Daisy's Garden ✓

9.

It was close to new year's and every shop front was bedecked in fairy lights, twinkling brightly in the night. I passed the tourist spots, smiling indulgently at the people gaping in awe at the beauty of this city I now called my own.

My father's funeral had been climatic in the sense that it lifted the veneers of dislike off my eyes so that I could see for the first time. Once I was free of the struggle to remain loyal to the wronged parent, I realized there wasn't much to be bitter over. It was the kind of thing my father had tried to teach me yet I had been stubborn. It was a nice change to be able to breath again without fixing myself to one or the other side.

I had gotten around to his will some days after I returned home. Just like Giovanni had implied, he had left every single penny in my name. My first order of business was to request my childhood friend to remain where he had been. He had spent years working for my father at his little farmhouse and was more aware of how things worked. I had no intention of returning to a place that would be infused with the essence of the man so dear to me.

Mother, true to her word to me, remained where she was. She exerted more effort into her social circle, immersing herself in a life full of activities so she didn't have time to think too much. A part of me knew she was all alone but she was determined to leave me be so I could spread my wings.

As opposed to my former attitude to work, I had slowly settled into the familiarity of it. At that point, losing another mark of familiarity would be fatal to my sanity. So I put more effort and tried to bring joy into the workplace for myself and all those around me. Grace, as always, was a magnificent help. We set up casual weekly office parties where I started to get to know people. Finally it felt like my place instead of Uncle Edgar's prison.

And really, what bad was my uncle's life? He had everything he wanted and what he didn't have was what his disposition wouldn't allow him to have. He was content with how things were.

However, I wasn't. I was lonely and slowly drowning in that sorrow. Losing my father made me realize how much of the blame I was placing on others and not a speck on myself. I had retreated so far into my shell that it had become hard to open up again. My uncle was content in a time consuming job with every material possession he could possibly want but I needed more. I needed people around me who needed me. Call it vanity if you will.

My friends at Daisy's Garden had become closer still. Frank and Edith were the opposing guiding forces in my life who argued amiably over every single point yet always came to a compromise in the end.

"Declan must wear bright colours more often," Edith had tried to argue one day, looking distastefully at my light blue buttoned shirt. "He's young and surely he can pull off something shocking."

Frank had shaken his head. "Don't let her flattery fool you, my boy. She means to see you in dark purple, blood red and burning orange. It's her latest fascination."

"I mean to have him look nice. Really Frank, you are just arguing for the lack of a better pastime."

To them, I was the youngest son they were meant to have. They shared their family stories with me and I felt as if I were a part of their family. We had continued our tradition of meeting for dinner at Daisy's Garden every other night and they always welcomed me as if they owned the place.

"Why do you always greet me like that?" I had asked one day. "Like you're welcoming someone into your home."

"Well, we've been coming here ever since the beginning," Edith had said, frowning in thought. "It sort of feels like home at this point. Daisy is obviously a huge part in that. She's such a dear."

That was another topic that crept up time and again. Daisy of Daisy's Garden.

The more they led me through my journey of self discovery over the weeks and months of their acquaintanceship, the more Daisy's name was dropped into casual conversations. Sometimes, they'd invite her to dine with them and it was pleasant enough but mostly they pushed me in her direction. I suffered through it all with kindness.