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Poppy watched as the raindrops fell against the glass walls of the garden shop, laying her face on the counter. Normally she would put in effort to look a little less lackadaisical, but they didn't tend to get too many customers in this kind of weather. Right now, the store was empty except for her and the owner of the garden.
Cobyn was near the front of the store, adjusting the plants on display. He sprayed them with water, and Poppy could hear him praising their plants for looking nice and healthy.
"How's Nintendo Wii looking?" She called out, grabbing Cobyn's attention. They had let her give names to some of the potted plants, him saying it made the plants feel special. Her name ideas were a lot different than the older man's. For every "Marshall" and "Nova", there were "Boxed Pasta" and "Dumb Little Guy". But to Cobyn, each and every one was special.
"They're looking very beautiful today! I can feel them dancing and singing inside!" He beamed, holding up the pot of peace lilies, "I just know they're going to find a lovely home soon!"
He placed it back down gently, giving it one last look over before moving on to review the other plants. The sounds of the raindrops and Cobyn's humming were calming to listen to, and Poppy could see herself easily falling asleep to it. However, two blurry figures approaching the store dragged them away from any possible sleep.
The two got closer, becoming very recognizable. A few seconds later, a chime of a bell announced their arrival. Cobyn looked over, eyes lighting up.
"What a pleasant surprise! What are you two doing here?" He greeted Sandbag and Sailor, who had managed to not get too drenched in the rain. Despite that, Cobyn grabbed a nearby towel, handing it over to Sandbag.
"Oh thanks- Uh, we just wanted to swing by to chat a bit," Sandbag responded, drying himself off. Sailor took his hat off before shaking the water off like a dog, launching specks of water to anything nearby. After a few seconds he happily put his hat back on, satisfied.
Cobyn clasped his hands together, looking like if the sun was a human person, "Well you chose a great time! Not many customers today, but the rain is wonderful for the plants!"
The two men easily slipped into pleasant conversation, which Poppy had learned to tune out. She didn't want to hear their embarrassing attempts at-
"Sea witch!" A whisper interrupted their thoughts, drawing her attention to Sailor who had made his way over to her. With a sigh, she sat up, still hunched over.
"I'm tired of Seaweed man and Sharkbag swimming around each other like a bunch of lovesick french angelfish!" He frantically gestured over at the two mentioned, who were luckily too engrossed in conversation to notice Sailor's expressive emoting. Or maybe they were just used to it and didn't gave it a second thought. Poppy could see either.
"It isn't even fun to bully them for it anymore, it's just sad," She replied, crossing her arms, "I saw enough of people acting like dumbasses in love during high school, and even they weren't as bad as these two."
Sailor put his hand up to his mouth, eyebrows furrowed. Poppy watched as he seemed to be thinking hard about something, but before she could poke fun at him, he grabbed Poppy by the shoulders.
"THAT'S IT!! We should help them get together!" Sailor bounced in excitement, "If people our age are better at navigating the seas of love, then why not help out those lost at sea with our expertise?"
It took a few seconds for Poppy to process Sailor's words, one of their eyebrows quirking up, "And what expertise do you have? Last I checked, watching fish kiss doesn't translate too well into human romance."
Sailor huffed, shooting Poppy a playful glare at their remark, "Well I may not have hands on deck experience with it, but I've read plenty of tales! Plus, you'll be sailing with me, and I know you definitely have some experience!"
Poppy shot him a deadpan stare, Sailor's eyes widening as he came to a realization. He flushed with embarrassment, hiding his face behind his sleeves.
"Oh right... You have no interest in the seas of romance..." He mumbled, causing Poppy to chuckle quietly chuckle to herself.
"We definitely can do this. Neither of us have any romance experience but who needs that when helping two people get together?" Her voice was heavy with sarcasm.
Sailor nudged their shoulder, "Just because someone doesn't eat fish nor fish themselves doesn't mean they can't learn how to fish!"
"..."
"..."
"I think you're losing your spark with having to say something sea related every sentence."
"It's not EVERY sentence! It's uh..." He replayed the conversation in his mind, "... ok actually you might be right."
"BUT THAT'S BESIDE THE POINT!" He waved his arms around once more as he talked, "We have a mission! We're going to get these two lovebirds TOGETHER!"
Poppy was surprised Cobyn and Sandbag hadn't noticed what they were scheming, especially since Sailor had quickly forgotten to keep his volume in check.
"Well... If we're actually doing this, I definitely have an idea to give them a big push," That caught Sailor's attention, staring at her and listening intensely, "It may be cliche, but it'll work."
"Come over tomorrow."
Sandbag gently pushed the paintbrush against the canvas, watching the vibrant strokes begin to take shape. Painting was something he had gotten into only around a year or so ago, seeking a healthy coping mechanism to deal with it's anxiety.
It bit his lip, steadying it's hand as it continued to make careful brush stroke after brush stroke. 2000's pop music played at a low volume, helping him in remaining in the zone.
He leaned back to examine its work, a painting of a coral reef. All the different colors really made it pop, and Sandbag felt a bit proud of its work. He knew it wasn't going to win any awards, but that never was a goal of his. It just wanted to create art.
"Sharkbag!!" A distant call drew it out of his focus. It sat the paintbrush down, turning himself on the stool it currently sat on to face the approaching teenager. One of the brightest lights of its life.
Said teenager had... a big brown paper bag behind him, obviously hiding something.
"Hey little man!" It greeted him with a grin, gesturing to the bag, "What do you have there? Or am I not allowed to know?"
"It's for you actually!" That caught Sandbag off guard, his eyebrows raising in curiosity. Sailor swung the bag to in front of him, reaching in and pulling out a beautiful bouquet of yellow and orange flowers.
It's eyes widened, slowly reaching out and taking the bouquet. Yellow roses, orange gerbera daisies, and yellow chrysanthemums stared back at him. It's heart swelled, tears quickly welling up and falling from his eyes. Oh my god, this kid is so precious.
He hopped off the stool and pulled Sailor into a tight hug, getting a yelp of surprise from the teenager.
"God... You know I love you, right?" It sniffled, "I couldn't ask for a better kid to look after."
"Aw, I love you too Sharkbag!" He wrapped his arms around Sandbag, but seemed to hesitate for a few seconds, "But, uh, the bouquet... it's from Cobyn!"
Sandbag chuckled, leaning back and giving Sailor a pat on the head, "Of course you got it from Cobyn's shop, that doesn't make it any less special to me!" He wiped it's tears, only for new tears to replace them immediately.
"You even looked up flower language for me! I thought only I listened to Cobyn's rambles about them," He stood up, continuing to admire the bouquet, "I mean, I'm not exactly sure on the meaning of the... uh, gerbera daisies? And the chrysanthemums, but I know yellow flowers usually mean friendship and joy. I at least know that's what yellow roses mean!"
"Uh. Yes!" Sailor seemed to falter a bit in his voice, but Sandbag chalked it up to bashfulness, "That was all to my plan for a successful voyage!"
Sandbag's tears eventually slowed to a stop, it looking around the room, "We definitely have a vase around here somewhere... I just have to find it..."
He wandered off into the house's hallway, heart bursting with joy at the gorgeous gift his son had gotten it.
Poppy's evening phone gaming time was interrupted by a flurry of text messages from Sailor. They opened the messaging app, reading what had been sent.
The lack of elaboration worried Poppy a bit, but they decided to not press on it right this moment. Maybe Sailor's fairytales would actually guide him to a successful plan.
After a minute of thinking to herself, they dragged herself out of bed, taking a second to stretch before heading out of their bedroom. She looked around, a door ajar and the lights on inside answering their unspoken question.
Cobyn looked up from his latest non-fiction read, smiling tenderly at his daughter, "Good evening! Did you need anything?"
Poppy fidgeted with her hands, suddenly a bit anxious even though she wasn't making any requests that would warrant it, "... I'm curious about flower language. Do you maybe... have a book on it?"
He lit up, standing up and heading towards the bookcase, "I have quite a few books on them! Some flowers don't have a meaning that's widely agreed upon, so they may have conflicting information!" He grabbed three different books, their excitement clear as they handed them to Poppy.
"Geez, you're giving me homework huh?" She quipped, a small smile on their face, "If I manage to not lose these, you can expect them back in... around 3 months."
"Take as much time as you need, ladybug!" He reached out, pausing with his hand a few inches above Poppy's head. She shook her head, and he quickly took their hand back, getting the message. No physical touch right now.
"You'd be a terrible librarian," She headed towards the door, books in hand, "... Thank you dad. Love you."
"Awww, I love you too Poppy! And make sure to tell me your favorite flowers!"
The chirps of the birds outside were music to Cobyn's ears. Nature always played the most beautiful songs, it was a shame not many people took the time to actually listen to it.
He grabbed a ribbon spool, one with a beautiful argyle pattern, carefully unfurling it to their desired length. They took a nearby pair of fabric scissors, taking a few seconds to line it up just where he wanted it before making the cut.
"Oh, you're going to be so pretty!" They spoke to himself, wrapping the ribbon around the ceramic pot he had chosen to decorate. Even on the days the store was closed, Cobyn loved spending his time surrounded by plants. Dressing up his plants made them all feel special, at least that's what he believed!
Several quick and loud knocks on the front door grabbed his attention, tilting his head before heading over. They weren't expecting any guests today...
They opened it only to be greeted by a strong smell of fish. Not what he was expecting at 10am. Coughing into their fist, they looked down at where the source of the smell was.
"Ahoy!! I come with gifts from Sharkbag!" There stood Sailor, holding a bucket of dead fish, "He caught these for you!"
"I was wondering what that smell was," Poppy had walked up to them without Cobyn noticing, looking around the tall man to stare at the gift, "How... pleasant."
Cobyn bent down to grab the bucket, staring at it with what he hoped was a smile that hid his confusion, "Well, uh, I'm sure I can find someway to use these! I'll text Sandbag to thank him!" And maybe get some ideas for what to do with these...
"WAIT WAIT WAIT-" Sailor flailed his arms, catching Cobyn by surprise, "UH, there's no need to text him! I will carry your message across the seas back to him!"
"Oh! Thank you then!"
Sailor puffed his chest out, looking very proud of himself, "Of course! Although nothing beat it being prepared while its at its freshest! Which we do a bunch at our place!" He looked up at Cobyn with big eyes, seeming to be pleading for something.
"Do you want the fish back then?" Cobyn held the bucket out, "I mean, if you two do it so much, I wouldn't want to take away your dinner supplies!"
"NO!! The fish is for you!! From Sharkbag!!! All of it!!!" Sailor took a step back, looking disappointed. Before Cobyn could speak up once more, the teenager turned away with a huff.
"ARGH!! IT'S YOUR TREASURE!! ALL YOURS!!!" He ran off, but paused to point at Cobyn one more time, "FROM SHARKBAG!!!!"
They watched as he disappeared from view, leaving them with a bucket of dead fish. Dead fish that had a strong smell.
"I did hear somewhere that dead fish can be used as fertilizer... Although I already have organic fertilizer I use for most plants!" He put their hand to his chin, "I could probably try it out with plants we have here at home to see how it makes a difference!"
"Damn, if I were a fish and I died just to be buried in dirt I would be pissed," Poppy joked, keeping her distance from the bucket, "At least being flushed down the toilet would be funny."
Sailor pouted as he sat on his bed, replaying the events of the day in his mind. How did Cobyn not see the very obvious romantic undertones of the gift from Sharkbag??? Well it wasn't actually from it but he didn't need to know that.
His phone buzzed with a singular text, and Sailor wasn't surprised by who it was from.
Before Sailor could respond, a familiar knock on his bedroom door drew his attention. He rushed outta bed, opening it to a nervous Sandbag.
"Hey kid, do you uh... Know what happened to all the fish we caught? I was planning to cook some for dinner but it's not where I left it..."
"The fish! Yes! I..." His brain scrambled to think of an excuse, and he blurted out the first thing that came to mind, "I ate it all!"
"... You ate a bunch of raw fish??" Judging by Sandbag's very confused and slightly terrified expression, Sailor guessed that was probably one of the worst stories he could've gone with. But there was no backing down now.
"YES!! Because I was REALLY hungry!" He nodded, "I couldn't help it, I was just going to eat one or two fish but they blurred together and eventually ALL THE FISH WERE GONE!!"
"Oh. I uh. I see..." Sandbag looked panicked, "That much fish at once can't be healthy for you... Let me know if you feel sick! And just let me know in the future if you're hungry for fish, I can prepare some for you."
"Don't worry, I'll be a-okay!" He grinned at Sandbag, who gave him a nervous smile back before walking away. After a few seconds, he heard a distant sound of someone being called. Sandbag's voice came after it.
"Hey Cobyn, sorry to bother you but uh... Does male puberty make you eat raw fish?"
Poppy wasn't too enthused for their latest idea to matchmake Cobyn and Sandbag, but it was admittedly probably the best one they've had yet.
She just wished it didn't involve being in a really busy and loud place.
"I'm surprised you wanted to come here, ladybug!" Cobyn walked up next to Poppy, looking up at the entrance to the zoo, "It makes me happy though! I can't wait to see how the insects are thriving in the insectarium!"
"Sailor and I are probably going to look at the penguins... And try not to stay there the whole time," Sandbag joked, examining the map he held out in front of it,
Sailor shook his head, waving his hand at the three of them, "As captain, I say we have to all stick together! No swimming off on your own!"
"You heard him, no splitting off. Even if we have to piss, we piss together," Poppy joked, getting a pout and a nudge from Sailor.
"Stop twisting me words sea witch..." He playfully grumbled, then shook his head and pointed towards the entrance, "Enough dilly-dallying, let's set course!"
Despite his words, he lagged behind the two older men, letting them lead the group. Once the two were far enough ahead, he pulled out the map he had grabbed from Sandbag. He and Poppy looked it over, making sure to not get too far behind as to concern the others.
"So I did some pre-sailing preparations and mapped out a course for our crew," He whispered, pointing to one of the exhibits on the map with confidence, "I believe we should set our sights on the flamingo exhibit, they are symbols of romance!"
"I wasn't really thinking of them heading to a specific exhibit... I don't think they're feel more romantic in front of the flamingos as they would in front of the platypuses," Poppy shrugged, "But there's no harm in trying. Probably. It'd be really funny if they got into a fight in front of the flamingo."
"IT WOULD NOT!!" Sailor's raised volume caught the attention of Cobyn and Sandbag, who paused in concern.
"Everything alright back there?" Sandbag's question startled Sailor, who stumbled over his words trying to answer.
"YEP- Everything is smooth sailing!!"
"I was just telling Sailor how it'd be funny to see him try to steal a penguin."
"WHICH I TOTALLY COULD IF I WANTED!!!"
After around two hours of looking around and pointing at animals, Poppy and Sailor had finally managed to guide Sandbag and Cobyn to the flamingo exhibit. A flock of pink birds stood in the enclosure, not really doing much. A few of them were in the water though, which Sailor thought was pretty neat!
He glanced over at the two older adults, who were peacefully examining and chatting about the flamingos. There was a very noticeable lack of romance going on though. He leaned over to Poppy, whispering.
"Argh... They ain't flirting yet... Maybe we have to stay here a bit longer..."
Poppy blinked at him, looking very much done with the whole scheme, "I think we just aren't good matchmakers. We tried to navigate the sea of love but instead we fell and drowned. Very painfully."
He frowned, trying to not make it obvious he was sulking, "I guess we're just cursed to forever witness this..."
"... I have one last idea," That caught Sailor's attention, but before he could respond, Poppy was already on her way over to Sandbag and Cobyn. He quickly ran to catch up, which didn't take much effort due to the two already being close.
Cobyn turned to face the two, smiling like he always did, "What do you two think of the-"
"You two need to kiss already."
Poppy's interruption shocked the three of them, the silence extending between them for a few seconds. But as Sailor opened his mouth to speak, to ask Poppy what she was doing, Cobyn spoke up.
"Ah, were we really that obvious..." Cobyn sighed, seeming embarrassed, "My apologies dear, turns out I wasn't as good at hiding it as I thought..."
Sandbag shook his head, bashful as well, "No, it was probably my fault... I've never been in a relationship before, especially a secret one... Of course our kids would find out."
Sailor and Poppy looked at each other, taking a few seconds to process what they had heard before asking the same question at the same time.
"... You two are already dating?"
After a long explanation from both sides, Cobyn and Sandbag explaining that they had been dating in secret for around two months while Sailor and Poppy told them about their adventures to try to matchmake the two, it ended with Sailor sulking in the corner while Sandbag, trying to hold back his laughter, comforted him.
"You were trying to do something really sweet kid, and we appreciate it! Just uh, maybe don't involve raw fish next time?"
"Our voyage was pointless... WE NAVIGATED THESE SEAS FOR NO REASON!!!"
Poppy watched the two chat back and forth, her attention drawn away from them by the sounds of footsteps approaching her. They didn't need to look to know who they belonged to.
"Is that why you asked for the flower language books? So you wouldn't repeat that mistake if you tried to make a romantic bouquet again?" Cobyn asked, but Poppy could tell there was something underlying in his cheerful tone this time.
"Yeah... But some of the flower meanings are actually interesting," Cobyn perked up at their words, the sparkle in his eyes returning, "... Black dahlias are probably my favorite so far."
"A wonderful choice! We can talk about them while we get some lunch!" The last word caught Sailor's attention, who bounced up from his crouched position.
"LUNCH!! You two owe us lunch for sending us on this fruitless voyage in the first place!" He pointed at Sandbag and Cobyn.
Sandbag walked over and took Cobyn's hand, the two sharing a quiet laugh before it turned to face the teenagers, "I mean, we were going to pay for lunch anyways... but you got it captain."
The four of them walked off towards the food court, talking among themselves on what they were going to eat. Cobyn and Sandbag's hands stayed clutched together, the two lovebirds exchanging glances of love.
"... You two haven't kissed yet by the way."
"WE AREN'T GOING TO ENGAGE IN PDA IN THE DAMN ZOO!!!"
"Cowards."
