#fourever

And now, twenty minutes later, Brian could savor that incredible feeling of helping someone express their true, intricate feelings. The complex, powerful feelings of love.

Of course, Brian didn't actually know what the complex, powerful feelings of love felt like. He'd never been in love before. But he had a pretty good imagination, pretty high emotional intelligence, and after working as a landscaper and eventually florist for years, a pretty high confidence that he knew what he was doing!

So, for the time being, he was quite content with his part in the equation: helping other people express their love.

At least, that's what he told himself, and when he was at the flower shop during the day, it was easy enough to believe it.

It's when he walked up the stairs at the back of the shop and entered his empty apartment that reality liked to kick in.

I was walking weakly And in pain every time I fall Tears that are about to trickle down Holding on to my heart For you You need the power of love Power of lovе It will be all good if it is that Like the light pushing out the darkness A feeling of bliss Oh, in the name of love Name of love I believe it will change for you You're going to get it back The smile you lost With the power of love

Brian frequently asked himself why he stayed here in this small town. What were the chances he would find true love in a place like this? But when he thought about the shop he'd so painstakingly and lovingly built up and all of his loyal customers and the quiet, gentle way of life here, he knew deep in his bones he wouldn't be happier anywhere else. Even on the nights he felt so lonely that he cried, his head told him to just keep pushing. Just keep waiting and doing what he loves, and everything will work out.

"Good morning!"

The greeting interrupted Brian's thoughts, and honestly, thank goodness. He had been going down one of his negativity tunnels, and it was only 10 in the morning! He lifted his head from his tablet screen (though he hadn't been doing the accounting he should've been -- see: negativity tunnel), a soft smile tugging at his lips when he saw you.

"Morning, Y/N," he replied, setting the tablet down on his desk and heading out of his office and up to the cash register. "What can I do for you?"

You let out a sigh as you laid your hands down on the counter. "So, here's the thing."

Brian narrowed his eyes and tilted his head curiously. "Should I be scared?"

"No!" you chuckled, shaking your head. "No. At least I hope not. I was talking to Wonpil about my lawn."

That made sense because Wonpil was your next-door neighbor. You'd just moved here about a year ago, and you'd been spending most of that time renovating the quaint home you'd inherited from your great-aunt. Apparently, you'd finished everything on the inside of the house and were now moving onto the outside.

"He mentioned that before you owned this shop, you worked for a landscaping company?" you said, your voice trailing up at the end so it sounded more like a question than a statement.

Brian let out a soft chuckle and began nodding his head slowly. "And you want me to help you redo your lawn."

"Well, not help, really!" you assured him swiftly. "I can do all the work, I just have no idea what work I need to do. Y'know? I would appreciate some guidance and knowledge from an expert."

"I don't know if I would necessarily say I'm an expert," Brian refuted.

"I beg to differ. If I wanted some nice flowers for my kitchen window, I would go to the supermarket. But if I wanted the perfect flowers for a special occasion, I would come here. And if you think that only applies to me, then you're way more obtuse than I thought."

"Hey!"

You then stuck your lower lip out into a pout and brought your hands up, clasping them underneath your chin. "Please? I just want you to help me decide what to do to make it look... unique. I'll do everything, you won't have to lift a finger!"

Brian pursed his lips at you. "First of all, I am not obtuse. Second of all..."

Even though he'd had every intention of offering to help you with the design and accept your proposal to not do any of the work, something stopped him.

He realized that he actually wanted to do the work. It had been so long since he'd worked for that landscaping company, and while he couldn't deny owning this flower shop was a dream come true, a part of him missed being out in the sun, getting dirt under his nails (and everywhere else, honestly).

"Second of all, yes, I will help you. With everything. It'll be much easier to get everything done with two people."

Your eyes widened slightly, your mouth forming a small 'O' of surprise. "Really?!"

"Why are you so surprised?" Brian asked in mock offense. "I used to do landscaping for a living. I'm no stranger to manual labor!"

"No, no, no, I'm just really grateful," you explained.

Before you left, you set up a time to meet and come up with a plan for your lawn, and Brian waved a good-bye as you walked back out through the door.

Surprisingly, your unexpected request had really lifted his spirits. He hadn't ever thought about going back to landscaping simply because he'd moved on from that time in his life, and he enjoyed owning his own business and putting a smile on his customers' faces. But thinking about doing this project with you made him smile.

And, in a weird way, it gave him hope. Hope that life wouldn't always be just the same old routine. Even if you lived in a small town and saw the same faces day in and day out, things could still change.

Nothing is impossible The power that helps you step forward Turns even the dull world, fancy To the point of spectacle You whose shoulders are weary On the verge of collapse With exhausted facial expressions For you You need the power of love Power of love It will be all good if it is that Like the light pushing out the darkness A feeling of bliss

Brian impatiently tapped his fingers on his desk as he waited for you to pick up your phone -- honestly, the three rings felt more like thirty!

"Hey," you answered with a smile in your voice.

Ignoring the small flip his stomach did, he replied, "Guess what just got delivered?"

You immediately gasped. "The hydrangeas?!"

"Bingo," Brian grinned. "And they kind of need to be planted in the next day or two, so... how do you feel about starting now? I mean, if you can."

"Now is perfect! Come over whenever," you told him. "Oh, this is so exciting!"

Unfortunately, Brian couldn't ignore yet another stomach flip at your words, and he knew he was dangerously close to admitting (at least to himself) that he was developing feelings for you.

Or maybe already had?

Since your great-aunt had lived here for many, many years -- longer than Brian, certainly -- he had met you a few times growing up. You'd spent a week or two with her during the summer almost every year up through your teens, and while the two of you hadn't exactly become friends, he had still known exactly who you were the first day you came into the flower shop after moving into your newly inherited home.

It was more than fair to say that a friendship had blossomed (pun intended) after you'd become a permanent resident in the town, but after working with you so closely on your lawn...

You were optimistic, extremely hard-working (as evidenced by the entire renovation of your aunt's house), intelligent, witty, compassionate. And now you were seemingly getting excited about flowers! What more could Brian want?!

But he stuffed all those thoughts back into the deepest drawer of his mind as he heaved the hydrangea plants into the back of his truck, even though he knew they wouldn't stay buried for long since he was on his way to see you.

He tried to distract himself from thinking about you by turning the radio up and singing along as loudly as his voice could stand.

As soon as he turned into your driveway and saw you, though, his heart jumped up into his throat. You were already outside in your work clothes, and you waved enthusiastically with your gloved hand.

Brian lifted one hand off the steering wheel briefly to wave back at you; a somewhat goofy smile had appeared on his lips without realizing it, but he quickly wiped it off once he noticed. Although, since you were still looking at him, he didn't want you to think anything was wrong, so he pretended to cough to cover it up.

...What was he doing?

Had he really just faked a cough to explain why he had suddenly stopped smiling at you?

Good grief.

When he stopped his truck, before he even turned off the engine, you dashed to the bed to look at the hydrangeas.

"Oh, they are gorgeous," you exclaimed as he turned the key and got out. After closing the door, he shuffled back to the bed, coming to stand opposite you. "So worth the wait. Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Brian felt a flush growing on his cheeks, so he moved away, heading to open the tailgate without acknowledging your words.

Thankfully, planting the bushes was hard enough work to divert his thoughts away from you and his feelings, but that didn't mean the two of you didn't have a good time doing it.

Brian had almost forgotten how much he enjoyed being outside and, for all intents and purposes, playing in the dirt. It seemed like you felt the same way -- in fact, you'd remarked several times during the past few weeks that all of the yard work energized you, which is exactly how he felt.

Of course, the energy only lasted so long.

A weary grunt escaped from Brian's throat as he collapsed onto the grass. The last bush had been successfully planted, and with the work done, he could let himself rest -- if only for a short while before he had to head back to the shop.

"Yard work," you sighed as you landed right beside him. "So satisfying and so exhausting."

"Exactly," Brian chuckled weakly.

"Have I said 'thank you' for all of your help?" you asked.

"Yes," Brian replied without hesitation. "Many, many, many times, and I'm pretty sure I told you last week that you don't have to thank me for anything for the next ten years."

"Right, right, I forgot about that," you sighed. "I have some lemonade in the fridge. Would you like some?"

Brian felt as if he knew you well enough by now to know this was just another way for you to say 'thank you.'

But... how could he say 'no'?

"I would love some," he replied, yet another grunt leaving his lips as he got up.

He held his hand out for you, and you readily accepted, allowing him to haul you to your feet.

That was mistake number one. When you stood, you ended up so close to Brian that he could smell your shampoo. It was truly a wonder that he could smell anything besides dirt and sweat (truly, he did not want to think about how he smelled), so he could only conclude that your shampoo was magical.

Or maybe it was just you?

Mistake number two came after you'd led him inside, poured him a glass of homemade lemonade, and offered him a bar stool to sit and enjoy his refreshment. After he plopped down, he shrugged one shoulder up to his ear and groaned as he felt how tight the muscle was.

"Here," you murmured as you moved to stand behind him. "You drink, I'll -- Is it okay if I...?"

You gently set your hands on his shoulders, and before his brain could yell at him that this was a very bad idea, he hummed and nodded.

"Great," you said as you gripped his shoulders and began to knead his muscles with your thumbs. "My dad worked in construction, so I got really good really quickly at giving shoulder massages."

Brian was about to ask more about your family, but you hadn't been joking -- you were really good at this. The firm pressure of your fingers almost instantly relaxed his shoulders, and all coherent thoughts left his brain.

Actually, he still had one coherent thought. The image of you massaging his shoulders at the end of a long day while he had dinner cooking in the oven. The feeling of your lips on his neck as you pressed kisses to his skin while you worked out the knots. Then the two of you would sit at the table to eat, talking about your days and playing footsie like two lovestruck teenagers. After dinner, Brian would return the favor and massage your shoulders as you did the dishes. And, finally, after a relaxing night of watching TV or playing a game or simply talking, the two of you would get ready for bed and have a wonderful night's sleep next to each other.

In other words, the one coherent thought in his brain at the moment was: Bliss.

It's called love Feel the power Don't hesitate Don't doubt it Don't you worry, try it now You need the power of love Power of love It will be all good if it is that Like the light pushing out the darkness A feeling of bliss Oh, in the name of love Name of love I believe it will change for you You're going to get it back The smile you lost With the power of love

Brian felt like an idiot.

A scared, bumbling fool, even.

He'd had the perfect opportunity to confess his feelings for you, and he'd totally blown it.

After your shoulder massage, and after the two of you had sufficiently caught your breath, you had gone outside to admire the finished product. The hydrangeas had been the final piece of your new landscape puzzle, so once those had been planted, that had been it!

You had commented that everything looked absolutely perfect, and even though Brian had told you that you hadn't needed to thank him again, you had -- just once more. You'd told him that working with him had been an absolute pleasure, and hopefully, you could consider him a friend?

See what I mean about 'the perfect opportunity'? He should've said 'Actually, I don't know if I want to be just friends.'

But no!

He had simply agreed with you, said goodbye, and left!

He sighed deeply and shook his head just thinking about it.

The jingle of the bell above the door broke into his belittling thoughts, and he stopped cutting the stems of some freshly arrived daisies to look up and greet whoever --

Oh.

It was you.

"Hey," you said, a smile tugging at your lips. And if Brian didn't know any better, he'd think it was actually a shy smile.

"Y/N, hey," he replied. "What can I do for you?"

You sidled up to him, reaching out and gingerly touching one of the daisy petals. "Did I ever tell you that daisies are my favorite flower?"

Brian's brow immediately furrowed. "No, I don't think you did. Why didn't you want to plant any in your yard?"

"I love hydrangeas, too," you explained. "And I wanted to -- this is going to sound silly -- I wanted to keep daisies special. It's like how you might have a favorite kind of chocolate, but you only buy it for yourself on your birthday because if you eat it every day, it might not be your favorite anymore."

"That's not silly at all," Brian assured you, shaking his head. "I think it makes sense."

You looked quite pleased that Brian understood what you meant, but then you quickly shook your head. "Sorry, that was so not what I came in here for."

Brian chuckled softly, taking a daisy out of the pail and handing it to you wordlessly. "Then what did you come in here for?"

You took the flower as a soft tinge of pink bloomed (pun intended) on your cheeks. "I... thank you, by the way. For the flower. Just now. But, I -- um -- well, you see, I -- There's the county fair coming up, you know, and I was wondering..."

A wide grin forced its way onto Brian's lips, and when you trailed off, he said, "You were wondering if... we could go? Together?"

You let out a very short exhale and then nodded. "Yes. That's exactly what I was wondering."

Okay, here was his chance. He had completely fumbled it last time, so now he had to make up for it.

"Well, that depends," he answered.

You frowned at him. "Depends on what?"

"It depends on whether or not it's going to be a date. Are you asking me just as a friend? Or... more than?"

He took a step closer to you, hoping that his facial expression (a soft smirk and sparkling eyes) and body language (leaning toward you, hands at the ready to reach out and take yours) made it more than clear what he wanted your answer to be.

Thankfully, you took a step closer to him, too, and the smell of your shampoo wrapped around him like a comforting blanket.

"More than," you confirmed, your voice quiet but confident.

"Okay, just one second," he murmured. Hastily, he darted over to a corner of the shop, grabbed the perfect flower, and made his way back to you.

"Oh, a lilac," you grinned as he handed the flower to you. You bundled it with your daisy, bringing both up to your nose to savor the beautiful scents.

"I would love to go to the fair with you," Brian said.

And he wasn't sure if he'd ever felt more... well, just more. Not only was he experiencing these romantic feelings for the first time, but they were everything he'd ever hoped for and more. Plus, he'd even been able to express his emotions with the perfect flower.