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Avery's POV

Walking down the gardening aisle, I look over the hundreds of varieties of pots in front of me. I have no idea which kind I need. All I know is that the seedlings my mother planted before she passed need to be transferred into a proper pot.

"You need any help?" A man suddenly asked beside me, making my heart jump out of my chest.

"Oh, uhm. I need a pot. There's this seedling I need to transfer to a proper pot, about this size." I replied to the man as I turn to face him.

My breath hitched as soon as I saw what the man looked like. His facial features looked as if it was sculpted by an artist.  He was a head taller than me and his arms were covered in tattoos. Safe to say, he was hot. He is hot.

"How big is the plant?" He asks and I tried to motion with my hands the estimated size of it.

He nods and looks over the pots before pulling out one from the racks and putting it in the cart. 

"Thanks," I said to him.

"No problem. Do you need help repotting? I actually am a gardener." He replied.

"Oh, you're a gardener? I thought you work here. Sorry, I shouldn't have bothered you." I apologize.

"Oh no, you don't need to apologize." 

"I really am sorry. I should've known, with your tattoos and all." I said while rubbing the back of my neck.

"I'll give you my calling card. You can call me whenever you need help with your garden." He said, handing me his card before turning to leave.

"Thank you!" I shout after him as walks away and he just gave me a wave.

I pushed the cart to the cashier before paying for it. I went outside and quickly realized my mistake. I only brought a bike to the hardware store and the pot was too big to fit the basket. I let out a sigh of frustration as I try to think of how to bring the pot home. I can't leave my bike here and I don't have enough money for a taxi.

"Hey." The man from before greets me again.

"Oh, hi," I reply. "Sorry, I didn't get to ask your name." I almost facepalmed myself as soon as I realized that he handed me his card earlier and I could've just looked at his name there.

"My name's Arturo. What's yours?" He asked.

"Avery," I replied.

"You having trouble with bringing that home?" He asked.

"Yeah, I only brought my bike. I didn't realize that I needed this big of a pot." I replied.

"I brought my truck, you can put your bike and the pot in the back then you can ride with me in the front. Sound good to you?" 

"Yeah, that would be fine. Thanks. Sorry again for bothering you." I said to him.

"No worries. I don't have much to do anyway. Well, at least I would know where to go when you need my services." He said, sending a wink in my direction.

"Oh, I-uh, s-sure. Yeah." I stutter out.

"Go get your bike and follow me. I'll carry the pot." He says.

"Okay," I reply.

I unchained my back from the rack and followed Arturo all the way to his truck. I tried lifting my bike to put it in the truck, but failed terribly, earning a  chuckle from Arturo. My face turned red from embarrassment as I let Arturo put my bike in his truck. I watch in awe as he effortlessly picked up my bike.

"You can go in the front, just let me fix your bike so it won't fall." He said to me and I nod.

I go to the front of the truck and got in the passenger seat as I wait for Arturo to get inside the car. Arturo finally got in the car a while later and he gave me a small smile before starting the car. 

"Where do you live?" He asks and I gave him my address.

He put my address in the GPS and we drove away. The ride was comfortable between us, with only smooth jazz resonating in the air. For a tattooed man like Arturo, I was expecting something more hardcore. We soon reached my house and Arturo parked in front of the driveway. I got out of the truck after him and attempted to help him get my bike off. Keyword attempted. Arturo ended up doing all the heavy lifting. I rolled my bike into the garage before leading Arturo to the backyard with the pot in his arms. 

"So, uhm here's the garden," I said as we enter the backyard.

The garden doesn't look as good as it used to. It had a lot of overgrown bushes and weeds were all over the plants. I admit all I ever did was water the plants. Some of them had rot due to overwatering and I felt absolutely bad. I sigh and walk over to the seedling plant that has clearly overgrown the seedling pot.

"Here is the plant I was talking about," I said to Arturo as he places the pot beside it.

"You know what, I'll transfer this plant for free, then you can decide if you want my service or not." He told me.

"Sure. That sounds like a good idea." I reply. "I'll let you do the work and I'll just watch over here," I said as I step back a bit.

I walk over to the shed and took out all the gardening supplies and handed them over to Arturo. He took the supplies from me and I watch as he skillfully transfers the seedling to the pot. I watch in awe as to how he was so gently handling the plant, something I wasn't expecting from a man his size. 

"All done." He said as he stood up from the ground. "You don't need to water this one very often. Maybe once a week. Oh, and it loves to be in the sun so try to put it in a sunny area."

"Okay, thank you," I reply as I pull out a ten-dollar bill from my pocket and hand it over to him. "Here take it. I feel bad for letting you do your job for free."

He pushed my hand back and shook his head. "It's fine really. You don't need to pay me or give me a tip. It was just a simple repotting."

"Yeah, but I still took your time. Please take it." I insisted.

Arturo sighs as he takes the bill. "Thanks. I appreciate it." He says as he pockets the bill. "So I'm guessing I'll be seeing you again?"

"Yeah," I replied, almost immediately, making Arturo chuckle.

"Well, you know where to contact me." He said and I nod.

I led him out of the backyard and walked him to his car. I gave him a wave as he drove away. I'm definitely availing of his services, just to see him again.