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.
It's been two weeks since I last saw Arturo. I did really wish to hire him, but every time I would call him I would chicken out and drop the call. I sighed as I hold the phone in my hand. I look over to my backyard and it managed to be in worse condition than it did last time. The plant he repotted was thriving among the almost dead plants around it.If my mother was still alive, I would be buried six feet underground with how I've managed to not take care of her garden. I sighed and decided to just go for it before my mother calls back out from her grave. I dialed his number and put the phone up to my ear. I waited on the phone, anxiously tapping my foot on the floor until Arturo answered."Hello, this is Arturo. May I ask who's calling?" Arturo finally answers.I paused for a moment, unsure of what to say. "Hello?" Arturo says through the phone."Oh, sorry. This is Avery." I replied."Oh, hey. You're the one with the bike right?" He asked."Yes. That was me. I, uhm. How much would i
Arturo's POVI heard Avery hiss in pain as he bent down to pick up the glass pieces. I crouch down beside him and saw that his finger was cut."Are you okay?" I asked."Y-yeah. It's just a small cut." He said before looking down and seeing that his finger was bleeding.That is when he suddenly fainted. I quickly caught him in my arms, preventing him from falling to the floor. I'm guessing he's scared of blood. I stood up with him in my arms and went inside the house. I gently placed him on the couch, making sure that he won't fall off before going back outside to fetch my first aid kit.I went back inside with the kit and tended his wound. There was no visible glass shard on the wound so I'm guessing it won't need anything major since the cut was not that deep either. I wrapped a band-aid around his finger before placing his hand on his chest. I look up to see his face was quite pale. I sat on the edge of the couch as I observe his face. He looked so sweet and innocent. I brought my h
Avery's POVIt's the day when Arturo and I are about to go pick up some plants for the garden. He said he'll pick me up so now I'm waiting anxiously on my front porch. I took my phone out of my pocket and checked to see if Arturo sent me a message. A while later, his truck pulled up the driveway. He rolled his window down and waved for me to come over. I walk to his truck and got inside the passenger's seat."Any particular plant you want for your garden?" He asked as he drives off."Tulips. They're my favorite, and so was my mother." I replied and he gave a soft smile."We could work on that. Anything else?" He asked and I just shrug.In all honesty, I didn't know much about plants. All I know was that I wanted tulips. They're the only flowers I can take care of. We soon reached the plat nursery and flower shop and we both got off the truck. Arturo led me inside and pointed out all the different kinds of plants. I was fixated on how Arturo was knowledgeable about all the different k
Arturo's POVAs I was driving my way back to the mansion, my phone suddenly rang. I pulled it out from my pocket and saw Avery's name in the caller I.D. I immediately answered the call and brought my phone up to my ear."Hello, missed me already?" I teased through the phone."Arturo, the guy from earlier is in front of my house." He whispered. "I'm coming back," I replied, immediately taking a U-turn. "Don't drop the call.""Okay." He replied.I pushed down on the gas pedal, speeding over the limit, but I didn't care. It didn't take long before I reached Avery's house and saw Christopher standing in front of Avery. I got out of the truck and walked over to Christopher. He turned around and his face quickly fell upon seeing me."Hey, Arturo. I was just checking on your boy." He greeted.I dropped my hand on his shoulder, giving it a hard squeeze. His face grimaced in pain, but he quickly tried to hide it."Why are you really here?" I asked."I was just wondering what got your attentio
Avery's POVArturo agreed to stay the night. He offered to sleep on the couch but it was honestly too small for him. I insisted that I would sleep on the couch instead and he could take the bedroom, but he refused. There was only one bedroom available since I've used the other room for storing my mother's things that I haven't organized until now. We decided to just sleep on the living room floor together so I laid down a thick comforter on the floor along with some pillows.Both Arturo and I laid down on the floor after I turned off the lights. There was a good amount of space between us, but part of me wants to move closer to him. "Goodnight." He said."Goodnight," I replied, before closing my eyes....The next day came and I woke up alone in the living room. I stood up from the floor and tried looking for Arturo in the house and even in the backyard, but didn't find him there. I stopped in my tracks when I saw the garden. It looked absolutely beautiful with a variety of flowers a
I sped through the streets as quickly as I can, I needed to get out of there. I'm hoping no one saw me or recognized my face. Fear cropped throughout my body at the image of Arturo killing a man. Maybe that's why he left so suddenly. It scared me how much I don't know about him.I finally reached home and I dragged my bike to the backyard. I went inside and locked all the doors and windows in paranoia. I checked my phone to see if anyone contacted me and sighed in relief when I saw no notifications. I don't know how to cope with what I've seen today, I could only wish to forget it. That memory is something I do not wish to be stuck in my head....It has been a few weeks since I last saw Arturo and the incident. I've woken up a few times in the middle of the night because of the nightmares. Even at work, I would flinch at sudden sounds. Elisse noticed this, but I had to keep to myself what was bothering me. The garden was even back to square one. I was too scared to be out and alone i
The rest of the car ride was way too silent. It was mostly because I didn't want to talk to anyone. "Do you want to take a nap? We might take a while." Arturo asked but I shook my head."I'm fine," I replied.Arturo seemed hesitant to accept that answer but nodded anyway. The window tint suddenly turned dark and we could barely see the outside."What happened to the windows?" I asked."We just blocked it out," Arturo replied."Why?" I asked, but Arturo just shrugged. I sighed and decided to just let it go. Suddenly, a yawn escaped my lips. Arturo chuckled as my face turned a light shade of pink. He didn't say anything as he tapped his shoulder, offering it for me lay down on. I didn't fuss as I lay my head against his shoulder. Arturo put his arm across my torso, resting his hand on my thigh so I used his arm as a pillow as I close my eyes. I could hear some of the men faintly coo, but I tried my best to ignore it. It didn't take long for me to fall asleep. The next thing I know, I
"Arturo," I called out to him as we walk to his office."What is it?" He asked."How long do I have to stay here?" I asked."I don't think I can give you a definite answer," he said as he opened the door to his office.I was surprised by the sheer size of it. It was almost as big as my home. The walls were covered with shelves filled with hundreds of books. There was a large desk in the middle and a leather chair. There were two leather seats in front of it and there were two leather couches on either side of the entrance.Arturo closed the door behind me as I got inside. He took a seat on one of the leather chairs and asked me to sit in front of him. I did as I was asked and sat in front of him. "What you saw last night and that day, I need you to tell no one," He said in a low tone.My eyes snapped to him in shock."I knew you saw that, but no one can know that you did or else you'll be in even more danger than you already are," He said, but there was no threat in his voice. He sai