Of Evening Primroses and Chrysanthemums - A Douma x Reader fic

Tumble and Fall

You look at the sky, noting how the sun is beginning to set as the light blue slowly gradates to a warm orange, and sighed as you knew it would be too dark to stay out soon, save for the stars that would twinkle to life later on.

You were carrying in a large basket of flowers you'd harvested from your garden, Forget-Me-Not's in every color they grew in, pinks, blues, and some purple as well. Everything was going smoothly and in line with your normal gardening schedule.

Another peaceful end to another perfect-

Your thoughts were cut off as you were struck by a man running straight into you and your basket, the two of you falling down and your basket tumbling over, the little pastel flowers scattering on the ground as you try to regain your barrings from the crash and fall.

You look to see who'd crashed into you; a young man in a strange uniform, deep blue eyes and an equally brow raising split-design haori. You unknowingly stare at him for a moment, before he quickly gets up, not even bothering to dust himself off, not even looking at you when he speaks.

"Sorry, but I must get going, you should get inside soon you know, its getting late." He said bluntly, and began sprinting in the same direction, not even taking a moment to make sure you were okay.

What an asshole! You thought to yourself, wanting to yell it out at him but knew it would fall on unhearing ears, seeing as he was far from you now and wouldnt be able to tell what you were saying anyway.

And no, you weren't okay, you realized as you began feeling a stinging sensation on your right cheek. You dabbed at the area with the sleeve of your kimono, sighing as you pulled away and saw blood, you'd scraped your cheek when you fell.

Frustrated tears stung your eyes as you began picking up each individual flower, wincing as one dribbled down your face and onto your wound.

And to think I almost found him handsome! Your thoughts went on.

You looked up and saw that it really was getting late, looking around like a helpless puppy as you gazed at the night sky, still on the ground.

Your sniffling, no matter how quiet they seemed to you, had unknowingly attracted the attention of another stranger, unbeknownst to you.

You hear a man's voice behind you.

"Ah, you seem troubled, young lady!" He said, an odd amount of cheer to his voice rather than full concern. Thats odd, you thought, I didn't even hear him coming close by.

You look up to see the source of the voice, and are slightly taken aback by what you're presented with.

A tall, pale man in a dark red turtleneck, odd drip-like designs on the neck and sleeves. His hair was blond, save for the red and black drips on the top of his head, similar to the ones on his shirt. But, that wasnt the most odd thing about him, the real oddity was within his eyes

His irises were a circle of soft pastel colors, gradating into one another like a rainbow, and his pupils read "Upper Rank Two", you found yourself a little mesmerized by his gaze.

A very strange stranger indeed.

Speaking of gaze, you realized you've just been staring at him and he'd been trying to talk to you the entire time while you sat there like a fool.

"Ma'am? Did you hear me? I asked you if you're in need of assistance! It's quite rude to ignore someone who's talking to you, you know!" He said, sounding playful.

You shook yourself from your thoughts and looked away.
"Y-Yes actually, I need to get all of these flowers back into my basket. Would you mind helping me?" You asked almost pleadingly. You felt horrible asking for help this late at night, but the stinging on your cheek was driving you a little crazy and all you wanted was to finish grtting your flowers and wash your scrape.

"I dont mind helping at all!" He beamed, getting down to your level and picking up the flowers with you.
You were so focused on getting your flowers that you didnt even notice that he wasnt even looking at the ground where they were, he was staring at you, observing you closely and watching the way you held yourself and moved about.

Soon, you both had gotten every last flower into the basket, and you braced yourself to pick up thr heavy baskey again, but before you could, the man had already picked it up for you.

"Ah ah ah! What kind of gentleman would I be if I made you carry this all by yourself? Especially while you're hurt!" He said, pointing to your scrape.

You smiled, opening the shop door for him and closing it behind you after he'd gone in. He set the basket down behind the counter, next to the other full baskets. You excused yourself for a moment to wash and cover your wound, coming back not long after.

"Thank you so much, how could I repay you? Mister..." You paused, realizing he'd never given you his name, nor had you given him yours.

"Please, call me Douma!" He said, walking toward you and looming over you. He gently placed his hand under your chin, tilting your head up at him and making soft yet unwavering eye contact with you, tutting softly.

"Tsk, such a shame, seeing such a pretty face be wounded and wonder about payment for kindness. What's your name, my dear?"

You felt your cheeks warm at him calling you pretty as you let out a quiet giggle. "I'm Y/N, and i really do think I ought to give you aleast something in return for your favor!" You said, turning around and looking at what you had in stock, glancing at your array of flower crowns, picking one that seemed to suit him best.

A halo of red evening primroses had caught your eye, and you took it off fron the shelf, reaching into your basket of Forget-Me-Not's and adding a small pink one to the center front.

"Here, could you bend down a little bit?" You asked, and he obliged as you placed it on his head after showing him and he beamed happily.

"Oh, its so beautiful! But may I ask, why the little pink one?" Douma asked, making a slightly perplexed expression.

"Oh, so that you forget me," you booped his nose gently with the tip of your index finger playfully, "... not!"

He let out a laugh, and gently patted the top of your head. He felt something... different about you after your silly remark, and began heading to the front door.

"Well I promise I wont forget you, Y/N." He said with a smile. "But I must get going, I may be back tomorrow night, I may not. Who knows!" He half joked, before waving goodbye and leaving through the door.

You smile to yourself and stand there for a moment, before running to the door and swinging it open to catch him before he was gone.
But as you found out, it was too late for that, as he was absolutely nowhere to be found, not even within sight.

And with that, you got ready for bed, putting out the flames in your lamps and candles and getting into bed, hoping that maybe you'd see him again in your dreams.

He would not forget you, and nor would you forget him.