The Supreme One: Petals In The Wind

Chapter Four

Zoie sat on the seat outside of her home with a book in her grasp while Tobias sat close to her peacefully. It had been nine days since Zoie took Tobias in and they had made progress in such a brief period. The ungainliness had evaporated as they made the effort to become more acquainted with each other's personalities. Since the early morning, Zoie and Tobias had been sitting on the bench located on the side of Zoie's home. Tobias sat there and listened to Zoie read the book out loud as the breeze, from the wind that Zoie had created, blew through his hair.

“Could you describe what it looks like to me?” Tobias asked. Closing the book, Zoie laid the book in her lap as she stared at the man in confusion. 

“Describe what?” 

“Outside.” He answered. “We’ve been sitting here since sunrise. I’d like to know what it looks like out there.” 

Zoie turned towards the large field of flowers as Tobias sat there and waited for Zoie to say something. As Zoie stared at the flowers, she began to notice just how beautiful everything was. She had spent months locked away in her home out of fear that she hadn’t taken the time to realize just how beautiful the scenery was. 

“There are flowers everywhere.” Zoie started. 

“Flowers?” 

“Beautiful flowers!” Zoie replied. “They are red and they go on for miles. This field is just filled with flowers, butterflies, and healthy grass. The sky is beautiful and blue with a few clouds up there with the sun.” 

Tobias sighed. “Sounds beautiful!” 

“It is.”

Tobias stayed there for a couple of seconds peacefully as he thought about his next question. He was incredibly grateful that Zoie was caring enough to bring him into her home and help him out however he would have rather not seem as though a foundation case. 

Although he was blind, Tobias still knew how to get himself around despite the hardships. While most jobs in the small town of Doveport didn’t want to hire him due to his blindness, Tobias was still determined to get on his feet. 

“Zoie, why did you help me?” Tobias asked. 

Zoie scoffed. “Because it’s the right thing to do.” 

“There’s been many people here who would give me change, something to drink or eat, but no one has ever taken me into their home. You haven’t shown any signs of annoyance and I expected that you’d send me on my way by now but you haven’t.” Tobias explained.

“Truth is, I was alone.” Zoie whispered. “I wanted to help but I let you stay because I fear to be alone again.” 

“You’re alone? You don’t have any family that you talk to or visit?” Tobias asked. 

“My mother died leaving me alone with my two sisters. We no longer get along so we separated.” Zoie replied. 

“A boyfriend?” Tobias asked. “You’re a very kind woman and I am sure that you are beautiful as well. There’s no special someone?” 

Zoie chuckled. “I will never love again, Tobias. I will never allow someone to be a special someone to me ever again.” 

Zoie's remark creeped Tobias out. Her voice had totally changed and held a lot of force and toxin. Nonetheless, Tobias needed to know more. Rather than changing the subject, he pushed forward. 

“What happened?” 

Zoie stared at Tobias as tears welled in her eyes. The sound of All I Could Do Was Cry played in the back of her mind as she prepared to tell him the story of her first and last love. As the tears slowly fell, Zoie smiled. 

“His name was Chris.” She began. “I met him at work because we worked at the same restaurant. My youngest sister had always warned me about him but I didn’t care. He made me happy and I thought that I made him happy as well. After my mother’s death, we moved in together and I really expected us to be married. Until he changed.” 

“He changed?” Tobias repeated. 

“He began to ignore me as often as possible but I still tried to make it right. I blamed myself for the reason why our relationship was declining. I didn’t think I was good enough for him anymore and he completely stopped making an effort. I didn’t find out why he had lost interest in me until later.” Zoie explained. 

“You don’t have to continue if you’re not comfortable.” Tobias found himself saying.

Ignoring him, Zoie continued. “My love wasn’t enough for him and he had stopped trying to love me because he had fallen in love with someone else — my best friend.” 

Tobias froze as Zoie told him the story. He couldn’t believe that this woman had to deal with such a betrayal and he truly felt sorry for her. As he listened silently, Zoie still smiled as she wiped away the tears. 

“I still blame myself for it. I should’ve been a better girlfriend.” Zoie announced. 

“Never blame yourself for that piece of s**t!” Tobias hissed. He had no clue why he was suddenly so upset by Zoie’s remark but he knew that he didn’t want to hear her blame herself for it ever again. “He didn’t deserve you and nor did she!” 

“They’re dead.” Zoie finished. 

Tobias froze. “What a f*****g plot twist!” 

Zoie giggled as Tobias smiled softly. He enjoyed the sound of her laughter. After listening to her story, Tobias felt himself wanting to open up to her a bit which left him shocked since he usually had his guard up. Sighing heavily, Tobias prepared to speak. 

“I had an argument with my dad about his other kids. I lost my mother when I was seven and was raised by him. I won’t say that we were close because then I’d be lying.” Tobias revealed. 

“What was the argument about if you don’t mind me asking.” 

“Money.” Tobias answered. “He expected me to give him money to support his drug habits and I refused. I remember leaving the house and driving to get away then wrecking. I could recall hearing things around me but I couldn’t see at all. I thought I was dreaming or something and that’s when I learned that I was now blind due to the glass from the windshield hitting me in the eye. I was in a wheelchair for a few months and lived with different family members until I was well enough to do things on my own and then I left and moved here to start fresh.” 

“I’m sorry to hear that.” Zoie whispered. She watched as Tobias' shoulders went up as he shrugged. Zoie turned back towards the large field as the silence took over. 

“Yellow flowers.” Tobias suddenly said. 

Turning towards the man in confusion, Zoie spoke. “Huh?” 

“It sounds like we are at a beautiful location but it’ll be even better if there were yellow flowers to go with those red ones that you described.” He explained. 

"I see." Zoie mumbled. Without saying another word, Tobias grinned as Zoie changed a couple of the blossoms to yellow to coordinate with the red ones that sat in the field.