Tulips.
That's what had made her fall in love with him. Completely.
After that moment in the park, there was always a yellow tulip at her door.
Nellie loved yellow. Not especially in hair, but she loved the color.
Not roses. Roses were for Lucy. Red roses.
But for Nellie? Tulips.
Once she had asked why. He simply had replied that they were like her.
Roses just weren't her cup of tea.
Nellie had laughed at it at the time, but years later, sitting on the front porch overlooking the sea,
She wanted tulips all around.
And she had them
Toby liked the tulips too,
Which was good,
Since they were everywhere.
Every anniversary,
There was a tulip.
Always.
Yellow.
Roses had hurt her. Roses reminded her of Lucy.
That annoyed her.
Once, when she was small, the thorns on the rose had given her a nasty scratch.
But she loved the tulips.
Everyone would turn away from them, choosing the roses instead,
So that Ben was always able to get them cheap.
He said even if they were the most expensive,
He would get them.
Nellie would smile at this.
On her wedding day,
Everyone said she should carry roses.
Did she?
No.
Yellow tulips for the future Mrs. Barber.
Yellow tulips for Benjamin and Eleanor.
Yellow tulips for the barber and his baker.
Yellow tulips for Ben and Nell.
Yellow tulips for them.
It's bad, isn't it? I just wanted to get it out of my system. Oh well.
R & , ppls! I'll give you a pie!