Chapter 14 - Pseudo-Apologies and Snow Owls

THAT EVENING, AN hour or so before dinner, Jolene was busy playing 8-ball pool in the gaming room on the main floor, so I had our room to myself.

In my shoulders, I could still feel the residual tension from the argument Finn and I had earlier. After the whole burrito session with Renzo, we'd both stormed off to cool down separately, and I hadn't expected to see him again until much, much later. But now on my pillow rested a note, and I didn't even need to open it to see who it was from.

My heart seemed to skip a beat as I unfolded it. It was a little crumpled, and I could tell it had been scribbled in a hurry.

Dear Cora (a.k.a. my little Almond),

I'm still a terrible gardener, but I swear I'm not a terrible friend. Meet me by the clearing beside the hotel. I'll be the one looking like a guilty puppy. (You can bring treats, if you want).

P.S. I promise no more 'accidentally drowning plants' sessions. Or...you know, at least not today.

P.P.S. You don't have to bring actual treats. I'm sweet enough as it is, ahem (or at least that's what my mom says).

Yours,

Finn (a.k.a. Not-Neel)

I couldn't help but smile, my earlier irritation melting away. Leave it to Finn to crack jokes in the middle of a pseudo-apology. I folded the note, tucked it into my pocket, and slipped on my running shoes. And then I set off to find my Not-Neel.

The cool evening air greeted me as I made my way toward the clearing, my heart a mix of anticipation and curiosity. The path was quiet, and the sounds of the forest were muted as the sky slowly but surely turned into its routinely dark canvas.

Finally, I reached the clearing, and I slowed down to scan the area for a tell-tale head of messy dark hair. The space was dimly lit by the remnants of daylight, and for a moment, it seemed like I was alone. And then I thought, for a moment, what if this was some plot by a serial killer to get me alone and then harvest my kidneys? Like, what if that note wasn't even from Finn at all?

This was the end. Roll the credits, please.

But then I realized that I needed to search up on Pinterest some concoctions that would help calm an overactive imagination, because just then a familiar figure stepped out from the shadows, and he was very much not a serial killer or organ-harvester. Just good ol' Finn with that sheepish grin on his face, the one that made me simultaneously want to hug him and shake him.

"There you are," I said instead, crossing my arms and trying to keep my tone completely neutral.

"There you are," Finn echoed, his voice light, though there was a hint of something else in his eyes. Nervousness? "I wasn't sure if you'd come."

Oh.

I raised an eyebrow, doing my best to appear unimpressed. "And miss out on the chance to see you grovel?" I scoffed, rolling my eyes. "Not a chance."

Finn's dark eyes searched mine as amusement filled his gaze, and he chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck. "Fair point, Miss A.B. I guess I deserve that."

I stepped closer, my arms still crossed, but I could feel my resolve softening. "So, what's all this about?"

Finn took a breath before his eyes met mine with that sincerity that always managed to take me aback. "I wanted to apologize," he said. "For the plants...and for being an idiot earlier."

"Which part?" I teased lightly, smiling at him softly, and his eyes shined in relief.

"All of it," Finn admitted, slightly tilting his head as his grin turned a degree more playful. "I know I messed up, and I wanted to make it right. So I did some thinking, and..." I watched curiously as he then stepped aside, revealing a single, stunning flower standing proudly in the middle of the clearing.

A blue moon orchid.

It was the flower that I'd missed out on seeing the other day even though I'd desperately wanted to.

My breath caught as I took in the magnificent sight. Its petals were a deep, velvety blue, subtly shining with a faint glow that made it seem almost magical in the dim light. Now I understood quite thoroughly why Jolene couldn't stop gushing about it that night. I gently ran a finger across the petal and I struggled to comprehend its cloud-like softness. To put it simply, it was more than beautiful, and I felt almost overwhelmed. "Finn..."

"I figured," he continued, his tone now soft, "since I'm clearly no good at keeping plants alive, the least I could do was find one you might love." He paused. "And not accidentally drown it."

I couldn't help but laugh. "It's beautiful, Finn. Really. Thank you."

He shrugged, trying to play it off as no big deal, but there was a warmth in his gaze that told me how much he meant it. "I know how much your plants mean to you. And...I don't know. I just hated seeing you upset because of something I did."

I felt a certain heat crawl up my neck, and I couldn't tell if it was heartburn or if my little heart had literally warmed up at his words as if someone had set it in an oven to bake.  And then I sighed guiltily, because I also had some apologizing to do.

"And Finn, I...I'm sorry I overreacted. I didn't mean to snap at you like that. And, you know, the hotel owner helped me afterwards with the plants. Apparently he also has a garden of his own and he knew exactly what to do."

Finn gave me a small, knowing smile, before relief washed over his features. "Don't apologize, Cora. I get it." He then ran a hand through his hair, looking away. "Honestly, I wouldn't have blamed you if you'd asked Bryon to help instead. He's got the whole 'plant whisperer' thing going on, you know?"

I felt a small tug on my heart as I took in his words. Maybe it was the look on his face or something, but I suddenly had the urge to tackle him in a huge hug. I curled my fists to my side to keep my hands to myself.

"Finn... Sure, Bryon might love plants," I said instead. "But he's not you. And... I'd rather have you do it. Even if it means a few near-plant-deaths."

And then because I couldn't help it, I did end up tackling him in a huge hug.

It was like a real football tackle because I almost brought the both of us down, but Finn kept us up, laughing. "Whoa, tiger," he said softly, and then grinned. "Does this mean I've forgiven?"

I bit my lip and rolled my eyes as I pulled him back. "Yes, Finn, you're forgiven."

His voice dropped to a playfully teasing whisper as I felt him smile into my hair. "Are you really, really sure?"

"Yes, Finneas," I repeated, laughing.

"But are you absolutely positive, Miss A.B?" he asked, quizzically raising his eyebrows as his dark eyes searched mine.

I looked right back into his eyes before I nodded, voice softening. "Yes. For the last time, yes."

We grinned at each other, standing there, still close enough that I could feel the warmth radiating off him. I looked away then, feeling kind of. . . I don't know, bashful or something equally ridiculous.

"I'm glad this went well," Finn piped up. I looked at him again, raising a questioning eyebrow. "Remember the last time I tried to make up with a flower?" he asked, grinning. "On the bus?"

"You're right," I said slowly, a smile making its way onto my face as the memories from just a few weeks ago came rushing back, when I'd first met Finn. Now I gave his arm a small shove to which he pouted. "I also remember that I'd told you to just stick to handshakes next time when making up, hmm?"

"Mhm? So what you're telling me is that if I murdered all your plants but then came up to you with a polite little handshake in apology, you'd be completely fine with it."

Touché. My lips parted in surprise, and I grumbled internally.

"I'd chop the arm that you offered right off," I managed, trying to look menacing. When I saw Finn trying to hold back a laugh, tongue in his cheek, I put my hands on my hips and glared. "What, am I not scary enough?"

"What are you talking about? You make me shake in my boots. I haven't forgotten that you secretly harvest organs. Knowing your ruthless secret, it doesn't let me sleep at night, you know." He pretended to shiver in fear, and I bit my lip to not smile.

"But even scarier is you when you're mad over your plants," Finn continued, subtly side-eyeing me. "I genuinely thought you were going to take some of the soil and shove it into my mouth or something."

"I would never," I huffed, and then I gave him a not-so-subtle once-over. "At least not to you, because, oh, what was it on that note? Don't bring treats because you're so sweet anyway?" I raised an eyebrow, leaning back against a tree.

"Yes, of course. I'm totally sweet."

"Sweet? You? Please."

Finn took a step closer, his grin widening. "Oh, come on. You read the note I left. You saw it right there in black and white― 'I'm sweet.'"

I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, and I also happened to see that you're full of yourself."

He chuckled, inching even closer. "Admit it, Cora. You're just too stubborn to say it."

"Stubborn?" I scoffed. "No way. Not stubborn. I'm just... truthful."

His eyes seemed to sparkle with mischief. "Okay, so if I'm not sweet, then what am I?"

I tilted my head, pretending to think it over. "Annoying. Infuriating. A pain in the―"

Finn moved in quickly, his hands suddenly at my sides as the traitor tickled me. I yelped, trying to squirm away, but he was relentless, laughing as I giggled uncontrollably.

"Come on, Cora. Just say the magic word." His expression was downright devilish.

"Fine, fine!" I gasped between laughs, "you're so sweet, Finneas."

Immediately, the tickling stopped, and Finn stepped back. "I didn't realize that was the safe word," I mumbled, and both our eyebrows shot up.

"Cora...you're so strange."

"And you're so impossible."

"Impossible and sweet. Hmm. A winning combination, don't you think?"

I rolled my eyes. "Don't let it get to your head, Finneas."

"It's too late for that, sweetheart."

His eyes twinkled as he leaned against the tree next to me. Begrudgingly, I smiled back.

"So," he then said, meeting my eyes once more, "is everything okay? Remember that day at Amaranth's house, before the feast, you'd been kind of upset? Is it all... okay now?"

"Didn't I just say you were sweet?" I sighed, and Finn gave me a light smile.

"You don't have to talk about it if you don't want to. But...whatever it is... I'm here for you. As a friend."

I could feel a heat crawl up my neck and across my ears as I blushed under Finn's dark but gentle gaze.

"Thank you," I said softly, looking up at him gratefully. "I was just super stressed about Aunt Cheryl and what she would say about this...and I know for sure this is going back to the parental unit. I hope they'll be ready for my new 'Dora the Explorer' phase," I joked.

"Yeah, for me... my dad is fine with my traveling, but my mom? Not so much. You know how protective mothers are. So, I kind of get it," Finn said. He nodded slightly as he looked away for a second. I felt a strange, cozy feeling start up pleasantly behind my ribs, happy that he was open to sharing with me about his life.

And then he shot me a sideways look. "Quick correction, though." He looked like he was holding back a grin. "I think you mean...Cora the Explorer?"

"Oh my goodness," I breathed, eyes widening in horror, "I can not unsee that. What the heck?! Why would you do that to me?" I looked back at him, narrowing my eyes. "Finn. If you know what's good for you... you better start running...now."

His laughter stopped as his eyes widened, and before I knew it, he took off down the path.

I was hot on his heels, practically sobbing about him damaging my reputation like that. I mean, I absolutely love Dora (she's literally the GOAT), but seriously? Cora the Explorer? Who says that?!

We reached another clearing, where I had him cornered. "Okay, Cora," he said, holding up his hands and stepping back nervously. "Let's be civilized, yeah? Let's, uh, talk it out. Impromptu congress meeting! Um, what do you say?"

I held back a laugh, instead staring him down. "I say..."

"Mhmm?" Finn asked conversationally.

I didn't even provide a response as I rushed at him, tackling him as I tickled his sides like he had done to me.

"You. Will. Apologize," I said threateningly.

"I mean... was I wrong though?"

"Finn!" I smacked his arm, glaring at him.

"Okay, okay, fine. Sorry, Cora."

"That's what I thought," I said haughtily.

He snorted.

"Hey!"

"Okay, sorry, sorry," Finn chuckled as he held both of my hands in one of his so that I wouldn't go full-rabid-raccoon mode on him again. "Sorry, Cora. Please forgive me."

Then, out of nowhere, Finn's eyes widened, and he pointed over my shoulder. "Cora, look!"

I turned, half expecting a prank, but instead, I was met with the sight of a snow owl perched on a low branch just a few feet away. Its pure white feathers almost glowed in the dim light, and its large, dark eyes seemed to be watching us with quiet curiosity.

Any of my words died down immediately, and we seemed to hold our breath as we watched the beautiful bird.

"You know what this means?" Finn whispered to me.

"That you secretly run a kinky bird watching club?"

He nudged me softly, a soft, incredulous laugh leaving his lips. "No. It means, Miss A.B., that I've won our challenge. I have gotten the honour of choosing something absolutely, positively, and quite sweetly embarrassing for you to do."

My jaw fell slack because, oh yeah. I'd completely forgotten about that.

"Finn," I started to say, turning to face him, but he cut me off, putting a gentle finger on my lips. I shut up immediately.

Because I want to hear what he has to say, of course. Not anything else. Obviously.

Ahem.

"I'll have thought of something by tomorrow," he informed me, and I nodded slowly.

He pulled his finger away, and I finally begged, "Be nice, will you, Finneas? Don't you feel bad for your Miss A.B., hmm?"

"Your bamboozling isn't going to work on me, Almond," he rolled his eyes, and I pouted. Ah, defeated.

He shot me a quick grin before we turned back to the owl. We watched the cute bird until it took off into the sky again.

"Take me with you, oh little owl," I sighed wistfully (plus a tad bit dramatically) and then elbowed Finn as he snorted a laugh.

Hey! Of course the bird wouldn't fly off with me, but a girl could dream, right?

A/N: Did you know that snowy owls have feathered feet, basically built-in snow boots. So while you're struggling with frostbite, they're strutting around like they own the Arctic catwalk. Totally unfair (not that I want feathered feet, but you know).

Anyway, have a good day/night where ever or whenever you're reading this ❤️🥷🍰🫶