The Art Of Sending Flowers

t u l i p s

Tulips - The flower that symbolizes the declaration of strong feelings

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Her hands were trembling and her breathing was erratic, just like her heart. Elnora really wanted to skip work today but then there wouldn't be any use. She'd have to face him one day or the other. Plus, today was the day that the supervisors of the mall she worked in would drop by and check if the shop was up to their standards.

Yes. This was the reason she had come today. Not because she wanted to see how things would turn out with a certain boy who had the alphabets A, R, C, H, E and another R in his name.

However, her current co-worker was already ten minutes late. She guessed that, like her, he was probably wondering if it were necessary to go to work today. But unlike her, he wasn't aware of the perusal of the flower shop.

Elnora's hands were clammy and she kept on pacing back and forth. She had already cleaned everything spotless and arranged everything to perfection, but she still found herself thinking whether the vase of Baby's breath looked better next to the Daffodils or Carnations.

After ten more minutes of arranging and rearranging everything, the door was pushed open and in strolled Archer.

Elnora clamped a hand over her heart and sighed in relief. "Thank God. It's only you." Archer's eyebrows raised skeptically.

"Were you expecting someone else?"

"Yeah," she said as she fidgeted with the flowers in front of her, "inspectors of the mall." She wiped her hands on the sides of her jeans to rid them of sweat.

"Inspectors of the mall? Are we under probation or something?" He asked in complete confusion. His head was tilted to the side and Elnora wanted to scream at him for being so cute.

Dear God, how was she supposed to work with him now that there's an awkward barrier of feelings between them?

She cleared her throat and tried her best to eradicate her prior thoughts. "I wouldn't really say that we're under probation. The authorities just like to pop in randomly and make sure that we're in check. I forgot to tell you that yesterday." A look of understanding crossed his face as he nodded.

The air was so thick with tension, it was a surprise that Elnora could breathe. The both of them stood rooted on the spot, gazing at each other. Neither of them spoke, for they did not know what to say.

"So, about yesterday..." Archer trailed off, unsure. He was close to speaking again but halted as a customer entered the premises, inevitable to what he had interrupted. Elnoras shoulders sagged in relief as she sighed. Archers eyes caught her actions and he grinned briefly.

"I wouldn't feel so at ease if I were you." He said with a slightly teasing tone. "We both know that we will eventually have to talk." She glared at him as he walked up to the customer.

How could he think of this as amusing? She was losing her wits about the stunt he pulled yesterday and here he was smirking at her discomfort!

Perhaps it was a joke after all. A valentine's day prank simply made for his entertainment. Just to rid his mind of grief. He was probably satisfied with the turmoil he had caused within her head. The mess of emotions she was in.

But so what if it was just a joke? It wasn't like she felt anything towards him. They were friends. Co-workers at the very least. As simple as that.

"Liar,"  mocked her thoughts. "You're lying to yourself and you know it."

"I am not." She responded strongly to herself. A little too strong in fact.