Category : Stories

Sub Category : Romance

The only stories you read today end with love conquering all, the evil is defeated and you are left with happily ever after. I wish I could tell you this story would be like all of those, but that's just not the case. The story I’m about to tell you is a love story, my love story, and, like most love stories, it starts with a girl, a boy, and a flower.

The day was bright and sunny, perfect weather for those catching a swim, but not for me. I was working outside at a small flower shop my mom left for me called: A Seed of Love. Thankfully, my uniform was short sleeved and I managed to put my blonde colored hair up in a high ponytail to keep it off my neck, revealing my round face and freckles that splatter across my nose. It was just like any other working day, smiling at my customers and giving them flowers, the occasional couple strolling by and the boy buying his girl a flower on a whim, but then a new guy in town came strolling up to my shop with a black shirt and blue bootcut jeans, sunglasses setting gently on the brim of his nose that had no doubt been broken before.

I could tell he was new in town, not because of the strange way he was dressed, in fact he was dressed like any other person I might see. I knew because this was a small town, the type of town where everyone knew everybody and their business. But I had no idea who this man was and I’m not sure I wanted to. When he stopped in front of my shop I plastered on the bright smile I usually did when dealing with customers, he returned it, pushing his sunglasses to the top of his head revealing brown eyes to match his brown hair. “How can I help you today, sir?” I asked him, a slight northern draw in my words. His smile only seemed to grow.

“I’m not sure,” he replied, his voice deep with a southern twang sound to it, completely opposite of my own. “I was just taking a stroll to see what my new town was like when fates would have it, I stumbled upon your shop.” He picked up a rose and lifted it to his nose, taking a generous whiff. “After seeing such a beautiful sight, how could I not stop?” He twirled the rose between his fingers and pride welled up inside me.

“You have a good eye, sir, I sell the best flowers in town, go on and ask, nobody will deny it.” I was prideful of my flowers, and with good reason, I worked real hard to maintain them and the shop, I put everything I had into them so they came out looking right and healthy.

“I’m not talking about the flowers, ma’am.” He drawed out, a wicked smile on his sculpted face. It only took me moments to realize he meant me and the proper reaction spread across my face: a blush. “How much?” The man questioned, taking out a wallet from his front pocket, I had to shake my head to bring myself back to reality.

“$1.50,” when he paid me the money and I put it up, he handed me the rose, a flirtatious smile on his face.

“A lovely rose for a lovely lady,” he pushed his sunglasses back over his face and walked off, throwing me a lazy wave over his shoulder. “Until next time, fair maiden.” That was how most of my summer days were spent after that. Summer days turned into winter nights that turned back to summer days. A year had past and the strange man, who I learned was called Gale, came back everyday, striked up a conversation with me, bought a single rose, then left, leaving the rose behind in my hands. His everyday presence was annoying at first, but I soon grew to like him and his flirtatious ways that sent my heart beating wildly with every comment and sly smile. How was I to know that I was falling for him? I was falling hard with no parachute.

In fact, I had fallen so far, that when he asked me on a date, I didn’t hesitate. I closed shop early to get ready, after all the date was that night, I needed to look good. I walked up stairs into my room and picked out a white v-neck crop top with high waisted blue jean shorts to match and some old tennis shoes. I remember every detail of how I looked that day, I will never be able to forget. The bangs of my hair were braided into a crown while the rest hung past my shoulders down to my mid back in ringlets. I applied only a little makeup. Eyeliner and mascara to make my blue eyes pop with some red lipstick that was all the rage then.

When he picked me up that night, the way his eyes shined as he looked over me gave me a sense of pride and confidence no man ever made me feel, it was glorious to say the least. Gale instantly took his hand in mine with his signature smile, one hand hidden firmly behind his back. “What are you hiding?” I asked as I attempted to steal a peak. “You know I don’t like surprises,” I scolded him instantly as he refused to tell me. Gale only laughed, oh that laugh, it made my heart flutter and my stomach leap, it was the most beautiful sound I ever heard. With a wicked gleam I grew to adore, he produced a single rose.

“A lovely rose for a lovely lady,” he quoted one of the first things he said to me, how could I not have kissed him? Of course he was shocked but it didn’t last for long. When our kiss was over he took me on a walk down by a creek, the full moon was shining off it like a crystal clear glass with no streaks of imperfection on it, all in all, it was like a dream. That date was the first of many, not to many years later, that man, Gale, asked me on another date, taking me to the same spot on a night much like our first, a gentle breeze blowing in my hair that I had cut to my shoulders. 

He was acting strange that night, his back facing me after a long kiss. “What’s wrong?” I asked him, I was scared I did something wrong, scared that he would walk away from me that night, but I had no reason to be.

“Nothing my dearest.” Is how he responded as he turned around and dropped to one knee, holding up to me a single rose and tied to that rose, the most beautiful ring I had ever seen. “A lovely rose for a lovely lady,” that’s how he proposed to me, of course I said yes right away. The wedding was held instantly at the nearest church, I wore a nice long white dress, him a handsome tux. As I walked down the aisle that day it was hard not to shed tears over everything we’ve been through, his charming smile pierced through my heart to my soul, making me feel naked and alive as I stood in front of him. He gently stroked my cheeks, his eyes shined with unspoken words: I love you. I loved him too.

“I was just walking around town,” Gale started his vows, quoting the words he spoke to me on the day we first met, “when fates would have it I stumbled upon your little flower shop. After seeing such a pretty sight, how could I not make you my wife.” He smiled at me and handed me a single rose. Always a single rose since I can remember. “A lovely rose, for a lovely lady.” The wedding was over too quickly if you ask me, I never wanted it to end. 

Soon after I became pregnant with twins, he insisted that we had to celebrate. We closed up the flower shop early and he took me on a walk to the same place he proposed to me, a picnic basket in hand, but this time, it wasn’t so romantic. A drunk with a gun stopped us on our walk and grabbed me from behind, he put the barrel to my head and demanded money. “We have no money,” Gale had cried out as he stood helplessly watching us. “Please, let her go!” The drunkard starting yelling, but I don’t remember his words, I just remember watching Gale, the desperation on his face sliced through my heart like a dagger.

He took a step forward, it was the wrong move. The drunk removed the gun from my head and shot Gale in the chest, I screamed. It was all I could do as I watched Gale lifelessly fall to the ground. The drunk panicked and let me go, running away, myself, I ran to Gale and dropped down to his side. His brown eyes were wide open as he gasped for air; each breath he took one of pain. I begged him not to leave as I screamed for help and held him close to my chest, I got blood all over myself, I didn’t care. By the time help came, it was too late, Gale was dead and I was left alone to raise two children, two children that looked exactly like him.

So, you see, my love story has no happily ever after like you would expect. We didn’t grow old together and he didn’t get to walk his daughter down the aisle. What we had was a happy beginning and a happy middle. Now, as I lay dying with my two darling kids and grandchildren surrounding my bed, I can say, while it isn’t the happily ever after of my dreams, it is a beautiful ending to my story.