helbram. — The wonders a missing packet of seeds can do astounds Helbram. It's as if fate was finally taking the wheel. (in which Helbram meets Diane.)

Saying Helbram was interested in gardening would definitely be an understatement.

He wasn't just interested — he was a fanatic. There was seldom a time when his garden wasn't overflowing in beautiful flowers and neatly trimmed shrubs. Always aesthetic, always perfect. There were probably rumours of him trimming the grass with nail clippers. He'd collected so many seeds of so many different flowers over the years that he had to built a shed by his house to keep them along with his gardening tools.

Yes, he had seeds of every flower. Tulips, pansies, marigolds, primrose, even roses in all colours…

…except white.

On a warm spring day, when the sun was playing hide and seek amongst the clouds and his yard demanded that he planted white roses, he found out that he didn't have them the hard way.

After several hours of trying and failing to uncover the brown packet of seeds (amongst millions of other brown packets of seeds), he decided that giving up was a better option and fell back onto a chair. It squeaked in protest.

"I can't believe this. I'm pretty sure I had some seeds leftover from last time. And I'm also missing tomato…Ugh, I'm gonna have to get more."

Then it hit him. His regular shop was just a ten-minute walk away, and his plans for the (rest of the) day were ruined anyway. A devious smile stretches across his face. He ran upstairs to grab his satchel.

"About time I paid Harlequin another visit," he sang.

"As soon as he stepped into the store, that nostalgic fragrance of flowers and cut stalks overwhelmed him. Sometimes he really missed this smell. He remembered pretending to go around watering the plants just so Harlequin would deal with the annoying customers instead of him, or sitting behind the counter with Harlequin, filling water tubes one by one and cutting rose stems at an angle. They would spent little time chatting, the sound of water splashing and the occasional scrape of a knife occupying their silence. If he squinted, maybe he could still see the little scars and nicks from his careless knife handling.

He almost missed working here.

He checked his watch. Five o'clock. And Harlequin's shift started about…now.

As if on cue, a door creaks open. Harlequin walked out, holding a bucket of roses the same shade as his hair. They made eye contact.

"Oh. It's you again," he said almost venomously, though Helbram knew it was in jest.

"Now, that's no way to treat your best friend! When was the last time you smiled for me, Harlequin?"

Harlequin tossed his head and began walking towards the flowers section. "What do you want this time?" he asked, slipping into 'work mode', as Helbram had dubbed it.

Most customers would get straight to the point. Helbram didn't.

"What do I want this time?" He laughed, then pretended to actually consider Harlequin's question, slowly stroking his chin with a hand propped against a folded arm and looking up towards the ceiling as though the answer was somewhere up there. Keep your brow furrowed and your expression blank, he told himself. He even blinked owlishly a few times, making sure to drag this out as long as possible.

He didn't know how long he held this pose, but Harlequin eventually started tapping his foot against the wooden floor (a tic that Helbram knew meant he was losing patience). Imagining his brow furrowing irritably and his mouth set into a thin angry line almost made Helbram break character. Almost.

Finally, he relented, and his hands fell to his sides. "I was actually looking for seeds," he said.

"Seeds of?"

"White roses."

Harlequin nodded slowly. "Anything else?"

An idea struck him.

"Yes, but I don't know what it's called."

Harlequin peered at him with suspicion. "You? Not knowing what you're looking for? That's definitely a first." He shook his head. "Do you at least have an idea of what you're looking for?"

Helbram nodded.

Harlequin let out a soft sigh, and put down the bucket of roses. "Describe it."

It was dark that day, a sure sign of rain, and normally Diane would have stayed inside, in the comfort of her home. But she had promised to visit Matrona today, and Diane wasn't one to break a promise.

"Maybe I should get her more flowers," she mumbled, already pulling out her phone to check for flower shop's location. "She did like the hydrangeas…Oh, but they were so expensive last time. I should find cheaper flowers this time."

After a few minutes of navigating through the streets with the help of Google maps, she finally found the shop. The metal sign beside the door swung violently in the harsh wind.

She stepped in, and was immediately greeted by a familiar voice.

"For the last time, Helbram, tomatoes are not vegetables!" The employee from before was flailing his arms, clearly exasperated. He was talking to another man of similar height with chartreuse hair. "Surely you're not that stupid!"

"Then why don't we find them in desserts like normal fruits?" asked Helbram innocently, cocking his head.

"Because they're-" A pause. A sharp inhale, followed by a slow exhale. "Just because they're fruit doesn't mean we need to use them in desserts."

"But strawberries aren't fruits and they're used more frequently in desserts than tomatoes! Isn't that kind of racist?"

"Strawberries are fruits! You're confusing the term fruit with berry again. And nobody actually cares-" Realization hit him like a brick. "You're toying with me."

A cheeky smile creeped onto the man's face. "Am I?"

"Ughhh, I should have known." The employee grabbed a fistful of his own hair. "You have no need for tomatoes anyway."

"Actually, I've been wanting to try out these tomato recipes I found online. Did you know that some people use tomatoes for dessert?"

"Oh my god. If you weren't a customer right now, I would strangle you with my bare hands."

Helbram belted out a laugh. "Not like you can anyway, with those puny arms of yours."

He chose to ignore this. "And I didn't know you were into cooking."

Helbram winked. "There are a lot of things you don't know about me, Harlequin"

Harlequin…?

'Harlequin' finally noticed her standing at the entrance, perplexed. His face lit up. "Oh, it's you!"

Diane grinned. "Yeah. I want to get more flowers for my friend."

"Of course, of course. Same as last time?"

"Actually, I was hoping for something a little…" She bit her lip, "cheaper. I'm on a bit of a budget."

He smiled understandingly. "I'll see what I can find." Before he can continue, Helbram steps in front of him, hands on his hips.

"Harlequin," he began, in an almost hurt tone, "why are you treating her with more respect than me?" Strangely, Diane felt her heart pang with guilt.

Harlequin rolled his eyes so hard she was afraid they'd be stuck at the back of his head. "Because she actually deserves my respect. Unlike you."

"You're no fun," Helbram whined. He turned to Diane, eyes narrowed. "Though I'm surprised you managed to make it this far with a woman. Lady, who are you and what have you done to my Harlequin?"/p

"Helbram!"

Diane laughed, deciding then and there that she liked this man. "I'm Diane, and all I did was buy flowers from, um, Harlequin."

"Nice to meet you, Diane!" He took her hand and squeezed it. 'I'm Helbram, Harlequin's one and only friend. That loser over there is Harlequin."

"I'm not a loser," Harlequin said, "and you are not my one and only friend. Now if we're done with introductions, I need to ring you up so you can leave."

"I'm not leaving." When Harlequin's expression began to sour, Helbram added, "I'm waiting until your shift ends so we can hang out afterwards. Seriously, Harlequin. Take a hint."/p

Harlequin pinched the bridge of his nose. His tone was noticeably softer as he said, "At least let me ring you up."

Today was definitely worth it, Helbram thought as he leaned against the wall, careful not to accidentally knock over anything. With nothing else to do, he watched Diane and Harlequin as they went over the flowers on the other side of the shop.

As Diane gently felt the petals of a red rose, her lips pulled into a soft smile. Harlequin didn't even bother hiding the fact that he was staring. There was a certain fondness in his eyes; Helbram had never seen anything quite like it before.

When she paid for her flowers and left, his gaze lingered on her back a moment too long. His cheeks were slightly pink.

Helbram couldn't help smiling. His dear little Harlequin was in love.

Number of words: 1458

First posted on: 16/11/2019

A/N: "Write a drabble," she said. "It won't be very long," she said. *writes 1.4k words, which is equivalent to a oneshot*

(They won't all be this long! I just had way too much fun writing this one. The next one is about the same length as the first drabble.)

Anyway, some (prewritten) fluff to help distract you from the Covid-19 epidemic going on right now. Make sure to stay healthy, maintain your hygiene by washing your hands thoroughly, and don't go outdoors if you can help it to prevent spreading the virus! You may be strong enough to handle it, but that does not guarantee the person next to you will be. With that being said... Stay safe, and I hope this passes soon ^^

If I'm not too lazy to type up the next chapter, it should be here in a week! if I forget, give it two weeks ;)