Hello everyone! :) That's my new story I am very excited about, I hope you'll like it! Nice comments are always appreciated :)
TUMBLR USERS: theroyalwords (WRITING/EDITING) and smoakqueenz (GRAPHIC - in tumblr posts) helped a lot! Thanks to both of them the story is being published. I really, really hope you'll like it...
Publishing this work has nothing to do with the possible delay in updating my other fanfic (in case you thought so...:))
"Yes, Thea, sure I'll be there. Give me an hour. No. No! Of course I haven't forgotten," said Oliver as he ran into his executive elevator. He furrowed his brows, listening to his sister's shouts. She was right, he totally forgot about the Mother's Day. "I'm just having a busy day…"
"Busy day, Oliver? Mom invited you on this dinner weeks ago so you could make it for sure!" Thea didn't want to argue, she just wanted Oliver to finally come back home. After he moved out, she barely saw him. She thought an annual Mother's Day dinner would bring Oliver to the Queen's mansion for at least for a few hours. How could he forget?
"The meeting turned out to be longer than usual. It's no big deal, Thea," Oliver sighed, trying to sound like he had everything under control. The truth was he didn't. "See you soon."
In his busy life, he barely had time for family. He worked a lot, but he didn't like his job. To be honest, he hated it. It was his father's greatest wish - to see his son become a CEO of a successful company. Oliver gave up everything to fulfill that dream. He couldn't control all of it; he was spending way more time at work than he should because it took him a while to wrap his head around what was written on all the papers he had to sign every day. One mistake and he could lose it all. There were days when he wanted to lose it all and watch his shitty company fall apart. He thought of selling it to someone devoted, someone who has always wanted to be a CEO, but he couldn't do this to his father. Not after everything that had happened…
Oliver ran around from one flower shop to another. It was already late, and he couldn't find any flowers he could buy, the shops already closed or lacking flowers. Thea would rip his head off if he showed up without them. She always had a plan. She always knew what to buy. Gifts from Thea were always the best ones. This time she said she'll book a spa weekend at a popular resort called Spa Village. It seemed to be just a house in the mountains, but inside it was a modern beauty clinic known for being the best in the whole of North America. All Oliver had to do was to bring a stupid bouquet of flowers when Thea spent days on setting everything up, including buying new suitcases and clothes, organizing a few days off work, purchasing flight tickets and booking a room in this insane place! All of that without Moira realizing. Thea would behead him, no doubt! There was one flower shop left. "Fairy City" was probably the smallest flower shop Oliver has ever been in, but it was also the most beautiful one.
The first thing that he noticed after he entered was a white, wooden floor. His black shoes contrasted against it, different from most other shops that had dark, plain floors. When he looked up, Oliver saw plenty of flower vases which were mainly white along with a few light grey ones scattered throughout. The baskets for decorations were made of green wicker, the twine aged and fraying in some spots. The vases and baskets were mostly empty, only a few flowers left here and there. Almost everything was standing in the rows on the floor, but some of the smallest vases and decorations were placed on shelves which were made out of white wood, too, perfectly matching the worn floor. What Oliver liked the most was the color of the walls. It was difficult to pin, maybe a subtle shade of lilac or indigo? Tiny glass prisms hung along the thin, white curtains, sending a flurry of color whenever the sun hit them. Despite the lack of flowers, Oliver was swathed in the pleasant scent of lavender and roses.
Behind the counter stood a young blond girl dressed in a light purple button up and a grey skirt, looking like a little fairy. Oliver wondered if it was a coincidence or if she dressed like that to match the decorations. She looked up at him from behind her glasses and smiled kindly.
"Can I help you, sir?" the little fairy asked, smiling kindly. Her voice was soft and quiet but loud enough to be heard clearly.
"I um… I need flowers" said Oliver and winced when he heard his dumb answer.
"Then you're in the right place" responded the girl. She took a breath and wanted to add something else, but Oliver was faster.
"Not the right time though, I know it's late and you're closing already, but I really, really need flowers," Oliver admitted sadly.
"Oh, I was going to say there's not much left, but I'm sure I'll make something pretty from what I have here." The little fairy looked around. "I'd ask you about color preferences, but to be honest… I only have orange gerberas; the ones you can see there in the corner." The blonde pointed to the vase beside the window. "I also have some yellow lilies and white tulips are in the fridge," she added. "Those are the only flowers I can make a bouquet of unless you need a very small one, then I have one or two pink flowers left and one white rose and maybe a few tulips could fit in?" Oliver stood in place amused by the girl's talk. It was clear to see she loves what she does. "Or only yellow lilies and white tulips? Or a very modest bouquet made of those gerberas? I'd decorate them with the two colored leaves that I also have in the fridge?" She had so many ideas even though Oliver thought there are not enough flowers for the smallest of bouquets.
"I'd gladly take the biggest bouquet that you can make" sighed Oliver and looked around. She had better have flowers in that fridge…
"Of course. That would be orange, yellow and white. Please wait a just a few minutes, and I'll go bring the flowers." The fairy disappeared behind the curtain made of pink ribbons and glass prisms. Oliver was left alone to listen to the noises that came from behind the curtain, where the fairy was taking vases from the fridge. Oliver realized he was still standing very far from the counter and took a few steps forward. What caught his eye was a photo of the little fairy. She was dressed in a white lace blouse, her hair in a high ponytail, just like this day, a bright smile on her lips…
'Felicity Smoak, a florist, National Florist Competition double winner (2014, 2015), owner of the Fairy City flower shop' said the text under the photo.
Felicity. That was the little fairy's name. Oliver smiled at the combination of her name and the shop's name. At first he thought she's only working at this place, but now it became clear that she was the owner.
"I'm so sorry you had to wait this long." Felicity pulled him out of his thoughts. She brought the flowers and some ribbons from the storage and quickly went to grab the gerberas as well.
"That's not a problem at all," lied Oliver with a smile. He was already late, but at least now he'll have the flowers.
"Yeah, I ran out of decorations today, I have a new delivery early in the morning, but I guess you need the bouquet for today. Tonight actually, it's almost the night…" the Fairy blushed and shook her head, mentally reprimanding herself for talking too much.
"Yes, I have a family dinner… The flowers are for my mother. I totally forgot that today was mother's day," Oliver confessed quietly. Then, he noticed Felicity's gaze on him; she was looking at him while cutting the ribbons. She could see he was a very tired, extremely handsome man, looking impossibly good in a grey, elegant suit and dark blue tie that matched with his eyes.
"Busy day?" She asked shyly because he obviously caught her staring.
"Like every day," he sighed. "But it seems like you had a busy day too?" It was more like a statement than a question.
"Yes," she murmured as she smiled back. "Today was extraordinary busy, but that's what I expected. It's Mother's Day after all. But every other day is busy, too. I'm glad people seem to like this shop. I was afraid I'd be forced to close it after a few months, but it's been almost a year and it doesn't look like I'd have to close it any time soon."
"Well I hope not, it's a great place. Fairy City… That was your idea, wasn't it?" Oliver guessed while looking at the bouquet. Even though it wasn't finished, it looked incredibly good.
"Yes, it was! My name is Felicity, so I thought I'd go with 'City' just to match," she explained with a laugh. The sound seemed to play on repeat in Oliver's head. He laughed himself, not even realizing it. Suddenly, he didn't feel so tired. In fact, he was kind of excited for the dinner now, probably because of the beautiful flowers and the optimistic attitude Felicity radiated. "At first I thought of Flower City," she continued, "but then I thought that it was too… lame and I figured that the only creatures that would want to live in a Flower City are fairies so… Yeah, people keep telling me to grow up, but I really like this name," she confessed shyly, now looking down at the flowers and blushing furiously. Oliver wondered if she blushed because of him or because of what she said. The reason was probably everything at once.
"Grow up," he sighed. "Why do people keep saying that?" He remembered his father was saying the same thing almost every day when he was younger.
"Well, I don't know, but there's always at least one person who knows that growing up and turning into a boring business man isn't what you should be doing in your life." Oliver smiled kindly, but Felicity froze, realizing what she said. "Not that I think you're boring!" she added firmly. "I wasn't talking about you, just in general about life and people. Because we don't know each other, I can't tell if you're boring. Or if you're a business man, but you sure look like one." Felicity took a deep breath. "Please don't listen to me, I babble all the time," she murmured before placing the last ribbon in the bouquet. Oliver was still smiling at the pretty blond girl. It was a nice change - being around someone so optimistic and talkative, someone so… colorful and different than everyone he was used to seeing. "So that would be it. Do you like the bouquet, sir?"
"Just… call me Oliver," he countered, overwhelmed by her honest, big, smiling eyes. "And it's perfect. Thank you so much!"
"You're welcome! That would be $65," she said as she handed him the bill.
"And to be fair, I am a boring businessman," he trilled and placed the cash on the counter.
"Just say the word and you'll be my new delivery guy," the little fairy promised. "Here's your change, the flowers, and be careful! Oh, and the card! Maybe you'll need a decoration someday, or to send flowers, the shop's number is at the bottom. I also make flower crowns that are very popular at bachelorette parties lately."
"Thank you! I really have to go now, but you saved my life!" Oliver started walking towards the exit feeling the urge to go back there and ask for another bouquet only to talk to the fairy again.
"Thank you, have a nice day!" She started cleaning the counter when she saw Oliver stop.
"How much are these?" He lifted a glass prism in the shape of heart on a red ribbon from one of the baskets by the door. He thought Thea would love it. When she was little she loved the 'tiny rainbow makers'.
"Those are $2.50 each. I accidently bought ten thousand glass prisms and the company gave me a hell of a discount. I'm trying to get rid of them, so yeah, $2.50," she finished. Oliver walked up to the counter and placed $10 on it.
"Keep the change," he called as he and ran out of the shop. He glanced down at his watch, cringing when he saw what time it was. Felicity could see him running fast down the street to the parking lot.
"But you just paid for four glass hearts!" Felicity stood with the bill in her hands. "Huh." She walked up to the basket, taking out one heart with a green ribbon. "These are pretty things actually," she whispered and hung the prism on a mirror frame, admiring how the sun made it lit up with all of the rainbow colors. "If I ever get rid of them I'll order a billion new ones," she noted. "Okay Felicity, stop talking to yourself, the cute guy is gone," she said sternly, looking at her face in the mirror, a thousand of color reflecting in her eyes.
THANK YOU FOR READING! I hope you'll like it... Maybe leave a review? :) Feel free to message me on tumblr ~missfsmoak :)
