Four

Two weeks had passed and Gaia has never seen or heard from Harry again. She lost hope of seeing him again. He is probably like any other customer that comes and goes. She sighed and wishes him all the best with the girl that he is pursuing.

She continued doing her tasks of watering the flowers. Moving from one flower to another. Suddenly, her mother called her name.

"Gaia!" her mother said. Gaia stood up and looked at her mother who is standing by the entrance of the greenhouse. "I'll be going out for a bit. I'll buy some groceries along the way. Can you watch the store for me while I'm gone?"

"Sure, mom. Where's dad?" Gaia asks.

"He has a delivery, remember? There's a wedding on the other side of the town," her mother replied. Gaia tilted her head and moved her eyes to the ceiling as she tries to recall the schedule.

"That was today?" Gaia confirms and her mother nodded.

Gaia, then, finishes tending the garden as quickly as possible so she can go back inside the store. She saw her mom about to leave as she ran back inside.

"Bye, honey," Gaia's mother said. "I'll call your father to pick me up from the grocery store. Don't wait for me."

"Okay. Bye, mom," Gaia replied as her mother went out through the door and watches as she disappears from her view from the window. She is alone at the shop in complete silence.

Gaia decided to do an inventory to keep herself busy and distract herself from remembering Harry. She checked the quality of each flower. She makes sure that they are fresh and beautiful. She removes withered flowers from the display. She also removes flowers that have petals that are in bad shape. She puts them in a separate vase to see if she can be able to revive it. Her grandmother taught her everything about taking care of the flowers. It has become her passion - her duty. She felt happy when she was in a garden filled with flowers. This is the reason why she decided to run a flower shop. She wants to share happiness with others.

Gaia suddenly heard the bell rang from the door signaling somebody came in. She turned around and saw Harry standing there. He smiled when he saw Gaia. She suddenly felt her body trembling yet tries her best to calm down.

"Welcome back," Gaia greeted him with a smile.

"Hey!" Harry replied.

"Back to get more flowers for her?" Gaia asked professionally, pretending that she was not in pain yet she felt the heat in her body more intense than ever. However, she needs to contain herself and act professionally in front of him.

"Yes, and I want your help," Harry said. Gaia nodded and showed the flowers on display.

"Thanks for helping me last time. She loved it."

"Oh? She did?" Gaia said with a slight pain in her heart. Harry nodded.

"By the way, I'll make sure that I got your name right. 'Harry', isn't it?"

"Yes. You can call me 'Hobi' if you like," he replied with a smile. "And you?"

"Gaia," she replied.

Gaia helped him choose the perfect set of flowers that they can use as Harry's gift to his lover. He picked red and pink roses. Gaia took five red and five pink roses from the pot and went to her workstation. She made it into a bouquet as Harry watches from the other side of the counter. She wrapped the flowers with pink and white paper, and she tied them with a ribbon neatly. After a few minutes, she gave the bouquet to him.

"Wow! These are beautiful. You've done it again," Harry said.

"You're welcome," Gaia replied. "Is there anything else you need?"

"Your number," he said. Gaia was surprised. She became speechless from what Harry said. "I mean, I want to get your number so I can contact you if I need help in getting another bouquet for her."

"Oh. Of course!" Gaia said. She took a piece of paper and wrote her phone number. "Just call me or send me a message if there is anything you need," she added as she smiled.

"Sure, thank you," Harry smiled as he turned around and walked towards the door. Gaia stood there on the other side of the counter as she watches him through the window until he disappears.

"It's nice to see you again," Gaia smile and continued her business until her parents arrived home.

She looked at the wall clock and found that it is already 5 P.M. She needs to close the shop for the night. She locked the door and flipped the signage at the door from "Open" to "Closed". Her phone suddenly rang from her pocket. She took it out and read the message:

"Hi, Gaia! Thanks for helping me with the flowers earlier. My girlfriend loves it. You are the best! I will come back to your store more often so I can get more flowers for her. See you soon!"

Gaia smiled and wanted to text him back. Her heart was crushed a bit though but she had no choice but to be happy for him. She feels that this is more than just a crush yet she knows that he will not be hers. At the same time, she feels alive when she sees him. She wanted to kiss him every time she is near Harry. She felt the heat when she sees his beautiful smile. She can only dream of having him and not in reality. With a deep breath, she saved his number and replied to him.

"You're welcome! You can come back anytime if you need anything."

She put back her phone inside her pocket and continued cleaning the store for another day tomorrow. She was glad that she saw him once again but it hurts her when she hears about his love life. It was not her first time to admire someone. She suddenly remembered Yohan. He was her first love and yet, she has never seen or heard from him since the day he left her without saying, "Goodbye". He probably moved on and so is she.

She felt that being in love is not a thing for her. Most of her friends and classmates are either in a relationship or married now. She is stuck in being a florist but she never regrets it. She knew that there will be a time that someone will love and accept her for what she does.