the children, and dani would never understand how jamie kept all the plants alive. it evens out, almost perfectly in fact. they both had something to keep them busy, and when they weren't busy, they were together. 

most of their time spent together was at night, after the children had gone to bed. 

but this night, this night was different. this night had meaning. 

"oi, poppins'. meet me in the greenhouse tonight?" jamie said as she walked by the au pair sitting in the grass with flora. 

dani nodded, "of course." 

with an interaction as simple as that, you'd assume it was just their routine nightly meet up. their nightly sit and talk and just enjoy each-others presence. you'd never imagine that jamie had this whole night set up in her mind, planning how it would go.

as the night grew dark, dani made her way out to the greenhouse, holding a flashlight in hand. jamie saw the au pair walking up, and walked out to meet her in the doorway. 

"follow me." jamie said, grabbing dani's hand. "oh?" dani said, intrigued as to what the gardener had planned.

as the two made their way into the woods, dani saw a small stone bench right by a stone arch covered in flowers. hard to make out in the dark, but she could still see the attention to detail that jamie had put into it.

"jamie, this is-" the gardener cut her off. "this isn't it. listen." she turned her attention to a singular blooming white flower.

she walked up to it, brushing her finger across the delicate dew-covered petals. "this dani, this is a moonflower. they only bloom two months out of the entire year, and only at night. they're so delicate, so fragile.." her voice trailed off momentarily. "sometimes, the most beautiful things are the most fragile. in that way, this moon flower reminds me of you. everything you've been through, you somehow made it out. you made it through with barely anything left, and here we are. but, you're just as beautiful as ever." she turned to recenter her attention on dani. 

"people are so exhausting dani, so fuckin' exhausting. most of the time it's not even worth it to put any effort into anyone. but sometimes, once in a blue goddamned moon i guess, someone, like this moonflower, may just be worth the effort." 

dani was speechless. "jamie, i don't know what to say.." 

"i don't expect you to say anything, i just want you to know how i feel. how i feel about you, about us. you're my moonflower, dani. i'm willing to put so much effort into you to help you grow from a tiny little bud into a gorgeous blossom. and i've never felt that way about someone before." jamie said, going to sit next to dani on the bench.

they sat in silence for a minute, just looking over each-other's faces as they were inches away. 

dani was the first to break the silence. "i love you, jamie." it was soft, barely above a whisper. as quiet as she'd spoken those words, they would stay with jamie for an eternity. 

dani didn't expect to ever say those words again after eddie, but here she was.

and the great part is, she didn't feel a lick of guilt or shame. she didn't feel like she was betraying eddie, because she wasn't. eddie is gone. eddie is gone and jamie is right here, right in front of her, not even four inches away from her. 

jamie leaned in to the au pair but not to kiss, just to press her forehead against hers and feel her there. just to feel her warmth, her breath against her cold cheeks, to hear her steady and even breaths. 

"i love you too, dani." jamie finally spoke after a moment. she kissed her, leaning into her and pulling her in close. it wasn't a sensual kiss, just a kiss full of emotion and intent. a true, wholesome kiss. 

as dani pulled away, she felt herself smiling. she smiled because she knew that here, in this moment, she'd met someone who would love her so fully, so unconditionally.

jamie intended to do just that, love her with every ounce in her, until her last breath.