Title: The Secret Life of Sunflowers
Fandom: FAKE
Author: badly_knitted
Characters: Sunflowers, Ryo, Dee, Bikky & Carol
Rating: PG
Setting: Vol. 4, Act 12
Summary: FAKE Act 12 through the ‘eyes’ of Ryo’s sunflowers.
Word Count: 647
Warnings: None required.
Written For: Challenge #80: Shinies – The Secret Life of an Ordinary Flower.
Disclaimer: I don’t own FAKE, or the characters. They belong to the wonderful Sanami Matoh.
A/N: I was sent here by my wonderful friend tardisjournal, not that I needed another challenge to write for but hey, who needs free time, right? Thanks!



Sitting on the bedroom windowsill, the sunflowers saw everything. They watched over Ryo as he slept peacefully, bore witness to Dee’s rather ham-fisted attempts at seduction (pouncing shows enthusiasm but is rather lacking in romance), and observed Bikky’s inventive ways of defending his foster father’s honor.

Despite their lack of ears, they listened in to many things. Long, rambling conversations, short, heated arguments, the grumbling and whining of a teenage boy reluctantly doing his chores and homework, and the bickering between a man and a boy who professed to hate each other, yet would defend each other to the end.

Time passed, and the sunflowers flourished under Ryo’s care and attention, blooming bright as the sun. Then one day, as Dee lounged on the edge of the bed, chatting idly with his partner while Ryo tended to the flowers, the girl Carol arrived, looking distraught.

The flowers eyed Dee’s brand of ‘comfort’ with suspicion, but nodded their heads in approval as Ryo dispensed sage advice to the troubled girl. They did not truly understand the trials and problems of humans, but then they didn’t need to. It was enough for them to observe the mystifying behaviour playing out in front of them. Humans were considerably more interesting than the pigeons that occasionally alighted on the sill outside their window.

OoOoOoOoO

The following week, Bikky crept furtively into Ryo’s bedroom one evening and approached the flowers where they dreamed in their pot.

“Gotta have something to give Carol for her birthday,” he muttered. “I just hope Ryo won’t be too pissed at me. Huh, even if he is it’ll be better than having Carol mad at me, or worse, upset on her birthday. I’ve put her through enough the last couple of weeks. Here goes nothing.”

He reached out and quickly sliced through the stems with a sharp knife, one at a time, laying each bloom carefully on the bed.

That was unexpected! After months of growing in one place, the sunflowers wondered if they might be about to see a little more of the world.

OoOoOoOoO

Wrapped in newspaper, tied with a big bow, the sunflowers, now arranged pleasingly in a bunch, were carried from their familiar room, through the apartment and out into the wider world beyond.

Sights and sounds abounded; the human world was chaotic, loud and dazzling, even in the dark of night. Their journey passed in a blur as Bikky hurried through the streets to his destination, where for the first time ever, the flowers found themselves outside a window looking in at an unfamiliar room and a very familiar girl.

As Carol opened the window from within, Bikky slipped through, presenting her with the bunch of sunflowers in lieu of a birthday gift; she was understandably impressed by their simple beauty. Although flowers lack vanity, they are very much aware that to humans they exist to be decorative, so they do their best to please the human eye.

The flowers had long since noticed that humans were easily distracted and therefore, they were only mildly surprised when a short while later, they found themselves dropped carelessly to the floor as Bikky and Carol turned all their attention on each other. And so, as they lay forgotten on the rug, a bunch of sunflowers became the sole witnesses as two young people left childhood behind, expressing their love for each other in the most intimate way they could. It proved to be an educational night for all concerned.

Sadly, it would be the last sight these sunflowers would ever be privileged to witness. By morning they knew they would be withered beyond any hope of saving, but flowers have no fear of death and no regrets. They are natural observers, always watching but never telling what they see. After all, flowers are to be found wherever there are lovers, and so shall it always be.

The End