I'd Give Up The World For You

Daisy was used to being alone. There were certainly perks to it, like never having to worry about someone eating those leftovers you had been dreaming about all day at work or watching something you didn't have any real interest in. But sometimes she felt very, very single. 

Usually this happened between the months of November and February. Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's, her birthday, and Valentine's Day all happened during that time span. 

She had already gotten through most of those obstacles. Holidays sucked when you didn't have anyone to celebrate them with. 

In her lifetime she had experienced such an eclectic bunch of holiday traditions from the various foster families she had lived with that it was hard to keep track of them all. She kept a few that she liked but mostly she stuck with recipes. 

In November she made a bunch of miniature pies in different flavors throughout the month not bothering to make a real feast the day of. Instead she bought pre-sliced turkey and made herself some mashed potatoes, green beans, homemade rolls, and these candied yams she liked that one of her former foster mothers was famous for. 

In December she baked a wide variety of fudges, cupcakes, cookies, and so on that she had picked up in various foster homes or from the internet that she liked. She always experimented with new recipes as well.

Aside from that, she got herself a miniature live Christmas tree or poinsettia. Watching a few Christmas movies the day of was about the extent of her celebrating since she didn't get or give any gifts.

Sometimes Daisy went to New Year's Eve parties. She had met her last boyfriend at one of those but he hadn't lasted long. 

Her birthday was just another day. She usually ordered takeout, made herself a cake recipe she had been meaning to try for a while, and bought herself some sort of present. That had passed uneventfully a few weeks ago. Now all she had to do was endure Valentine's Day and she would be set for a while.

It would be nice if she actually had a date this year. At this point she would be down for anything. Dinner, a movie, some sort of activity. Even just finding some random guy to make out with would be better than nothing since it had been so long since she was able to enjoy the minimal benefits of having a guy around. Though she would feel truly pathetic if she went bar hopping solely for that. 

Not only was it pathetic, it was dangerous. So, desperate as she was, she couldn't resort to that sort of thing. 

Daisy had to look out for herself. Her life may not be worth much but that didn't mean she wanted to die. If anything happened to her, no one would be around to take care of her plants. 

Besides, her life had been too miserable. She had to live long enough for things to get better if nothing else. She wanted land of her own more than she had ever wanted anything and she was determined to get some even if it took the rest of her life. 

She was desperate though. Valentine's decorations were everywhere and at work she couldn't so much as walk down the hall without hearing people discuss their plans for the night. It was the worst feeling!

This morning was no exception. Daisy dropped off some inside-out red velvet cookies that were stuffed with cream cheese in the break room before her shift started and on her way out she heard no less than three different conversations about Valentine's plans. 

With a sigh, she sunk into her desk chair and began booting up her computer. She was so focused on her task that she didn't notice the semi-familiar flash of red in her peripheral vision until later in the morning when she stretched and finally looked up. She was so startled she ended up freezing with her arms above her head in a rather ridiculous position. 

Leo Blaze was diligently typing away at a computer two rows over from her desk. He was wearing a light blue button-up shirt and dark gray slacks, which was far more dressy than she had seen him the other two times. 

What was he doing here? She had been certain that desk was empty yesterday. 

"When did they hire someone to replace James?" Daisy asked Bree in confusion. "I never heard anything about it."

Her desk mate shrugged. "No idea. It's about time though. The position's been open for almost a month. Guess they haven't managed to find anyone who types fast enough to replace him until now."

Why was it Leo though? Daisy had thought she would never see him again and then discovered they not only utilized the same grocery store but worked in the same office. What were the odds? The world could be an eerily small place sometimes. 

He caught them looking his way and gave her (at least she assumed it was her rather than Bree) a warm smile and a wave before getting back to work. Bree immediately looked at her with raised brows. 

"What was that about? Do you know that guy?"

"Sort of. We met the other day in a nursery and I helped him with a plant question so he helped me fit my new tree into my car," Daisy explained. 

Bree was immediately skeptical. "Is that really enough for him to smile at you like that though? That doesn't sound like much to go off of to me. It must have been quite the conversation."

"…we literally talked about daisies the whole time."

"Daisies?"

"It's both of our favorite flower." 

"A guy admitted he has a favorite flower? I've never heard of such a thing," Bree said shaking her head in disbelief. 

Daisy let out a small laugh. "That's what I thought too. It was kind of refreshing, honestly. And he did seem truly eager to learn about how to grow them. I had never met a guy who cared so much about flowers."

"Are you sure he wasn't hitting on you?"

She snorted. As if! 

"Positive. He was asking an employee about it first and they didn't know so I jumped in because I did. He didn't even see me until after I offered to help and seemed pretty relieved. He really wanted to plant daisies indoors."

"Huh. Well, are you going to talk to him again?" Bree asked curiously. 

Daisy didn't have a reason to so why would she? "I don't think so. One five-minute conversation doesn't mean anything."

That was what she said but on her first break of the day she headed to the breakroom and discovered Leo was already in there scrolling through his phone. Should she say anything or not? It might be awkward if she didn't considering he had waved at her earlier but she didn't want to interrupt whatever he was doing. That could be awkward too. 

She ended up sitting at a different table after grabbing one of the cookies from the plate she had brought. It might be a little early in the day for sweets but she didn't care. She needed to recharge and this was the best way to do it. 

"Are we allowed to eat those?" Leo asked, startling her to the point that she nearly choked.

Daisy hadn't realized he had looked up from his phone. She swallowed before answering him. "Yeah. I brought them for anyone who was interested because I made way too many. That sort of thing happens a lot so if you ever see any sort of baked good on a plate in here it's safe to assume I made them."

He immediately got up to take one and sat back down across from her instead of where he had been before. His mismatched eyes widened and he nodded his appreciation with his mouth full. 

She nearly laughed. That sort of reaction proved that they were good. She already knew that but it was kind of nice having it confirmed by someone else anyway. 

Leo looked up at her in awe as soon as he was done with his cookie. "These are amazing! What are they?"

"Inside-out red velvet cookies. It's my first time making them and I think they turned out pretty well. I found the recipe on Pinterest. I didn't have very high hopes considering how complicated it was but I was happily proven wrong." 

"You're a very talented baker. I can't think of a better welcome to the company than these cookies."

This time Daisy actually did laugh. She couldn't help it. He sounded so serious! "I'm glad you think so anyway. I didn't realize you had applied here. Where were you working before?"

"I was in Pittsburgh, actually. I had a temp job taking over for someone on maternity leave and when my time was up I moved here. I was looking for a friend of mine hoping they would let me stay with them when I first met you." 

Huh.. He hadn't been there more than a few days the second time she met him so why was he looking to plant daisies so soon? Had he wanted to because he was used to having them back in Pittsburgh? Even so, they wouldn't have been blooming this time of year.