Archive of Our Own ^beta

“Good morning!” Faifa loudly greeted Gun, who was standing behind the counter mixing ingredients for some kind of potion. He was startled by Faifa’s loud voice, his hand twitched and the small flask in his hands slipped out and fell into the cauldron. Gun looked at him irritably, raising his head, and Faifa awkwardly smiled at him. “Oops.”

“Good morning, Faifa.” Gun sighed and looked at the cauldron, clearly trying to figure out how to save the potion. "What brings you here?"

"I'm not feeling very well this morning, so I hope you have a potion so I can feel better."  Faifa smiled and leaned against the counter.

Gun cast a displeased glance at Faifa’s elbows, which were dangerously close to fragile glass flasks and dried leaves of some kind of plant. But he did not comment on anything and stirred his potion again, which turned a cloudy green color and bubbled frighteningly, some bubbles flew up and exploded near the ceiling. Faifa was fascinated by how the bubbles did not have time to burst and flew around the room. However, Gun was clearly not amused by this, judging by the way he was frantically flipping through the book in search of a solution. The only solution he could come up with was to remove the cauldron from the fire. Gun let out a sigh of relief when the potion stopped bubbling. He raised his head and looked at Faifa.

"So, a potion that will give you strength, right?"  When Faifa nodded, Gun waved his hand towards the cabinet, the shelves of which were filled with all kinds of potions. “The potion you need is on the third shelf, with a gold ring painted on its label.”  Gun came out from behind the counter and headed for the door leading to the back room.  "I'll leave it to you. I need to find another book."

“Okay, I'll figure it out!”  Faifa nodded solemnly. "I've remembered what I need to look for, don't worry.”

Gun nodded to him and disappeared into another room, leaving Faifa alone. Faifa went to the closet and looked for the right shelf.

“So, the third shelf.” Faifa tapped his chin thoughtfully. He smiled when he found the right shelf. "And a potion with a gold ring on the label."  He looked carefully at the labels of each potion jar. Finally, he noticed the right jar and took it. “This ring actually looks pretty cute.”  Faifa smiled, examining the drawing on the label. “It looks like a ring with petals. I'm sure Yotha helped him with these drawings. I hope this helps me.”

With that, Faifa uncorked the jar and drank the contents. His eyes lit up happily as the sweetness of the potion spread across his tongue. Although it soon became too sweet, like honey, and Faifa grimaced.

"Did you find the right potion?"  Gun came out of the back room with a soft smile, holding a small book in his hands. But before Faifa could respond, Gun's smile faded and was replaced by panic. "Damn it, you haven't drunk it yet, have you?"

Faifa frowned, he felt strangely light and airy.

“It seems to help.” At that moment, he felt a little dizzy and grabbed the shelf with his hand. The empty potion jar fell and rolled towards Gun, who was panicking more and more by the second. “No, I think it's only getting worse.”

The world around Faifa began to spin, and Gun's worried voice seemed further and further away, until finally everything was plunged into darkness.

"Oh my God, no!"  Gun dropped to his knees and grabbed the potion jar that was lying at his feet.  He held it tightly and watched the pale gold smoke dissipate. Gun sighed heavily when he saw that there was only a pot of indoor sunflower left in Faifa's place.

Gun carefully picked it up and placed it on the counter. The plant swayed gently, and Gun took it as gratitude and smiled at Faifa.

"Please wait here. I'll bring a book with potions and ways to remove them.” Gun nodded to himself, even though his eyes were starting to water. "Don't worry, the antidote for this potion is quick to make, I just need to know the exact proportions so I don't make a mistake."

The plant swayed again. Gun sighed, it's going to be difficult, but it's okay, he has all the ingredients. Deciding to help Faifa as quickly as possible, Gun hurriedly headed for the back room.

When the door abruptly hit the wall, Yotha, who was sitting at the table, shuddered and raised his head. His surprise quickly turned to concern when he noticed Gun's panic. Yotha put down his pen and notebook and got up to go over to Gun.

"Is something wrong, Beagle?"  Yotha put his hand on Gun's head and gently stroked his hair. Gun raised his watery eyes and pouted. Yotha hugged him to calm him down and gently led him towards the table. He handed Gun a glass of water. "Please calm down and tell me what happened."

"I'm... there... " Gun waved towards the door. “It's just...” Gun took a shuddering breath and Yotha offered him a drink of some water. Gun took a sip and took a deep breath. “Now Faifa is—"

The sound of a bell interrupted his words. Yotha stood up and gently stroked his head.

“First, I'll meet the client, and in the meantime, calm down and then we'll talk. Okay?”

Gun nodded at him without looking up from his glass of water. Yotha kissed him softly on the top of his head and left the room.

At the front of the store, he saw a guy who was inspecting the shelves of potions, although his gaze kept returning to the sunflower that Gun had left on the counter.

“Hello.” Yotha greeted the guy quietly, who shuddered slightly and turned around. “How can I help you?”

“Hello.” The guy looked at Yotha a for a moment and quickly looked away. "I... uh... My friends suggested I try something to distract myself, so I..." The guy paused, wearily slumping his shoulders. Yotha waited for his words to continue, barely restraining his impatience. But the guy stubbornly remained silent and looked around the room, clearly not wanting to make it easier for Yotha to work and say what he wanted to buy. This was the main reason why Yotha often left work with clients to Gun or Faifa, who came to them quite often.

Yotha cleared his throat, attracting the attention of the guy who was just standing there looking at the sunflower. Yotha frowned when he realized that he looked a little drooping, perhaps Gun had forgotten to water him this morning.

“I can offer you some potions or books that will help you relive memories and distract yourself.”  Yotha pointed to the shelves behind the guy, but he didn't even turn around. What impudence!

“Actually, I would like to buy a plant.” The guy awkwardly waved his hand at the sunflower standing on the counter. Yotha frowned, trying to remember if Gun had said that someone was going to buy a plant today. But without remembering anything, Yotha decided that the sunflower was free and ready for sale.

Yotha nodded to himself and walked over to the counter. He grabbed the plant by the pot and turned it over, trying to find the attached price tag. But there was nothing on it, and Yotha frowned when the sunflower almost hit him with its leaves. He thought a little, trying to remember the price of such a plant.

When Yotha named the approximate price, the guy nodded and pulled out his wallet.

"I'll take it."

“Okay” Yotha punched the purchase, and the guy paid for it. When the cash receipt was printed, the plant shuddered and waved its leaves in panic. Yotha and the guy looked at it at the same time.

"Um, is that okay?" The guy carefully followed the movements of the plant, which calmed down slightly after his words.

"Quite." Yotha nodded convincingly, although he wasn't sure. But he also knew that absolutely any plant could be found in Gun's store, whether it was magical or not, no longer surprised Yotha. The guy also seemed to believe him and looked convinced and reassured. “Perhaps the owner of the store has put a spell of emotions on it, so it is able to experience and express them.” Yotha was trying to explain to the guy and at the same time to himself this strange behavior of the plant. He cleared his throat, distracting the guy from the flower again, whose petals were fluttering enthusiastically. “So, yes. Despite its strangeness, the plant still needs things that are typical for each plant: moderate sun and watering. The flower grows thanks to your time and energy, so don't forget to pay attention to it. I hope it will live a long life for you.” Yotha quietly finished his speech and looked at the guy who was already stretching his hands towards the plant.

“Thanks.” The guy looked at Yotha for a moment and smiled gently at him. “I will definitely take care of him.” The guy's smile became more sincere, and his eyes lit up when he looked at the bright plant. The guy picked up a pot with a plant in his hands. "Good-bye."

“Thanks for the purchase, come back again.” Yotha watched the guy until he disappeared through the door.

Yotha turned around when he heard Gun coming out of the back room. Yotha smiled when he saw that he had calmed down and was smiling gently. Yotha was about to come over and hug him when Gun froze in place, staring intently at the counter, and then frantically scanned the entire room. His gaze settled on Yotha.

“Yotha.”  He walked over to the counter. "Have you seen a sunflower here?"  Gun pointed to the spot where the sunflower had stood some time ago.

"I sold it."  Yotha smiled proudly, but judging by the look on Gun's face, it was the wrong answer.

"You sold Faifa!?"

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

“Yes, Jay, I bought a plant, just like you said.” Wine was trying to open the door of his apartment, balancing at the same time with the phone pressed to his ear and a pot with a plant that seemed to be trying to cling to him with leaves. It was really weird, Wine decided. "It's a little weird, though.”

"Did you buy something exotic?" Ben suggested mockingly on the other end of the phone. “Oh my God, it's a Venus flycatcher!”  Wine winced when Ben abruptly exclaimed.

“No, it's just a sunflower.”  Wine breathed a sigh of relief when he was finally able to enter the apartment. He carefully put the plant and phone on the shelf and took off his shoes.

"Then what's so strange about it" Jay asked. “Maybe it's too tiny?”

“No, they told me it was magical.”

“Huh!?”

Hearing the simultaneous exclamation of friends, Wine was glad that he managed to put the phone on the shelf.

"What do you mean, Wine?"  Ben asked.

“I don't really understand, but the seller said that it has a spell that causes emotions and therefore it can react to external stimuli not like ordinary plants.” Wine left the plant on the shelf and went into the kitchen, picking up his phone. “I do not know how else to explain it. It's just that sometimes it shakes its leaves in panic or flutters its petals.”

"I don't have the words.” Jay sighed as Ben muttered something, but Wine couldn't make out the words. "Did you go to that store I was telling you about?"

“No.” Wine poured himself some water. “It was closed, so I decided to go to the one across the street. When I entered there, I found the place strange, even though the sunflower standing on the counter was the most ordinary.”

“Is that why you decided that you can trust the plants that are sold there?” Jay grumbled in displeasure, and Wine could practically see him rubbing the bridge of his nose. “Well, were there any other plants there?”

“I do not know.” Wine frowned. “The sunflower caught my attention right away, so I didn't really consider other things. The potion shelf was impressive, though.”

"Potions!? "  Ben exclaimed loudly. "Were there any real potions?"

"I don't think that's true, Ben," Wine heard Jay say to Ben. “These are just decorations to preserve the theme of the store.”

“Considering what plants are sold there, I could say that some part of the potion is real.” Wine suggested it.

"Damn, we should go there together next time."  Ben suggested.

“Okay.” Wine agreed, and he heard Jay also support the idea. Ben started discussing the upcoming college football game, and while listening to his chatter, Wine began walking around the apartment looking for a place for the plant.

Jay and Ben offered to buy him a plant to deal with his heartbreak after breaking up with the girl he had been dating since high school. A month ago, Wine and his girlfriend decided they didn't want to have a long-distance relationship. Wine was upset that he had been lying to her all this time, but his friends suggested that the reason was because of a broken heart. And Wine agreed with that because it was easier than trying to explain to friends that he actually broke up with his girlfriend because he likes a guy.

When Ben and Jay ended the call, Wine carefully carried the plant into the living room and placed it on the windowsill. This room and this window were perfect.

“This is the south side, so there is enough sun and shade here.” Wine noticed the sunflower nodding slightly at his words. Wine sighed, it's okay, he'll get used to it soon. He opened the window and noticed a pair of T-shirts hanging on the balcony of the apartment on the right, swaying slightly in the wind. "I wonder why he hasn't put them away yet."  Wine frowned. His neighbor had been doing household chores since the morning, and Wine often noticed him when he went out on the balcony. When his neighbor saw him, he smiled sweetly and waved him a friendly hand, wishing him a good morning. At such moments, Wine answered him shyly and quickly hid in his apartment under the ringing laughter of a neighbor. But even if he was delayed by this guy halfway to the kitchen, in any case, he lived alone and no one would know about it. Wine approached the sunflower and whispered. “Actually, it's all about him.” Sunflower trembled enthusiastically, delighted with the news. Wine suppressed the urge to linger by the window and walked away.

It's all about him, because during the holidays, when he moved into this apartment, he noticed this guy almost immediately. Later, Wine began to notice him more often, and at some point, he did not realize how far he had become from his girlfriend. The neighbor from the apartment on the right, whose name he still did not know, was the real reason for his breakup with his girlfriend. However, a couple of days ago, his ex-girlfriend contacted him and they discussed everything. She said she didn't blame him for this because she also liked someone else for a while and was just looking for a reason to break up. Wine was delighted by this and agreed to stay friends with her. Even though he solved the problem with her, Wine still didn't give up on the idea of buying the plant.

To take his mind off unnecessary thoughts, Wine decided to study. He opened his textbook on the subject he was going to take a test on next week and scrolled to the right page. Wine was focused on his task for a while, but he didn't notice how he soon fell asleep. At that moment, one of the sunflower petals began to glow brightly under the rays of the sun.

"Wine, wake up.”

Wine slowly opened his eyes. He blinked a couple of times as the rays of the sun fell on his eyes, through the dense foliage of the tree under which he lay. When Wine sat down, the book on his chest fell into his lap. He looked around, but there was no one nearby. It seems to be just him, sitting on a hill under a big tree.

“The weather is beautiful today.”

Wine was startled when an unfamiliar voice came from somewhere again. He quickly jumped up from his seat, ignoring the book that had fallen on the grass. Wine walked around the tree and saw a guy who was strangely dressed. The guy raised his head and smiled at him; he handed Wine a flower garland.

"Here, take this."

Wine carefully took the garland; the guy's smile became even brighter.

"Do you like the way they smell?" Seeing Wine's uncomprehending look, the guy laughed and pointed at the white buds. “This is plumeria. They smell like honey picked under the early rays of the sun, which has just risen.”

“An oddly detailed description.” The guy laughed at his words and Wine brought the flowers closer to inhale their scent. It might have smelled of honey, but it also reminded Wine of the scent of jasmine that grew in his mother's garden.

“Did you know that they are like the rays of the sun?” The guy was smiling brightly. “If you collect them in the morning, they have the strongest smell, but if you collect them at the end of the day, this smell is almost invisible. It's like the setting sun, which embraces the earth with its rays at parting, giving the last warmth.”

"So, what time did you pick these flowers today, Faifa?" After Wine's words, the guy's smile became more sincere, his eyes gleamed with joy.

“Wine, to please you with the most fragrant flowers, I am ready to stay up all night.”

These words, spoken with a bright smile and sparkling eyes looking straight at him, made Wine hold his breath for a second. He felt like the bubbles inside him were bursting, and his heart was soaring. Unable to withstand the intensity of the moment, Wine looked away and cleared his throat, hoping that the person opposite would not notice his blush.

"I... I'm glad, thank you."  Wine met the guy's gaze for a second and then looked away again. The bark of the tree they were under looked more attractive than ever. Wine ran his free hand over its surface, this tree seems to have experienced a lot in its lifetime. How many meetings and breakups have happened under this tree, and how many more are still to come. Wine looked at the guy, who let go of his gaze and stared thoughtfully at the few flowers left in his hands. Wine carefully sat down next to him and looked at the valley that stretched far ahead. His thoughts didn't linger on anything in particular, although something disturbing was spinning in his head, but Wine couldn't figure out what it was related to.

The plumeria buds in Wine's hands began to wither, and the sun was nearing sunset, when the guy said softly:

"I think you should get back."  Wine frowned and looked at the guy who was staring at the manor at the bottom of the hill. "The mistress will be worried.”

Wine followed his gaze and saw a two-story manor with luxuriously decorated gardens full of bright and lush flowers. Several people were walking in the garden, and a richly dressed woman was talking loudly to someone. Although Wine couldn't make out the words from here, he could still hear her voice carried by the wind. Wine hurriedly stood up when he saw several people walk out through the gate and towards the hill.

"I really have to go."  Wine looked at the guy who stood next to him. The wide trunk of the tree protected them from prying eyes, but only until someone got close enough.

"I understand."  The guy smiled at him, looking at him with sad eyes. Wine felt something fragile crack inside him, and he wanted to see his wide and sincere smile again.

"Will I see you tomorrow, Faifa?"  Wine took the guy's hands and looked straight into his eyes.

"Not tomorrow.” The guy looked away for a moment, when he looked back at Wine, his eyes glistening with unshed tears. He blinked a couple of times and smiled brightly. “I promise that we will definitely meet the day after tomorrow.”

“Okay, I'll meet you the day after tomorrow.” Wine hugged the guy tightly and reluctantly stepped back when he heard voices calling him in the distance. "I have to go."  Wine gently stroked the guy's hand one last time and walked away.

"Wine, wait.” The guy pulled him to himself and Wine snuggled up to him again. The guy sat up slightly and gently kissed his forehead. When the guy stepped back, Wine noticed a light blush on his cheeks, similar to what Wine felt on his cheeks, and a bright smile, which Wine repeated.

"Thanks for coming today, Faifa.” Wine gently held the guy's hand.

"Thanks for everything, Wine.” The guy retreated. “Don't forget to pick up the book.”

“Okay” Wine walked away and rounded a tree to pick up a book. Lifting his head, he saw that several servants from his house were already very close. Wine turned around and looked at the guy who had his arms crossed over his chest and was leaning against a tree, his attentive gaze following Wine's every move. "See you later, Faifa."

"See you later, Wine."  The guy smiled and waved goodbye. Wine smiled back and headed for the path leading down the hill to the manor. He met several servants who greeted him joyfully and escorted him to the manor. All the way to the manor, Wine fought the urge to turn around.

"I hope you haven't seen that guy today." His mother asked when he passed through the gate.

"No, Mother.” Wine released his head and looked at the book in his hands. “We haven't seen each other since you forbade us to meet.”

"That's right.” His mother walked towards the entrance of the manor, and Wine quietly followed her. “You shouldn't mess with people like him who have no future. All that awaits them these days is a war and certain death in the name of the kingdom.” She glanced at Wine for a moment, who clutched the book tightly in his hands and nodded at her words. “ I must remind you that you have a meeting with Mr. Wongate in a week, where we will discuss your upcoming wedding with his daughter. After that, both of you will go abroad, away from this fuss, until everything calms down here and until you both get a decent education in one of the best institutions in the world. To return later and inherit this estate, being worthy of all this heritage.” She sat down in one of the armchairs, and a servant quickly brought her a cup of tea. "You understand me, don't you, Wine?"  She looked over the rim of her cup.

"Yes, Mother."  Wine looked into her eyes, and she smiled at him, setting the cup down on the table. “Let me digress, I'm a little tired after my walk and would like to rest before dinner.”

"You can go, I'll meet you for dinner." At the same time, her attention shifted to the servant who brought her sweets. Wine nodded at her and went up the stairs to his room. Closing the door behind him, Wine threw the book on the bed and hurried to the window, which overlooked the hill. A huge tree, smaller than Wine's palm from here, and of course it was already lonely, because the man who had always been waiting for Wine had already left. Wine nodded to himself the day after tomorrow. After tomorrow, Wine would explain everything to him and they would run away together, but for now he could only admire the lonely tree.

A day later, it rained so heavily that his mother forbade Wine to even think about going anywhere. However, the moment she left for the town, Wine quickly put on his coat and told the servants that he had left something by the tree. Wine almost slipped a couple of times while hurriedly walking along the path. On the one hand, he wanted to see him, but on the other, Wine didn't want him to freeze in the rain. Already approaching the tree, Wine noticed white flowers lying on the grass. He carefully picked them up and realized that it was a faded garland that the guy had given him. Wine put it in his pocket and walked around the tree. And as expected, he didn't see anyone. As he was about to leave, Wine noticed that his name was scratched into the bark of the tree. It was almost invisible due to the density of the crust.

Although it was only his name, Wine didn't hesitate to run in the opposite direction from the manor. This path led to a small village that his mother hated because it occupied the sunny side of the hill while the manor had to remain in the shade. Wine didn't see anyone on the street, but he knew where the guy's house was, because he had been here quite often before the ban he received from his mother. Wine stopped in front of a small house and knocked on the door. Soon, a small, tired woman appeared in front of him.

" Hello, I'd like to talk to Faifa." Wine excitedly rolled from heel to toe and tried to look behind her back to look inside the house.

"He left."

Wine frowned. He left? So they switched sides, and if he goes back to the tree, will he see it?

"Ah, thanks, then I have to get back to the tree."

“No, dear, he left because he was taken to the war.” She gently corrected him. Wine froze, and only now did he notice that the woman in front of him was tired, not because of hard work, but because of the tears she had shed.

"I...I'm sorry."  Wine barely managed to get out of himself and retreated into the rain, which hid his tears from this woman. He turned around and left.

Wine returned to the manor in a daze, feeling neither the cold of the rain nor his tears. The days merged into one. Wine did not remember how the meeting with Mr. Wongnate went or what he talked about with his fiancee. He only remembered that every day he took a little time to look at a lonely tree. Until one day he noticed a silhouette next to a tree. Wine ran out of the house holding a lantern because it was getting dark. He approached the tree.

“Fai–“

Wine froze because the person who appeared from behind the tree was not that guy, but a woman who looked even more fragile than during their last meeting.

"Darling, I've brought you a letter.”

The moment Wine noticed the white envelope with the royal seal in her hands, his heart sank. He looked up and saw the sadness in her eyes, disbelief overwhelmed him. Wine didn't even want to open the envelope; it would be too much for him. Wine stepped back with the blind belief that if he didn't read the letter, it wouldn't become his reality.

“It's not true!” Wine looked for a moment at the woman who was looking at him with sadness and pity.

"It's true, dear.” She put the envelope in her pocket and went over to grab his hands. She raised her eyes and looked at him. “It's true, he's de–“

Wine abruptly opened his eyes when the phone on the table next to him began to vibrate. He rubbed his eyes to clear them of sleep and noticed that his cheeks were wet. It looks like he was crying in his sleep. Wine put his hand in the middle of his chest, where he felt an inexplicable sadness. Although he couldn't remember the reason for his reaction, because the only thing he remembered was a large tree and the white buds of an unknown flower.

His phone vibrated again, catching his attention. Wine unblocked it and saw a message from Ben, who offered to meet tomorrow to discuss a group project. Wine agreed and turned off his phone, he went to the kitchen to drink some water. Wine did not notice that one of the sunflower petals fell on the windowsill and, caught by the wind from the open window, disappeared under the sofa. The sunflower wilted, saddened by its loss, at the same time from ignorance of the consequences of this phenomenon.

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

Wine stumbled into his apartment with a tired sigh, he barely noticed how the sunflower waved at him affably. After studying in the library with Ben and Jay, Wine felt like he just wanted to go to bed. However, it was too early for sleep, so he tiredly fell on the sofa and looked at the sunflower that stood on the windowsills, catching the rare rays of the sun. Today's cloudy weather was also one of the reasons Wine was tired, because it was too gloomy and he only felt sleepy. The sunflower petals glittered gold, and Wine watched them with fascination, resting his head on the sofa cushion. Dozing off, Wine did not notice how the sunflower froze in fear when one of its petals began to glow.

When something hit his shoulder, Wine woke up abruptly and looked around, and on the floor he noticed a ball rolled up from a sheet of a book. Wine picked him up and looked around the library, but he didn't see anyone who wanted to attract his attention. Wine carefully adjusted his glasses and unfolded a piece of paper to reveal a fragment of a phrase.

and if i if i ever let love go because the hatred and the whisperings become a phantom dictate i o- bey in lieu of impulse and realities (the blossoming flamingos of my wild mimosa trees) then let love freeze me out. (from i must become a menace to my enemies)

Wine looked around the library once more, looking for someone who could say such words to him. But all he noticed was a guy surrounded by a group of people and chatting loudly about something, and two guys who were heading towards Wine. They stopped in front of his desk, glaring at the chattering guy.

“Wine.” Wine raised his head, meeting the irritated guy's gaze. “Saint said that you can help us with a group project for Miss Jan.”

“Okay.” Wine nodded at them and the two boys sat down across from him.

“What books do we need?”  The second guy asked. "I could bring them."

“And what topic have we chosen?” Wine looked at them questioningly. They looked at each other and awkwardly shrugged their shoulders, looking at Wine. Wine sighed and opened his bag to take out the list of topics he had received from the teacher. “Here.” He handed it to the guys sitting across from him. They both quickly went through the list of topics and pointed to the same one. When their fingers collided, Wine noticed how one of them cast a displeased glance, meeting the other's puppy-dog gaze, although both guys' ears were equally pink. The dissatisfied guy sighed and read out the topic.

“Lexical features of the Thai language.”

The puppy-eyed guy nodded in confirmation, earning another displeased look.

“Okay.” Wine nodded at them. “We can consider the types of vocabulary that are used in Thailand under different circumstances: common, special royal, bookish, poetic.” He wrote down a few names and handed the sheet to the guys. “Let's split up and look for these books.”

The guys nodded and bickered as they headed for the rows of historical books. Wine watched them go and walked towards the books with prose and poetry. He was examining the spines with the names when he heard dissatisfied shouts in the reading room. Wine ignored them and took a book from the shelf to examine it. At that moment, movement in the next row caught his attention, and he looked at the guy who had been chatting loudly with a bunch of students. The guy turned around and their eyes met, Wine quickly lowered his head.

"They were right, you know.” Wine raised his head uncomprehendingly, asking, "Who are they?" and the guy pointed to the book that Wine was reading. “They are all those who have been trying for centuries to explain and understand what love is.” He looked away to look at the crowd that was waiting for him in the reading room. “The best feeling is when you look at him and he is already staring.”

Wine felt his cheeks warm up when the guy smiled at him. The guy continued to stare at him, making Wine even more embarrassed.

"Hey, Faifa!” The loud voice of the girl who was approaching this guy interrupted them.

"What is it, Peeta?" The guy smiled at her gently.

"What took you so long?"  She crossed her arms over her chest in displeasure. “You know, history books are not in this category.” She looked around and met Wine's gaze for a second, her eyes widening in shock. She leaned slightly towards the guy and said in a loud whisper. "You don't talk to him, do you?"

“No.” The guy answered quickly.

“Okay.” She nodded and smiled at him. "You know how his mother treats people like us, right? He's pretty close to his mother, and he probably thinks the same way about us.”

"But he's talking to Saint and Shin. The director doesn't care about that.” The guy looked at her seriously.

"Oh, that.” She hesitated, not knowing what to say. "They're friends." She answered quickly, but then shook her head negatively. “They somehow help him with his studies, so she tolerates their presence next to her son.”

Wine wanted to object, but the guy shot him a quick glance.

"Peeta, let's not talk about it.” He sighed in mock exasperation, and she nodded at him. "You'd better tell me how you spent the weekend."

And Peeta began to chat hurriedly about her weekend, where and with whom she was. Wine did not pay attention to this, reading poetry and making notes in a notebook about the archaisms used by the authors of those times. He didn't notice at what point Peeta's voice died down when they returned to the reading room. When Wine raised his head to put the book back in its place, he found a yellow fluffy ball of mimosa flower on the shelf. He carefully picked it up and put it in his pocket.

After finishing part of the assignment with Saint and Shin, Wine left the library and headed home. Along the way, he noticed several spherical flowers, similar to the one he found in the library.

"Isn't that wonderful?"

Wine froze when he heard the voice, he looked around, but there was no one nearby. Looking up, Wine saw someone sitting on a tree and swinging his leg.

"What's wonderful?"  Wine asked.

“Mimosa.” The guy replied, still hidden among the green leaves and bright yellow flowers. "They're like a tiny sun that you can hold in your hands.” The guy sighed. “But they also have a bad trait.”

"What's that?"  Wine approached the tree, wanting to look at the mysterious interlocutor.

“They don't keep you warm.” The guy looked out among the flowers and smiled at Wine, meeting his gaze. “Imagine what it would be like if a tiny sun grew on a tree and warmed it at the same time.” The guy jumped down from the branch and stood in front of Wine. He raised his hand with the flower held between his thumb and forefinger. He moved his hand and the flower appeared exactly where the rays of the sun were breaking through the gray clouds, replacing the real sun. "That would really be wonderful."  The guy paused and looked at Wine. Wine stared at the flower for a second and then looked at the guy in front of him.

"Indeed, Faifa.”

The guy smiled happily when he heard his name. He lowered his hand and placed it on Wine's shoulder.

"I'm so damn glad when you call me by my first name." He pulled Wine to him, hugging him. “I would like to always hear my name from your mouth.” He pulled back slightly to look into Wine's eyes. “Even despite what is happening at school, you continue to communicate with me.”

"Faifa, you know I don't care what people say at school.”

The guy nodded in agreement.

“I promise that after my graduation, I won't hide my feelings for you anymore.” He looked at Wine seriously. "I just don't want to get you into trouble at school or at home right now."

"It's all right.” Wine smiled, and the guy kissed him on the cheek. Wine froze in shock, and the guy just smiled.

"Oh my God, you're so cute."  The guy was reaching for another kiss when Wine felt a few raindrops fall on them. The guy rolled his eyes in annoyance and sighed.  "Damn, it's not a good time.”

“Let's go.” Wine grabbed the guy's arm and pulled him along. But the guy only intertwined their fingers and smiled impudently when Wine was embarrassed.

"Now let's go." The guy pulled him towards an abandoned house, which was located nearby. Before entering high school, they had always used this place for secret meetings. Now they preferred to meet at each other's houses when no one was around, so that their classmates wouldn't accidentally see them.

Wine stopped when he noticed that his pocket was empty. The guy continued to chat about something and walked a little further away before noticing that Wine had fallen behind him.

"Why did you stop, Wine?"  The guy turned around.

"I dropped the flower you gave me."  Wine walked back the way they had just come.

“I'll give you a thousand more of the same flowers, don't worry about this lost one.” The guy paused. “Oh, it's already raining, let's quickly return to the shelter and look for a flower after the rain.” The guy grumbled.

"Oh, there it is!” Wine stopped in front of a small flower that was lying on the road. He picked it up carefully, despite the downpour that had clouded his glasses. Wine turned around with a bright smile and looked at the guy. "I found it."

The guy responded with a smile, but after a moment, shock showed on his face. Wine froze when a bright light illuminated him. Hearing the screech of brakes, Wine squeezed his eyes shut, preparing for the worst. But instead of being hit by a car, he felt a warm body slam into him, and they both fell to the hard ground.

Wine woke up with a start. He took a few moments to calm his breathing, finally taking a deep breath, Wine looked around. The room became even darker than before he fell asleep, now he couldn't even see the sunflower on the windowsill, but only its dark silhouette. Listening, Wine heard the soft patter of rain on the glass, and it looked like it was starting to rain. Although Wine did not remember his dream, he knew that it was also raining and there were a lot of yellow balls. Wine sighed and got up from the couch to get ready for bed. Sunflower saw him off, drooping sadly.

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

After waking up, Wine felt tired because he hadn't been able to sleep for a long time last night. He blamed it on a strange afternoon dream that he didn't even remember. Wine came into the living room to see sunflower enthusiastically waving at him, delighted by his presence.

"Good morning." Wine muttered, moving closer to the windowsill. "How was your night?" Wine carefully ran his fingertips over the petals and leaves of the plant. The sunflower enthusiastically fluttered its petals and nodded to him, which Wine took as an answer, which meant that everything was fine with him. At that moment, Wine's gaze fell on a petal that had fallen onto the windowsill and was almost dry. "Oh, maybe watering alone is not enough." Wine turned around, looking for his laptop. “I have to look for more information about the care.”

Wine sat down at the table and opened the search box to find information about indoor sunflowers. Soon, he discovered several names for fertilizers that would make sunflower flowers brighter and more lush. After writing down their names in notes, Wine decided to look for what has been bothering him lately.

⌕ Why Can't I Remember My Dreams? |

Wine entered the query and was surprised to find a lot of responses. But after a while and after looking at a lot of sites, he realized that they all boiled down to a few common types of responses. They included: a protective mechanism of the psyche, insufficient attention to dreams and something related to too short or frequent phases of REM sleep. Wine sighed when he realized that this did not answer his question in any way. He was about to close the laptop when he accidentally opened a website.

Anon Phuwakomol is a professional fortune teller and dream reader

The site's sign read, and Wine winced at the site's bright design and the oversized dreamcatcher behind the sign. Under the name of the predictor, Wine also found a mysterious quote:

"Our dreams can carry valuable information when we consciously choose to start listening to them"

Although Wine was skeptical, he nevertheless decided to scroll through the site and discovered several facts about the creator, about dreams, and reviews from his clients, who praised his professionalism and kind nature. Also at the end of the page was the person's phone number and email address. Wine wasn't going to succumb to this mystique, but the additional message that the first video call was free convinced Wine to give it a try. He sighed and wrote to the post office, and soon he received a reply that the fortune teller would contact him tonight. It seems that despite his popularity, he wasn't such a busy and hard-to-reach person. Nodding to himself, Wine got up and went to the kitchen to have breakfast in peace, glad to think that today was his day off and maybe he would find answers to a few of his questions.

After breakfast, Wine flipped through the channels on the TV, lingering on each one for no more than ten seconds. After Ben and Jay refused him a walk, saying they had already gone home, Wine couldn't think of anything better than watching movies to pass the time. However, he couldn't find anything that would catch his attention. Finally, he decided to opt for a cartoon about dragons, which he had watched a couple of times before. Wine watched in fascination as the main character flew on a dragon, but soon Wine stopped paying attention to the cartoon and fatigue from a sleepless night overcame him, and he fell asleep. The sunflower humbly let go of its head when one of the petals began to burn brightly under the rays of the sun.

Wine woke up from a jolt and, opening his eyes, he saw that his boat had collided with a small green island. Looking up, Wine noticed that many similar islets stretched further towards the shore of a larger island. Wine stood up on the wobbly boat, and with his bare feet carefully stepped onto the nearest island. Despite the similarity to the islands, this place was a flooded forest with green grass hidden under the water. Soon, Wine reached a larger island, and he gazed in fascination at the dense forest that stretched out in front of him. Hesitating to enter the forest, Wine looked around and noticed that the island he had sailed from looked small, although he could make out the wooden houses that were closer to the shore. Sighing, Wine looked back at the forest.

He took a couple of cautious steps, making his way through the dense thickets of the forest. It would be easy to get lost here, but Wine knew that he should only go forward to reach his destination. The dense foliage of the perennial trees practically blocked the sun's rays, but soon a sunny clearing opened up in front of Wine. The bright yellow flowers created a sharp contrast with the dark foliage. Wine decided that he needed some rest before a long hike and went out into the clearing. As he got closer, Wine found out that the bright yellow flowers were dandelions, which were blooming luxuriantly. Wine sat down at the edge of the clearing to admire the flowers and not harm them. Wine froze when he heard soft footsteps behind him.

“They seem to be so bright that even the sun itself is drawn to them.” Said a quiet voice and Wine turned around. The guy smiled when he caught his eye and sat down next to him. However, he wasn't just an onlooker like Wine, instead he reached out and plucked a couple of flowers.

“I don't think so.” Wine objected, watching the work of the guy who started to weave a flower crown. “It seems to me that the sun is glad that there are flowers on earth that can symbolize its light. Even in a gloomy and dark forest like this.”

“In that case, dandelions are selfish." The guy reached for more flowers. Catching Wine's questioning look, the guy smiled.

“But why are they selfish?” Wine gently touched the soft flower.

“What about the other way?” The guy paused, concentrating on weaving a couple more flowers into the future crown. “They only follow the sun – they bloom in full force when the sun is at its zenith, but as soon as the sun disappears below the horizon, dandelions immediately hide. They only give their beauty to their idol.”

"However..." Wine paused to form his thought better. “However, I do not consider this to be a manifestation of selfishness, it is more like loyalty.” Wine looked at the guy next to him. "Aren't they considered the flower of loyalty in some nations? Perhaps this is due to their loyalty to the sun rather than the world. They are so loyal to the sun that they have taken its form.”

“They are so loyal to the sun that they have taken its form.” The guy quietly repeated Wine's words. Wine waited, hoping that the guy would say something else, however, they fell into silence. The guy continued to weave a flower crown, periodically reaching for new flowers, and Wine quietly watched him.

When they met eyes again, the guy couldn't stand it and smiled.

"I still haven't asked you what brought you to my forest."

“My people want to open a hunt for the dragon that lives on the mountain behind this forest.” The guy froze after Wine's words.

“And you came to find him so that it would be easier for your people?” The guy stopped making the crown and looked at Wine.

"I came to warn the dragon.” Wine replied softly.

"And why is that? Isn't this monster preventing your people from living?” Although the guy let go of his gaze, Wine managed to notice that his eyes were burning with fire.

"I don't think he's a monster. And I'm doing this because I know that the dragon has been having a hard time since my people settled on the neighboring island. We have set traps in this forest and it makes life difficult for the dragon who hunts to survive.” Wine noticed that the guy continued to weave the flower crown slowly, listening to his words. "That's why I think it's only fair to warn the dragon before my people kill him."

"I like your tactics, Wine.  The guy raised his head and smiled brightly. "But aren't you afraid of him? What if the dragon thinks you've come to kill him too?”

Wine paused, thinking. He really didn't think that events could take such a turn. What if the dragon kills him before he can warn him?

"Oh, Wine.” The guy smiled and quietly addressed him, Wine looked at him. “Fortunately, I appeared on your way – the one who will save you from certain death!”

"You think so?"  Wine looked at the guy suspiciously.

"Ah! Your distrust hurts me!” The guy said dramatically and put his hand on the left side of his chest. Wine laughed softly because of his acting. The guy froze and looked at him seriously, Wine fell silent and looked away, unable to withstand such a gaze. "Damn, you're so cute!"  The guy suddenly reached out and wrapped Wine in a tight hug. Wine hid face in his shoulder, glad that he wouldn't notice his blush.

After a couple of moments, the guy moved away slightly, but Wine continued to sit with his head down and fought with his blush. They sat in silence, broken only by a soft melody, which the guy sang softly under his breath. Feeling the weight on his head, Wine froze and carefully raised his head.

“As I thought.” The guy smiled proudly to himself, without taking his sparkling eyes off Wine. “You look beautiful surrounded by bright flowers.” However, under the weight of a sad thought, the guy slumped his shoulders. “I wish I could capture this moment.” The guy lowered his voice. “I definitely have to do it again, and this time I will not miss my chance.” The guy with fire in his eyes raised his head. “Absolutely!”

Catching Wine's questioning look, the guy awkwardly cleared his throat.

"So, I think we should get moving if we want to find the dragon before it gets dark."

 “Um.” Wine hesitated. “Yes, I agree.” Wine stood next to the guy, who headed back into the dark forest, leaving behind a clearing with flowers.

When they reached the top of the hill, Wine noticed a cliff a little ahead. Approaching the edge of the cliff, Wine froze, fascinated by the view. The sun was slowly sinking below the horizon, turning the endless sea orange. Wine looked up and saw fluffy clouds in shades of gold and pink.

"That's why I didn't want to leave this island.” Wine looked at the guy who stood next to him. His eyes reflected the setting sun as he looked at Wine. “In fact, no flower can compare with the real sun.”

Wine nodded at him, and the guy carefully plucked a fluffy white ball of dandelion.

"But life is fleeting.” The guy continued. Wine watched as the dandelion seeds scattered over the sea with a light breeze. The guy looked at Wine, meeting his gaze. “Let's fly away together.”

“ What?” Wine tensed up and took a step back, breaking eye contact. “What do you mean?”

“Don't you want to fly up?” The guy took a quick glance at Wine and looked at the horizon. “Be closer to the horizon? Closer to the real sun, rather than those who just imitate it.”

"But if I fall?" Wine looked at the guy who approached him.

"But what if you fly up?"  The guy took Wine's hands in his and looked straight into Wine's eyes. The guy brought his face closer and Wine closed his eyes. A moment later, Wine blinked in disbelief, feeling a light kiss on the tip of his nose. The guy across from him was smiling, and Wine felt a slight blush heating his cheeks. "Do you trust me, Wine?"

"I trust you, Faifa.” Wine nodded. The guy's smile became brighter and more sincere, he slightly pulled Wine along with him.

"Come with me."

Wine intertwined their fingers and followed the guy to the edge of the cliff. The guy stopped, standing with his back to the cliff, and looked at Wine. He gently pulled Wine into his arms and took a step back. Wine squeezed his eyes shut tightly when he could no longer feel the ground under his feet.

Someone's quiet and soft voice in Wine's head started counting down:

... three... two... one!

Wine squeezed his eyes shut even tighter, preparing for the impact that was about to happen. But in the next instant, Wine felt the body in his arms begin to transform. Driven by curiosity, Wine opened his eyes slightly and saw white scales and a serpentine body that soared into the sky. Having gained height, the dragon froze, allowing Wine to settle on his back. Even though Wine had a firm grip on the creature's horns, at the same time, he felt dependable based on trust in it. Wine raised his head and saw how the sun illuminated everything with a warm golden light, creating a sense of calm. The wind brushed his skin lightly, giving him a sense of freedom.

As the dragon continued its promised journey closer to the sun, Wine felt his heart fill with lightness and inexplicable feelings.

Opening his eyes, Wine saw the ceiling of his apartment and took a deep breath. The setting sun created strange patterns on the ceiling as Wine tried to calm his heart, which felt too light, like a balloon. Looking around, Wine realized that a couple of hours had passed while he had a dream that he did not remember. After checking the time on his phone, Wine abruptly sat down, because he had only twenty minutes left before the video call with the predictor. Wine turned off the still-running TV and ran to the bathroom to tidy himself up.

Wine placed the sunflower on the table next to the laptop that was turned on. He hoped it would provide him with moral support while he talked to the fortune teller. Wine carefully touched a leaf of the plant, afraid to disturb its petals, due to the fact that he had found another one on the windowsill earlier. The sunflower responded to his touch with a soft touch on Wine's wrist, perhaps even the plant felt Wine's excitement. Wine sighed.

"It's going to be okay.” Wine said, trying to convince himself or the sunflower.

When Wine saw the call request, he straightened up and accepted it.

A slightly blurred image of dense dark curtains with some dried flowers hung on them appeared on the laptop screen. Wine frowned, it seemed there were also deer antlers. Wine prayed quietly, hoping that it was just an imitation and no one would use the real ones nowadays. Finally, his gaze shifted to the table on which the camera was standing, and Wine noticed a magic ball with white smoke inside. The predictor himself was not visible, but Wine heard voices behind the camera.

"Are you sure this is necessary, Pipo?"

"Don't worry about it, Arm. I assure you, adding smoke will make your image more mysterious and convincing.” At that moment, Wine saw white smoke fill the room.

The camera shook slightly and Wine frowned.

“Guys, I'm sorry to interrupt, but our client is already here.” There was a third voice behind the camera.

"Damn it, Sand!" Said the first voice. "Why didn't you say that before?"  Wine heard a hurried flicker and the smoke became even more intense. "Stop it, Pipo!” Wine heard a quiet apology.

For a moment, everything was silent, but soon Wine heard soft music and a guy sat down in front of him.

“Greetings, I am Anon Phuwakomol, a professional fortune teller and dream reader.” The guy smiled warmly at him, and Wine felt less nervous.

“Um, hi, I'm Wine Witsawa.” Wine said softly, and the guy nodded at him, still smiling with sparkling eyes.

"All right, Wine.” The fortune teller took out a notebook and wrote something down. "You can tell me what's bothering you."

 Wine looked away and looked at the sunflower. "It's all about dreams.”

“Okay.” The fortune teller nodded seriously and made a note in his notebook. Lifting his head, he looked at Wine. "So, is there something wrong with the dreams?"

“The main problem is that I don't remember them.” Wine frowned, lost in thought, and carefully ran his finger over a sunflower leaf. “It seems like they have important information in them, but I can't remember anything. But there is something strange...” Wine nodded, unsure if he should continue.

“What is it?” The fortune teller nudged him. “You don't have to tell me if you're uncomfortable.”

“It's just that every time I wake up from strong emotions.”

"Like a nightmare?"  Anon frowned. “Nightmares cause quite strong and disturbing emotions.”

“No.” Wine shook his head. “The day before yesterday, it really seemed to be a nightmare, because I cried in my sleep, although I don't remember what could have caused such emotions.” Wine flinched slightly as sunflower ran a leaf over his wrist. The fortune teller frowned, trying to see what had caused his reaction, but the sunflower was not visible. Wine cleared his throat, drawing his attention to himself. “Yesterday it was more surprise than fear. But today...” Wine lowered his gaze. “Today I felt like my heart was soaring.”

"It's really weird.” Anon nodded and wrote something down in his notebook. He thought for a moment, tapping the tip of his pen on the table. “It's hard to explain, but I get the feeling that a demon is interfering in your dreams.”

"A demon?" Wine frowned and shifted uneasily in his chair. "What do you mean? Is it bad? Am I cursed?”

“No, no.” Anon waved his hands negatively, almost knocking over the magic ball with his hands, and smiled awkwardly. "It's not about the curse. It's just that demons are able to interfere with human dreams and wake up their owners, causing strong emotions.” The fortune teller rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “But here's what makes me doubt: people usually remember such dreams. Perhaps this particular demon is limited in his powers due to certain circumstances.”

"But where could I have met a demon?"  Wine asked, but the fortune teller took a quick glance behind the camera, where some kind of scuffle could be heard.

"What is it?"  He spoke in a loud whisper to the people behind the camera.

“Time!” Someone answered him.

“Ah."  The fortune teller turned his attention back to Wine. “I must apologize, the time of our first trial meeting is over. Would you like to sign up for a second one?”

"Uh."  Wine took a quick glance at the clock above the table and realized that ten minutes had passed. “Will the next meeting last longer?”

“Yes, of course.” Anon smiled sweetly at him. “You can find out the prices and duration of meetings on our website.” The Fortune teller waved goodbye to him. “And now, goodbye.”

"Good-bye." Wine replied quickly. Anon smiled at him and the camera turned off, although Wine could still hear their voices.

“Do you think he'll come again, Arm?”

“I don't know.”

"I think he still has a lot of questions."  A third voice replied. “The part about the demon was really impressive, I almost believed it myself.”

"It's true, Sand.”

“Oh.” The two replied in unison and the sound stopped.

"Oh." Wine thought. It really seems like it's going to be difficult to figure this out. In addition, everything was complicated by the fact that he could not remember anything from his dream.

Opening the Anon Phuwakomol’s website again, Wine quickly looked at the prices and decided that a thirty-minute meeting would be enough. If not, he can sign up again. After making the request, Wine received an email with the time for tomorrow's meeting and turned off his laptop. He carefully returned the sunflower to the windowsill and, patting it on the leaf in farewell, Wine went to the bedroom.

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

After studying, Wine decided to take a short walk with Ben and Jay, who enthusiastically talked about their weekend. They sat down on one of the benches next to the lake in the park near Wine's apartment, and Ben began to talk about a new idea for the video, which the three of them had to repeat. Jay just sighed at his words, and Wine nodded. Although it sounded confusing, it was also quite interesting, and Wine agreed, hoping that it would help him distract himself.

Ben froze in mid-sentence, and Jay blinked in surprise and nudged Wine with his elbow. Wine frowned and looked where Jay pointed him. On the other side, Wine noticed a guy walking with the demon in his true form and chatting rapidly about something, while the demon only nodded at his words. Although it was quite normal to meet a demon on the street and no one was surprised, it was still rare. When they were out of sight, Wine remembered something.

"I should have stopped them.” He jumped up from the bench, but Jay pulled him back down.

"Are you crazy?" Jay grumbled with displeasure. "You didn't see that the demon was in its true form.”

“ Yes.” Ben nodded at his words without looking up from playing on his phone. "If you had approached them, the demon wouldn't even have looked at you twice before going into defensive mode.”

"But I had a question.” Wine pouted and crossed his arms over his chest. "It was about my dreams.”

“Do these dreams still torment you?” Jay gently put his hand on Wine's shoulder.

“I talked to a fortune teller and a dream reader yesterday, and he said that it might be related to a demon that interferes with my dreams.”

"I told you, this sunflower is weird!" Ben exclaimed as soon as Wine finished his sentence. Jay nodded at him.

"It's not about the sunflower, it's about the demon.” Wine looked at his friends with displeasure.

"Didn't this start happening after you took him home?” Jay told.

“No, daytime dreams have become the norm for me since I entered university.” Wine sighed. “And the emotions they evoke are most likely related to the stress of studying. I don't know any demons, so I don't think they care about me.”

Ben and Jay nodded thoughtfully.

“It really is.”

Soon they started discussing Ben's video ideas again and forgot about Wine's demons and dreams. After several hours of walking, Wine finally returned to the apartment. Sunflower immediately noticed him and waved affably, Wine smiled and approached him.

"You know, I saw a demon in its true form today.” Wine said enthusiastically. "He was walking with an ordinary person, and it was quite impressive.” Wine gently touched a sunflower leaf. “But Ben said you could be a hidden demon too." Wine frowned for a moment. "You would have told me, right?"

Sunflower nodded at him and Wine smiled again.

“Thanks. Know that I trust you.” Wine whispered softly and stroked the sunflower's leaves. The sunflower responded with a gentle flutter of petals, and Wine's smile grew brighter.

Deciding to do something productive before the next video call with the dream reader, Wine decided to read a book. But it wasn't the best decision, and Wine realized it after another yawn that he couldn't hold back. With a soft sigh, Wine set the alarm clock so as not to oversleep the video call and settled himself more comfortably on the sofa cushion. Falling asleep, he did not pay attention to the sunflower, which was watching him with impatience and joy, while one of its petals was burning gold.

“Prince, wake up, we have arrived.” Someone gently touched Wine's shoulder and he opened his eyes, waking up. He blinked sleepily a couple of times and looked at his assistant, who was about to get out of the carriage. "Prince, we must hurry, the ball will start soon.”

"Oh, yeah.” Wine nodded at him and carefully got down from the carriage. Stepping onto solid ground illuminated by the golden light from the palace, Wine raised his head to freeze in surprise. The palace of the neighboring kingdom opened before him in all its grandeur: with windows from which golden light poured and shadows danced; with columns behind which curious guests hid and with the main doors through which a crowd of guests was heading. Wine and his assistant joined the crowd and soon found themselves in a large hall. Wine looked around the crowd in surprise, greeting everyone who approached him.

“Thank you for accepting my invitation, Prince Witsawa.”

Hearing a familiar voice, Wine turned his head to look at the person who came up. Wine turned to greet the man.

"I must thank you for the invitation, Prince Wognate.” Wine smiled at him.

"We've been friends for quite some time, so there's no need for these formalities, Wine.” The man returned his smile. “Just Tor is enough, Wine.” The man held out his hand. "Let me ask you to dance."

 Wine took his hand and they walked to the center of the room. The crowd immediately parted and formed a circle upon seeing the two princes. The orchestra began to play a calm melody, and the guests came up curiously to take a look at their dance. Wine frowned when he felt someone else's hand on his waist, but he quickly returned the smile before anyone noticed. He gently put his hand on Tor's shoulder, and they began to dance. From time to time, Wine heard enthusiastic comments from guests who praised their dancing and how they harmonized together.

When the melody ended and was replaced by another, Tor and Wine left the circle and went to the corner of the hall to rest.

“Brother, Prince Witsawa, you were amazing! This dance looked like it came out of the pages of a fairy tale!” Wine raised his head to see that the prince's younger sister had approached them. Noticing his gaze, she bowed. “Ah, forgive my manners, Prince Witsawa. Let me welcome you first.”

"I would also like to welcome you, Princess Toey.” Wine gave her a soft smile. She quickly turned away to look at her brother, but Wine noticed a slight blush on her cheeks.

“Brother, this is not fair!” She pouted. Catching the prince's questioning look, she continued. “You gave Prince Witsawa a dance, so please dance with your little sister!”

“Wine.” Tor looked at Wine and smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry, but I have to leave you alone for a while.”

"It's okay, Tor.” Wine smiled back at him. “Don't worry about me and have a good time with your sister.”

Prince Tor nodded to him and, taking his sister by the hand, walked towards the center of the hall. Wine watched them disappear into the crowd and picked up a glass of champagne. Wine took a small sip as he listened to the crowd praising the Prince and Princess of Vognate.

"Just imagine how our kingdom will change after their wedding to Prince Witsawa.” Wine froze when he heard his name and put the glass back on the table. “The king and queen promised the throne to the one who first finds a life partner, but it seems that both heirs have set their sights on the same person.”

"Don't be silly! Obviously, there's only one winner in this race, and that's the prince.” Someone intervened in the conversation. “You saw that Prince Witsawa doesn't even look at the princess.”

"Whoever Prince Witsawa chooses, the result will be the same anyway - the unification of the kingdoms.” Said a third voice. "I'll tell you a secret, but I've heard that the reigning king already has plans for this kingdom, so it's only a matter of time before he gets married to one of the heirs.”

The others agreed with this, and they changed the topic to discuss the ladies' dress and their companions' costumes. Wine frowned as he felt the pressure from their words. He wasn't going to choose between a prince and a princess, they were his friends and he didn't see them as life partners. But on the other hand, Wine understood that he would have no say in this matter if his parents agreed. Feeling a heaviness in his chest, Wine decided to leave the gym to look for a more peaceful place.

Walking through the dark corridors of the palace, Wine decided to turn around the corner, where, a little further, as he remembered, there was a garden. It is there that he will be able to find the peace he so longs for. Immersed in his worries, Wine did not notice the man who stepped out of the shadows and bumped into him.

“I'm sorry.” Wine bowed and was about to continue on his way when the hooded man grabbed his hands tightly. Wine frowned and tried to pull his hands out of someone else's grip, but the man held him tightly. He suddenly raised his head and stared at Wine with golden eyes that shone brightly in the night. Wine tensed and retreated in fear, but the man continued to stare at him intently and suddenly spoke in a detached voice.

“In the hour when the moon illuminates the world with silver light, and the silence becomes almost tangible, you will feel the approach of true love. Fate weaves the threads of time, and a meeting with a lover is inevitable. Look into the depths of the night, and you will see not just stars, but signs pointing the way. Listen to your heart, it will not deceive. Love will come when you are ready to open up to it, and you will know your fate at the most unexpected moment. May every step bring you closer to this magical moment, and may love become your guiding star in the world of mysteries and riddles.”

Wine froze, listening to his words. The man blinked and his eyes returned to normal. He abruptly released Wine's hands and smiled at him. Before Wine could ask him anything, the man bowed and ran off, disappearing around a bend.

Wine shook his head, pushing away unnecessary thoughts and continued on his way to the garden. After leaving the palace, Wine stopped to look at the bright moon that illuminated the garden. Wine went further into the garden to hide from prying eyes and sat down in one of the gazebos, which were hidden between dense foliage. Finally, Wine felt that he could breathe calmly without feeling the pressure of other people's expectations.

After a while, Wine looked around and noticed small dark blue and purple flowers in the corner of the garden. Fascinated by their beauty, Wine came out of the gazebo and walked towards them. He sat down in front of a small bush and gently touched the petal of a nearby flower.

"They're so beautiful, but why are they hidden in the depths of the garden?” Wine frowned and plucked one of the flowers to inhale their sweet scent.

“After learning the story behind their name, the prince asked to get rid of them.” A voice answered, and Wine abruptly stood up to see who it was. But there was no one in the garden, and only in the shadows did Wine notice someone's silhouette.

“Prince Wognate is not such a cruel person that he would get rid of such beautiful flowers because of some story.” Wine replied.

“Prince Witsawa, you would do the same if you knew the secret of these flowers.” Wine noticed the quiet anger in the man's voice, which he was trying to hide. The guy sighed, trying to calm down, and crossed his arms over his chest. “Let me tell you an ancient myth about this flower.” The guy turned, disappearing into the shadows, and Wine followed his voice. “This story began when a humble nymph, whose name has been erased from history over the past centuries, fell in love with a god as bright as the sun itself, whom he ruled.” They passed through the archway and Wine realized that they had entered the labyrinth of the palace garden. “However, no matter how strong the love of this nymph was, her lover never paid attention to her. But this did not stop the nymph, and every day she longingly watched the movement of the sun's disk in the sky.” The guy confidently walked along the hedges, and Wine followed him passing turn after turn. “The gods, enchanted by her devotion and love, gave the lovesick nymph the form of a flower, whose name meant "to turn after the Sun", so that she could rejoice watching her god. And since then, heliotropes, like sunflowers, have followed the sun.” The guy froze and Wine stopped a couple of steps behind him.

“This story is tragic, but at the same time beautiful, like the flowers themselves.” Wine said, breaking the silence. "So why did Prince Wognate order them to be destroyed?"

"Maybe it's because of me." Wine heard the grin in the voice of the guy who was still standing with his back to him. “Perhaps I got some facts wrong and mentioned that these flowers are cursed by everyone with the same tragic love as themselves.”

"But why did you lie to the prince?"  Wine asked, frowning.

“Because I know one truth.”  The guy stepped forward and Wine followed him. The guy stopped again when they turned around. Despite his curiosity, Wine couldn't see what was ahead because of the guy's broad back. “This truth is simple and logical, like the change of the moon and the sun in the sky. It lies in the fact that the only person I want to show these flowers to is you, my prince.” The guy stepped aside and Wine gasped in surprise when he saw a clearing filled with purple and dark blue flowers, whose petals glittered under the moonlight. "Will you allow me?"  Wine looked at the guy and saw that he was holding out his hand. He took the guy's hand without hesitation. The guy smiled at him and pulled him towards the flowers, Wine followed him.

When they reached the middle of the clearing, the guy stopped and turned to Wine. He gently took him by both hands and looked into his eyes.

“Perhaps my beauty will never compare to the beauty of these flowers.” The guy gently released one of Wine's hands and ran his free hand through his hair. At that moment, Wine noticed small black horns that glinted slightly under the moonlight, disappearing under his hair again. Catching his eye, the guy smiled faintly. "I know my ancestry is scary.” Wine opened his mouth to protest, but the guy shook his head and continued. "There's no need to say anything, my prince, your presence by my side is already enough. Like a nymph from a myth, I can't dream of more than just looking at you.” Still holding Wine's hand, the guy got down on one knee and Wine felt the heat rising on his face as the guy looked up at him with a soft smile. "But at times like this, I feel selfish and wish Prince Witsava wouldn't look at anyone like that anymore." The guy lowered his head, and Wine felt his warm breath on the back of his hand. “While the lonely moon, surrounded by millions of its minions, stars, is our quiet observer, let me show my selfishness.” Wine looked away in embarrassment as the guy placed a light kiss on the ring finger of his left hand. Seeing the unexpected brilliance, Wine lowered his head to see a ring appear in place of the kiss under the moonlight.

"Faifa, this is–" Wine gasped in surprise and looked at the guy.

"That's my promise, Wine.” The guy stood up and pulled Wine into a hug. “A promise to always be by your side.” Wine hugged the guy back tightly, holding back tears.

Wine blinked slowly as he felt the sleep leave him. He raised his left hand and frowned when he saw that his ring finger was empty. Wine turned his hand a few times, but he still couldn't find anything, although he still couldn't figure out what he was looking for. It seems like something valuable, but what?

Wine was startled when the sound of the alarm clock snapped him out of his thoughts. He fumbled for his phone to turn off the alarm. Wine slowly sat down and got up from the couch, because there were about ten minutes left before the meeting with the predictor. He stretched, holding his arms high to shake off sleep, and headed for the bathroom. At that moment, the sunflower hid behind the leaves in embarrassment.

After settling into yesterday's place, Wine opened his laptop and looked at the sunflower, which was strangely quiet. It wasn't that he usually made any sounds, but even his silent presence was quite loud. Wine gently poked it with the tip of his finger and the sunflower shuddered, as if waking up from his thoughts.

"Is everything okay?"  Wine asked softly, carefully following the sunflower's every move. Sunflower nodded at him and started to explain something hurriedly, but Wine just frowned, not having time to understand him. Sunflower let go of his head as if he sighed tiredly, but before he could continue, the laptop screen lit up due to a video call request. Wine gently stroked a sunflower leaf and accepted the call.

“Hello, Wine!” Wine winced as the man on the other side of the monitor greeted him loudly.

“Hello, Mr. Anon.”

“Don't be so formal, it's not our first meeting.” The fortune teller waved his hand and Wine awkwardly smiled at his words.  He approached the camera as if he wanted to share a secret, and Wine followed suit. “Something tells me that we will be strongly connected in the future.” Wine frowned and nodded. Arm smiled and continued as if nothing had happened. “So, did you have any strange dreams today?”

“To be honest ...” Wine looked at his left hand, looking for an answer to an unasked question. “Actually, yes. After that, I had a strange feeling that there should be something on my left arm, but I can't remember what.”

"Okay, don't worry about it. “ Arm made notes in his notebook. “Perhaps the answer will come to you over time.” Arm raised his head, meeting his gaze. "I think you have some questions for me."

"Uh, yeah.” Wine nodded. “I wanted to ask about what you said yesterday about the demon and dreams. It's just that I saw a demon today and thought I might ask them for help.”

“As I mentioned yesterday, demons can interfere with our dreams.” Arm said thoughtfully. “But, fortunately, they don't do this all the time, imagine what kind of chaos would start because of this.  Arm smiled. “In their normal state, they are quite capable of controlling their abilities, but if something upsets the balance of power within them, they can lose control.”

“But what can upset this balance?” Wine frowned.

“In fact, the circumstances can be completely different.” Arm leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest, thinking. “Starting from a disease, for example, a common cold.” Arm chuckled at his own words, remembering something funny. “Finishing –“

 “Arm!” Someone's loud off-screen voice interrupted Arm's speech and he looked at them with displeasure. “You have a call!”

"I'll answer later."  Arm replied with displeasure, but looked at Wine and smiled sweetly. “ So-“

“This is Gun, and he wrote that it was serious.” A guy with fluffy hair appeared in the frame. He nodded to Wine, handing the phone to Arm, and disappeared off-screen again.

“I'm sorry, I'll answer.” Arm looked guiltily at Wine, and Wine nodded at him, leaning back in his chair.

As soon as Arm accepted the call, someone's loud voice was heard on the phone.

“Arm! Arm! Arm!" The man on the other end of the line whined loudly, repeating the name of the predictor.

"What is it, Gun?" Arm sighed.

"We've lost Faifa!"

"What!?" Arm exclaimed and jumped up from his seat. "What do you mean 'lost Faifa'?"

"Actually, it's my fault.” Another, calmer voice answered instead of Gun. Wine frowned because the voice sounded familiar to him.

“Yotha~!” Gun stretched out his name pitifully. "It's all my fault, I shouldn't have left him alone with the potions."

"With potions?" Arm rubbed his forehead tiredly. “Tell me in order what happened.”

“ So.” Gun began in a calmer and more serious voice. “Three days ago, Faifa came to our store and complained that he was not feeling very well.” Arm nodded at him. “But at that moment, I almost ruined the potion, so I left him alone, giving instructions on where to look for the right potion. When I went back to the store, Faifa was gone, all that was left was...” Wine didn't hear the end of the sentence, because Gun started whining again and Yotha interrupted his speech.

“Then Beagle came to me to explain the situation, but before he could say anything, the client came. And so we lost Faifa because I accidentally sold him."

"And you're saying it's been three days?"Arm sighed wearily. “Why didn't you contact me earlier?”

There was an awkward silence on the other end of the line until Yotha answered.

"We tried to find him ourselves.”

"At first, we used a tracking potion, but it turned out to be useless because it only showed the places where Faifa was most often. But today we used our last hope, the demonic connection of the souls of Yotha and Faifa.

“And as I understand it, it also turned out to be useless.” Arm replied wearily.

“At first, it seemed that we were really on the right track, because we literally saw this golden thread that led to Faifa.” Gun sighed. "But then, as with the tracking potions, this thread only led us to the house where Faifa's apartment is located.”

“ Okay.” Arm nodded at his words and cast a quick glance at Wine, who was still waiting for him. “As soon as I finish my meeting with the client, I will ask Arc to help us.”

"Thanks, Arm!" Gun and Yotha replied in unison and hung up.

"I'm sorry about that.” Arm sat down, putting down his phone, and looked at Wine. He took a quick glance at the people behind the scenes and nodded to himself. "I'm sorry, but we only have five minutes left. Do you want me to reschedule our meeting for another day?”

“No need yet, I would like you to find your lost friend without worrying about me.” Wine replied softly.

“Thanks.” Arm smiled brightly at him. He pulled the magic ball closer to him. "Then let me make a little prediction.”

“Okay.” Wine nodded at him and Arm touched the magic ball with his fingertips. Wine watched in fascination as the white smoke dissipated, replaced by someone's dark silhouette. Wine frowned as the image was replaced by something darker. He looked up and looked worriedly at Arm, who had closed his eyes and was frowning in concentration. After a couple of moments, Arm nodded to himself and opened his eyes, they glittered slightly golden as he continued to stare at the ball.

“In the night, when the stars whisper secrets, and the wind plays with shadows, you will hear the soft whisper of fate. The one you've been looking for for so long is already close. Fate is leading you along the path of meetings, and the right door is about to open. Look carefully around, and you will see a sign that will show the way to sincere feelings. Be open to unexpected turns, and you will meet the right person in the most unexpected place.” Wine frowned, these words seemed familiar to him, but before he could ask anything, Arm smiled sweetly at him and said goodbye.

Wine slowly closed the laptop and looked at sunflower, who looked more worried than before.

"Is something wrong?"  Wine asked quietly. Sunflower shook his head negatively. "If everything's okay, then why do you look worried?"  Wine frowned, could something be bothering the sunflowers? Do sunflowers actually feel anxious? Wine nodded to himself, he is sure that this particular one is quite capable. Wine lowered his head to the table, putting his arm under it. Although the new angle was a little uncomfortable, Wine did not look away and continued to stare at the sunflower. "Please tell me what's bothering you."

Sunflower lowered his head and pointed at the laptop. Wine frowned.

"Is it because of what the fortune teller said about demons? Are you afraid?”

 Sunflower nodded, but after a moment shook his head negatively.

"So you're not afraid?"

Sunflower nodded at his words.

"But it's still related to what Arm said.”

Another nod. Wine thought for a moment, trying to remember what else Arm was talking about.

 “Are you worried about a friend who was lost–sold- by Arm's friends?”

Sunflower froze and nodded slowly.

"I can contact Arm and ask how the search is going, if you want."  Wine suggested, but sunflower shook his head. Wine frowned.

“In this situation, you're not worried about a lost friend, right?”  Sunflower tensed up. Wine thought that if there was a man standing in front of him, he would have held his breath, caught off guard by his words.

"That this friend is causing trouble for others?"  Wine cautiously suggested, and to his surprise, sunflower nodded. Wine raised his head and looked seriously at the sunflower, which seemed to be trying to look smaller. “I know that I may be wrong, because I am speaking based only on what I have heard and I do not know the whole situation. But I don't think it's anyone's fault in this situation. A lost friend is not to blame for accidentally taking the wrong potion, and those who sold it are also not to blame, because they are really worried and trying to find it. This whole situation happened only because of inattention and is an accidental combination of circumstances. And I'm glad that they're trying to fix the situation in every way they can, and I hope that they'll succeed soon.” Upon hearing his words, sunflower perked up and nodded at him. He didn't seem to care so much anymore, so Wine smiled at him.

Tired of sitting, Wine moved and lay down on the sofa, pulling the sunflower closer to the sofa. Laying his head on the pillow, Wine looked up at the ceiling.

“So, let me tell you a story that I had a dream about last night.” Wine took a quick glance at the sunflower and smiled. “I hope this helps you to take your mind off your worries.”  Wine cleared his throat. “So, in a distant kingdom, there lived a brave knight. No one could match his courage and dedication to the crown. But this knight had one secret that he considered his shame and curse, and that was his ancestry. While all the other knights were proudly talking about their ancestors, who were dragons, mages, or powerful trolls capable of crushing an enemy with a single blow, our knight was silent. When someone asked him who his ancestors were, the knight smiled tightly and said that he grew up in an orphanage and did not know whose blood flowed in it. So soon the others lost interest and didn't ask him anymore, the knight was glad for that. After all, every time he wrote letters to his family, the knight asked his parents why he had this particular blood. But the knight never had the courage to send these letters, and they piled up on the shelf. He sent letters to his parents saying that he was fine, hoping that they would not find out that the knight cried every time he looked in the mirror. But the older the knight became, the more noticeable the features of his cursed ancestry became. He trained to control his powers, and rarely cut his hair to hide his horns. But no matter how hard he tried, the others noticed everything. They didn't say anything, but the knight saw how they looked at him. Unable to stand it, the knight began to appear less often next to others, he hid in his room or in the garden. The knight felt like he was drowning, until one day he met a prince from a neighboring kingdom. The knight watched with envy as the others talked to the prince and smiled at him, while the knight could only hide in the shade of the garden. But everything changed when the prince decided to take a walk in the garden and got lost. The knight who was shadowing the prince was caught off guard when the prince turned around, meeting his gaze. The knight was about to hide when the prince only smiled gently at him and waved his hand. The prince asked, "Oh, did they send you to find me?" and the knight just nodded at him. The prince smiled and asked to be escorted back. When they reached the edge of the garden, the knight stopped, the prince looked at him, but did not ask anything, even if he was curious. The prince left when he was called, and the knight looked after him with regret, because he knew that the prince would never return. But the next day, the prince got lost in the garden again, he looked with an awkward smile at the knight who helped him again. The prince said that this would not happen again, because he remembered the way, and the knight believed him. But every day it was the same – the prince wandered through the garden, and the knight followed him. This continued until the prince returned to his kingdom. The knight saw him off sadly, and it seemed to him that the prince shared his grief. The knight started writing letters to the prince, but he didn't have the courage to send them, because the mirror reminded him every day who he was. And one day, rumors of the Crown Prince's wedding to a prince from a neighboring kingdom reminded the knight of the place he occupied in this world. Returning to his room, the knight burned all the letters to the prince and broke the mirror. Since then, he began to visit the garden more often so as not to hear the others discussing the upcoming wedding. But everything changed when one evening the knight noticed the prince again in the garden next to the flowers.” Wine stopped and sighed. “But I do not know the rest, because at that moment I woke up.” Wine looked at the sunflower.  “I'm sorry, this story came out a little sad, but for some reason I'm sure that the knight had a happy ending with the prince.”

Wine stretched, settling himself more comfortably on the sofa cushions and covered himself with a blanket. Despite his daytime nap, Wine could feel the drowsiness that was taking over him.

"Good night." Wine muttered softly, wrapping himself in a blanket. Sunflower gently waved at him and Wine closed his eyes, falling asleep. The sunflower watched impatiently as one of its petals began to burn gold.

Wine winced as the warm pillow under his head began to move. He opened his eyes and saw a guilty smile.

"Sorry, Wine, did I wake you up?" The guy asked, sadly watching Wine sit down.

"No, Faifa, it's okay. I didn't sleep.” Wine smiled and leaned against someone else's shoulder, feeling sleepy despite his own words. “But what worried you?” Wine muttered softly, closing his eyes.

“Ah, it's just that I saw Yotha on stage and I was curious how the Beagle managed to convince him.” Even with his eyes closed, Wine could see Faifa smiling, which made Wine smile softly.

“I think Gun has his own ways.” Wine replied softly, but it was enough to make Faifa straighten up abruptly. Wine opened his eyes and discontentedly moved away from his shoulder, regretting his loss.

"Are you implying-?"

“Hey, guys, what are you talking about?” Wine noticed Gun, who came up to them, smiling gently.

“You really are–“

Wine quickly covered Faifa's mouth and smiled at Gun, who looked at them questioningly.

"I wanted to ask Faifa, are you really... um..." Wine hesitated and looked away. “Oh! Did you really tie Yotha's tie every morning?”

"Oh, that.” Gun awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. He sat down in front of them and Wine lowered Faifa, making sure that he wasn't going to ask stupid questions. Faifa shot Wine a sad look and looked at Gun, who started talking. “ Actually, it's true, I did it even on days when I was angry or sad about him. It seemed to be his weird way of apologizing.”

"But why?" Despite the randomness of the question, Wine was really interested.

"Because I love him."  Gun looked at the stage where Yotha was standing. “ Even when I didn't realize it yet, and I continued to love him even if he was the cause of my sadness.”

"But doesn't it hurt to love someone who makes you sad?"  Wine looked questioningly at Faifa, who stood up. Faifa just smiled at him and pointed towards the door. Wine watched him leave and turned his gaze to Gun.

“At first it was like that, but then something changed, and I realized that I wasn't the only one who felt pain.” Gun lowered his gaze. “Yotha also suffered, but his pain was different. While I was crying because he didn't love me, Yotha was in pain because he wasn't sure how he felt. He didn't want to hurt me with his insecurity, so he pulled away, but in the end it hurt me more.” Gun gave him a weak smile. “He said that he was afraid to fall in love because of his background. He grew up thinking that as long as the blood of his ancestors flowed in his veins, he would never be able to love. That's what he was trying to convince me of, but most of all he was trying to convince himself. But over time, Yotha realized that he loved me. He told me that the day he realized that all his thoughts were lies and that he could entrust his heart to me was the best day of his life.” Gun raised his gaze and looked at Wine. “Although it really hurt, I'm glad that I met Yotha and fell in love with him. After all, I can't imagine who I would have been or who I would have been able to love if Yotha hadn't come into my life.”

"I understand."  Wine nodded at him. He looked around the room and frowned when he didn't notice Faifa’s presence.

"What about you and Faifa?" Wine looked at Gun when he heard Gun's question. Gun smiled at him slyly, his eyes sparkling.

"What about us?"  Wine tilted his head uncomprehendingly.

"This is it."  Gun waved his hand vaguely, pointing at the entire Wine and the room at the same time. “I feel that there is something in the air between you.” Gun wiggled his eyebrows. “I'm talking about love.”

"Love?"  Wine repeated it slowly. "Me and Faifa?"  Wine blinked.

“Yes!” Gun nodded his head impatiently. “It's so obvious that everyone in this room seems to know about it.”

"Does everyone know?"  Wine felt his cheeks heat up at the thought. God, even his friends knew that. "But we're not dating."

“You don't have to date them to love someone.” Gun crossed his arms over his chest and nodded to himself. “Yotha and I started dating only a long time after we fell in love.” Gun looked at Wine seriously. “Love is not just a feeling that you are experiencing at the moment, Wine, love is a choice that you make every moment. It is a choice between being with this person or with another, or between seeing this person next to you in the future or leaving him in the past.” Gun pointed at Wine. “And you are the only one who makes this choice.”

"But what about Faifa?"  Wine frowned. "Isn't he making a choice too?"

“Faifa has obviously already made his choice.” Gun just smiled when he caught Wine's questioning look.

"What do you mean?"

But before Wine got an answer to his question, Yotha approached them.

"Beagle." Yotha called softly to Gun, who instantly jumped to his feet with a bright smile.

"Are you done?" Wine looked away when the brightness of Gun's smile caused him physical pain. Yotha smiled gently at Gun and nodded. "Okay, then we'll go."  Gun turned to Wine, who nodded at them and waved goodbye.

After they left, Wine looked around the room once more, but he still didn't see Faifa. He sighed softly, closed his eyes, and leaned back against the wall. Wine sat like that for a while, not paying attention to the chatter around him, but soon he heard soft footsteps next to him and opened his eyes. He saw Arm, who was smiling at him.

"Hey, Wine.” Arm stopped next to him.

“Hello.” Wine muttered softly, looking up at the elder. Instead of sitting next to him, Arm held out his hand.

"Come with me."

Wine nodded at him and stood up, taking the elder by the hand. Arm continued to talk about his day as they walked around campus, Wine nodding at his words, occasionally interjecting his comments. When they passed all the buildings Wine knew, he frowned.

“Arm, where are we going?”

“I can't say.” Arm replied without turning around and continued on his way. They walked a little more until Arm pulled them into a building and they stopped in front of an elevator. Wine looked at Arm, waiting for an explanation, but the elder just looked at the changing numbers with a soft smile, not paying attention to him.

When they got out of the elevator on the top floor, Arm headed for the stairs leading to the roof, and Wine followed him. The door opened with a loud creak and Wine saw Arc, Yotha and Gun on the roof, who seemed to be waiting for them. Wine looked around, but Faifa was not on the roof. Gun smiled at him.

"You can forgive us."

Wine frowned at his words.

"For what? I am not angry or offended with you.”

"I just wanted to ask, I'm glad you don't blame us." Gun walked up to him and held out his hand. Wine carefully placed his hand and Gun gently pulled him towards the middle of the roof. “Then I will be glad if you will fulfill one of our little requests.”

Before Wine could ask, Yotha approached them.

“Beagle, time is running out.” He gently stroked Gun's hair and looked at Wine. "Wine, I'm sorry if we did anything to hurt you. Even if it was unintentional, we don't want you to hold a grudge against us.”

"I'm not angry.” Wine repeated it carefully.

Yotha and Gun smiled gently at him and handed him a bracelet. Wine noticed the exact same one on their wrists, and it seemed to shine the same way in Arc and Arm's hands. Yotha motioned for him to extend his hand.

“I would like us to meet under other, more pleasant circumstances.” Yotha said softly, putting the bracelet on Wine's wrist. “However, no matter how our story begins, I hope that in the future we will be able to get along.” Yotha raised his head and looked at Wine. "I'm glad Faifa found you, and I'm glad I met you that day. I am sure that you will bring only happiness into his life. That's what I wish for him, and you've come to fulfill my dream. Thank you.”

“Thank you, Yotha, for taking care of Faifa up to this point.” Wine smiled at Yotha. “I'm also glad that I met you and Gun, Arc and Arm. And I promise that I will only bring happiness to Faifa's life, because he is the source of my inspiration.”

“Yotha.” Arc said, looking at Yotha seriously. “Time's up, it's time for us to leave.” He looked at Wine. "We'll leave the rest to you, I'm sure you can handle it."

“Of course.” Wine nodded in agreement, though he didn't know why.

Yotha joined Gun, who was waiting for him, and Arc went over to Arm, who was wiping away his tears and gently hugged him. They waved at him and disappeared through the door. Although they said goodbye, Wine was sure that they would meet again, even if not today, but definitely in the near future.

Wine examined the roof, but there really seemed to be no one here and he was left alone. Wine sighed, but at that moment, he heard soft footsteps behind him. Wine turned around abruptly and saw Faifa, who was smiling at him, holding a bouquet of sunflowers in his hands.

"You know.” Faifa began as he approached Wine. “I would give you the sun if I knew how to steal it.” He held out the bouquet. “But at this moment, I can only give you a bouquet of flowers that are associated with the sun.” Wine accepted the bouquet with a soft smile. “Even in such a situation, I would give you all the flowers in the world that are somehow connected with the sun.”

"But why?"  Wine looked at Faifa, who was smiling at him.

“The answer is obvious, as is the love of all these flowers for the sun.” Faifa gently took Wine's hand. “Since ancient times, the sun has been associated with happiness, with the hope of a new, better life. And I would like this happiness to always be with you.” Faifa looked into Wine's eyes. “But, unfortunately, flowers are picky and selfish. I don't want your happiness to change throughout the day, like the power of the fragrance of plumeria. I would like it to be as bright and sunny as the mimosa flowers that will replace the sun for you when the sky is gray. I would like your happiness to be so strong that it takes the form of love, like dandelions imitating the sun.” Faifa pressed his forehead against Wine's, and Wine closed his eyes, listening to Faifa's soft voice. “I would like you to become my sun, so that I could be heliotrope flowers that follow the sun, I could spend every moment of my life in your rays. But I have to be a sunflower, which is close to the heliotropes in its devotion to the sun, but does not have such a beautiful legend. I wish I was born someone else...”

“I love sunflowers.” Wine whispered softly and heard Faifa hold his breath. “Flowers are beautiful, regardless of whether they have a history or not. Flowers are born to be loved and die in love, given by people. Despite the place where they grow and the species to which they belong, the flowers of the whole world are as beautiful as the sunflower on my windowsill.” Wine opened his eyes to look at Faifa, who pulled away from him slightly. “But my sunflower is more dear to me than all the plumeria, mimosa, dandelions and heliotropes. It is dear to me because I have given it my attention and my heart. It's mine and I love it.”

Wine gently released his hand from Faifa's and gently wiped away the tears that were quietly rolling down Faifa's cheeks.

"Why are you crying, my sunflower?"  Wine froze when Faifa covered his hand with his own. “Don't you think that you deserve all this love that surrounds you? Tell me what you would like to receive, and I will give it to you.”

"I don't need anything."  Faifa shook his head gently. “The love I receive from you and give you is enough for me.” Faifa pressed his forehead against him again, and Wine closed his eyes. "I love you, Wine."

"I love you, Faifa."  Wine replied softly and felt Faifa touch his lips with his own.

The kiss didn't last long because Faifa tore it off when he couldn't hold back his smile anymore. But even so, Wine was sure that this kiss couldn't compare to the beauty of flowers or even the sun. The only thing that could compare to this kiss was Faifa’s smile, which looked at him with sparkling eyes.

But the moment of happiness didn't last long, because Wine felt his body getting heavier. Faifa's eyes widened alarmingly and Wine wanted to bring his smile back.

"Wine, I'm only asking you for one thing.” Faifa placed both palms on his cheeks to keep his attention. "I'm asking you to repeat your last words when you wake up. Please, Wine, don't forget about me.”

Wine nodded at him.

“I promise, Fai–“

Wine opened his eyes and took a shuddering breath. A name lingered on his lips, but Wine couldn't remember how to pronounce it. Wine tried with all his might to remember what he had dreamed, but he only remembered Arm, who took him somewhere. Sighing, Wine raised his hand and saw a bracelet on his wrist.

“What?” Wine sat up abruptly and began examining the thin bracelet he had never owned. "Why is it here?"

The rustle of leaves distracted him, and Wine looked at the sunflower, which glittered golden under the moonlight. Wine frowned, something had to do with the sunflower. Wine closed his eyes and put his head in his hands, trying to remember his promise to someone.

“But my sunflower is more dear to me than all the plumeria, mimosa, dandelions and heliotropes.” Wine quietly muttered the words that came back to his mind. “It is dear to me because I gave it my attention and my heart.” Wine raised his head and looked at the sunflower when he heard the rustle of leaves. "It's mine and I love it."

Wine got up and walked over to the table where the sunflower was standing. He gently touched the leaf and looked directly at the sunflower.

"I love you, Faifa."

The sunflower happily fluttered its petals, which began to glow brightly golden. Wine walked away when pale golden smoke appeared out of nowhere. Through it, Wine saw the silhouette of a sunflower changing, taking on a strange shape. When the smoke cleared, Wine was surprised to find his neighbor sitting on his desk.

 "What—" Wine awkwardly began, but was interrupted by a neighbor who hugged him.

"I love you, Wine!"

"Uh, okay.” Wine awkwardly stepped back, breaking the embrace. His neighbor looked at him resentfully, pouting his lips. He crossed his arms over his chest, giving Wine offended looks when Wine realized something. "How do you know my name?"

“I've heard it so many times when you were on the phone.” The guy smiled softly. "Even before the whole sunflower thing, I knew your name, Wine.” Seeing the obvious question in his eyes, the guy held out his hand. “My name is Faifa, until recently I was your neighbor, until I became your sunflower.”

"I'm Wine."  Wine awkwardly shook his hand. "I think you should explain everything to me in order, Faifa.” Wine waved his hand at the couch, inviting Faifa to move, and ignored his comments about how cute he was. “It seems that there are moments that I miss.” Wine looked at Faifa, who sat down next to him.

“ Okay.” Faifa turned slightly to him. “You already know the beginning of the story.” When Wine only bowed his head, Faifa awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck and cleared his throat. “I am the friend that Gun and Yotha lost-sold.”

"Ah!” Wine exclaimed in surprise, recalling the conversation he had overheard at Arm's. "A potion accident.” Faifa nodded, and Wine frowned. “But I still think that there is no one's fault in this situation.”

“Yes, I know, thank you.” Faifa smiled at him. “So it all started when you brought me home, because in the store I was too shocked by the transformation to realize what was happening around me. I saw that the view from the window was familiar, and then you mentioned a neighbor.” Wine looked away, remembering what he had said about his neighbor. "Then you fell asleep, and the magic of the potion, mixed with my powers, began to work, and I invaded your sleep. Under a big tree and with plumeria flowers.”

"I remember something."  Wine frowned as he remembered the green hill, the big tree, and the guy who had given him a flower garland. The more he thought about this dream, the more details came to his mind. “Now that I remember, I can say that it was a rather disturbing dream.” Wine looked at Faifa. “I think you should watch fewer historical films with tragic endings.”

"You're hurting me!" Faifa placed his hand in the middle of his chest. “It was a masterpiece, you should know how much effort I had to put into coming up with all these locations and plot twists! Besides, it's not my fault, my flirting didn't cause you any strong emotions. Therefore, inspired by my anxious mood, I came up with a tragic story.” Faifa gently took his hand and Wine felt a slight blush on his cheeks. “Actually, I should have thought of something else, something better, something happier.”  Faifa looked into his eyes. "Something that wouldn't make you cry. I'm sorry that the first dream I created was so tragic and you woke up crying.”

"It's not your fault.” Wine smiled at him gently. “As you said, it was inspired by your anxious mood and not knowing what the future holds for you, so I don't blame you. Besides, this is not the first dream that makes me cry, although I would prefer it not to happen again.”

“ Me too.” Faifa nodded at him. “That's why the next time, in the rain, I didn't allow myself to make the same mistake again. Although I didn't expect you to wake up because I saved you and we hit the ground.”

“I was surprised!” Wine exclaimed, still remembering how hard his heart was beating at that moment. “It was really unexpected. But as I recall, you decided that it was the right decision and applied it again.”

“Yes.” Faifa smiled. “In the dream about the dragon, I expected you to wake up when we fall off the cliff. But the flight impressed you more.”

“It was an amazing experience, although I understand where you got your inspiration from.” Wine grinned slyly as Faifa awkwardly averted his gaze.

“Then the dream about the prince and the knight.” Faifa continued his explanation. “For some reason, a myth about a nymph appeared in my memory, and I decided that this was a beautiful story.” Faifa frowned. “ Although Prince Tor was an unnecessary character, I do not know why you added him to our story in the first place.”

"Did I do that?"

“Yes, because I do not know this person. And your subconscious decided that he was suitable for the story of the princes.”  Faifa pouted. “I don't understand what's wrong with him.”

“But before the story of the prince and the knight, there was a dream about a knight.” Wine asked, tilting his head curiously. "Why do I remember it differently from the dreams you evoked?"

“This is due to the fact that that night, at the request of Gun, Yotha tried to contact my soul.” Faifa gently put his hand to the middle of his chest, and Wine stared in surprise at the shimmering golden thread, the other end of which disappeared into thin air. "This is our demonic bond with Yotha. All demons connected by the same blood have it. My bond with Yotha is stronger than my bond with my older brother or my parents, so only Yotha can find me through this thread without a special ritual. He just needs to assume his true form, and he will easily see where this thread leads.” Faifa looked away and smiled sadly. “ When I was a kid, I hated it when he did that. He used it a lot when we were playing hide-and-seek, and when we got a little older, he would look for me after I got offended by someone.” Faifa raised his head again and looked at Wine. "It was through this connection that my power increased that night, and I was able to create a dream that you haven't forgotten. Although I would prefer that you forget this particular dream.”

“Why?” Wine gently touched Faifa's arm. “This dream was beautiful, and I love it even if it doesn't compare to dreams related to flowers.”

"Because Yotha touched our thread, my soul became a mess.” Faifa looked down at their hands. “And I couldn't hide all those feelings that I had been storing in the depths of my soul for years. They all showed up when I suddenly intervened in your dream.”

“I...” Wine hesitated to form a better thought. The story of the knight with the cursed blood, the letters, and the mirror was still fresh in his mind. "I don't think your blood is terrible. It doesn't make you the monster you think you are. It only connects you with your ancestors and with the Yotha, it does not define what kind of person you are.” Faifa looked up, his eyes glistening with tears, and Wine smiled gently at him. “Faifa is Faifa, no matter what kind of blood you have and what kind of power you possess.”

“Thanks.” Faifa gently pulled him into a hug. “You know, when I got older, at some point I started to hate Yotha, because he wasn't shy about his background and proudly assumed his true form even surrounded by a crowd. But when he met Gun, I saw his vulnerability for the first time. I noticed that for a long time he didn't change his appearance, didn't touch our thread, even when he was looking for me, as if he was trying to avoid being reminded of who he was. One day, I touched our thread, only to realize that it was losing brightness. I talked to Yotha that day, and he explained everything about his thoughts about love, about Gun, and about our blood. At that moment, I realized that Yotha was no different from me, even though I never shared with him how I felt.”

“Why? I'm sure Yotha would like to share your worries with you.”

“Maybe it is. But at that moment, Yotha was immersed in his own problems, and I didn't want to add mine to him.” Faifa gently pulled away. “And later I couldn't find the right moment to share it.”

“Instead of waiting, you should have created this right moment.” Wine looked at Faifa, who lowered his gaze.

"It wasn't that easy.” Faifa smiled at him gently. "But everything's fine now, and I think I'll be able to share it with him soon."  Faifa took a deep breath to calm himself. “And now, let me tell you about the last dream from my point of view.”

“ Okay.” Wine nodded at him. “But the day you decide to tell Yotha about your feelings, I will hold your hand.”

“Thanks.” Faifa smiled at him sincerely and cleared his throat. “So, it all started when you fell asleep and your subconscious lowered its defenses. Everything was as usual, I created a dream and was even able to add Yotha and Gun to it, because now they were in your memory. But the next moment, I felt like someone had interfered with your dream, and I walked out, disappearing from your attention while you were distracted by Gun. Outside of your dream, I met Arc, who said he came to help me. Arc's power was more powerful and stable than mine at that moment. And I agreed. At that moment, he added Arm, Yotha and Gun to your dream, he didn't need them to be in your memory, he could have done it anyway. You may not have noticed, but he replaced Yotha and Gun, which I added. So then Arm took you to the roof, and Yotha and Gun apologized for what happened, because they weren't images from your head, they were the real Yotha and Gun. Yotha handed you a bracelet.” Faifa touched the bracelet that decorated Wine's wrist. “Arc's power is more stable, so he managed to create a bracelet that remained in reality, and did not disappear with a dream.” Faifa looked away and pouted. "Unlike the ring I created."

“ I...” Wine felt his cheeks turn red as he recalled the moment with the ring. “I hope that someday this ring will become real.”

Faifa flushed bright red, and Wine realized the weight of the promise hidden in his words. He blushed and looked away, unable to meet Faifa’s gaze.

After a while, which they spent in awkward silence, Faifa cleared his throat.

"So that's it. Arc, Arm, Yotha, and Gun left because the time that Arc could maintain sleep over such a long distance is limited. And then there was sentimental nonsense about flowers, I hope you don't remember all the details of it, because I'm embarrassed about it.” Faifa laughed awkwardly with bright red cheeks. Wine nodded at him. “ If you have any questions, I will be happy to answer them.”

Wine was silent for a while, thinking about things that might interest him. He replayed the dreams in his mind and realized one thing.

“I wanted to clarify something.” Wine raised his head and tossed the Faifa to him, smiling. “ Why didn't I remember who you were in my dreams? I knew your name, I knew who you were, but I didn't remember you. “

"Because you didn't really know my name."  Faifa smiled sadly. “You had never heard it before the conversation of Yotha and Gun with Arm. That's why you only knew my name the moment you said it, and the second you forgot it again. And no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't leave my name in your subconscious and connect it with the image of a neighbor. I was able to make you believe that we knew each other before all these stories that happened in dreams, because we really knew each other in reality. But you only knew my name in a dream, and every time I was someone new to you.” Faifa looked at him with a soft smile. “ Even if you forgot me, I was glad to hear you say my name.”

 Wine awkwardly looked away.

“Me too.”

Muttering something, Faifa abruptly shifted and hugged Wine. Wine hugged him back. But after a moment, Faifa pulled away and Wine noticed that he was frowning.

“ Is something wrong?”

“Oh, it's just.”  Faifa gently touched his chest, and Wine noticed that the thread was stretched. "It's just that Yotha wants to see me. Perhaps he felt the changes.” Faifa looked guiltily at Wine. "Looks like we'll have to visit them at the store."

-ˋˏ ༻❁༺ ˎˊ-

 “Good morning!” Faifa loudly greeted Yotha and Gun, who were standing in the store waiting for their arrival. Faifa gently pulled Wine towards him as he entered the store, still holding his hand. Wine looked around and realized that nothing had changed in the store these few days, although the shelves of potions looked more orderly than Wine remembered. Wine noticed a label with a detailed description on each potion. The ink used to make the inscriptions glistened in the rays of the predawn sun. It seems that Yotha and Gun have learned their lesson from this situation.

"Faifa."  Yotha and Gun slowly approached them, still not believing their eyes. Gun looked at Faifa with eyes sparkling with unshed tears. "I'm sorry that this happened.”

"I would never have sold you that day if I had known," Yotha said, gently touching Faifa's free hand.

"It's all right. I should apologize too, because I shouldn't have been so careless when it comes to potions.” Faifa apologized gently, but the next moment he looked at Wine slyly. “But in this situation, there is a plus.”

"What's that? Except for the fact that you now know what it's like to be a sunflower.” Yotha said, crossing his arms over his chest.

“This is not a plus.” Faifa pouted and ignored the giggles of Gun and Yotha. “ The biggest plus is that I got to know my neighbor, whom I've been in love with for over a year, and found out that he also loves me in return. So maybe it was a luck potion.” Faifa proudly raised their entwined hands, but Wine only looked away in embarrassment.

“Wow.” Gun said with sparkling eyes, it seemed like he wasn't going to cry anymore. He shifted his gaze to Wine, who was avoiding their gazes. "Thank you, Wine.”

“What? How do you know my name?”  Wine frowned and looked at Yotha and Gun.

"Because we've already seen each other in a dream, Wine.” Yotha replied. “Arc helped us move into your dream, while preserving our consciousness. We remember everything we talked about on the roof. “

“Okay, I understand.” Wine nodded thoughtfully at them, but frowned as he remembered something and looked at Faifa. “Faifa, why was there a fortune teller in a dream with the prince?”

"A fortune teller?"  Faifa frowned, trying to remember something. “ I don't remember Arm in this dream.”

“But he was, he also gave me a prediction, which he later repeated in reality.”

"Ah, it's related to Arm's abilities.” Gun answered “If his connection with this person turns out to be stronger than he expected, he may unwittingly be drawn into someone else's dream. This usually happens quite rarely and only in cases where the prediction itself requires the Arm to transmit it urgently.” When Wine nodded at his words, Gun suggested, "Would you like some breakfast?"  He cast a sly glance at Faifa. “You're probably hungry after a few days of strict dieting.”

"Hey, wait!” Faifa exclaimed and ran after Gun, who ran towards the stairs.

Wine watched them go with a soft smile. He turned his gaze to Yotha, who was already looking at him.

“ Thanks.” Yotha muttered softly. “Thanks for returning Faifa.”

“ It wasn't difficult.” Wine replied seriously. "I'm sure you could find him yourself."

"Maybe."  Yotha nodded. “But thank you for loving him and making him happy. I know what secrets he's hiding, but I don't want to put pressure on him and scare him with it.” Yotha lowered his gaze, pursing his lips thoughtfully. But soon he looked back at Wine with a soft smile. "I feel like he's going to tell me everything soon, and thanks to you being with him, I know I won't have long to wait. That's why I'd like to thank you for loving him the way he is.”

“Loving Faifa is completely easy and natural.” Wine said softly. “And I'm going to prove it to him every day.”

“Thanks.” Yotha smiled at him and Wine smiled back at him. At that moment, Faifa came down to them.

“Why are you stuck here? Gun feeds me jam from my fellow dandelions, who were literally on the same food line with me recently.” He intertwined his fingers with Wine, and Wine could smell the light aroma of dandelion jam and pancakes. Faifa looked at Yotha. "You're not bullying my boyfriend, are you?”

Wine froze upon hearing his words.

“Quite the opposite.” Yotha said. "But I won't tell you anything because the Beagle is waiting for me in the kitchen."  Saying that, Yotha headed for the stairs, ignoring Faifa's indignation.

"He's always like this.” Faifa murmured with a barely concealed smile.

"But he still loves you."  Wine looked at Faifa.

“I knew you were discussing me.” Faifa pouted and looked at Wine. "Tell me the details."

“This is Yotha's secret, I can't share it. But I can say that I answered him.”

"And what's that?" Faifa looked at him, hiding his impatience.

“I said that I love you and that I'm going to prove to you every day that loving you is easy and natural, like seeing the moon and sun change in the sky.” Wine watched with a proud smile as Faifa blushed brightly. Wine felt a slight blush on his cheeks as Faifa approached him.

"Damn it, if I had known that you would use my words against me, I would have said less.” Faifa gently placed his palms on Wine's cheeks. Wine closed his eyes, unable to stand the intensity and tenderness of the feelings hidden in the depths of Faifa’s eyes. Wine felt the soft touch of Faifa’s lips as he kissed him and Wine kissed back. Wine realized how much this kiss was different from the kiss in his dream. Faifa pulled back slightly, but Wine could still feel his warm breath on his lips. "I love you too, Wine."

Faifa was reaching for another kiss when Wine heard Gun's voice.

“Of course, I understand everything, but the food is getting cold and then we need to prepare the store for opening.” With that, he disappeared back down the stairs.

Faifa exhaled with a slight huff and extended his hand to Wine.

“Let's go.”

Wine nodded at him and took his hand as they headed for the stairs. Seeing Faifa's soft smile with rosy cheeks, Wine realized that they would have many more chances to give each other kisses and prove their love. A love as devoted as a flower that follows the sun, even on a cloudy day.

-ˋˏ ༻❁✿❀༺ ˎˊ-