i set fire to the dream

The corners of his lips twitched at the mention of her flower updates. While he didn't exactly love them, they did make him smile - mainly because she loved them. "Indeed, I do," the chuckle escaped despite himself. His eyes watched her as she fluttered around, finishing up her tasks for the evening. And when she turned to him, his smile widened. The sparkle in her eyes giving him ostriches in his stomach. "Nope. These lips didn't touch anybody's but yours." As she stepped closer, his strong arm coiled around her thin frame and he dipped his head to meet her half-way in their tender kiss.

Despite the fact Sage had been in a few other relationships over the last how ever many years, no one had ever been able to make her feel the way Xavier did. He was always so gentle and to Sage, he was truly what home felt like to her, it was enough, she didn't need anything else. If she was honest, it quite often felt over the past few months like it was all too good to be true, and that she would wake up one day and Xavier would be gone or someone else would be his girl. It was an unhealthy habit for the woman, she struggled to see she was good enough for anyone and she was still working hard on letting that side of her go, something that stems from her childhood and the trauma she has faced.

It was easy to figure that he most likely didn't enjoy her flower updates as much as she did. Sometimes she would get caught up in her little flower world and even if he didn't love them as much as Sage, she still liked to share that part of her with him. "Mhm, sounds just right." She whispered softly, her eyes looking up towards his, locking into his gaze as she felt the butterflies grow stronger in her stomach. Pulling back from their touch, Sage ran her fingers down his arm before intertwining their fingers, her eyes still not breaking contact from him. "I love it. You spoil me too much. Now can we eat? I am starving."

Listening to her as she spoke about her day, he smiled. He never knew the life of a florist could be so busy until the shop was passed down to Sage. She'd proven that it was hard work, much like anything else, but he could tell that she adored it. "It's alright," he told her, "I was busy myself." Gently he swatted her hands away from the bag, "I got this," he gently chided her. "You just finish up."

When you were as busy as they tended to be sometimes, you had to really make time for the little things. This was him making time. Opening the bag he first pulled out a tiny white candle, a blush rising against his darker complexion as he placed it down on the counter. "My day was..." he paused a moment, pulling the take out containers from the bag. "... long. The weather's heating back up so people are outside. I don't think I've had to rescue so many non-swimmers in my life." He chuckled as he took the time to set up their impromptu dinner date. He'd asked the restaurant to provide him with a few paper plates and plastic utensils as well. He'd transferred food from the containers to their plates with ease, before he pulled two waters from the bag sat them out along side their plates. Lastly he pulled a lighter from his pocket and carefully lit the candle. With that he looked up at her, a goofy smile on his face. "Ta-dah!"

A lot had been playing on Sage's mind the last couple of weeks, it was coming up to the date of her mother's death and although she never showed it, it sat heavy on her mind and brought back a lot of unwanted memories. So seeing, and just hearing Xavier was a blessing in disguise. She had never really gone into too much detail why they drifted and lost communication in the first place, she had always felt so comfortable around him and thinking back it seemed strange that they split up, however she was just grateful now to be where they were. The more time she spent with the man, the stronger she felt she gravitated towards him, her walls slowly coming down each time, she knew she was falling for him all over again, and fast.

"I know, but I know how much you love my daily flower updates." She laughed, playfully nudging his arm as she teased him. Raising an eyebrow as he swatted her hands away, Sage grabbed some things off the counter and began placing them away, hearing her Grandmother's voice in the back of her mind bellowing at how everything should always been in it's rightful place. Sage stopped in her tracks as she watched him lay out the candle and set up for a dinner date, that was one thing she loved about Xavier, he was spontaneous and always knew how to surprise her. "Oh Zay, this is too sweet." She blushed, finishing up putting the things away before making her way back over to him. "I hope you didn't have to give anyone the kiss of life, those lips are for me only." She smirked, a soft giggle escaping her lips as he presented their candle lit dinner, Sage stepping closer to the man before pressing her lips delicately against his, her hand cupping his cheek gently.

If Sage was being honest, she would have to admit running the florist after her Grandmother passed it onto her, was a lot harder than she expected. It felt very quickly that she would have to get her shit together, often now it was easy to feel like it was chaos and she wasn't doing her Grandmother proud. However, after days like this one, Sage could feel some relief that she was doing a fine job and everything was okay. Turning to hear the one voice she had been hoping to hear all day, Sage turned the music down lower before offering the man a smile. It was funny, the two had known each other for what seemed like forever, and yet every time Sage set eyes on Xavier her stomach filled with butterflies all over again.

Sage bit softly on her bottom lip as he made his way towards her, her eyes glancing at the bags of takeout, her mind suddenly realised she had forgotten to eat today. A small blush filled her cheeks as he kissed her forehead, her hand gently brushing against his arm, even the smallest of actions such as a kiss to the forehead from him made Sage feel at ease. "My day was, chaotic. It's been very busy, not that I'm complaining, I love it when it's busy. Sorry I didn't get a chance to text or call you today." She smiled tenderly, walking over towards the counter as she began to open the bags. "I completely forgot to eat today, this smells incredible." She laughed. "You're my knight in shining armour. How was your day?"

It was a habit Roman should have abandoned a long ago, something even he recognized as childish, but it was hard to let go. It brought no harm, and little nuance. How could he turn away from a satisfied itch when it had no consequence?

Growing up, his mother had always sent him a flower. She'd carry the rest of the bouquet in her arms while she dragged him up and down the street before leaving him back at whatever dormitory she paid for to keep him on his toes. It was by their smell that he could pinpoint her disappointment or praise, and eventually, her envy. All that was ever missing there was how green they could have been. Upon the independence of his career, Roman continued her tribute and after every show he places a single flower in a vase to remember what he'd done— right or wrong. He was just terrible at remembering to get rid of them.

It was easy enough for Sage to get caught up in the moment, especially when her music was up loud and her mind a million miles away, it seemed to be a naive habit of hers. Recently it had become a repeated process for Sage, her mind more often than not floating away and trying to hide away from the world. She wasn't always sure why it felt like the world was sitting heavy on her shoulders, it wasn't as if she was battling any new demons recently, yet Sage often found herself reliving the grief of nearly twenty years ago more frequently. Realising it was a familiar face entering through the florist doors, Sage took a small breath. "Oh hey, you didn't barge in, my fault for having this music so loud."

Placing the broom against the counter, Sage quickly turned the music to a lower level before stepping over towards the small basket sat on the shelf. "You're in luck, fresh tulips delivered today. Some of my favourites." Sage offered him a smile, she very much tried to keep her judgments clear towards others, she knew everyone was fighting a different battle and always wanted her company to be a safe space for anyone. "How many were you after? I can get those wrapped for you."

Hayfield Cove. It was what it was - it certainly was no Los Angeles, a place that the Barnes family had elite inner circles and socialite status to. Emersyn's mother was an actress, her father a now corrupt, disgraced businessman and she had left him to hold the torch as she relocated to this here Hayfield Cove. It certainly was what it was - no Beverly HIlls, but she would make it her domain soon enough. The drug dealing socialite was supposed to make a client here, and while the restaurant itself was right on the water (no valet), she found herself taking it all in and realizing it was no Tao in Beverly Hills. However, needs must.

It wasn't often that Sage had a whole day off from working in the florist, she didn't have an obligation to be there every day as there were other employees, yet somehow she did end up there every day. So whilst it felt strange to be free for the day, Sage had to admit it did feel nice to be able to do whatever she wanted without feeling pushed for time. Deciding to treat herself to lunch at Sandy Shores, Sage fixed her hair in the mirror before grabbing her bag and heading to the beach restaurant.

It made Sage feel a bit fuzzy inside when she saw how busy the restaurant was, it was pleasing to see the small town of Hayfield Cove was thriving and the local small businesses were doing better than ever. Heading towards the stand at the door of the restaurant, Sage turned around to face the familiar voice she was suddenly hearing. "Emersyn, hey." Sage smiled softly, tucking a loose piece of her hair behind her ear gently. Sage and Emersyn were fairly new friends, there had been little interaction since the woman moved to town a couple of years ago, but Sage had always had a pleasant time around Emersyn and wasn't opposed to spending time with her. "I'd love to join you, I was going to grab some lunch too if you fancied it?"