Chapter 3

By the time I woke up, Hubert had already left.

I planned to go back to the old estate and bring home the paintings I'd made years ago.

While I was gathering them up, I lifted my head,

and there was the garden of the Henson estate through the window.

Hardly anyone lived at the estate anymore,

but the garden was still full of the lisianthus I loved most, and this was exactly the season when it should be in bloom.

The lisianthus was being dug out, bit by bit, and replaced with rosebushes in tight bud.

I set down the painting in my hands,

walked to the garden gate. "Who told you to clear this out?"

The gardener glanced at me, seeming to recognize me.

"Miss Fox, it was Mr. Henson who told us to clear it."

"He said he was tired of looking at lisianthus and wanted roses, so he had us plant roses instead."

Something occurred to me all at once.

I pulled out my phone and opened Gertrude's feed.

The post pinned to the top

was her holding a bouquet of roses, smiling brightly.

The caption read: Roses are my favorite. My dream is a garden full of roses!

My hands wouldn't stop shaking.

Years ago, when I used to paint in the studio, Hubert would sit there and keep me company.

I offhandedly complained once that this garden looked so bare,

and the next year, Hubert led me to it with a mysterious little smile,

and showed me a garden full of blooms.

He stood among the flowers, and the look he gave me was full of love.

"Ellie, whatever you say offhand, I'll make it happen for you."

After that, the garden became our secret place.

We would read here, have picnics,

and sometimes, when we were bored, the two of us would just lie here quietly for a whole afternoon.

But now, every last stalk of lisianthus had been swapped out for roses.

A gust of wind passed through, and the memories vanished along with the lisianthus.

I'd already lost all hope in Hubert, yet seeing this

my heart still couldn't help but ache.

I picked the last lisianthus,

the one Hubert had given me as a gift when he was fifteen.

When I got home with the paintings and that single lisianthus,

Hubert was already back.

Seeing me come in, he pressed a bouquet of roses into my arms.

"Ellie, last night was my fault. Don't be angry anymore, all right?"

I looked at the roses in my arms, lush and dripping with color,

and suddenly all the fight went out of me.

Every last bit of feeling drained away in that moment.

"Hubert, I never liked roses."

Hubert froze at that, his eyes falling to the lisianthus in my hand.

"Ellie……"

But I didn't want to deal with him anymore. I just carried the paintings back to my room.

I'd stopped doing art,

but the home Hubert and I shared still kept a studio.

I carefully set the paintings inside it.

When I came back out,

Gertrude had shown up at some point,

smiling at Hubert.

"Hubert, I told you to bring Miss Fox roses and apologize. Did she accept?"

So it turned out the roses had been her idea too.

Hubert was about to shake his head when he caught sight of me.

"Ellie, Gigi and I have to leave early tomorrow, so she's staying at the house tonight."

Gertrude smiled and thanked me.

"Sorry to intrude, Miss Fox."

I said nothing. I only lowered my head and glanced at my phone,

the screen showing the ticketing app,

the flight for tomorrow afternoon.