Red Tulips Mean I Love You

A/N: ….. Shut up. I know, it's been months. Hope this is worth it. Enjoy! 3 (Also the last chapter has been edited, and Fluke is Lily for the purposes of this story)

Chapter Two: Apple Blossoms

The rest of the week passed as usual, in the comfortable routine that Danni and Aaron had fallen into. Daily visits from Josh, wedding and funeral arrangements, and maintenance. The pair were happy at their work, as neither was shouldered with too much of the burden - they split the running of the business side of the shop evenly and each worked on an equal number of orders. While Danni did most of the front-of-house work, Aaron sat in the back room and made sure that the flowers were in peak condition, plucking off dead heads and making sure all their produce had plenty of water.

When Friday rolled around, Aaron had still not spoken to Leni again. Ok, if he was honest, he was a little nervous. He wanted to get to know her better - all he knew so far was that she was a tattoo artist and had blue hair. Oh, and that she was incredibly attractive. As if on queue, the bell over the florist's door rang as Leni pushed it open, blowing on her hands in an attempt to warm them up. The weather had turned chilly in the past few days, and bundling up in coats and scarves was starting to make it feel like winter was really on it's way.

"Hi Aaron!" Leni smiled, waving to him. He returned her smile, and Danni poked her head out from the stockroom where she'd been noting the supplies that they needed for the next day's order.

"Hey Leni, this is Danni." Aaron gestured to his friend, who waved and said a quick 'hello' before disappearing back to her work.

"So, are you both coming tonight? Quite a few people have told us they can't make it, so it'll be pretty quiet. We've got plenty of drinks." Leni's smile turned into a grin. Aaron noted that despite the cold, her sleeves were rolled up revealing her beautifully tattooed forearms. He spotted a delicate black butterfly, and a pair of scissors, before he realised that it was a little rude to stare so obviously. Looking up, he saw that she was grinning at him, nonplussed.

"Oh, uh, yeah, we'd love to come," Aaron stammered, "Um, uh, what time are you starting?"

"Around 7. I guess I'll see you there." She gave him a small wave then left the shop, the bell tinkling to mark her departure.

"Smooth." Danni's voice came from the back room and Aaron dropped his head to the desk with a groan.

"Shut up." He mumbled into the wooden surface, Danni's bubbly laughter making him feel even more embarrassed.

A few hours later, and Josh had turned up for their daily lunchtime visit. "So, Leni - the cute tattoo artist - dropped by earlier." Danni said, as the three of them ate. Josh looked up, a mouthful of sandwich and a deer-in-the-headlights look.

"And?" He asked, swallowing.

"And Aaron apparently can't talk around her." Danni teased, earning her a glare from said man.

"Shut up! She's just cute, ok? I don't even know her... yet." He mumbled, rubbing his stubble-covered cheek. Danni giggled and Josh grinned at him.

"Aw, Aaron's got a crush. Don't worry man, as long as you don't scare her off with how weird you are, you'll be fine."

"You're an asshole, you know that?"

They closed up shop at 6pm as usual, each heading back to their respective homes to get ready for the party. Aaron wasn't entirely sure what was appropriate, since it didn't seem like it would be a particularly formal affair. He eventually decided on a dark blue button down, a pair of jeans, and Converse trainers. He attempted to tame his hair a little, before giving up in favour of shaving. Aaron stopped by the shop before entering the tattoo parlour, picking up the bouquet he and Danni had decided on earlier. A small, neat arrangement of apple blossoms, purple crocuses, and mini pineapples, tied with a black ribbon. As he entered the tattoo parlour, he noted that Danni was already there and talking to Leni's coworker - Lily, that was her name. Danni waved him over, a bottle in hand.

The parlour was fairly dark, but Aaron could make out artwork on the white-painted walls. It looked clean and presentable, but with a hint of the stereotypically punk image that tattoo parlours portrayed. Swirling black patterns were etched onto the walls around the doors which he assumed led to rooms where clients would have their art drawn on their skin. The entire place smelled faintly of cleaning fluid, furniture polish, and disinfectant, with a hint of lavender. The desk where the till rested was covered with ring-bound folders which he assumed contained designs to choose from - he wondered briefly if Leni had designed them.

"Aaron, have you met Lily? She's the co-owner." Danni smiled, gesturing to the blonde woman. He'd only caught a glimpse of her the other day, and now could see that she was around the same height as Leni, with a curvaceous figure complimented by a black and red polka-dot skirt and tight-fitting black shirt. Her hair was styled in what Danni later told him were victory curls, and she beamed up at the taller man.
"Hey, Aaron. I can see what Leni meant when she said you were cute." Lily's smile turned to a grin at the faint blush that appeared on Aaron's cheeks at that comment, but continued her conversation with Danni.

"But yeah, LouLou and I have been friends for years. We had a smaller parlour a few miles from here, but we started to get really popular and needed space for more chairs and more artists, so we upgraded to this place." Lily was explaining, though Aaron was only half-listening as he scanned the room for Leni. He spotted her over by the drinks table, pouring herself a vodka and orange juice, so he moved over towards her. She looked up as he approached, a Cheshire-cat grin spreading across her face.

"Hey Aaron! Glad you could make it." She gave him a quick hug, and Aaron awkwardly returned it.

Across the room, Lily spotted this and raised an eyebrow.

"What is it?" Danni asked.

"LouLou doesn't like hugs." Lily explained, a smile curling at the corner of her lips. "So it's just interesting."

Aaron handed Leni the bouquet. "To celebrate your opening." he explained. She grinned, her eyes shining.

"Look at the tiny pineapple! I'm going to put these in a vase, I'll be right back! Go talk to Lily, I'm sure she'd love to meet you." And with that, Leni dashed off into a back room. Aaron wandered over to where Danni and Lily were still chatting, noting the tattoo that was clear on Lily's back - a snow leopard stretched across her shoulder blades, caught mid-run. As he rejoined the women in their conversation, he looked down at Lily's arms. She had fewer tattoos than Leni, but they were just as exquisite. The words 'L'appel du vide' in soft cursive flowed down Lily's forearm, and a skull with roses in the eye-sockets adorned her other shoulder.

Lily noted his interest and grinned. "Most of them were done by Leni. She's pretty amazing, isn't she?"

Aaron simply nodded - was everything about this girl perfect? Maybe he should get a tattoo…

He was snapped out of his daze by Leni returning, slinging an arm around Lily's neck. "I hope she's not being weird as usual." Leni teased, poking Lily in the side and earning an indignant scoff.

"I'm being perfectly polite, thank you very much." The shorter woman poked her tongue out at her friend before turning back to Danni and Aaron. "I sometimes worry about the fact that I've been friends with her for six years."

Leni jabbed Lily with her elbow. "You love me really."

Through the course of that night, Aaron realised that the more he learned about the pair, the more he enjoyed their company and the more he fell for the cute blue-haired girl. He discovered that the two lived together, and had for a few years at this point. Apparently most of their evenings they played games and watched nerdy movies together, relaxing in each other's company. Sometimes Lily dragged them out to a bar with some other friends, but mostly the two worked and lived in comfortable introversion. Aaron could get behind that.

It was almost 2 o'clock in the morning before Aaron and Danni waved goodbye to their new friends and headed for their homes. As he stepped out through the door, Aaron let out a heavy sigh and sagged forward. This girl was going to be the death of him. As if on queue, Leni pushed through the door and bumped straight into Aaron's back.

"Ah, I hoped you'd still be here! I forgot to give you my phone number." She grinned, holding out her phone. Aaron fumbled in his pocket for his own mobile, handing it to her. He quickly tapped his number and name into her phone, and she did likewise.

"So, I'll see you around?" Aaron asked, trying to sound cool and relaxed and not as if he was desperately hoping she would want to hang around with him some more.

"Of course." Leni grinned. "We're neighbours now, remember?" And with that, she disappeared back into her shop.

Yup, definitely going to be the death of him.

Flowers mentioned in this chapter:

Apple blossoms - good fortune

Crocuses - happiness

Mini pineapple - welcome

Tattoos EXPLAINED:

Leni: Butterflies - meant to look like the design on Johnny 3 Tear's mask (from Hollywood Undead). This Leni's first tattoo, done by Lily.

Scissors - reference to Leni's hairdressing job

Lily: Snow Leopard - Fluke's favourite animal

'L'appel du vide' - 'The Call of the Void' - a tattoo Fluke has mentioned wanting before

Skull - it looks pretty idk