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There wasn't a single flower in this whole place. Like, actually. Not even some stupid weed that would look like a flower! Astro was really starting to get nervous the more he looked. He doubted that Ouro is a flower person, but the need to give her something nice was too strong to give up just now. Because... They were practically DATING right now, no? I mean– Ouro isn't very affectionate, and she HATES physical touch, but she doesn't mind holding hands with Astro! Or occasional cuddling (though she reminds him all the time how stupid this is)! They even kissed once! It was so special. Astro was over the moon (haha, get it?)! The kiss was quick, more like pressing her covered mouth to his astronaut helmet, and followed by Ouro's embarrassed grumbling, but the astronaut couldn't help but notice how red the inside of her hood had become.
Now, what kind of flowers girls like Ouro would prefer? It's not like he has many options, but his goal is to find the perfect one. Chrysanthemums maybe? No, that's awful... What about... Daisies? No. He tried looking for them in the Botanical Garden, but Ouro was always somewhere near, hissing at him, threatening that she'll throw him into the corruption herself if Astro won't move forward to the finish line. Yeah, God forbid I want to do something cute for my I-guess-girlfriend! - He thought. Every single time he finds something remotely similar to a flower, it turns out not to be the right one. It has to be the right one. Astro promised it to himself.
He had been searching for at least three days by now. He was so desperate that the floral duvet cover seemed like the most suitable option at this point. But no. At least… Not yet. Maybe flower-shaped hairclips Noob have in their room? Oh, but Ouro wears a hood all the time! It would be useless for her. Astro really wanted to come up with something at least a little useful. Like– flowers would look nice, for example!
Astro was running out of ideas. It's not like he had some kind of deadline prepared, but… He DOES have some in mind…
So, survivors usually calculate when certain hard maps will get selected. The Vesuvius run was scheduled in exactly one day. Ouro and a few others volunteered to take part in this run, but Astro was asked by Doctor Mick to stay and make the beds in medbay ready for potential injured survivors. Astro couldn't say no! Besides, it would totally suit his plan greatly. Ouro will probably come back from the run tired and more grumpy than usual (even though it seems impossible), and she will TOTALLY need comfort, right? Well Astro is more than happy to provide it! It's gonna be the best moment to give her the flowers he's GOING TO get her!
Going to. Yeah. Good luck with that. If Astro doesn't come up with something quickly, he might as well give her a rock as a present. A rock with the word “love” on it.
Waaaait…
Waaaaaaaaiiiiittttt…
He might be a genius. An actual genius.
A ROCK! Holy shoot, that was a great idea! What do women want more than flowers? Certainly rocks! That's for sure! There's plenty of rocks here! Piles of them, even! He now needs to find a perfect one just for Ouro.
Now he has a similar problem as before. Instead of having trouble finding the most special one because there's none, now he has trouble finding the most special one because there's too many. Does that make sense? To Astro it does. The poor astronaut wandered through the main lobby of the place looking for a rock that seemed right for him. Too small, too big, too many cracks, way too spiky… It's like the universe is making this hard for him on purpose!
Finally one rock caught his attention. A heart-shaped one. Perfectly bumpy, scratched a little by the side, but otherwise it was pretty smooth. Like you could… Write something on it… Astro quickly grabbed the rock and went to his room to investigate it. It was dusty, but a splash or two of water helped it right away.
Now, after putting the word “love” on it with a red marker, Astro couldn't be prouder of himself. All he could think about is wonder, what Ouro would think about this gift. Astro went to bed early, hoping that tomorrow will come faster!
The more he wiggled in his bed, the more he thought about it. This is stupid. A very stupid idea. What if she'll hate it? Ouro's gonna think that he doesn't care about her! Come on, a rock?! What kind of idiot came up with something like that!... It's him I guess… Oh, he just has to… think about something else! I guess It's best to worry about it tomorrow. It's pretty late anyway.
***
This is bad. This is really bad. The run already started and Astro still has only this idiotic rock with the word “love” on it. That's all he can give her! It's okay. It's okay, Astro. Just… Go search the entire place once again! You'll definitely find something…
“Astro!” Someone called. Astro felt the back of his neck sweating.
“Why are the beds in medbay not ready yet?” Bacon approached him with furrowed eyebrows. “Do you expect Doctor Mick to treat our patients on the floor? Come on and help me!”
Astro had no other choice. Both Bacon and Doctor Mick were rather respected fellows in this place, considering Bacon's incredible cooking skills and Mick's medicine degree. Astro thought of not helping them as being straight up ungrateful.
“That's a lot of beds” Astro noticed as they reached medbay. Bacon sighed.
“Almost all of them are gonna be taken once today's run comes back. Our doctor always has hands full of work after Vesuvius runs, that's for sure.”
Astro nodded, acknowledging that Bacon was right.
While making the sheets ready, his mind was flooded with doubts. Ouro will hate it. She's gonna mumble something mean under her breath and leave. He probably deserves it. Come onnn! Astro got her a rock! Now he sees it– literally nobody wants a rock from their lover! SHE'SGONNAHATEHIMTHISISSOSTUPIDHESHOULDDIGAHOLEANDHIDEINIT!!!!!!
It's okay, Astro! You're just gonna find a nice empty closet and sit there for the rest of your life! But where…
“Oh my, they're back!”
Why is he even trying?
Turns out time flies faster when you're stressed.
He was met with a group of exhausted, sweaty, mostly injured survivors. Everyone gathered around them, helping a friend get to the medbay. Astro noticed Ouro helping Angel standing up and walking. The winged woman was hobbling– Astro finally spotted a nasty burnt wound on her left foot. He winced, seeing the wound. It definitely wasn't going to heal easily, and he could only pray that Doctor Mick managed to treat it.
A transparent blue figure jumped to the Angel's side, purring warmly, like trying to reassure her that everything's going to be okay. It then turned to Ouro, noticing with its faint, airy voice:
“Your… hip… ” Echo pointed at the burn mark on Ouro’s hip with its head. The snake lady immediately snapped at the figure, squinting her eyes.
“Just because you learned a few words doesn't mean you can teach me how to take care of myself, fool. What are you, my parent?”
Echo seemed a little surprised at first, but quickly became angry. It hissed at Ouro so loud even Angel opened her eyes wide. Shortly after, both Echo and Angel hobbled their way to the medbay. Astro approached Ouro right after they disappeared behind the wall.
“Rough run, I see!” He noticed. Ouro looked at him with eyes so grumpy he actually wanted to sink to the floor.
“I carried survivors on my back more times than there are stars in the sky.” She mumbled and Astro laughed quietly.
“Can we go to your room for a while? I kinda… Need to give you something.”
She turned her head to the side, but didn't question. “Alright.”
“OURO!”
Both of them jumped at the sound. Doctor Mick walked over, glaring at her burned hip. The wound probably wasn't dangerous, but Mick definitely wanted to take a look at it. “Where do you think you're going? All injured survivors have to get checked for any dangerous burns.” Ouro rolled her eyes.
“I'll be fine.” She murmured shortly. Bacon joined them just as Mick was about to say something.
“Let her go, Doctor. You have enough patients back there. Angel's foot started to throb, Hookline got a pretty bad burn on his eye, also Judge and Odds started a fight and now both of them are pissed and battered.”
“I'll bring Ouro as soon as we're done! I promise, Mick!”
Doctor Mick didn't look too convinced, but the amount of work he already had made him give up.
“Fine. But I better see you in a few minutes, alright? If the wound gets infected you're gonna spend so much time in the medbay you'll forget how it is outside it.”
The pair nodded and quickly left.
***
Once in Ouro's room, the first thing she did was to take her pet snake off her neck. The little one was so scared it clung to its owner's hands and refused to lose its grip. “Come on.” She whispered with the voice so soft it made Astro almost jealous. “The run is over now. We're safe. You're safe.”
The snake finally calmed down enough to let Ouro put it back to its terrarium. She sighed with relief.
“Now… What was that thing you wanted to give me?”
Astro was so mesmerized he didn't hear her at first. Only after a while he finally snapped back to reality. “I…! Uhm! It's…” He started to mumble and it made him even more embarrassed than he already was. She's gonna make fun of him, that's for sure. Astro prepared himself for this downfall.
“It's… A gift…! I got you a little something, Ouro.” She seemed genuinely interested, so he continued.
“But it's… A pretty stupid gift, you know… Heh… Really stupid…”
“Just give me the thing.”
“And I don't expect you to like it! I was thinking of giving you something special… And…”
“Give me the thing, Astro.”
“AND, AND… I wouldn't be surprised if you don't like it…!”
“GIVE ME THE DAMN GIFT, ASTRO, FOR GOD'S SAKE!”
“OKAY, OKAY!” Astro finally pulled out the heart-shaped rock from behind his back and handed it to her with so much embarrassment in his voice it made Ouro feel sorry for him.
“It's a rock.”
Ouro stared at it for a while. A rock. Huh. She giggled lightly. Astro loved when she did that. “Why would you give me a rock? With the word “love” on it?” She started genuinely laughing and it made Astro confused. Was she laughing because she likes it or because it's so stupid she hates it? He hid his helmet-covered face in his hands. How embarrassing.
“Oh- hahah- Astro, how did you know the snake needs a new terrarium accessory?”
What?
Ouro walked over to the dresser where the terrarium stood and opened it carefully. She then put the rock inside and watched as the snake took a few sniffs and laid on it comfortably.
“I think she likes it.” Ouro noticed. Astro was so dumbfounded he said nothing. Just stared at the sleeping snake. Holy shoot, he was a genius.
“Y… yeAH. Yeah. She probably loves it. Yeah.”
She took a few deep breaths to calm down the giggling and stood up.
“Alright, I'm heading to the medbay before Mick drags me there by himself.” Ouro announced, heading to the door.
Before she left, she remarked: “The gift is great, Astro, thank you. As long as it's not flowers. Anything is better than flowers! Man, I hate those things… So glad you didn't get me them. I'll be back in an hour or two.”
And she was gone. Flowers! Who would want flowers when you have rocks! Rocks with the word “love” on it.