Stranger At My Door (Flower AU)

"Will that be all for you today, sir?"

Keith cradled the potted flowers in his arm like a baby. He wasn't really in the mood to talk, but indulging in his hobby unfortunately came with that side effect every now and then.

He'd never pictured himself being into gardening, but lately it's been his favorite way to unwind after long days of work and having to deal with people. He loved the feeling of the dirt between his fingers, and the satisfaction of raising something that didn't cry or poop. Plus it just made his front yard look nice.

Keith paid for the flowers and left the shop, inspecting his new purchase as he walked home. He wasn't entirely sure what kind of flowers they were, but they were a pretty swirl of yellow and red, and that's what mattered. The flaming warm colors were his favorites.

Keith tossed his bag on the couch as soon as he got home, and spent a few hours getting the new flowers situated among their brethren. His front yard was getting a bit crowded, he had to admit, but he'd be damned if he were to uproot any of his plants. He'd put a flowerbed on his roof if he had to.

He put the new flowers in a nice little spot where passersby could spot it (not the he really cared what they thought, but he couldn't help but be kind of proud of his little garden), then went inside to wash off.

After a quick shower and a snack, Keith plopped himself down to relax for the rest of the day. But before he could get comfortable, his doorbell suddenly rang.

Keith tensed up on his couch and groaned. Who the hell was bothering him when he just got back from work? He wasn't expecting anyone. Probably a solicitor, much to his annoyance. He just wanted to relax a bit, and whoever was keeping him from that was about to get a piece of his mind.

Keith opened the door, about to give whoever was there a nice helping of sass, but choked on his own words when he saw the person outside.

The man standing on his porch was a stranger, but dear God, was he a sight for sore eyes. Impressive muscles all around, a chiseled handsome face, soft black-and-white hair that brushed over bright eyes. Did this guy crawl out of a Disney movie or something? Holy crap.

The man looked a bit embarrassed himself, sheepishly rubbing at the back of his head as he gave Keith a lopsided grin. "Uh, hey there," he said.

Fuck, even his voice was attractive.

"I, uh, hope I'm not bothering you," the man continued. "I was just...uh, looking at your flower garden and I was wondering if your could...you know, tell me about it..."

Keith gawked at him blankly. "The...flowers?"

The man flushed. "Ah, you know what? I'm so sorry, I just-I wanted to ask about the flowers, but, I mean, we don't even know each other. I'm just gonna be on my way-"

"Wait no, it's okay," Keith replied hurriedly. He stepped out onto the porch, trying not to stare at any one spot in particular. "You don't have to leave, I'd be happy to tell you about it."

The man blinked, but smiled in relief. "Oh...thank you. I'll try not to take up too much of your time. I'm Shiro, by the way."

Keith shook his hand. "I'm Keith," he replied. "So, what did you want to know?"

Shiro paused. "Ah, it...seems to have slipped my mind-" his eyes brightened. "Oh yeah, I wanted to know where you got these."

Keith followed Shiro off the porch and out to the sidewalk. Shiro pointed at the new flowers curiously, and Keith smiled.

"Oh yeah, I just got those today. Good to see they're already doing some work. I brought them from that Altean flower shop down the street."

"What kind of flower are they? Don't think I've ever seen anything like it before."

"Uh..." Keith frowned and turned away in embarrassment. "I didn't really read the label, so I'm not sure what they're called, sorry."

"Oh, really? I thought you'd know all about them."

"Sorry to disappoint. I'm no expert, I just do this for fun. Stress relief, you know?"

Shiro nodded. "I can understand that. Maybe I could try that for myself."

Keith smiled again. "Well, if you want, that shop I mentioned is a good place to start. A lot of variety without taking all your money, you know? Oh and don't cover your whole yard right away like I did, it's a pain in the ass to get all the dirt ready for planting. I'd start with a small area and get something easy to take care of, like-uh, are you okay?"

Shiro had suddenly flinched for no reason and was now pale in the face. "Uh...sorry, it's just...there's a bee on my shoulder."

Keith blinked and looked down at Shiro's shoulder, where a tiny honeybee had landed for a rest, apparently enjoying the smell of Shiro's cologne. Keith almost snorted.

"That's just a little fuzzball, he's not gonna hurt you." Keith shooed the bee away, and Shiro relaxed.

Keith grinned at him again. "If you're scared of bees, then maybe a flower garden isn't the best idea for you."

Shiro turned sheepish again. "Yeah, you're probably right. I guess I didn't think it all the way through."

"Yeah, a lot of people do that, don't worry. It's easy to forget that they're not just decoration, they're a part of nature."

Shiro nodded. "True, I guess I should try something else. I'm not much of a nature guy, I just think you're pretty."

Keith froze. "What?"

Shiro's face turned completely red and for a second he just stood there gaping like a fish. "Uh-no, I meant-your garden is pretty. I-i-it's arranged nicely. The colors are nice." He looked away and tried to cover his blush with his hand.

Keith himself was feeling the heat rise to his face, and tried to cough off the mistake. "Uh-thank you. I didn't think anyone would notice."

"It's hard not to. Really, it's lovely. I admire your dedication."

Keith hoped his smile wasn't too goofy. "Thanks." He paused for a moment, relishing in the atmosphere. A beautiful day, a handsome stranger, nice smelling flowers. He sighed. "Well, anyway, is there anything else you'd like to know?"

Shiro paused as well, staring ahead in concentration, before deciding that there was no recovering from his mistake. "Uh, well...I'd like to know if you're interested in going out for coffee with me this weekend."

Keith's jaw dropped. Okay, that time definitely wasn't a mistake. Why a gorgeous guy like this would even look in Keith's direction was already mystery, but asking him out? This had to be a dream.

Keith's previous composure had more or less evaporated now, and his answer came out as an undignified squeak, "Yeah."

Shiro's relieved smile returned. He pulled a piece of paper from his pocket and scribbled down his number before handing it to Keith.

"Ok, well, I'll...see you around, I guess. Thanks for coming out to talk to me, Keith."

"N-no problem."

Shiro waved goodbye as he left, and Keith headed back inside in a daze. He stared down at the phone number in his hands, still wondering how this wasn't a dream. There was a list of things he expected to come out of his dumb gardening hobby, and getting a hot guy's number wasn't anywhere near that list.

But hey-he wasn't going to say no to a blessing. He'd have to thank whoever invented flowers sometime.