20 Avoiding You

The past two months were nothing but hectic. May and June were filled with orders for weddings, graduations, the new corporate programs, and now even on the first of July, the schedule didn't seem to be clearing at all.

As if it wasn't packed enough, Angela's wedding was a week away and Lyra was in charge of selecting the flowers for the banquet and ceremony. She wanted the venue to be held at the luxury WE Hotel because they boasted a grand banquet hall that everyone wanted to book for a wedding if they could afford it. Lucky for Lyra, it would make it easier to deliver because it was right across from the shop and they were already part of the corporate program.

Though Angela promised Kurtis a "low-profile" wedding, there were still at least a few hundred people in attendance, many of them being well-known individuals who were either business partners or friends. Thus, the wedding must be perfect and presentable.

The poor florist was averaging five hours of sleep at random hours to meet the recent demands. Rose partook in the suffering while juggling school. Thankfully, WE's hotelman Louis was more than helpful with the planning, arranging, and beyond. But with the wedding in a few days, Lyra was getting more nervous by the minute.

Rose snuggled up in her blanket before scooting towards the door and watching her roomie throw on a coat and grab her purse from the dining room chair.

"Ya sure you alright going alone? I don't think it's good…" she said, sniffling and blowing into her kleenex.

"Yeah. I do it all the time. Don't worry. Just rest up and get better for the wedding," Lyra said before glancing at her watch and hurrying out the door to the the wholesale flower market.

As planned, she got there right when the clock hit 2:00AM sharp. With her lithe body, she swam through the crowd of buyers and sellers and headed towards the shops in the back corners of the market. She learned from her parents that the hidden gems were where the freshest and more exotic flowers usually are sold. Also, the price was nothing short of a good bargain.

Recognizing their first customer, the wholesalers greeted Lyra and asked for her order. Like a pro, she pointed at the freshest batches of ten different types of flowers, ordering varying quantities of each that the sellers applauded her for memorizing without having to write anything down.

Back then, the girl didn't order more than she could carry, but now she could have her delivery staff come a little later in the day to pick it up. It was nice not having to go a few rounds.

"Sweetie, another wedding?" the flower seller asked when Lyra was paying. The younger woman nodded. "Managing your own shop isn't easy. Don't overwork yourself."

Lyra smiled. "It's Angela's wedding so I'm afraid I'll have to keep it up for another few days," she said, eyes half closed. "I'll see you again sometime next week." Lyra waved goodbye and sauntered her way out of the bustling market.

3:15AM. She finished earlier than usual. Calculating in her head, Lyra figured that it'll be around 5:30AM before she got back to the shop. Since Rose wasn't feeling well, she'd have to skip on the sleep and open up shop in her stead. After that, she needed to make a few calls and meet up with Louis to discuss another upcoming event before meeting up with Angela to discuss wedding details.

"A nap would be so nice," Lyra sighed as she walked towards the transit, knowing that it wasn't possible because people get mugged when they fall asleep on the subway. It happened to her when she first started working the weird hours. Never again she promised herself when she awoke and realized she was missing a couple hundred bucks she planned to spend on flowers and groceries.

Lyra stepped foot on the sidewalk but was scared awake by an aggressive honk and tire screeching.

"Watch where you going bit**!" a red-faced man rolled down his window and yelled. "Get off the road you fu**ing wh*re!"

The shocked girl looked at her street light. It was green and definitely her right of way to walk so she chose to ignore the drunk and just cross. But then the angry man slammed his car door and stormed after her.

"Come back you wh*re! Who told you to go?" he spit out.

[Why does this happen to me?] Lyra closed her eyes when he raised his hand mid-air.

"HEY!" someone barked before stepping in and putting his body in between the defenseless girl and the trouble seeker.

She recognized the mint fragrance and opened her eyes to see the large back of her savior. Kurtis stood firm and looked down on the man with such fierceness that even when he drunk, he felt threatened. The man tried holding his front by throwing out a few more vulgar words, but Kurtis surprised both the man and Lyra when he lashed out with his own profanity.

The words rolled off his tongue so naturally that it sounded like an entirely new language. His diction was definitely far beyond the drunk's knowledge of vulgarity. Unable to retort, the man was about to go back to his car, but Kurtis surprised him again by forcing him to walk back. He actually listened!

Lyra was speechless when Kurtis came back to escort her back to his car that was parked on the side of the street.

"You alright?" he asked, concern in his eyes.

"What are you doing here?" she responded, unconsciously a bit defensively.

"Rose called. She didn't feel safe having you come back alone. Didn't she tell you I was coming?"

The girl checked her phone and indeed Rose did text her. So she was going to owe him another favor…

"Why didn't you send someone else? It's like 3:30AM."

"My employees have to sleep too, Lyra," he said a bit more sternly when he didn't like her tone.

She realized that she sounded a little harsh so she softened up. "I'm sorry. I just didn't expect anyone to come in the first place. I do this on my own all the time. You don't have to worry about me," she said looking down.

Kurtis noticed the deep dark circles under her eyes before looking away. "I'll drive you back."

They hadn't seen each other aside from a few greetings here and there since the wedding date was decided. Instead, Lyra had been seeing more of Angela for the past months than Kurtis. It was only natural that given such a reunion, the car ride was not the most friendly.

"How are the arrangements getting along?" Kurtis asked, trying to make conversation to lighten the mood. He thought she was still mad when she didn't answer, but then he heard slight breathing. Lyra already dozed off into a deep sleep.

He let out a defeated snort and took off his jacket for her before driving back to her house. Even when he picked her up and carried her up a flight of stairs, Lyra was still asleep like a baby in his arms. Rose opened the door when she heard heavy footsteps and recognized her cousin.

"You drugged her?" Rose teased in a whisper and Kurtis shot her a menacing glare, obviously telling her to be quiet.

After placing the sleeping beauty on her bed and pulling the sheets over her, he walked out to see his cousin with a naughty grin on her face.

"Why is she avoiding me?" he asked unexpectedly.

Rose scanned her cousin's serious expression. He was suspecting something! Did he perhaps find out about Lyra's feelings?

[No, no. Lyra wouldn't have told him. She didn't even tell me until I pressed her for it after catching her crying in the middle of the night out of nowhere. Only then did she tell me but made me promise to keep it a secret.]

The loyal friend shook her head. "Whatcha talking 'bout cuz? She's just knackered from overworking," she said in her jovial nasally voice.

"I know she's busy, but I'm serious. She's been very distant lately. Is everything okay?"

[Everything will be okay, Kurt—once you get married and leave Lyra's feelings alone.]

"Apples, she'll be," Rose assured.

He didn't seem convinced. "If anything's wrong or something's upsetting her, you can tell me."

Rose recognized the look in her favorite cousin's eyes. It was the same look Louis gave her right before she bought the one-way ticket back to Sydney. She'd recognize that look anywhere.

"Kurt, you shouldn't be so concerned about Lyra," Rose advised in a controlled voice.

He didn't take well to her words.

"She's my future sister-in-law so she's practically family. As her friend, I'm a little disappointed you said that," he finished strictly like an older brother lecturing his sister. "I'm only looking out for her like I look out for you."

Rose normally talked back to anyone, but never to Kurtis. But this time, she made an exception.

"Listen to me," Rose said before staring him straight in the eye. "I know how you are. I know you care. But you need to stop."

Kurtis didn't budge because he saw nothing wrong with watching out for those he cared about. "Why?" he asked his brows furrowing in confusion.

"Because, the one you're marrying two days from now is Angela. Not Lyra."