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Thena’s had a chaotic life to say the least. She grew up in orphanages and foster homes until she was adopted by a manipulative piece of shit who tried to medicate her problems away instead of sending her to therapy. All she could focus on was surviving and fighting when she was younger. If she wasn’t fighting something, anything, herself, was she really there?
But now, she doesn’t have to constantly be fighting.
Now, in this house she calls a home, filled with knick knacks and worn down furniture, with her husband by her side, she finally feels safe.
There was rustling in the bed, she could feel that, but it still felt too early for her to open her eyes.
“Thena, hey Thena,” Gilgamesh gently called out.
“Hm?”
“I’ve gotta head out early today. I put breakfast on the table for you.”
She blinked slowly to regain her bearings. Why does he have to leave early- Ah, right it’s delivery day for Gil. Thena nodded, “Alright.”
He kissed her forehead, “I’ll see you later.”
Thena smiled and waved goodbye.
There wasn’t much point in staying in bed.
After all, there was good food to eat and flowers to see.
Gil had drawn the curtains open before he left, illuminating their home in the warm morning light. A simple breakfast with a mug of tea was at the table that was decorated simply with purple flowers. She brushed her fingers against the mug. Still warm.
Gilgamesh always knew just what she needed. Of course that comes with being married for a long time and knowing each other for an even longer time. Through the therapy sessions and rehabilitation, through leaving her adopted guardian Arishem, through opening her flower shop; Gil was always there for her.
Sometimes she wondered if Gil’s life would’ve been better, if he would’ve been happier without having to take care of her. But every time she doubted, Gil would just take her hands and assure her that there’s no place that he’d rather be, that he would be there for her in this lifetime and the ones that followed.
Such words always warmed her heart and calmed her frantic mind.
Once she finished her meal, Thena headed downstairs where the familiar sight of flora and fauna greeted her.
Her morning tasks were to make sure that all of the plants that needed pruning were pruned, that the orders for the day were ready, and to finish any last minute changes to the arrangements. She grabbed some pruning scissors and began her work, careful to cut away any withering parts of the potted plants and any flowers used for bouquets.
A brown haired man stepped into the backroom, “Morning Thena.”
“Druig,” she greeted with a nod, her hands still busy, “Did you finish watering the plants?”
“Yes, yes. And I contacted the suppliers for details about next week’s orders.”
“Thank you. Can you flip the sign? I’ll be out once I finish this.”
“Got it.”
With the sign flipped to ‘Open’, the customers had begun slowly stream in. Some came to pick up a bouquet for a loved one, others came to find a new plant for their home garden. Some came by to pick up their orders, while others placed orders for future birthdays and anniversaries.
On her break, she took a brief walk around the block. Gilgamesh always reminds her that a little sunlight and fresh air were always good. Today’s walk was particularly good because a sweet little beagle had come up to her and the owner had let her pet it for a bit. Not to mention, Sprite had sent her an image of Gilgamesh in his new chef hat. Apparently Kingo has stopped by the restaurant to give it to Gil. The pastel embroidered flowers and “kiss the chef‘ were nice accents. It matched an apron that he had.
“How’s the walk?”
“Refreshing. There was an adorable dog. And who’s that for?” she asked as Druig tied a ribbon onto the petite bouquet that he made. The flowers he chose were vibrantly red and pruned of any withering leaves or buds. Camellias…
“Why’re you asking when you already know?”
The apple of Druig’s eye was a girl named Makkari who was working at Gil’s restaurant as a delivery person. She stopped by everyday that Gil couldn’t get away to deliver lunch himself and she’s been getting very close with her grumpy, ‘edgy’ younger brother. It was rare to see Druig smile, but Makkari pulls them out of him with ease.
“Will today be the day that you finally ask her out?” He’s done a careful job on it. The wrapping was even and the ribbon was impeccable.
“You’ll just have to wait and see, don’t you?”
Hasn’t she heard that answer nearly a hundred times before?
He’ll declare that ‘today will be the day’. Then right as Makkari shows up, he chickens out and just keeps talking to her about philosophy or a museum exhibition or a crazy customer that had just come in.
But Then had faith that he would make his move soon.
After all, their little friend group had a betting pool over this.
And she never loses a bet.
A figure in red burst through the flower shop door. She cheerfully waved towards Thena.
“Hello Makkari. Thank you as always,” Thena greeted as she carefully signed out. Both she and Druig had learned sign language along with a few other languages when they were younger, but out of the two of them Druig was probably more fluent in sign language. She remembered after he first met Makkari he was relearning certain words during the shop’s downtime.
Of course! I think you and Druig will really like this one. Gil let me try some earlier and it’s amazing! Not that he could make something bad.
“I’m looking forward to it.” It already smelled delicious. She wondered what kind of spices and sauces Gil used this time?
Druig emerged from the backroom to greet Makkari, “If it isn’t the beautiful Makkari?”
Makkari’s eyes lit up as she saw Druig approaching before she waved hello. Thena could see a light dusting of pink on her cheeks.
Druig pulled out the flowers from behind him, offering them to Makkari, “If milady would be so kind to accept my offering.”
Makkari rolled her eyes a little at the endearment, but took the flowers with a smile. With one hand, she asked, What’s this for?
“Just something I’d thought you’d like.”
Thena quietly slipped away to give the two lovebirds privacy, but she doubted the two even noticed her disappearance. They tend to get lost in each other and forget about the world. She set out plates for two so that Druig could join her whenever he was done talking with Makkari.
She opened the take out and smiled. It was a pork roast with sides of crispy potatoes and seasonal vegetables. She could hardly wait to dig in. She loved the feeling of her knife diving into the meat. The scent wafted into her nostrils as she took the first bite. Hm… Perfect.
“Looks great.”
“How did it go?”
“It went.” He’s trying to act aloof, but Thena can instantly see through him. There was a glimmer in his eyes and a skip to his steps. Not to mention the radiating smile on his face.
“Congratulations.”
“Thanks.”
Looks like she wins the bet.
Thena takes another large bite of the pork and chews slowly to appreciate all of the flavors marinated into the meat. The taste of the food and victory was delicious. And now she doesn’t have to listen to Druig wax poetics of how Makkari was out of his league or too amazing for him (while it was cute at first).
Her phone buzzed. She smiled at the notification. Gil must be on his break.
How was lunch?
Delicious
I liked your new hat
Does it make me look pretty?
[picture attached]
Thena sniggered at the image as she typed her response.
Very pretty
The door opened and a well dressed man with glasses appeared.
“Phastos,” she greeted once she recognized the man.
“Hey, just wanted to pick up my order.”
“Oh, was that today?” Druig asked.
“Druig! Not. Funny.”
Thena looked up to give Druig a scolding look. The younger man held his hands up in defeat, “Alright, alright. Let me go to the back for your order.”
Phastos looked from the direction that Druig went in back to Thena, “How do you do that?”
Thena smiled, “It’s one of my many talents. But I think you have other things to think about besides Druig being Druig.” For someone going on a date with his boyfriend, Phastos seemed oddly tense. “How’s everything?”
“Fine, y’know, typical, nothing out of the ordinary.”
“Phastos.”
“It’s just- I’ve never been in a relationship for this long in forever.”
“True.” Phastos would normally partake in a single date with one person before moving onto the next. Which was the fault of his first ex who had crumbled his heart into pieces and left next to nothing for Phastos’ trust in romantic relationships. So when she heard that he and Ben had arranged a second date, she already knew that Phastos was infatuated (even if he didn’t want to admit it). “Are you sure you don’t want me to hunt that asshole ex of yours down and have a talk with him?”
She’s pretty sure that she could recruit Sprite and Druig to help her on this quest.
“Nope, absolutely not. I’m trying to move on from past traumas, not collide with them head on. I’m just nervous, ok?”
Thena placed a hand on his shoulder, “Phastos, Ben is not your ex. ”
“I know. It’s just… What if I open up to him and I let myself really fall love him and he leaves without an explanation? What then?”
“Then he’s an asshole that I will gladly hunt down for you,” she assured, “I know it’s terrifying to open up to people sometimes, especially when someone’s hurt you before. But this situation is different. You’re not the same as you were before. The fact that you even went on a few dates with Ben is a sign of you moving on and you being happy. When you’re around him, you look so happy, you look at him like he’s all the good in humanity.”
“Not to mention, Ben looks at you like you created the entire universe. You two are good for each other, so as long as you both continue to put effort into your relationship there’s nothing to worry about. He has nothing but good intentions for you,” Druig intruded, looking out of place with the red roses in his hands, “Here, a dozen long stemmed roses.”
“Kinda weird to hear that from you, but thanks.”
“He’s in a romantic mood since Makkari’s agreed to go on a date with him,” Thena explained.
“Seriously? You finally asked her out? Congrats man. I didn’t think you’d do it until next month, who wins the bet T?”
“I do,” she declared with a smile. Phastos immediately pulled out his wallet and handed over cash, “Thank you. I’ll be sure to collect my winnings from everyone else later.”
“Just how many people are in this damn betting pool?”
Her, Phastos, Gilgamesh, Kingo, Sprite, Ajak, Sersi…Everyone in their little circle besides Ikaris. He probably doesn’t even know that Druig had a crush on someone, he hasn’t spoken to them in almost a year. But that’s his fault for suddenly disappearing without letting anyone know where he was going or why.
“You’re better off not knowing.” Phastos took a deep breath and looked at the roses. A small smile emerged on his face, “Anyways, thanks for talking with me. I haven't been in the best headspace today, so thanks. I’ve gotta head out. How do I look?”
Druig looked up and down Phastos before delivering a verdict, “Like a ball of tangled nerves.”
“Not helping!”
Druig chuckled but immediately ceased when she gave him a pointed look.
“Lose the bowtie, then it’ll look perfect Phastos,” Thena advised, “I hope that you and Ben have a wonderful night.”
“Thanks. I’ll see you guys later.”
There wasn’t much more to do for the rest of the night. Just confirming the orders for tomorrow were finished and that no changes to the stock needed to be made. Making sure the register was locked. The usual things.
“See you tomorrow, Thena.”
She waved goodbye to Druig and flipped the sign to ‘Closed’.
By tomorrow, Druig will probably run at least 20 date ideas by her. She chuckled. It was cute to see him trying so hard.
She heard the door open, “We’re close- Gil.”
Her husband greeted her with a warm smile, “Hey T, I’ve got dinner.”
“Is it ok for you to leave the restaurant so early?”
“It’s fine, I’ve got someone finishing up the dinner shift for me.” Gilgamesh offered his hand to her, “Shall we?”
Thena took his hand with a smile.
“How was the shop?” Gil asked, handing her a large, warm mug.
“The same.” Thena breathed in relief at the scent of Gilgamesh’s mulled cider, “Someone finally asked out your delivery girl.”
“Wow, no kidding? I’d thought it’d be at least another week before Kari asked him out herself. Looks like you won the bet, T.”
“Of course. You know I never make a bet that I’d lose,” she reminded him with a victorious swig of her mug.
“And what do you want as your prize?”
“Hm…” What to ask for? After pondering for a moment, she decided, “One of your world famous pies will do.”
“Got it.” He took a swig of his mug before heading to the refrigerator, “We’ve only got blackberries in the fridge, will that do?”
“Sounds perfect.”
The sounds of the TV and the smell of delicious food were lulling her into a pleasant peace. With Gilgamesh by her side, there’s no place she’d rather be.