⚘ Flowers... are a proud assertion that a ray of beauty outvalues all the utilities of the world ⚘

h e a t h e r

[ s y m b o l i z e s   a d m i ra t i o n ,   pr o t e c t i v e n e s s   a n d   a   h o p e   t ha t   d r e a m s   c o m e    t r u e . ]

I couldn't stop myself from staring at the woman sitting next me in the car. She was sinfully gorgeous and divine. Aster was dressed in a long flowery summer dress baby pink in color which Diana chose for her. Her hair was braided in a side braid and had little petals pinned on that braid. The dress was made of such material that it clung to her body like a soft second skin. It was sleeveless and showed off her cream-colored slender arms.

She smelled great, it was the flowers or maybe her perfume or maybe it was just her. She had the lightest of makeup on but what attracted my attention most was her lips, painted pink. After the kiss, all I wanted to do was kiss her again.

It was getting hard for me to keep my hands to myself with her so close to me. When did I ever become such a romantic guy?

But she was normal around me, besides a lot of blushing and sometimes shortness of breath. She was affected by me but not as much as I was by her. She thought I kissed her because I wanted to get back at Brian. Well, that was only half the truth, I kissed her because I wanted to do that like forever.

"God, I am nervous." She whispered mostly to herself.

"No need, they will like you. I mean who can't?" I bumped my shoulder lightly into hers.

She smiled but had a pained look in her eyes.

"Not many people like me Kyler."

"And those people are stupid," I stated with conviction and she just lightly shook her head.

We stepped out of the car on the venue. It was a big garden built under a large canopy so that we can sit there even in sunlight. The garden was filled with white wooden benches and extravagant food settings. Starlights glowed all over the place, spread over the bigger plants and felt like little fireflies.

"This is so beautiful." Aster looked with a child-like awe in every direction and I looked at her.

Under the starlight, she was practically glowing.

"Very beautiful."

She didn't notice that comment was meant for her and not for the garden our company decorated.

She closed in and interlinked my arm with hers and I looked at her with shock.

"I am your fake girlfriend, remember?" She gave me a coy smile.

"Ah, yes."

We walked towards my grandma and my mom who were chatting with all smiles. Many girls and women eyed us and I felt Aster get closer to me as if she was felt exposed to their gaze. I removed my hands from her grip and instead I gripped her waist in a protective and possessive gesture making her blush deeply. It felt like she was mine right now even if it was for a day.

"Mom, grams." I greeted and these women completely ignored me and scrutinized the woman next to me.

"This is my girlfriend, Aster Walsh."

"Oh, what a lovely lady." Grams said and pulled her away from me.

Aster gave them a shy smile and avoided their gaze.

"So you father is Walsh Clothing's owner?" My mom was beginning to do what I was scared of.

"No mom," I said in a warning tone but being a mother she completely ignored it.

"I lived with my foster parents." She answered sweetly.

"And where are your are birth parents?" Mom continued with her brutal interrogation.

I had to bite back a wince when Aster paled at her question.

"They gave me up for adoption." She answered in a sad , quiet voice.

"Why?" My mom asked and that was enough.

"That's enough mom, you are making her uncomfortable," I said in a disapproving tone.

My mom scowled at me. Thankfully my grams was feeding Aster her legendary cookies when I pulled my mom away from them.

"Mom, what are you doing?" I asked sharply.

"What? I was just asking some innocent questions."

I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose in exasperation.

"Just leave this one alone. I really like her. Okay?"

"Why? She is not rich, her own parents left her and she not even that pretty."

"Mom, I like her okay, more than I have liked any girl in my life. It hurts here, "I pointed at my heart, "When she cries. So do not hurt her, she is already in too much pain. Do not screw my chances with her. Are we clear?"

She nodded airily as if my words were nothing serious.

My eyes found Aster which apparently lifted my mood. She was holding a puppy in her hand and cuddling to it. She looked adorable. My grams were telling her all the stories all this while feeding her a fruit, custard, a pastry or something sweet. And she accepted all gratefully. She was surrounded by a lot of old ladies and they all seem to like her.

Her eyes sparkled and she looked mesmerizing.

I was about to walk over and kiss her just for the sake of those old ladies but someone caught on to my arm.

"Kyler Holt, you have grown even more handsome." Daniela pulled me in for a hug.

She was my friend , then short time girlfriend and then friend again in college. We haven't met for five years but she still looked same, impish and stunning.

"I heard you bought a girl."

"I did. What about you? Are you still single?" I asked her with a smirk.

"I have on and off relationship going on, nothing serious. What about you, is she the one or she is just another one of your flings." She playfully hit my arm.

I looked over at Aster who was dancing with my grams jiggling her slender hips to the music.

"She is much more than a fling." I sighed stating out the truth.

"Is she Kyley boy?" She patted my head like a dog and we both laughed.

After that, I met many people, my cousins, my other girl-friends from school, college and my mom's friend. Girls approached me like a moth to the flame. My mom couldn't make it obvious that she was doing her matchmaking thing and she disapproved of Aster.

Everything was sort of okay until my mother sent the notorious Blaze , my cousin to Aster. He was the biggest flirt I have ever seen and I didn't want her to be around Aster.

"Blaze." I said in a cold tone.

He was requesting Aster for dance who was curtly refusing.

"Oh! Cousin nice to meet you."

"You too. By the way, this is my girlfriend you are flirting with." I gave him a hardened glare.

"I heard but I thought like always you were not serious."

The ass-hole he was, he had no sense not to say such things in front of Aster.

She edged closer to me and away from Blaze.

"Well, you are so right Blaze even I thought the same thing." My mom joined him.

And I know this would entail a disaster.

"Leave her alone Mylene," My grandmother said with a frown.

"What, I am just saying she is pretty and all but she doesn't match Kyle's stature." She gave Aster a pitiful look.

"Mom." It was taking all my energy to keep my anger in check in front of all the guests.

"I have already seen you work hard for the money you have earned, I don't want some poor damsel in distress to trap you in a relationship Kyle."

Her blatant words made Aster visibly cringe in horror of my mother's word. That was her personality and it was hurting an already hurt Aster.

"I am sorry I came here. I clearly see I am not welcomed." Aster was trying hard to hide tremble in her voice.

I stepped closer to her to protect her, to help her but she edged away and it was like a hard punch to my gut.

"I will leave you to enjoy the party, Kyler. It was very nice meeting you, grams." And with that, she started walking away.

I was conflicted between anger, between sharp ache in my heart and between feeling hopeless on what just happened. Aster had the scars because she felt rejected and unloved. I just deepened her scars.

"Mom, don't try calling me again till you learn some manners and accept that I like her and nothing you say will change that." I walked away with that ignoring the protesting and emotional blackmails of my mother.

I found her where I thought she would be, at Aphrodite.

It was like she found solace with her flowers.

"Aster." She was crying, her cheeks told me that much.

Shit, shit, shit.

"I am sorry for my mother's harsh words."

She looked up and gave me a small smile, "Why are you apologizing? I have heard this kind of words all my life, not your fault."

She didn't even blame me and that made me feel worse. I hurt the girl I wanted to protect for the first time in my life.

"Are we still continuing the lesson?" I asked her in a worried tone.

I can't live with her looking at me with the same expression as she did to rest of the world, with pain and hurt.

"If you still want to."

"I do," I answer almost immediately.

"Heather or also called lavender." She placed a purple flower in front of me.

"It symbolizes admiration, protectiveness and that dreams come true."

"It is a nice flower," I commented and gauged her reaction.

"But it has no meaning in my life. Your mother was right in a way Kyler, I don't belong in your society. My own parents, my own fiancé didn't want me, why would some high-class people accept a reject like me?" Her tone was harshly painful. I felt myself drown in guilt.

She felt no one admired her, I wish she could see herself from my eyes.

She felt that no one was there to protect her. I would if she allowed me to.

She felt that dreams never come true, I wanted to know what her dreams were.

Suddenly the heather made sense to me and I edged closer to her and wiped off the tears still flowing from her eyes.

She wanted to move away, create that distance again and hide behind the wall of pain like before but I gripped her by her waist and stopped her from her moving.

"Kyler." She pleaded with her eyes as if she didn't want to get hurt again.

I placed the flower in her hair gently and whispered, "This flower is for you because I promise it will mean everything to you, I will help make you believe.

⚘       ⚘      ⚘ 

A longer chapter because it is the mid-chapter, 15th. And because it will provide a little change of direction in the story.

And COMMENT, COMMENT people about mom, grams, Kyler, Aster and whatever you guys feel like :)

Thanks for making the story reach #12 in short story :)