One Touch of a Petal

Grace scooped a big chunk of mint ice cream as she sat outside with Gwen. They had walked to the convenience store and back to find Tim gone. Grace shook her head as she walked inside the house. "I can't believe it…" Grace sat down on the couch. "He's actually gone…he didn't care."

"Maybe it's for the better," Gwen said. "Come on, let's have some ice cream."

Grace pulled her face as the cold caused an ache in her brain. She was miserable. It sucked. Her day had gone so well, only for her to lose the one relationship she had hoped and believed would last.

"What happened to the prince charming's we always talked about when we are young?" Grace muttered. She shoved her spoon back into her container. "You know, I keep thinking of this play that we are supporting. About happily ever after."

"You seriously didn't think that Tim was really the guy for you?"

"In this world, he is such a rare find. He was always loyal, he was sweet. He never yelled at me. He…"

"He piggybacked on your success while complaining about it. Made you feel like you could never accomplish anything without making him miserable – stays in a dead-beat job because he is comfortable, and not willing to fight for you…I think that says a lot," Gwen muttered. "Gonna be honest, since the first time you complained about him, I just knew it wasn't going to work. "

"Don't say that, he might just change his mind…he might knock on that door… "

"And if he does, I will kick him so hard that he won't sit for a year," Gwen said. "He said that you had it easy. EASY!? You fought for this promotion. You had to deal with people stabbing you in the back. You had to survive all the stress the world has thrown at you. You've had to deal with your mother's death. But yeah, sure, you had everything on a silver platter." Gwen shook her head.

"If you had a choice," Grace scooped some more ice cream and popped it in her mouth. "Would you leave this world for one such as the story books?"

"Within a heartbeat, I would," Gwen muttered. "And you?"

"I don't know…I guess I wouldn't mind visiting a world different than my own. But I like my job, I like my life here, and my friendships. Despite…" Grace shook her head. She pulled out her phone. "I have got to show you this dress…" Grace showed Gwen the picture and her eyes widened.

"Ahhh! Please tell me you tried it on,"

"With the model, they chose for the role? No ways that would fit me…if it did, you would have seen me with me in the dress…" Grace looked at the stunning ballgown. It was a blue/green dress with an intricate framework. She loved the butterfly designs and the glitter spread across the width of the gown. "I guess this has put me in such a fairy tale mood."

"I don't blame you, are you going to see the play?"

"It's next week, we got free tickets so yeah, want to join? I had a plus one, was going to invite Tim, but now…"

"Yesssssss, duh!" Gwen slapped Grace's shoulder. "Count me in!" Gwen gave a sudden yawn and shook her head. "But count me out for tonight. The couch is all yours. Sleep as late as you like considering that it is the weekend tomorrow."

"Alright, goodnight," Grace watched her friend walk inside and remained seated outside. She kept looking out at the stars and rested her head against the chair. She placed the container down and listened to the birds and insects all chirping away. The moment of silence for her was unbearable. She shook her head. She felt like such a fool. A part of her really wanted to just cry, but her pride did not allow her to cry for Tim. She knew she was wrong about him. However, she has had so many incidents involving men and boys that she was convinced that Tim was truly the best she was going to get.

She heard a weird tinkle. She looked up to see the petals from a rose bush falling into the swimming pool. She frowned. Were they glowing? Grace stood up and slowly walked towards the bush. Sure enough, each time the petal landed on the surface of the water, it made a sound like a spoon on glass – reverberating through the garden.

"I must be dreaming," Grace whispered to herself and smiled. She slowly reached out toward the glowing petals in the pool. Her fingers brushed against it.

Grace gasped as a huge force pushed her off balance and right into the pool. Grace held her breath as she spun around, breaking through the surface of the chilly water. She looked around and gasped. What on the wonderland of earth and heaven was happening?

She could see no edge of the pool. Rather, she saw the shore a couple of meters away, with trees lining the horizon.

No matter the fact that it was suddenly the middle of the day? Grace swam to shore and coughed hard. The water tasted bitter, and she spun around. She was not at Gwen's home anymore, that was sure. Grace pinched herself, trying to wake up, but realized that it was completely useless. She was not waking up yet. Her brain must be truly stubborn this time. Grace took a couple of steps forward, trying to explore the environment. Perhaps she fell, hit her head, and was now stuck in a coma? That would not be good. She would lose her job for sure!

"No, no, I am going to wake up in a few hours…this is all, just a dream," Grace squeezed the water out of her hair and started walking towards the open fields. The wind nipped her ankles and cheeks. However, the weather was fairly warm.

She stopped as she saw a large figure. It was not human, but it was not a bear either. As it turned around, Grace stumbled back.

It had horns on the top of its head, the body of a man, but hooves for legs and feet. It snorted at her like a bull. It was a minitour?

Grace did not have much time to think as it started storming toward her. Dream or not, she was going to run. She turned and ran in the opposite direction, jumping over rocks and branches. She pushed through the bushes, and turned her head to see where the creature was.

Grace did not realize there was no more floor and she fell forward. She started tumbling and felt a familiar cold splash. Grace tried to swim up, but her legs started cramping up in the cold. She pushed through the service and gasped in pain before she sunk down again.

She could hear another deep splash. She closed her eyes. She imagined it must be the creature. It must be ready to finish her off. She kept sinking in the water, holding her breath. She could not breathe.

Something gripped her arm. She flinched and opened her eyes. It was a hand and it tugged her up. This was not a minitour. She was tugged to the surface. Grace gasped again.

"I've got you milady,"

Milady? Weird, but that was not what she could focus on. The man pulled her close to him and started swimming back to shore. "What's a girl doing out here all on her own?"

"No idea," Grace coughed again.

"Almost there, hang on…don't drown me on now…no use rescuing a damsel if she drowns in the process,"

Grace gave a laugh. "I'll try not to drown,"

Her legs wobbled as her feet struck the muddy surface. She fell forward, her face towards the ground. "Urg…"

"This lake is incredibly dangerous…why on earth would you take a swim here?" another man asked.

"I don't know, maybe because I was being chased by a minitour!" Grace snapped. She shook her head. "Sorry, I…I am a little," she looked up and raised her brows.

They were a bunch of men dressed in medieval costumes. All except for one man, who was soaked to the core. He was busy putting on his shirt. As soon he looked at her, he froze.

"Did I stumble into some kind of medieval party or something?"

However, the men did not say anything. They were just staring at her in silence. As if they were just as shocked to see her as she saw them.

"What? Do I really render people speechless?"

"Geneva…" the blond man whispered. "It's you…."