Floret twirled the small, but pretty daffodil between her fingers, students passing by took note -questioning gazes, side eyes and snickers plentiful.
Men, women, students from lower and the same year as her, turned up their noses. Nothing good would come out of associating with her. Even some teachers Floret passed, seemed to flinch, which they hid well, but she could see it in their eyes.
The yellow bloom's beauty didn't make up for its utter commonness. It would have almost been an achievement in itself to choose a more paltry flower to graduate with.
A common theme among those who graduated with a daffodil, was how they all had moved out of town the same year. Well, driven out or forced to leave, would be more accurate. Expected of the shame brought by the third most common flower, getting a job here, with a lowly status like that, would be near impossible.
Everyone's totally going to gossip about this. Nobody will be none the wiser, until I show up at graduation with
the flower
instead.
I tried to look defeated, dejected, but I had a hard time keeping a straight face, to not giggle thinking of my scheme. They were sure to fall for it too, after all, I had the misfortune of being among the very last ones to be able to claim a flower. As always, a luck of the draw was sure to end in my defeat, misfortune seemed to stick to me like honey. No wonder I had ended up back here in my parent's home town in the end too...
"Class F, fulfilling their namesake this year too." A group of students from class A chuckle with spiteful smiles.
"Floret and the Failures." They erupt in laughter.
Their mocking brings a smile to my face, I resist making an over the top show of running past them with fake sobbing. To drive their ego's even higher, only to crush it even more completely, not even their class had a 'new' -rarity flower this year.
I was getting restless and too excited to continue my sad parade around the school halls, if somebody actually stopped to talked to me, I wasn't sure I'd be convincing.
Surely, I had made unfortunate situation well known enough, I headed towards class, with further feigned surrender to navigate the crowded hallways.
If there was a shame bigger than graduating with a common flower, already used in another year, it was graduating with the same flower as another one on your year. Of course, my class had drawn the last place too, so they were all my brothers and sisters in misfortune. The last ones of the entire damn year to get to pick our flowers. Considering how I had over two hundred peers, most flowers from uncommon to rare were sure to be picked before our turn.
I opened the classroom door.
Empty.
Pulling a chair at the back, I lay down my backpack and get seated on the hem of my dress, a bright pink and a bit longer one than usual. Of course, laid with flower prints, this time with white lily of the valley's.
My older outfit hadn't survived the trip to the forest very well... Plus it was still drying, along with my swiss-flashlight I had also washed accidentally with it. A family heirloom, my parents would surely be furious to find out I had broken it, if it never decided to work again.
Holding onto hope, it would recover after a good rest in the heat of the towel drying pipes. Maybe I'd be able to evade another tirade for their wayward daughter...
I stare at the daffodil on the school desk, it would have been a real miracle for me to show up with anything else than a selection of the most common flowers today. A miracle, I had manage to make happen, though only through my parents knowledge... and my own perseverance.
One could fortunately change flowers after the picking day, if they managed to find some not already taken later. Considering how graduation was this week, if you hadn't taken the initiative to do the drying yourself, this was among the last possible moments to do it.
In the past, others had arrived to the graduation with unique and new flowers without announcing their change officially. I'd be one of those, join in the shock factor of bringing a completely new flower, the highest on the rarity scale. And not just any flower at that either.
I shift my posture, my stomach feeling burdened and uncomfortable. It really didn't like how I had messed up my eating schedule for having slept in the forest, huh?
Damn, it must really be angry, it looks almost swollen. Ugh... I'll just try and manage this class, it's only a few minutes till start anyway.
I try to think of other things, to take my mind off of my aching and burdening insides.
Should I tell Iris of my plans?
I remembered that she's not in this class, she already has her flower's drying underway. And she's busy with practicing her singing to perform at the graduation too.
What would Jasmine think? No I don't dare to talk to her yet... at least of that.
Though I think I should soon confess to her... Before we go our separate ways.
A tiny fruit fly takes off from inside of my daffodil.
Escaped just before your doomsday, huh?
Before its housing is crushed, dried or cooked.
It reminds me of that unsettling dream, though I can't help but be aroused by it again.
I hope that didn't awaken something weird in me...
Carefully slipping my hand underneath my dress, I brush a finger through my pink panties, with a sunflower stitching at the front. I flinch at how sensitive I was, even a small touch made me squirm.
There was nobody around, I still have a few moments before class starts...
I run two fingers down my skin beneath my dress.
Damn, my stomach did really feel tight...
Regardless, I continue down my clothed landing strip and sink the tips of my fingers inside. The panties bend and sinking between my hot lips.
"Floret?"
I shoot upright from my slouching position in a panic.
How could I completely miss the teacher entering!
She stood at the door with a conflicted look on her face.
Shit! D-did she see me...
I... I hope she did-
No!
"Y-yes Mistress Garcia?"
"Just call me Gloria already, will you?" She answers annoyed.
"Fine, Gloria... what is it?"
"Listen Floret..." Her gaze wanders through the classroom, she looks uneasy as she rubs her arm.
Oh no, here it comes!
"It's about..." Gloria shakes her head and sighs instead of continuing the sentence.
"Never mind."
The bell rings and she just walks up to her desk and takes a seat, setting her handbag down.
Oh god this is the worst... I feel so dirty...
It's definitely the 'unable to run away' that really takes the edge out of getting caught...
Students steadily flood through the door and take seats in the classroom. The room outfitted with ovens, microwaves and bags of cat litter, just for this occasion.
"Hi Floret!" An acquaintance greets me and sits left of me.
"Oh Daisy, what flower did you bring?"
She takes out a clear jar from her bag and shows me a cosmos.
