A Bouquet of Charms

Chapter |02

"Why didn't you answer my previous calls?"

Heinz immediately questioned the person without caring with whom he was speaking. He wanted things to be done on time.

"Excuse me?" He heard a female voice from the other side. Her voice was soft and it sent tingles through his body. "If I didn't answer your calls, does that mean I was busy, alright?" he heard the woman hiss at him.

"If you can't handle your calls efficiently, I could then tell you're not the boss," Heinz replied scribbling on an empty drawing sheet. "Would you be kind enough to give the phone to your boss? I need to order a bridal bouquet please."

"I'm sorry to say you judged wrongly mister," the woman spoke kindly and he could also imagine a sly smile on her face. "You're indeed talking to the owner."

Heinz stayed silent, knowing his fault. He shouldn't have put his work pressure on someone else when the other person was also the owner of a bouquet shop. Of course, she would have more orders, not only from him. And making a bridal bouquet means; it needs to be perfect along with gorgeous.

"I'm sorry," Heinz replied. "I didn't mean to yell at you. It's just... I had," His words were cut off by her.

"It's okay," he heard her reply, which made him smile a bit. "I know how hard it is to handle business. If you are doing anything related to a wedding. Am I right?"

Heinz smiled.

The woman was right; it was tedious to organise a wedding.

"Yeah, you're right," he answered. "It's really hard to organise a wedding."

The young woman chuckled from the other side. "Yes, when you have brides that go bridezilla on everyone. Goodness, it'll be tough to handle them."

This time a grin formed on Heinz's lips. He was feeling comfortable and good while talking to this unknown woman. Her voice was beautiful and he wanted to hear it always. And now he wanted to see her face, to see how she was in person.

He was not going to judge a person based on their outer appearance, because only their inner beauty would tell how real a person is.

Leaning back in his seat, he continued to talk to the young woman. "I had experienced a fair share of them, to be honest. But sometimes the groom tends to go crazy rather than the bride." He finished with a chuckle.

It was true. Sometimes, Heinz had to rush to the groom's room in order to prevent any medical emergency situations.

The young woman's laughter filled his ears, making his heart somersault. Her laugh was the most beautiful laugh he had ever heard. Not like the fake laughs or giggles he'd heard before.

It was a genuine laugh.

"What?"

This time, Heinz chuckled. "It's true. The groom thinks the bride will run away from the altar." He smiled when he heard her gasp.

"That's stupid."

"I know."

"Okay, now, Mister," she chirped from the other side. "We have a bouquet to order," she said.

❀

"Hey, Leila!"

Heinz greeted the woman with whom he had been conversing over the phone for the past three months.

Yes, Leila Baker, the owner of the Breath of Flowers.

They had become friends over the phone, but they had not seen each other yet. Both wanted to have the thrill of seeing each other in real life for the first time. It was kind of cliché, but hey, there isn't anything without a cliché being involved.

"Hi Heinz, does your sister-in-law have any other desires that need to be added to her bouquet?" Leila questioned Heinz whilst taking care of the flowers in her garden.

The garden was her safe place, where she could spend plenty of hours without worrying about anything. But solitude makes you think about scenarios that can only be dreamt about. She started to like the young man just by talking over the phone. Yes, he was rude at first, but that man was planning his cousin's wedding-and things turn nasty when you're planning your relatives' weddings.

When they started talking every day, she noticed how sweet and caring he was. He reminded her to take breaks between her work and also knew when to make her calm down and feel respected.

Heinz Tarringtion surely has his way with words.

And she couldn't wait to meet him.

"I think that's all Leila," Heinz spoke after a minute. "But wait for a minute, will you? I don't want to miss anything out." He went through his binders, which he made especially for his sister-in-law Nadia, to check whether he'd missed something in her bouquet. He didn't want to risk anything.

"Heinz?"

"We're good to go, Leila," she heard Heinz sigh from the other end. "Just two more days and I'm done with this wedding."

Leila laughed at hearing him. He was such a whiny person. "It can't be that bad, Heinz," she muttered whilst inhaling the freshly bloomed rose in her garden.

"Oh! Trust me, it is," Heinz replied sarcastically. "So when will you be delivering the bouquet, Leila?"

"Tomorrow afternoon the bouquet will be on your desk."

"Are you sure?" Heinz asked whilst playing with the tip of his tie. "If you want, I can drive down to your home to collect it."

The urge to see her was increasing in him. He was getting frustrated with not knowing how she looked. He just wanted to see her.

"Heinz," she called him, making him smile. "I know what you're trying to do."

Heinz scoffed in return. "I'm not trying to do anything," he replied, with a pout on his lips.

A chuckle escaped from Leila's lips. "I'm coming to your city the day after tomorrow to attend my best friend's wedding."

"Yeah, I know," he muttered low enough for her to hear. "But still..." he drawled the words, making her sigh.

"Even I want to meet you, Heinz. Just two days and we'll meet each other," she responded softly as if she was talking to a child. Yes, it was true, she wanted to meet him. She started to like him just by talking with him. And now she was madly in love with the person she'd never met.

Crazy in love.

A part of her was afraid. Afraid that Heinz didn't feel the same as her. But Leila knew that she should not conclude anything without talking to the other person. Sometimes their perspective might be different from others, or the words they use might be different, but the meaning will be the same as others.

Twirling her brown hair between her fingers, she heard his steady breathing from the other side of the phone. She wanted him to speak, to tell her something, anything. She just wanted to hear his voice.

"Heinz?" she called softly.

"Hmm?"

"I'll meet you in two days."

"But," he started speaking, only to pause for a few seconds. "But I wanted to take you as my date to my cousin's wedding."

❀

Thanks for reading
Still, there are two more chapters to go :)