The Florist: This Tree Requires Scary Offerings!

Chapter 2: Nine

“I will be back in the evening. Be careful on the road, okay?” Sidra waved goodbye at his siblings and left for school. It was another Monday like any other, and so will be tomorrow and the day after. His life was a monotonous cycle of studying, getting bullied then washing it all away at the sight of his siblings waiting for him at the door every time. It was a light he looked forward to embracing. It made him set a goal for himself, and that was all that mattered. The end was not near, so he had to try harder, for his own sake and for the sake of those who waited for his return every day.

He entered the classroom and saw the same group of people talking before sitting in his corner.

“Man, I’m telling you, something weird is going on! Didn’t the moon look weird last night?”

Sidra raised his eyebrows, trying to recall the moon. He had worked all day and studied at night. Too tired to stay up, he slept earlier than usual, but he did hear his siblings talking about the moon seeming to be bigger than usual; it must have been one of the periodic phenomena.

He shrugged as the teacher entered. It was a boring day like any other, one that he appreciated. The next day was the same, but the moon did get bigger, significantly so. However, humanity knew so little about the world; it could mean anything. Headlines about the mysterious moon were all over the internet, and alien enthusiasts and conspiracy theorists began spreading different rumours. The next night, the black-haired observed the moon from the rooftop. Massive, it was.

He felt his heart throbbing as he watched it, and he could see his neighbours taking pictures of it to post them online. The big moon became the main topic of discussion within a day and a night. Everywhere around the world, people observed an abnormally large moon. Soon enough, TV stations and radios picked up the topic, and it became the trend. Among the million questions asked, only one was most frequently asked.

How much bigger will it get?

The sun rose on the thirtieth of March, a Wednesday. That day, one of Sidra’s siblings had to be taken to the hospital, and the black-haired took a day off to see it done. It was nothing life-threatening, only a wound that needed stitches from falling off a tree. Sidra had to leave his younger brother in the hospital to go buy groceries. On his way out, he saw a man with bright red hair like no other standing in front of the building, seeming lost and confused. The man seemed older than him, probably in his twenties.

Sidra’s eyes widened as the man was about to cross on a green light and get hit. He grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back on the sidewalk. “Sir! Are you all right? Please watch out next time. This is a busy street.”

The red-haired looked at him and nodded. “I’m sorry for the trouble. Do... Do you happen to know...” He frowned and shook his head. “No... It’s nothing. I’m sorry.”

“Are you all right, sir? Do you want me to take you to a police station?” Sidra asked, worried, “There’s one nearby.”

The red-haired smiled. “I will be fine in a bit. Thank you.”

Sidra nodded slowly and left, passing by a woman with brown hair that stopped to talk to the red-haired; so he had an escort after all. He saw them cross the road and walk into a smaller street before he entered the supermarket. By the time he finished shopping in the farmer’s market and got a new dress for his younger sister, over three hours passed. It was time to pick up his younger brother. He found him crying on his bed, calling for him. Sidra smiled sadly and picked him up. “Oh, I’m sorry. You were lonely, weren’t you? I’m sorry. Big brother was shopping for ingredients so he can make your favourite dish tonight. Will you forgive me?” He kissed his forehead and caressed his black hair. His brother giggled, clinging to his chest as he looked at the nurse that placed a piece of candy in his hand. He smiled brightly, his green eyes lighting up. Sidra grinned. “Remember to say thank you, yes?”

“Thank you, miss!”

“Thank you.”

Sidra left the hospital, holding his brother in his arms. He blinked, seeing a black motorcycle that rolled on the street without making a sound. It was unexpected for its size. The motorcycle stopped in front of him, and the rider removed his helmet to shake his black hair loose. He glanced at Sidra. “Excuse me. Have you seen a man with red hair? It’s not orange; it’s red.”

“Oh...” Sidra raised his eyebrows, remembering the man he saw earlier. “Yes.” He pointed at the street across the road. “He went that way with a young lady. He seemed to be lost, and I thought she was his escort.”

The man stared at him in silence, and Sidra smiled faintly. “Is something w...?”

He frowned, looking into the man’s blue eyes. He looked down, feeling an unexplained uncomfortable sensation overwhelming him.

He looked up and took a step forward. “Excuse me! What’s your...” He sighed, not finding anyone. “Name?”

He smiled at his sleeping brother and walked back home. At dinner, one of his siblings stood up. “Brother’s birthday is close! It’s on the first of April!”

Sidra laughed. “I hope you mischievous kids won’t prank me like last year.”

“But it’s lying day! Big brother can’t punish us!”

Sidra nodded with a gentle smile, patting their heads. “Right, but don’t put yourselves in danger. That’s all that matters, okay?”

“Big brother, if we can touch the moon, do you think it will taste like lemon?”

“Lemon?”

“Lemon ice cream is white!”

“I see... We will have to find out then.”

“Yay! Big brother allows it!”

“Only if you take me with you.”

They opened the TV and saw celebrities discussing the unusual astrological phenomenon.

The programme was interrupted abruptly by breaking news. “We bring the news to inform you that starting from tonight, an exciting astrological event will occur. There will be a solar eclipse that is quite different from the ones we’re used to witnessing. It already started for us. This eclipse will stay with us for an entire day, and the sun will rise again on the first of April! A lot of citizens around the world are celebrating this rare event that hardly ever happened!”

Sidra looked at the window and felt one of his siblings pull his leg. “Big brother, there will be no sun? But... The sunflowers will be sad!”

Sidra smiled and picked up his sister in his arms. “Of course there will be sun! It will show up to celebrate my birthday.”

“Really?!”

“As such...” Sidra turned his attention to the TV. “There will be no school tomorrow since lighting is unavailable, and some roads without lights will be dangerous to navigate through. Please stay home and do not venture into places not within walking distance. You are welcome to observe this phenomenon yourselves, but be careful not to get into dark places.”

“I agree. Crime rates rose drastically during the previous six months, so we must all remain vigilant and take care of ourselves.”

“Exactly so, dear spectators. Do proceed with caution.”

The next day, Sidra opened his shop and stroked the sunflowers. “I’m sorry. There will be sunlight for you tomorrow. For now...”

“Excuse me!”

He glanced outside and saw a man with brown hair adjusting his glasses. “Yes, sir?” Sidra asked, “Are you looking for flowers?”

The man smiled and nodded, extending his hand. “My name is Rowan. I used to run a clinic, but I don’t think I need to do that anymore. I’m going for early retirement.”

Sidra smiled faintly, shaking his hand. “Good for you, sir. What flowers would you like to buy today?”

“I want white flowers, white like the moon that blessed us.”

“I see. Spiraea flowers stand for wealth and prosperity. I think these will suit you well.”

“Thank you, young man!”

“Excuse me! I’m looking for flowers!”

“Yes, miss!”

Sidra looked up at the sky on the last day of March. He closed the shop and moved his gaze to the tree. “I hope you like the moon, because I don’t quite like it. I’m a tree after all. I prefer the sun...?” he frowned, noticing a fruit hanging from the tree. “How unusual...”

He laughed with a huff. “I guess I’ll call it the moon fruit.”

After making dinner, he entered a room that he never thought he would use again, and a smell of dust and death greeted him in white blankets. He sat on a bed that his parents used to occupy and watched the envelope on top of the nightstand, clenching his fists. It was one that he never brought himself to read. Perhaps it was their will, yet another document that would confirm a death he never wanted to acknowledge. However, for some unknown reason, he wanted to read whatever was into the envelope that night, or day. Perhaps, it was a simple hunch that pushed him to commit such illogical actions.

He held the envelope and left the room, locking it as usual. He read the letter after returning by his siblings’ side in the bedroom, perhaps seeking courage in their company. He raised his eyebrows, reading through the letter’s contents. He looked at his siblings playing before placing the paper under the mattress when they approached him to check on him.

“All right, now. You must go to bed.” He caught them with a grin and put them to bed. “When we wake up, the sun will shine again, and I will turn eighteen, so sleep well, yes?”

He sat down beside the window, hugging his knees until he fell asleep on the couch.

He jolted up from his sleep the next morning and glanced through the window.

“The sun...”

He didn’t react as his siblings jumped on him from behind, screaming, “Happy birthday, big...”

Sidra frowned, hearing screams coming from outside. He rushed out of the house and saw people screeching after realizing the sun didn’t show up. He looked at the moon, which seemed even bigger than the night before. “There’s no sun,” he whispered, “Why?”

He looked aside as a man ran in front of him after stealing a woman’s purse. “The world will end anyway, so I might as well do whatever I like!”

Sidra glanced at the people, who were all outside on the streets, looking at the sky. A car with megaphones was roaming the main road. “Dear citizens, due to unforeseen circumstances, the eclipse did not end today. Please remain calm as we investigate the matter.”

Sidra returned back inside, watching the news with a scowl. He took the letter and read it again. “If you are reading this letter, it means your father and I are no longer with you. We don’t have a lot for you and your siblings to inherit, but we do have a small underground shelter you can use as your personal space. I know you love your privacy, so that’s the least we could leave for you. Use the key in this envelope and find a door behind the shelves in the flowers shop. There is the entrance to the hideout and enough provisions that can help you survive for a few months. As an ending note, we want you to know that we love you, no matter what. No matter what happens, you mustn’t kill or steal. Be a good boy, Sidra, pure yet robust, just like a tree.”

He walked to the garage and saw the door on the wall. He touched it, his gaze saddening as he clenched his fists. “What will happen to us now?” he whispered.

He grabbed an empty notebook and began documenting every day separately.

“Dear diary...”

“Day one.”

“Day two.”

“Week one.”

“Week two.”

“Month one.”

“Month two.”

Grave.

“Nine.”

Graves.

“There is still no sun.”

Sidra left the underground shelter to find food. He wrapped himself up in warmer clothing and took a deep breath, holding a kitchen knife before sliding it underneath his coat. He removed the pieces of wood and sneaked outside to see the moon looming over a silent planet. Sidra glanced around and could see human remains on the ground. He clenched his fists and walked towards the nearest supermarket in the hope of finding new supplies. He hid behind a tree, hearing people fighting and screaming. His eyes widened as the ground began to shake. He glanced around, confused.

“What’s happening now?!”

The remaining people fell down on the ground, gazing up at the sky as the moon grew closer, its white blinding. Sidra saw the earth splitting in two and crackling before looking up at the sky again.

He frowned, seeing other planets and stars, a thousand suns and stars illuminating the land. The earthquake then stopped.

“The sun is back!”

“IT’S BACK!”

The others ran from their hideouts, throwing their weapons behind and undressing to let the warm sunrays stroke their bare skin. Sidra shook his head slowly. “Something is not right,” he whispered, hiding under the shade of the tree in his yard.

He looked down at his arms and saw green ivies crawl on them. “What is this?” he tried to get the vines off him, but they wouldn’t move. “What...?!”

He ran inside the garage and closed the door behind him to block off the vines. He gazed at the sunlight on the ground with round eyes. “Why so suddenly? Why?”

He grabbed his knife, hearing a rolling sound, and a dark blue sphere stopped rolling in front of him. He picked it up, looking around cautiously. It was the size of his palm, but it wasn’t heavy. “I have never seen anything like it.”

He gasped as the vines wrapped around his legs and pulled him back outside towards the tree. He winced, feeling the heat of the sun becoming unbearable. Before he could think of anything to say, before he could open his eyes, he could no longer feel the sound of his own heart beating as light filled him inside out. Glancing behind him, he saw the tree trunk falling towards him. He smiled as blood stained the whiteness.

Right...

I guess...

This is it...

I’m... sorry...!

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                                                                                To be continued...