Chapter Text
Dani doesn’t know much about plants, only that they need sun and water to survive, and that her mother must’ve liked them because her childhood home was flooded with them. She smiles as she thinks of their beauty, but a frown soon follows.
Her recent move to England was a way to get away from it all, despite its appearance, that house was everything in contrast to the bouquets on each window sill. Where the flowers showed beauty, hope, growth, her mother showed anger, hatred, neglect – which had only grown after Dani had come out to her before she left.
So when she scrolls through the many job advertisements on her computer screen in front of her, she hesitates whilst she reads about a worker wanted for a flower shop, a florist of sorts. Yet she considers the possibilities of spending hours on end consumed in the beauty and floral scents of such a place, so she fills out the form and applies.
To her surprise, she gets an email that very day from the flower shop’s owner. She has an interview, Friday of that week, and has three days to learn as much as she can about flowers.
“Easy enough,” she sighs to herself.
—
Friday comes quickly, too quickly, perhaps. Dani had spent as much time as she could looking up different types of flowers, and as she dived further and further into her research, she soon became aware that growing plants was far more complicated than she had thought.
The bell of the door rings loudly as she enters the flower shop. The first thing she notices is the smell, it absorbs her, invades her senses and makes her think of spring. She strolls towards the front desk and looks around, nobody is in sight, though she can hear rustling coming from behind a particularly large purple arrangement.
“Be right with you,” the mysterious voice calls out from amongst the sea of flowers.
Dani smiles, the woman’s accent is cute, different to the one she has gotten so used to hearing in London. She almost chokes on her own breath as she realises that the owner of the voice is indeed very cute herself, a young brunette woman, probably the same age as her, wearing dirt covered dungarees and bulky black boots.
“What can I do for ya?” The lady asks once she’s made her way behind the desk and in front of Dani.
“Oh, I’m uhm, Dani,” she pauses, embarrassed of her discomposure, “I’m here for the interview?”
“Ah,” the shop worker reaches out her hand to shake Dani’s, “I’m Jamie, I’m the owner of the Leafling.”
Dani gulps slightly, realising that this gorgeous woman will most likely be her interviewer. She takes Jamie’s hand in hers and shakes it lightly, fixing her eyes on a spot on the brunettes shirt to avoid getting lost in her hazel eyes.
“Let me just finish closing and I’ll be right with you, make yourself comfortable in the back,” Jamie says as she points to a door just to the side of her.
Dani does as she’s told, and spends her minutes alone to ready herself, revising her research in her head like a school girl about to take an exam.
Jamie enters after a few minutes, she washes her dirt covered hands in the sink of the back room before turning to Dani with a tired smile, “can I get you a cuppa?”
Dani has become accustomed to this, almost everywhere she goes she’s offered a cup of tea, no matter what time or where she is, everybody seems to have a kettle and some tea bags at hand. She nods, content with anything to hold in her hands to control her from her nervous fidgeting.
“Here you are,” Jamie settles a mug down next to Dani a few sugar sachets on the side for Dani to use if she pleases, “so where are you from?”
Dani realises Jamie has picked up on her accent, “Ohio, I only moved here this year.”
Jamie nods, “and how are you finding it?”
The blonde relaxes in the casualness of the conversation, “cold, and I wouldn’t be surprised if I started looking like a tea bag sometime soon.”
“And what did you do, in Ohio?” Jamie questions.
“I taught young children, for about 3 years,” Dani takes a sip of her tea, she smiles happily, it’s probably the best one she’s tasted so far.
“Children to plants? What made you change career path?”
The question is innocent, in fact very relevant for a job interview, but Dani’s cheeks flush pink as memories of her life in America flash in and out of her mind. The way she felt forced into every aspect of her life, controlled by her mother and Eddie, all things she wanted to escape from. She doesn’t voice this, that’s a conversation for another day, “I wanted to pick up some new skills, and plants can be pretty,” she says simply.
“Do you have any experience growing anything? Apart from the minds of children that is,” Jamie smiles, Dani let’s her eyes wonder to her pink, plump, lips.
“We used to have an allotment at the school, actually. It was useful, teaching the kids how to plant and look after things, and it was always a positive to see them eat a few vegetables once the work was done.”
Jamie nods, amused by the woman in front of her, “what about plants? Grow any of those?”
Dani blinks, she has never grown a plant, not one, and her mind goes blank whilst she tries to think of any information she had consumed within the past few days.
“Now, don’t you think it may have been useful to have previously grown a few flowers before even considering applying to be a florist?” Jamie laughs, and if she wasn’t so softly spoken and humorous, Dani may have taken the question as an insult.
“My mother used to have flowers everywhere, she cared for them, and I always liked the idea of bringing something to life,” Dani is surprised by the way she fights back at Jamie’s question, “I haven’t grown many things, but what better place to learn than a florist?”
“My only other staff member left for a new adventure last week, didn’t even really give me that much notice, but I admired her need for some escapism,” Jamie looks to Dani, holding eye contact with intent, “seems like this job might be some escapism for you, Dani.”
Dani holds Jamie’s stare, feeling vulnerable at how this woman, whom she’d just met, has been able to read her so well and see behind her American enthusiasm to find the hurt and desperation hiding away.
“I’m a really quick learner,” she blurts out, shocked at how desperate the words sound, she didn’t even want this job very much this morning, but now she’s met Jamie.
Jamie smirks at her, once again amused, she had never met someone quite like Dani, never seen someone with such glossy golden hair, “come in Monday, 7am, and wear something you don’t mind getting dirty.”
Dani grins back at the woman in front of her, finishes off her tea and puts it down beside her, “thank you,” she says gratefully, reaching out her hand to once again shake Jamie’s.
Their hands touch, and it’s different this time, Dani almost pulls away, the contact sending electricity through her arm and around her body. Jamie let’s the shake linger too, mesmerised almost by the glee radiating from Dani.
“I’ll see you Monday Dani.”