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“Statistics show that the first flowers men receive are at his funeral.”
As soon as Stiles read that title, he was on a mission. A mission to give all the boys in the pack their own snipping of flowers. He almost ran to the flower shop downtown, next to Stiles’ favourite cake shop, and started scanning the colours, textures and variety.
And it soon accrued to him… he knew nothing about flowers.
The old lady that ran the shop, Edna, came up to him. She was small, frail but still had that spark in her baby blue eyes. She had on a pink knitted jumper, large round glasses and bright pink eyeshadow on her eyelids. She had a wooden cane that helped her move around and when she saw Stiles’ clueless face, she knew that he needed help.
“Can I help with anything, dear?”
Stiles startled, not seeing her at first, then smiled at Edna, “I read online that the first flowers men receive are at his funeral and it made me think about my friends and how they’ve probably never been given flowers and that made me sad. I want to give them their first flowers.”
“That’s very sweet, dear. Your friends are lucky to have you.” She said, shuffling along the aisles with Stiles on her heels, “Back in my day, men were so ashamed of liking flowers that they often judged women for liking them. I’m glad that this new generation of kids are more comfortable in themselves to like what they like.”
That made Stiles smile.
“Anyways, deary, flowers are not just something pretty to look at. Flowers are symbols, meanings. Different flowers mean different things.”
“Really?”
“Oh yes. For example, Carnations mean a mother’s love and Holly means domestic happiness.”
“Oh. So, what do you suggest getting my friends?”
“Depends on the friend.” Edna shrugged, “Describe your friends and I’ll give you the flowers I recommend.”
“Well, Scott is my best friend. I’ve known him since kindergarten. He’s loyal, a bit dumb but he tries his best. He is the most generous, loving and selfless person I have ever met.”
Edna hummed, putting her finger on her chin as she thought then said, “I see… I’d go with the coral rose.” She picked up the plant that had the most vibrant pale pink roses on top of the stems, “Now, normally it's an anniversary plant as it means loyalty and modesty. But it was one of the most profound plants that represented friendship and platonic love.”
“Sounds good. They’re beautiful.”
Edna picked the roses up and Stiles went to gather a trolley to put them in.
“Who’s next?” The little old lady asked eagerly.
“Boyd is strong, silent and smart. He’s a big teddy bear really but he has the courage of a lion and will do anything for his friends.”
“Strong and silent…” Edna muttered to herself then pointed to a bouquet of the most colourful bunch of flowers in the store, “Gladiolus. The clue is in the name. Gladiators, strength, integrity, victory.”
“Sounds like him.”
She puts the flowers in the cart for Stiles, making sure the stems are straight and not twisting. She asked for the next friend.
“Jackson’s a dumbass.” That made Edna chuckle. “He’s a bit of an asshole. But he’s honest, strong and he loves a challenge.”
“Hm, I’d go with the hyacinth. It means playfulness, honesty and strength.”
“I like the blue.”
“Me too. Here you go, deary.” She hands the plant over. “Next friend?”
“I love how you assume I have more than three friends.”
“Don’t you?”
“I do. I just like the assumption.” They laugh. Then Stiles said, “Isaac. He’s gone through a lot. Bad family life, he was treated so badly before Derek came and took him out of there. He had to grow up so fast that he didn’t really have a childhood. But now that he’s safe and has Derek looking after him, he’s been slowly coming out of his shell and being freer to do things he’s always wanted to do as a child. He’s an innocent soul who just wants someone to guide and cherish him, y’know. He’s the baby of the pa- group. We look out for him. He’s just a ray of sunshine really.”
“Poor boy. I’m glad he’s safe now.”
“Me too, Edna.”
“I’d go for the white rose. It means purity, innocence, reverence and… a new beginning.”
“Perfect.” Stiles said, putting the rose in the cart. “Now onto the last.”
“And who is that?”
“Derek.” Just saying the name makes Stiles smile. He scowls at himself. This stupid crush needs to end.
“And who is Derek?”
“He’s… complicated.”
Edna put her hand on her hip, intrigued, “How so?”
“He’s… everything that’s good in this world.” And before he knew it, Stiles started to ramble, “He’s loyal, strong, a natural born leader. He is scary on the outside but soft and squishy on the inside - metaphorically because he has 200 pounds of muscle on him and like none of that is squishy. He is kind and courageous, generous and has a heart of pure fucking gold! His family died horrifically, and he was a shell of a person when I met him but now, he is slowly letting people see that amazing man he is underneath.” His arms were flailing as he spoke passionately, “He’s been through so much but that doesn’t stop him from being a good person! He is still haunted by his past but he’s not letting it destroy him and turn him into something terrible. He has every right to back down and crumble into a state of misery, but he doesn’t. He gets up every morning and fights for what he thinks is right. He helps others, he got custody of a seventeen-year-old abuse victim at the age of twenty-two to give him a better life, he gives to charity, he plants bee friendly flowers in his garden, he learned sign language at fifteen because his baby cousin was losing her hearing.” He took a breath before carrying on, “And do not get me started on his hotness. His stupidly soft hair, his kaleidoscopic eyes that are never one colour and his stupid beautiful face. He has bunny teeth, Edna! Bunny teeth! They are adorable! And they shouldn’t be that adorable on a man that looks like the reincarnated being of a Greek God - but they are!” Stiles got out his phone and looked at his gallery before finding a picture that wasn’t distorted by the flashing eyes because Derek wasn’t looking directly at the camera. He was on the couch, sitting comfortably in a tight henley and black jeans reading a book. His biceps begging for freedom in the sleeves and the veins in his hands bulging as he looks at the page in front of him. His stubble was longer than usual, slowly turning into a full beard and his hair was still slightly wet from his morning shower. He showed the picture to Edna. “Just look at him!”
Edna’s eyes went wide, readjusting her glasses, “Holy Lord. He looks like the man I had an affair with in the sixties.”
Stiles paused, looking gobsmacked at the little old lady for a moment before spluttering. He put his phone away, red cheeks burning and eyes on his battered shoes.
“Does he know how you feel?” Edna asked softly.
Stiles sighed, shaking his head.
“Why not, deary?”
Stiles had a face of disbelief, “You’ve just heard everything amazing about him and you still think I’m good enough for him?”
Edna smiled warmly at him, “I have a feeling that you’re plenty good enough for him.”
“How do you know?”
“I don’t. All I know is that not many young men would come into a flower shop to buy his male friends flowers because he was sad that they never got them.”
Stiles said nothing. He just watched Edna move around the aisle, shuffling her feet as she scanned the flowers.
“Red roses mean ‘I love you’.” She said to herself, “That’s why they represent Valentine’s Day so much. Which is weird because Red Chrysanthemums means the same thing. Lavender roses mean love at first sight.”
“At first sight I thought he was a murderer. A hot murderer… but a murderer notherless.”
She then picked up a bushy bunch of white flowers. She handed them to Stiles.
“Gardenias.”
“They’re beautiful.” He said, “What’s their meaning?”
“Secret Love.”
Stiles looked at the flowers and felt his heart squeeze, “They’re perfect.”
****
It was Pack night. That means the pack meets up at Derek’s for a movie marathon and a lot of take out. It was the perfect time for the flowers to be given out.
When Stiles pulled up to the rebuilt Hale House, he smiled as he saw everyone’s cars in the driveway. He was the last one there which he planned. He then took out the bags of flowers from the back of his jeep before heading inside, making his presence known by yelling out his greetings.
“We’re werewolves, Stiles. You don’t need to yell.” Scott reminded him.
“Yeah, we knew you were here the second your wheels touched Hale property.” Erica grinned, already eating the popcorn.
Lydia looked at the bags he was holding, “What have you got in there?”
“Smells like flowers.” Said Derek. He was standing at the doorway with his arms folded over his puffed chest.
“Correct-a-mondo, Der! They’re flowers.” Stiles announced.
Jackson groaned, “Why do you have flowers? Don’t tell me you’re redecorating again!”
“No. I’ve got flowers because I read an article the other day about how the first flowers men receive are statistically shown to be at his funeral.”
“That’s sad.” Isaac said from his place on the floor, a half-completed jigsaw puzzle between his legs.
“It is! So, I decided to change that and give all my friends their first flowers.”
“That’s so sweet, Stiles!” Erica shrieked, hand over her heart.
The girls all swooned, exclaiming their excitement for the boys. The boys themselves looked a little hesitant.
“First up, Scotty boy!” Stiles said, taking out the coral roses and giving them to his best friend, “Now every flower has a hidden meaning to them. These roses are for friendship and loyalty.”
Scott looked at the flowers and actually started to tear up, “T-Thanks, bro. They’re pretty.”
“There's a little information card in the soil to tell you how to look after them. I’m glad you like them.”
Scott quickly gathered Stiles in a hug, patting his back hard which made Stiles cough.
When Stiles was free from the hug, he gathered up the hyacinths and made his way to Jackson - who looked at the flowers narrowly.
“Jackson. These are hyacinths. They mean honesty and playfulness.” He said, holding out the plants for the other boy to take.
Jackson reached out slowly, poking at the blue buds.
“Just take the damn flowers before I shove them somewhere unpleasant!” Erica warned.
Jackson took the flowers quickly then smiled at Stiles, “Thanks… you weirdo.”
“You’re welcome!”
“Me next! Me next!” Isaac shouted, bouncing up on his feet.
“Okay, puppy!” Stiles matched his enthusiasm, the nickname being one that quickly became a signature a few months ago. He gathered Isaac’s flowers and gave them to the pup.
Isaac’s jaw dropped, smelling the petals before touching them carefully.
“White roses. Meaning Innocence, purity and… a new beginning.”
Isaac sniffled, burying his head into Stiles throat so he could thank him without using words. Stiles ruffled his hair and patted his back. “You’re very welcome, puppy.”
When they pulled back, Isaac went straight over to Derek to show off the flowers. Derek carefully took the information sheet from the soil and read through it before telling Isaac the main things to do to keep the plant healthy. All the while, Stiles went over to Boyd.
“Boyd, these are gladiolus.” He said, giving the colourful bunch to the much taller boy, “Named after the word gladiator, they mean strength, loyalty and victory.”
“They’re pretty. Thank you, Stiles.” Boyd said, nodding his head in gratitude.
Stiles smiled brightly, nodding his head back, “You’re welcome.”
When Stiles realised that he only had one flower bundle left, he grew nervous. Suddenly feeling foolish for this idea and wishing he could run away like he was a cartoon - leaving a Stiles-shaped hole in the wall as he left.
Stiles faked his confidence like he did all the time, “Last but not least, our very own Sourwolf!” He took out the white gardenias and walked up to the Alpha with an anxious grin, “Here.”
Derek looked at the flowers then at Stiles then back at the flowers. He took them gently from the human and felt the petals with a single finger. “Thank you, Stiles.” He cleared his throat, “What do they mean?”
Oh shit. Stiles didn’t think this through.
“Oh! Right. Right. Cool. Cool. Um,” Stiles chuckled nervously then said, “Y’know. Loyalty, leadership… strength. All that jazz.”
Derek narrowed his eyes at him then told the others to put the flowers into their rooms so they could start the movie.
That night, as the pack watched ‘The Greatest Showman’, Derek kept stealing glances at Stiles and Lydia kept smiling at him like she knew something he didn’t.
But then again, what else is new.
*****
When the people that didn’t live in the Hale House left, everyone went into their own rooms to sleep. But Derek couldn’t sleep. He kept looking at the white gardenias on his windowsill and thinking about the lie Stiles told. Stiles’ mouth said one thing but the skip in his heart said another thing. Why would he lie about the meaning of some silly flowers?
Derek turned away from the flowers and pushed his head into his pillow. He tried to sleep but he kept tossing and turning. He let out a frustrated growl before getting up and heading to his desk where his computer sat. He opened it up and googled flowers and their meanings.
He clicked on the first link then scrolled to the part where they had a chart of all kinds of flowers with their meanings beside them. He scrolled to ‘G’ and… there it was.
Name: Gardenias / Meaning: Secret Love
Derek stared at the screen.
“Fuck.”
****
The ding of the flower shop bell was a lot quieter than Derek thought it would be as he entered and as soon as he did, he could smell the faint smell of Stiles. This was the shop he went to.
He went straight to the cashier desk and saw the old owner. Her name tag said ‘Edna’ and her knitted yellow cardigan was so bright that it made the werewolf squint.
“Hello.”
Edna froze for a second, seeing the picture hotty in real life was striking but she gathered herself and smiled as bright as her jumper, “How may I help you?”
“I- I, uh, I wanted to ask something about flowers and their hidden meanings?”
“Of course, young man. What do you need to know?”
Derek took a breath, “Does gardenias really mean secret love?”
She looked at him softly, “Some people think they mean purity because of the white but no, there is this legend - I don’t know if it's true or not - that long ago a girl was going to get married to someone she didn’t love. Her father, you see, ordered her to marry someone rich but her heart belonged to the poor stable boy. They were going to run off together before the wedding but were caught by her father and ordered the boy to be executed. He was hung and left to dangle as the wedding happened just a few feet away. After the wedding, the girl snuck out of her chambers to visit the body of her lover and saw that white gardenias were growing out of the boy’s body. She plucked them, said her goodbyes then went back into her chambers - there she drank a bottle of poison, and she died in the night, holding the white gardenias in her hands, crossed over her chest. It's said that when they buried her, white gardenias would sprout from the soil of her grave as a symbol of her love for the stable boy.”
“That’s beautiful.”
“It is.”
“C-Can you help me find the right flowers for someone?”
“Of course, deary. Tell me about him and I’ll tell you what I recommend.”
****
Stiles was at his computer researching goblins when the doorbell rang. He got up, stretched his back before heading down. He opened the door and didn’t see anyone. Confused, he looked down and what he saw made him smile.
There on the welcome mat was a vase of stunning red tulips. A note was stuck to the vase.
He picked up the tulips and they made him think about the red glow of a certain Alpha’s eyes. He shut the door behind him before going upstairs, putting the tulips on his desk before collecting the note.
He flipped it open and read, ‘I didn’t want you to be left out. - D.H.’
He hugged the note to his chest, biting his lower lip before blushing deeply. Then out of curiosity, he opened a new tab on his computer and typed, ‘What does red tulips mean?’. When he read what came on the screen, he felt his heart bloom and tears to gather.
Name: Tulips (Red) / Meaning: The Declaration Of Love
“T-That can’t be what he means.”
“It is.”
Derek’s voice made him turn around so fast in his chair; he almost fell out of it. He looked at the Alpha, note still in his hand. His face was hopeful.
“W-What- how- when- huh?”
Derek chuckled, stepping forward, eyes firmly on Stiles’. “You lied.”
“Lied?”
“When you told me the meaning of the gardenias, you lied. I heard it in your heartbeat.”
“Damn werewolf hearing.” Stiles whispered.
Derek ignored it, taking another step forward, “I googled what they really meant. ‘Secret Love’. It made me crazy thinking about it. I wanted to give you flowers in return so i went to the flower shop next to your favourite cake shop-”
“You spoke to Edna?”
“Yeah. She helped me. Did you really show her a picture of me?”
Stiles’ blush worsened, “N-No.”
Derek smirked, “Did you honestly lie again after I told you I could hear your heartbeat?”
“Fine! I did! So, what now? Did you really give me the red tulips because you feel the same way or was it some kind of-”
Derek’s lips shut him up. Stiles squeaks but it turns into a moan as he sinks into the wolf’s chest, arms rising up to wrap about Derek’s neck. Derek’s own muscular arms pulled him in impossibly closer by his waist. Lips against lips. Tongue against tongue. Chest against chest. It was the most passionate, intense, beautiful thing Stiles had ever experienced. It was filled with emotion and when Stiles’ fingers threaded through Derek’s hair and gave it a little pull, the Alpha purred in his chest - not a cute cat purr but a rumble of thunder that escaped his throat which vibrated through to Stiles’. It was insanely hot and soon the kiss got hotter and hotter and hotter. Until they could no longer contain the need within them anymore.
****
When they married a year later, Edna was the florist who decorated the preserve with gardenias and red tulips.
And a year after that when Edna sadly passed away peacefully, Derek and Stiles were there at the funeral (with the Pack), hand in hand and rested a bouquet of purple orchids - the flower of mourning - and white Hydrangeas - the flower of eternal gratitude - on her tombstone.
‘Here lies Edna Kingston - 1924 - 2019 - Beloved grandmother to all and florist matchmaker’
******
June 2027 - Now -
It was Edna’s birthday and like tradition, every year Derek and Stiles would go to the grave and give her some Hydrangeas and say again how thankful they are for her. This time, they’re taking their newest members of their family. Three-month-old twin girls, Iva and Addie. They were strapped to Stiles’ chest securely. Their blond heads shining in the soft sun. Unlike their other siblings, Iva and Addie were human but had spark blood so in the future they would be able to do some magic if they chose to. On Derek’s back was seven-year-old Wulfric - the little German boy they adopted two years ago when a pack came into Hale territory looking for trouble. Holding Derek’s hand was four-year-old Joey. He was adopted when he was a baby, he was abandoned by his mother when she found out he was a wolf, left to die in the woods where Derek found him. And besides Stiles, holding the bundle of white Hydrangeas was their eldest (Besides Isaac who was away for work), ten-year-old Regan. She was adopted when her pack was killed when she was just two years old.
When seeing the gravestone, Regan went up to it. “Hello, Grandma Edna. I brought you your Hydro- hydre-”
“Hydrangeas. Don’t worry, sweetheart. It’s a tough word to say.” Stiles said softly.
“Papa only knows how to say long weird words because he has a weird first name.” Derek teased. Wulfric and Joey went to the grave. Joey touched the letters of the tombstone while Wulfric sat in the grass beside it.
“Papa?” Wulfric asked out.
“Yeah?”
“Why do we put the same flowers on Grandma Edna’s grave again?”
Stiles and Derek looked at each other with a smile.
“How about Daddy and I tell you how we met Edna and why she’s so important to us?” Stiles said.
“I love this story!” Regan exclaimed excitedly before going to sit down next to her brother.
Derek helps Stiles sit down with the now sleeping babies attached to his chest before joining. He smiled as his husband began.
“It all started when I read this article-”
The End :3