The weeks went by, and slowly Cam's happy wonder began to shift darkly into worry and self-consciousness. Elli had not written him since her visit. For the first week, he thought nothing of it, as her correspondence usually took a few days with her busy schedule. But as the second drew to a close, he started to feel the absence of the letter. By the end of the third week, he had slipped into assuming that he had offended her and sent her away. Fall was around the corner, and Cam was quieter than ever before.
Of course, even with all his worry about Elli, Cam still had a wedding to decorate. He funneled all his emotions into working in his garden, cultivating it into a thing of great beauty. His newly planted flowers grew quickly, their vibrant sprouts peeking out and starting to blossom. He fertilized them every day, encouraging their quick growth. The sweet lilies and roses were starting to bloom, ready to be picked and turned into a beautiful bouquet.
Howard and Laney would look out at his working form and worry to themselves, often exchanging glances and quiet words about Cam's relapse back into himself. He started skipping meals again, and though his family attempted to break through his chilled walls, he remained silent as his worry continued to eat him alive. Howard tried to make his favorite foods, asking about the cause of his sudden relapse, but Cam would only shrug off his worry and state his big order. The café owners weren't buying it, though, as they noticed the lack of letters for Cam coming through the mail.
It was a blessed day when the news carrier, Dirk, finally delivered a small envelope from Mineral Town. Cam took it in an instant, tearing it open without the aid of his letter opener. He smiled to himself, pulling the letter out and firmly holding it in his hand. He absconded to his garden, intending to read the letter to his flowers. Laney watched him go, secretly just as relieved as he was.
When Cam got outside and unfolded the slip of paper, however, he was confused and disappointed. Whereas she normally wrote him pages, usually blabbering, this letter was quite short. His brows furrowed in confusion, actually checking the envelope again. Finding that the small note was all that was there, he let out a sigh and started to read, convinced it was a note renouncing him and his friendship.
"Cam, I hope you're well! I was wondering when your birthday was. It's been a few months and you haven't mentioned it, you better not have let it just slip by! Signed, Elli," he read. All that waiting and worrying just for her to ask him when his birthday was? He realized just how much he missed hearing the little details of her life, small anecdotes that were often charming or silly. He lowered his letter to his side, unable to make heads or tails of it. Still, he needed to write a reply while Dirk was still in town, so he hurried inside, scribbled down the fast approaching date of his birth and ran it off to be mailed.
The rest of the week went by with Cam desperately pushing thoughts of the confusing nurse away as he planned the arrangements and began making strides on getting his luxurious amount of flowers to the city. It required borrowing a horse and cart from Grady and Georgia, who were quite happy to help the young florist out. He still paid them a bit more than necessary, but refused to take back his change. Now that he had the money to pay his friends, he wanted to be able to pay back all their kindnesses. The animal workers reluctantly accepted, secretly glad to see him acting more confident about himself and his business.
On his birthday, the first day of Fall, Cam gathered all his arrangements and set out for the city. Laney and Howard had fixed him a nice breakfast, and given him a small gift of some rare flower seeds. Cam thanked them and appreciated it. When they expressed regret that he had to go out of town on his birthday, though, he waved them off. He didn't mind working on his birthday so much. He often ended up working the day and was unworried about celebrating. Honestly, Cam didn't see much point in it, since he lived every day. Why celebrate the one over all the others? Wiping the thoughts of a birthday celebration aside, he carefully steered his horse and carriage to the dock, where a larger ferry was waiting for him.
By midday, Cam had reached his destination, a large church venue just outside the city. Thankfully, he received no strange looks for his more rural form of transportation. He worked singlehandedly to unload the cart and put out the marvelous arrangements, much lovelier than any he had done before. The bride, already resplendent in her white dress, thanked Cam and complimented his flowers, claiming she had never seen any prettier. Cam was happy to receive her compliments, offering his own and congratulations before taking the horse and carriage and intending to go to town and await the ferry. However, the bride would have none of that and insisted that he stay for the wedding and enjoy the reception. Having nowhere else to go, he reluctantly agreed.
The wedding was a beautiful affair. The couple was fairly young, but it was clear through their vows that they were deeply in love. The ceremony was much quieter than he would have imagined, with the large amount of guests, and he was pleasantly surprised to see the families were quiet and peaceful, though the bride did have a louder side to her. The thoughts of Elli frequently slipped into his mind and he shoved them out, not wanting to embarrass himself by thinking of her at a wedding. Instead, he focused on his favorite part of the whole ordeal. All the strangers complimented him on his gorgeous displays, and he managed to even get a few orders out of the day.
Deeply touched by the kindness of strangers, Cam gave his regards to the newlyweds and took off, a little early but feeling overwhelmed. He pet his borrowed horse while he waited on the large dock, a little exhausted but overall glad to have had such a good day. The ride back to Bluebell felt much longer and he found that he no longer had work to distract him from thoughts of a confusing nurse. Unable to resist, he pulled out his notebook and started to write to Elli, surprising himself by reaching out. He wrote until the ferry pulled into port and the captain gained his attention. He put away the letter, longer than any he had written before, and led the horse back up the tricky mountain path.
His stomach growled as he reached Bluebell, and he returned the borrowed horse and cart as quickly as he could, sure that Laney would have something in the fridge for him. He wasn't disappointed, finding lasagna on a plate, ready to be reheated. He put it in the oven, warming it up while he fixed himself some tea. While he looked for the kettle, a package on the counter caught his eye. A box was resting on the counter, unopened. When he looked closer, he found that it was addressed to him from Elli.
Cam was bewildered, completely not expecting a package on his birthday. He quickly opened it, finding a letter lying on top of a purple pile. He took the letter first, hesitantly unfolding it. He smiled warmly as soon as he began to read, finding her small handwriting a great comfort after going nearly a month without the touch of her sweet personality.
"Cam, I'm so sorry for my last letter being so short, as well as not sending one in so long. Things have gotten sort of… well, I suppose I could say weird. The clinic has been busy, and I've been busy too. You've awoken my love of hiking, I'm afraid, and I've been unable to resist going hiking after work every day. I think I found a couple of secret places, which is pretty exciting! I've also been baking more. That's what I wanted to do when I was younger, actually, baking. I've kind of realized I hadn't been taking the time to do what I love, and you are part of how I realized that, so thank you.
Now, as to what's in the box… I'm really hoping this gets to you by your birthday, hopefully on. I don't know if they'll be helpful or not, but I made you a scarf and glove set. It's not necessary right now, but winter sneaks up on you. I tried to match them to your hat, but I'm pretty sure any purple will work with you. (That was a joke, you can laugh at it).
Happy Birthday, Cam. I'm very glad I've met you, and hope I get to see you again soon. Truth be told, I miss you.
Yours, Elli," he read to himself, smiling as he heard the happiness in her words.
He was glad to see the nurse becoming more vibrant, taking care of herself instead of just others. He found himself overwhelmed again by her. She always managed to make him feel special, as if he were someone important to her. And considering she had made him a scarf and gloves, he supposed he was. He pocketed the sweet letter, trying not to place too much importance on her sign off but failing miserably.
Cam tried on the scarf, finding it thick and fluffy and warm. It was a nice shade of purple, a few shades darker than the checks on his hat, but it still matched nicely. He put on the gloves next, worried she wouldn't be able to size them right but found they fit perfectly. She was right, it was too warm for them at the moment, but he had a feeling within the next few weeks he would be grateful for the warmth they provided. They were almost as warm as the nurse who made them, a thought that brightened the rest of Cam's evening.
Ready to reply to her right away, Cam took out the letter he had written on the boat and added a small response to her birthday surprise, a small but warm smile never leaving his face. He left the ready to mail letter on the counter and finished his nightly routine, still wrapped in the warmth of Elli's kindness and his scarf.