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The morning began calmly and gratefully. The room was illuminated by an orange-gold light, the sun was already setting from the horizon. There was a plasma TV in the room, several shelves with collections of games, romantic novels, and dusty science books.
Half-eaten chips on the table were left, a stuffed yellow duckling was sitting at the computer table. Clothes , feathers and other stuff (whatever that means) were scattered around the room.
And the strongest of all the winged individuals was awakened. Berdly woke up with a relaxed smile and yawned, reaching for his glasses. He hurried to wash and get dressed, because, oh, today..
..Today is definitely going to be a wonderful day, ‘cause it's Saturday! But this is not the most important news for this morning, because in a few days a completely new DLC for «Super Smash Fighters» will be released! Berdly, as a dedicated and great gamer, remained devoted to honor and was not going to ask for money from his mother.
He wanted to work a couple of shifts at the library in order to save up for this miracle. Well, why are we standing there yawning? Let's start this beautiful day-
“WHAT!? What do you mean the library is closed?!” Berdly shouted in disbelief. Breakfast, which had not yet begun, was already ruined by the bitter news. Fate seemed to have other plans..
“Berdly, quiter please! The library is closed due to renovation, I think they're sorting out those old and dusty cabinets..” Berdly's mother explained, pouring milk into a bowl of cereal. “You know, I'm surprised they didn't start this renovation sooner! Hah!” She shared the comment with a chuckle. But Berdly didn't share the same optimism with her, and sat down at the table with a sullen grimace.
“Exactly!! W-Why did they start this stupid renovation today?!” Berdly picked up a spoon and slowly stirred the bowl of cereal. “How do I get ready to buy a brand new DLC for «Super Smash Fighters» now?..” Berdly rested his elbow on the table and reluctantly started eating cereal with a sad face.
Berdly's mother came up to the table and gently stroked Berdly. “Now.. Now.. Don't be sad, my baby bird. Maybe I can still buy you some of your «Supper Mash Lighters» or something?”
Berdly adjusted his glasses and pressed his fist to his heart. “I am very grateful for the offer, my dear mother, but I shall refuse.. I don't want to violate my gaming honor!” Berdly said solemnly, as if he were in the back of a war. “Hmm.. Maybe I could find a temporary job somewhere else?”
“Maybe, honey, maybe. Just finish your breakfast and have fun, okay?” Berdly's mother left the kitchen, leaving Berdly alone.
Berdly decided not to give up. He quickly finished his breakfast, washed the dishes, and went in search of a new job. Maybe Sans's store needs a cashier or something?
As soon as Berdly entered the store, the cold air conditioner immediately cooled him pleasantly and freshlyly. There weren't many customers, the atmosphere was... well.. like a regular grocery store, of course.
“Uh.. Mr. Sans, sir?” Berdly began the dialogue.
Sans was reading a comic book, but he immediately turned to the bird. “sup, kid.”
“Do you..” Berdly leaned against the counter. “..happen to have a cashier vacancy?”
“ya telling me? i’m just a cashier.” Sans looked away comically, it was hard to tell if he smiled, ‘cause.. well, he always smiles.
“Wha- I thought you were the manager AND the cashier!” Berdly was at a loss.
“nah, where did i stated that, kid?”
“B-But my hawk eyes don't lie, the store is literally named after you!”
“oh, how sweet. it looks like the manager likes me.”
“Because you are the manager, bag of bones!” Berdly was ready to explode with anger.
“bags? yeah, we have them, but unfortunately without bones... they're on thursdays.”
“Aahh!! Screw you!” Berdly left the store with a pronounced gait.
“see ya.” He winked at the departing blue bird. “so, where was i..”
Well, the first attempt was an absolute failure. Maybe the QC’s Diner will give him a chance? Besides, his classmates work there, so what could possibly go wrong?
“Oh, I'm sorry, sweetie, but we already have plenty of occupied places!” The QC said sadly.
“NOOOOOO!! Please. Miss QC. Are you sure you don't have any vacancies???” Berdly fell to his knees and began to beg.
“I'm.. afraid not.” She shook her head.
“But I can.. I could.. I don't know, clean the toilets?” Berdly still hadn't given up hope.
But she shook her head again. “Jockington is already on it.. somehow.”
And no luck again.. bluebird of misfortune, huh? Berdly walked out of the restaurant in despair and sadness. Two shots, zero hits..
Berdly slowly sat down on sidewalk, circled his knees with his wings, and began his brainstorm. “Think, think, think! Where else can I earn extra money? ..a pizzeria? No, definitely not, I'm afraid to find out how the pizza is made there..”
“Howdy, Berdly!” While Berdly was lost in his thoughts, he didn't even notice Asgore, the owner of the Flower Shop, standing next to him.
“Oh! Greetings, Mr. Asgore.” Berdly was happy to see Asgore, he's a nice monster in his own right.
“You're always thinking ahead, aren't you?” Asgore tried to tease him.
Berdly stood up and shook his hand. “Uh, well, I guess. I'm just looking for a job, the library is closed.. and I URGENTLY need money!”
Asgore thought about it. “Hmm.. It's an unpleasant situation, I agree.” Asgore muttered. “Maybe.. you could help me with my store, and I'll pay you?” Asgore offered the deal with a smile. “I wouldn't mind extra hands, you know! Or rather... wings.”
Berdly looked at Asgore with gratitude and salvation. “That, actually, would be truly wonderful!” The solution came to Berdly by itself, that's how lucky!
“Ho-ho-ho, then come on, little one!” Berdly followed Asgore.
While Berdly and Asgore were walking towards the store, Asgore explained along the way what would be required of the bird. “And so, help me with carrying a couple of bags of soil, watering plants, other small things, and... well, I think that's it!”
“Hmm, that sounds pretty simple. After that, you'll pay me, right?” Berdly was happily surprised by these tasks. We can already assume that the money is in the wings!
The store looked to be in more or less good condition. The exterior was simple but decent, the subtitle «Flower King» hinted at the best (and only) florist in hometown.
“And so, little one, take those bundles of soil from the truck to the store.” Asgore pointed to his blue pickup truck. “It's better to leave them at the cash register though.”
Berdly nodded with confidence. “Sure!”
Asgore went to his store, and Berdly went to the pickup truck. There were 4 bags of soil in the truck, Berdly took one out-
“WOW! It. Is. Heavy.” Even though his knees were weak, he struggled to reach the store and went inside.
The interior of the store was much more interesting than the exterior, everything seemed to shine, the pink and yellow colors inspired a warm and welcoming mood, and there were baskets of beautiful red flowers in the showcases.
“Phew! Three more..” Berdly wiped his forehead and went for another round of physical training.
[ After a while ]
“F-Finally..” Berdly sat down at the cash register and caught his breath. “Now, I.. need to inform Asgore, it seems he's in the basement..”
Berdly got up, went to the steps and began to slowly descend into the basement. He heard Asgore's voice and looked out of the wall.
The basement was very different from the main floor. It looked overgrown, damp, and uninhabitable. But judging by the mattress, the TV, and the refrigerator, this was where the flower king lived.
Asgore stood with his back to the stairs, telling a fairy tale to the flowers along the way. More specifically, 7 multicolored flowers. “..that's how their story ended, and they lived happily ever after.”
Berdly had a reasonable question - why was he talking to them? Berdly tapped on the wall. “Ahem, Asgore, Sir. I.. took the bundles of soil to the cash register.”
Asgore immediately turned around, he had a book of «One Hundred and One Kids Fairy Tales» in his hands. “Oh.. well done, Berdly! Uhh, come upstairs for now, I'll take everything you need and tell you what to do next.” Asgore said promptly.
"All right, Mr. Asgore." Berdly quickly went upstairs, and, leaning against the wall, began to wait for Asgore. This meeting was indeed.. awkward. Why.. did he tell a fairy tale to the flowers? Some kind of hobby?
Asgore stood up with a watering can and a cloth in his hands, and began to explain to Berdly the following actions. “Here, take a cloth and wipe all the glass cases, please.” He held out a wet pink cloth.
“Yes, of course, sir.” He took a cloth and began to carefully and slowly wipe the first showcase he came across. Meanwhile, Asgore began watering the bushes that stood to the right of the store from the entrance.
While Berdly was wiping the windows, his inner monologue continued. “Hmm.. we all have skeletons in the closets, maybe.. is that his skeleton in the closet? Skeleton.. not the store guy, ugh!”
“You.. you saw me talking to flowers, didn't you?” Suddenly, Asgore began in a calm voice.
“Is he reading my mind??”.
“Yes, sir. I saw it.” He muttered awkwardly.
“Hah.. flowers.. are very good listeners, don't you agree?” Asgore, watering the bushes, continued the dialogue.
“Flowers.. good listeners? I have no idea where he leads this dialogue.”
Berdly thought about the answer. “Mmm.. I suppose that they.. are?”
“Berdly.. I can see that you're confused, right?” Asgore turned to Berdly.
Berdly swallowed a lump of awkwardness. “To tell the truth.. no, I don't understand you at all, sir.”
Asgore nodded slowly. “And what didn't you understand?”
“Well.. in what way are flowers good listeners?” Berdly moved on to the next display case and began to wipe it. “I mean, I could say the same with my toys or action figures, can't I?”
“Hah.. hah.. Ha ha!” Asgore laughed a little. “Berdly, there's a noticeable difference, isn't there? Flowers.. and plants, in general, are living beings, even if it doesn't seem that way.” Asgore began his explanation.
“Flowers reach out to the sunlight every day.. Flowers ask for water every day.. Flowers ask for fresh soil every day.” Asgore went to the cash register and put away the watering can. “Doesn't that make them.. alive?”
Berdly understood his words, but did not understand the connection with the previous topic. “I guess they.. really can be considered alive.. but what does this have to do with talking to them?”
Asgore scratched his head. “About this.. you see, it's more like.. on a subconscious level.” He smiled pleasantly. “It's kind of on its own.. Isn't it nice to just say «hello» to a flower when you water it? Share a little secret with him, tell him the intriguing news, and just praise him for his beauty while you take care of them.. as if he were his own child.”
Berdly hadn't expected such an explanation, but at least he was beginning to understand. “...”
Asgore approached the bushes and began to inspect them, meanwhile the bird had already moved on to the third showcase. “I remember.. one funny situation.”
“One of the customers was allergic to flowers, and he reacted very strongly even to their touch, but he really wanted to buy flowers for his beloved.” Asgore smiled awkwardly, trying not to laugh.
“When.. When I handed him a bouquet of flowers, he.. swelled up like a big balloon! Ho-ho-ho!” Asgore laughed out loud.
His laugh was so infectious that Berdly couldn't help but giggle. “Hah.. and then what?”
Asgore caught his breath, and continued. “Well.. The next day, he returned in a protective suit!”
Berdly couldn't stand it anymore. “PFFFFFF, really? That's hilarious!”
“It is indeed hilarious! I also remember how..”
[ After some time ]
“..and from that moment on, I no longer sold gift cards!”
“Hah! I have to agree, it was much more enjoyable working with you than I expected!” Berdly chirped.
“I'm glad to hear that, little one.” Asgore smiled, but then it seemed to hit him. “Oh, the flowers! I forgot about taking care of the flowers! Come on, Berdly.” Asgore went down to the basement.
All 7 flowers in the showcases didn't look good, but they kept afloat. “Don't worry, I'll take care of you now..”
Berdly felt a certain guilt for what was happening. “I'm, uhh.. sorry sir.. For, well, holding you up.”
Asgore began to tend the flowers tenderly. “It's not your fault at all, Berdly.” Asgore turned his head towards him. “Could you wipe those pots in the corner? They've been gathering dust there for a long time.”
“Of.. Of course, sir!” Berdly went to the left corner of the basement, knelt down and began to wipe the ceramic pots with a cloth.
Berdly and Asgore were silently doing their jobs with a smile on their face. Berdly really enjoyed working with Mr. Asgore. He already knew that Asgore was rich in kindness, but now? Now he looks like an innocent man who loves flowers.
“Hey.. Berdly.” Asgore began.
“Yes, sir?”
“How is Kris? Are they.. okay at school?” Asgore asked with a forced smile.
Berdly hadn't expected such a question, but there was nothing strange about it. After all, he's his father. “Yeah, I think they're indeed okay.”
“And their friends? Are they.. all right with his friends?”
“Well..” Kris has been pretty quiet lately, he hardly has any friends except Noelle. “..They are still hasn't returned Noelle's eraser that looks like a christmas present!”
Asgore actually chuckled. “Huh, it sounds like them.. really sounds like.” Asgore thought about it. “Hmm, what about their school performance?”
“Uh-uh..” Berdly didn't want to tell the bitter truth that he sleeps in class all the time. “He's fine. But I surpass almost the entire class! Except for Noelle..”
“Wow, are you really that smart?” Asgore, giggled, was acting curious.
“Hah, that's right! The avian hero is in front of you!” Berdly started bragging about his intelligence.. as always.
But then, Asgore's phone rang in his pocket. Asgore, without checking the number, immediately picked up the phone. “Howdy, the flower king is listening!”
“..I'll be right there!” Asgore, after dropping the call, hurriedly put away all his things and was about to leave.
“Sir, where are you going?! What about the payment?” Berdly was at a loss.
“Sorry, little one, but my order is about to arrive, I mustn't be late.” Asgore threw the keys to Berdly, he managed to catch them. “Here are the spare keys, as soon as you're done with the pots, turn off all the lights except the flower lamps, and close the door, okay? I'll leave the money on the table, see you!” Asgore hurriedly left.
“..okay?”
After a while, Berdly wiped down a couple more remaining pots. “That's it!” Berdly rubbed his palms together. “Here I come, brand new DLC!”
He was about to leave the basement, but decided out of curiosity to examine all 7 flowers. They all bloomed beautifully, Green, Orange, Blue, Gold, Yellow, Cyan and..
..What? The purple flower is in terrible condition! He was all dry and starting to slowly fall from exhaustion, he could wither very soon! Asgore must have completely forgotten about the flower while he was in a hurry to get the order.
“No way! ..What should I even do??” He moved away from the flowers. “It's none of my business, but.. damn, this flower must be important to Asgore. And the flower itself is pretty!” Berdly decided to listen to moral values and decided to help the flower.
But how?
And Berdly began to think. Think logically. “Watering, lighting and soil. That's what this flower needs.. Isn't it?” Berdly crossed his arms and started walking in circles around the table with 7 flowers. “But what is the order of these actions.. I guess it's lighting, because of dryness of the flower..”
“So that the lighting is determined first!”
“I think the light has been burning bright for too long. Where's the remote control?” Berdly began to look for the remote control, fortunately it was lying on a shallow shelf under the table.
“Jackpot! Okay.. here we go..” Berdly pressed a random button and the lights went off for everyone. “NO!” He pressed another button, the light returned as it was, but the purple light was much smaller and softer. “Phew.. just as I planned!”
Now there are two things left, watering and soil. Berdly decided to take a closer look at the purple flower's soil, and it looked harder than usual. He shook his head. “Think logically, Berdly. I don't think the water will reach the roots with this kind of soil.. it is necessary to loosen it exactly, and then pour it over!”
Berdly began to look for something like fork or stick to loosen the dirt. “So.. should I look in the fridge? ..I think Asgore won't mind.”
There was a jar with one cucumber and two packages of noodles in the fridge, one unopened, the other empty, but with chopsticks. “That's exactly what I need!”
Berdly took out chopstick, closed the refrigerator, and ran over to the flower. “It would be necessary to carefully remove the showcase..” Berdly picked up a glass display case and put it down. “..and dig up the ground.” Berdly loosened the ground a little with a chopstick. “Good.. Good!”
He ran upstairs to get a watering can at the cash register and when he returned, he began to gently water the flower. “I think that much will be enough!” Berdly took the glass case and put it back. “Like new, huh?”
The purple flower has hardly changed.
“Like. New. Huh?”
«..isn't it nice to just say 'hello!' to a flower when you're watering it?..»
Berdly sighed. “..Listen, I really hope that you're going to be okay. I'm sure you're as smart as I am, aren't you?” Berdly tapped the window with his finger. “..see you later, flower! Give Asgore my regards, okay?”
“...”
“God, what am I even doing?” Berdly thought, and after taking one last look at the flowers, he went upstairs.
“So, how much money is there..?” Berdly checked the money on the table by the cash register.
“..2 dollars! Yes! Only $47 left for a brand new DLC!” Berdly said happily. “Ha-ha! The bluebird of genius strikes again!” With these words, he turned off the light, closed the door, and left.
After an indefinite period..
In the basement of the flower shop..
Among the 7 colored flowers,
The purple one bloomed the best of all, reaching out that evening higher than everyone else.
