Flower Romance Series - Season 2

The Baker & The Bear #1

"You got this," she muttered to herself. "You totally got this..."

She glanced at the bakery, trying to gather all of her bravery. She checked her outfit again; she had picked her cutest overalls, the orange one, with a simple white T-shirt underneath. She had spent a lot of time arranging her hair into two braided high buns, and put some orange ribbons to match her overalls and brown hair. They belonged to her older sister, but she had gotten permission to borrow them, just for today. She even had applied some rare makeup despite her brother probably mocking her for this later on: a bit of lipstick and mascara, just enough to be appropriate and not too much. Finally, she had managed to wake up early to be there when the bakery would open. All bakeries opened early, and this one was no exception. It was dark outside when she'd gotten up, but she didn't care. She had risen, her heart full of readiness and beating like a big drum. 

Now, the bakery had already opened half an hour ago, but she was still standing at the corner of the opposite sidewalk. It was still early, a gentle spring morning with the beaming, shy first rays of sunlight lighting up the skies with her favorite orange color. She had picked a sunny day on purpose, like every single other detail she had tried to think of. She glanced down at her little purse. She had the right amount, everything ready. So why was it so hard...? She forced herself to take one tiny step, then another. Then... she stopped.

"Come on!"

She glanced to the side at her best friend. She was looking cute, with her long ponytails and her pretty polka dot dress. Much cuter too…

"Go, Bree!"

Bree hesitated.

"I-I'm not sure, Gigi..."

"Come on!" Her friend pushed her. "We're going to be late for school!"

"Maybe I'll come back tomorrow! I-I'll do it then, it will be easier..."

"No!"

Gigi pushed her, a bit dangerously, to step on the crossroads. With the vehicles slowing down to let the young lady cross, Bree suddenly had no choice but to cross the distance between her and the sidewalk opposite. Once she made it, she glanced around, to see Gigi with her little fists up, encouraging her with a big, confident smile. She secretly wished she had her friend's confidence... Still, now she had come half of the way, making the remaining half a bit easier. She kept walking, so tense her palms were suddenly sweaty, her heartbeat fast, her body feeling heavier than ever. Each step, her heart was pounding louder in her ears, making little jumps in her chest and threatening to break out. She was feeling hot despite the gentle morning breeze, and horribly sweaty. Was her hair alright? Did she look silly in that orange outfit? Or was that mascara running? It had been so hard to put on... Anytime she was feeling unsure, Bree would glance back to find Gigi still standing in that very spot and encouraging her silently, but with all her might. She'd nod, then turn back towards her objective. Step after step, the bakery got a bit closer and with it, the delicious, wonderful smells were reaching Bree, as if to lure her in. There was nothing quite as alluring as the amazing scent of warm, freshly baked bread, the first ones out of the ovens in the morning. 

She could already see it behind the shop's large glass windows. Those amazing rows of butter-shiny pastries, croissants and pain au chocolat, cinnamon rolls and apple turnovers in neat rows and ready to be picked by customers. The less popular but just as good pains au raisin, almond croissants, and the chouquettes, so small and fluffy yet as sweet as heaven with their little sugar crystals... Bree took two more steps, and she could see the next window, with rows and rows of colorful tarts, from raspberry, apple, lemon meringue to the smooth chocolate ones. Even the pickiest customers could find their fancy and if they did not, there were still the royalty of all sweets, paris-brest, operas, and millefeuilles, the ever-popular eclairs, and rows and rows of cute, colorful macarons just waiting to catch the eye and surprise with their unique flavors. Finally, the birthday cakes. They weren't all meant for birthdays, but for Bree, only a birthday was a good enough celebration for one to enjoy this amazing treat. Like everything else in the shop, she knew all the kinds they had by heart, yet her eyes couldn't help but check out the window, her stomach growling at the sight of her favorites. Candied fruits, chocolate, or strawberries and cream? Well, not today. 

"Oh, good morning, Little Bree!" the baker greeted her, even before she had stepped in.

There was no better nor simpler marketing strategy for a bakery than to leave its door open and let the delicious smells gather all the famished souls around. For Bree, that meant that it was already too late to run, even if her heart seemed to be beating hard enough to fly in the opposite direction. 

"Good morning, Mister Baker," she heard herself say in a higher-pitched voice than usual.

"What would you like, young lady? We just took some of your favorite cinnamon buns out of the oven? Or a pain au chocolat, perhaps? Little Gigi isn't with you today?"

She liked the baker. He was a simple, nice man who always had a nice word for any customer, a large smile, and a loud voice. But even his gentle nature wasn't enough to make her relax today. 

"I-I'll have some chouquettes, please..."

"Chouquettes it is! A dozen? You know what, for a cute lil' customer like you, I'll put in some extra! You'll share with Little Gigi!"

She smiled, but her heart had sunken a bit. Him calling her little only made her feel smaller and irrelevant. Was she going to be ridiculed? Was she making a fool of herself? Did she look like what she felt inside: an absolute mess ready to panic and run away any second? Her mouth got drier and drier while he enthusiastically put the chouquettes into a little craft bag. 

"Oh! Good morning, Bree!"

There he was. And there went her heart, sinking to the bottom.

The Baker's son. The one and only, with his gorgeous, cute blonde hair that shone like a sunrise in the fall, his eyes like two little chestnuts, and his smile, a fair copy of his dad's. Bree found herself smiling, while the words stayed stuck in her throat, refusing to come out. Maybe she mumbled something in response, but the buzzing in her ears had just gone too loud for her to hear. How dreamy he was... His hair was still a bit messy, and she could guess a tear of fatigue that made his eyes a bit shinier than usual. Oh, and his white outfit suited his pale skin so effortlessly! 

"Here we go, young lady! A dozen chouquettes and a bit more," said the Baker, handing her the little kraft bag with a wink. "That'll be three pounds for you!" 

She nodded, and handed him the contents of her little purse with slightly shaking hands. 

"Have a nice day!" 

"See you later, Bree!"

Before she knew it, her body was out of the bakery, and she had blanked out on the last few seconds of what had just happened. She could vaguely remember Tom's smile as he'd smiled and waved at her, and she had a vague feeling of having answered, but she couldn't remember her words nor expression. With her little bag of chouquettes and its smell not making her feel any better, she walked out, her steps naturally trying to carry her where she'd left Gigi at.

"How did it go?" her friend greeted her with excitement. 

"I... I..."

Bree wasn't even sure how to answer, so she handed Gigi the chouquettes. Her friend took it and opened it, her big smile stuck on her face.

"Oh, yum! Chouquettes!" 

"... Tom was there," Bree finally muttered.

"Really?" Gigi exclaimed, more excited by this news than by the chouquettes. "Did you talk to him? How did it go?"

"I just... said hi. And I bought chouquettes." 

Just then, it hit Bree. She had failed. Her shoulders fell, and her little brown eyes went to the bag of chouquettes, almost holding resentment against them. Now she looked like a glutton! But Gigi laughed, and like always when she did, the atmosphere suddenly softened by a lot. She put her arm around Bree's, and pulled her along. 

"Come on, Bree, it's a big win! You managed to go in by yourself for the first time, and you said hi and Tom saw you! Did he say hi to you?"

Bree nodded, although she was worried about what he'd thought behind his warm welcome. Maybe he was just being customer-friendly? Her family and friends went there all the time; he couldn't afford to ignore a customer, no matter how silly or ridiculous she looked... 

"That's great! Come on, Bree, it's alright! You already did well!"

"But I didn't even properly talk to him." Bree sighed, "I was too nervous..." 

"Of course you'd be nervous! You've had a crush on him for so long, I'd be nervous to talk to my crush too!"

"You don't have a crush," Bree protested. 

"I wish I had." Gigi shrugged, "Maybe soon! But for now, Bree and Tom come first! Today was the first step to making him notice you!" 

"I don't think he noticed me at all... I'm too plain, aren't I?"

"Plain?" Gigi exclaimed, stopping in her steps. "Bree, you're the cutest little bear I know!" 

"I hate being little!" Bree frowned. 

Gigi chuckled. Her positive attitude was like a large wall that could never fall no matter how many stones Bree threw at it. It was annoying sometimes, but Bree also loved her friend more for this. Gigi sighed, and cupped Bree's full cheeks in her hands, facing her with a fierce expression. 

"Brianna Bearmore, I'm sure you will grow tall and be the cutest ever! We're just nine years old now, of course we are little! Plus, you're not that little! You're the second tallest in our class!" 

Bree pouted between her hands. 

"I want to grow taller and older soon... then maybe Tom will notice me?"

"We will make him notice you plenty!"

Gigi put her hand in the bag, took out two chouquettes, and stuffed them in Bree's mouth. 

"Love is like a chouquette!" she suddenly declared.

Bree frowned with her mouth full, confused. Gigi smiled between her high twin ponytails.

"It's cute, and small, but it's fuller than you know, and sweeter than you expect! Love is just like that!"

"... It's full of air."

Gigi rolled her eyes. They were like two opposites: Bree always seeing the glass half empty, and Gigi half full. She gave Bree the bag to hold while she took one, and resumed walking, looking at the little pastry as if it was an important piece of her demonstration.

"Miss Bree, you're missing the point. Can you imagine how chouquettes would be really small if there wasn't air? They wouldn't be so good and fluffy! When we eat it, we eat the sugar and the chouquette, but we don't even think about the air, but the air is so important! It's what makes it super fluffy, after all! Bree, you're like the air!"

"I am...?"

"Yes! Tom doesn't realize yet how important you are, but you make the chouquette so fluffy! So now, we have to make sure you become the fluffiest, sweetest, most delicious chouquette ever!" 

Bree spent a few seconds of silence pondering her friend's words. Gigi had always been the smarter of their duo, smarter than most kids their age even, but sometimes, even for her best friend, she was a bit hard to understand. Still, she thought that she understood what Gigi meant. There was still time for her to do her best. She was just nine years old, it was hard to be taken seriously. 

"... Do you think he might like me better if I wait to grow up?"

"Probably," Gigi answered seriously. "Older boys are hard to please, you know. The boys in our class are stupid, so it's better if you like older boys for now. Maybe when you're fifteen like Tom, it will be easier!"

"That means I have six years to get better." Bree nodded, a bit more convinced. 

"To get fluffier!" Gigi chuckled, giving her another chouquette. 

Bree ate the puffy piece of chouquette silently, and it felt like that sugar and choux pastry slowly melted on her tongue to lift her spirits. Gigi was right, they still had plenty of time! The two girls kept walking for a bit, watching their city wake up for the usual morning bustle: cars were on their way to work, buses picking up and dropping people off, and other kids like them were walking with their uniforms and backpacks to school. A few schoolmates waved at them, but they didn't approach, busy already with their own friends. Sometimes, Bree felt like she didn't belong with kids her age, except Gigi. She was bigger, taller, and just different. She stood out wherever she went, and her larger frame made other kids feel intimidated. Her introverted personality didn't make it easy for her to make friends, either. It only felt like luck that she had been able to befriend the popular Gigi when they were younger than that. Unlike her, Gigi was small, cute, and effortlessly bright and optimistic, a real ray of sunshine everywhere she went.

"How about you?" Bree asked. "Who do you want to get... fluffier for?"

"Mh... I don't think I have anybody." Gigi shook her head, "I don't like the boys in our class... or in any of the other classes. But I will let you know when I do! We can get fluffier together! You know, I think we will need a whole plan. Let's make a plan after school! Want to go to my house? I have my own key now!"

"Okay!" Bree nodded, enthusiastically. 

Gigi's house was better than her own, filled with her siblings and never really quiet enough to think, let alone think of a whole plan. The two girls resumed their walk to school, making sure to eat all of the yummy pastries before they arrived in school and would have to share with their classmates. By the time they made it, arriving first as the school gates just opened, Bree and Gigi were full of ideas to conquer Tom's heart, and their mouths full of delicious sugar.