Livano was halfway down the steps which led to their upstairs room.  The sun made his shadow dark and bold against the planks which made up their abode, and he could still hear the soft calls of the birds which had woken him up.

He began to fumble with the strings of the apron, trying to hastily tie them while the person at the door knocked once again.

"Sto arrivando! Sarò lì in un secondo!"  Livano announced.  Hopefully, he thought, loud enough to be heard, yet not enough to be pushy sounding.

(I'm coming!  I'll be there in a second!)

Upon reaching the bottom steps, Livano made a quick leap to the bottom, trying to land the three-stair jump.  This he did, though his momentum brought him to make contact with the close-pressed wall hugging the staircase.

No sooner had he managed to alter his momentum from the narrow wall to towards the front room where the door lay, that he suddenly lost his footing.

Letting out a small yelp, Livano tumbled to the ground.  A similar yelp greeted him and the next moment, a warm, soft tongue began to lick his face.  Livano could feel the solid thump of a tail hitting his legs and the soft scratching of claws upon his shoulders.

"No, no! Bene! Vattene! Vattene!"

(No, no!  Bene!  Get off!  Get off!)

The dog yapped once more, scrambling about wildly upon its owner, before Livano finally felt the release of pressure on him.

With a sigh of relief, Livano himself began to scramble to his feet, trying to regain his balance and continue in his run to the door.  Bene yapped once again.  Livano turned for but a moment, looking at the impatient dog.

"Shh..."  Livano put a finger to his lips, trying to calm the Italian Spitz at his feet.  Bene's bright onyx eyes were sparkling and his fluffed white tail waved calmly. He was an easily excitable dog, and for the most part, Livano kept him in the back room while he worked. But since it was this early in the morning, Livano found no harm in letting the young dog take a run instead of being cooped up in the back.

"D'accordo, Bene, ma stai zitto. E non saltare quando arriva la persona." Livano shook his head and paced to the door, trying to brush down his hair with anxious fingers.

(Alright, Bene, just be quiet. And don't jump when the person comes in.)

Bene yapped once more, to which it was met with a second shushing. Livano pointed to the ground with his free hand, and the little spitz sat.

Sighing finally at the dog's apparent silence, Livano reached for the doorknob, twisting it and opening the door. 

A young woman met him, and she looked as if she had been preparing to knock on the door once again.

She had light auburn hair, definitively puffed around her bangs and of that which fell down her back. Livano ruffled up his hair, trying to become more presentable as he had not had time to truly dress for his job.

The girl was dressed in a shocking orange jacket with ripped sleeves, with a similarly colored, if not a little bleached, long sleeved turtleneck. How she could be wearing a long sleeved shirt in Italy, Livano could not guess. Italy was beginning to enter its wet season, and it would soon be getting very humid and, frankly, uncomfortably warm.

He decided it was best not to judge, and instead focused on offering her inside, flipping the "Closed" sign over the window so that it revealed "Open" printed on the other side.

When the woman had stepped in, Livano then dashed to the counter against the far wall, sliding over its top before bouncing up on the other side. It was much faster than actually opening the sidedoor and stepping through. And besides, that was much more boring.

Quickly catching his breath, Livano watched as the young woman walked around, observing his house for the first time.

Bene began to scratch on the sidedoor, slightly whimpering to be let in. Perhaps Livano had trained him a little too  well.

Livano swiftly unhooked the door and the white spitz gingerly trotted by, exiting the room by a small dog door behind the counter to the back room.

Livano smiled at the little dog's simplistic obedience.

He then turned to the room, observing it as well.

From all the windows and on several counters and stands nearby were several potted plants. Mostly flowers, though Livano had some seedlings which he tended, either in the backyard or in the small greenhouse in the room which Bene was currently occupying.

Absentmindedly, Livano swept some flower petals off the counter, trying to clear off some of the remains of yesterday's "Big Order". Not surprisingly, it had consisted of Italy's native and quite popular flowers, such as a wide variety of roses, peonies, chrysanthemums, and a few species of orchid.

Suffice to say, it had been a lot of work, and Livano had actually seen  Martino come home that night. That was his first cue that he had stayed up far too late.

He began to trace patterns on the white counter with a finger, feeling the grain of wood and observing the green stains left from cutting stems. He tried to be tidy for the most part, but on an occasion such as last night's, he usually focused on getting himself to bed over keeping the shop clean. Besides, the small buisness wasn't all  that popular, and Livano usually spent the free time attempting to cleaning Martino's sty of a room or tending to the greenery which he kept around their home. To shorten, he had lots of spare time on a daily basis.

Still, Livano could never seem to get everything done in time, as if there was one more thing that needed to be finished.

He glanced down at himself, noting how odd he looked in the apron with his pajama bottoms beneath. He would need to fully change as soon as he had the chance.

Even as he thought of planning his day, a strong whiff of hairspray brought Livano back to the present. He looked up to see that the woman was standing before him, waving demurely and smiling.

"Hi." She said softly.

Livano snapped to attention, lifting himself into a confident posture from his slumped state.

"Ciao! Benvenuti al Piccolo Fiori di Livano! Sono Livano. Posso aiutarla in qualche cosa?" Livano smiled, tapping a small rhythm on the desk before him.

(Hello! Welcome to Livano's Little Flowers! I'm Livano. Can I help you with anything?)

Livano watched as the woman's smile widened, barely revealing a small grin. Livano was used to seeing this. He loved to make people smile, and he usually did it without a prompt or an ordered intention. Seeing someone smiling this early in the morning woke Livano up even more, and he was ready to do his work.

"Umm... Sì... Hai dei... Lilies?" The woman spoke slowly, as if uncertain of herself, twisting a bit of her hair around a finger, brows creasing as if in focus.

(Yes... Do you have any... Lilies?)

Livano nodded, ceasing his light tapping.

"Sì, mi capita di avere qualche Gigli. Un certo colore che vuoi?" He asked, gesturing towards the back room and indicating to a few pots near the door.

(Yes, I do happen to have a few lilies. Any certain color you want?)

The finger stopped twisting her hair and the girl began to shift from foot to foot. She looked very bamboozled.

Livano noticed and began to nod, trying to recall and form new words. He remembered how she had said 'Hi' when they first began the conversation, and he now realized how she had strangely pronounced the flower in which she desired.

"Ah. You're touring... Sì? Not from Italia?" He inquired, attempting to muffle his usual accent. Livano was not surprised by this customer. He got tourists occasionally, and Martino had to work with other nativities on a consistent basis. Therefore, Livano had tried to pick up a few words and phrases, hopefully enough to get by in everyday conversations.

The girl looked taken aback.

"Yes... yes I am. How did you know?" She said, looking at him once she got over the sudden surprise.

"Intuition? That what you say?" Livano asked, surprising himself more than the girl when he spoke the long word.

"Oh." Said the girl, beginning to nod slowly. "Well... thank you..."

"Pleasure mine." Livano said simply, raising a hand.

"I have lilies. Color?" He indicated to some smaller flowers, pointing at the petals to try and convey their hue.

"Just white, please." The girl responded, looking at the flowers which Livano pointed out. "What kind of flower is that?"

Livano glanced at the small plant, which was barely falling over the edge of its container. He ran a mental list to distinguish the type and the breed. It would be impossible to mistake, and its nickname was quite absurd as well.

"Orchis italica. Very native, as you guess. You may know as 'naked man orchid'?"

There was the smallest giggle from the girl.

"Yes, funny, non è vero?" Livano said, looking back to her.

"I wondered how you were going to approach it, but you're just so straightforward, aren't you?" She said, meeting his gaze.

Livano shrugged, turning back to her.

"I try." He said with a half smirk, putting his elbows on the counter.

The girl rolled her eyes at him, shaking her head.

Livano puzzled at her for a moment. While it was true that he got a wide assortment of customers, from new brides and happy couples to more kindly and quite respectable elders, and they engaged in joking and well-meaning conversation (as he tried to bond to make the individual feel more at home), Livano had never engaged in a conversation quite like this one. The girl was so subtly daring, trying to encourage him. It was as if the girl was trying to...

Make him impress her? Amuse her, perhaps?

Whatever it was, Livano thought, it seemed to be working. He felt inclined to continue.

"Anyways. Lilies, yes?" Livano rapped his knuckles on the wood counter once.

"Yes. White lilies." The girl nodded, beginning to twist another bit of her hair, her shocking blue eyes sparkling with some sort of hinted amusement.

Livano turned sharply, beginning to head to the back room.

"D'accordo. I get lilies, and be back..."

Livano hesitated, turning back to his customer. Names were never his strong suit. He stood there for a moment, trying to remember her name, or if she had even spoken one at all.

Fortunately for Livano, the girl seemed to pick up on his confusion.

"Danielle. My name is Danielle." She said, nodding in confirmation.

"Danielle... Be right back..." Livano trailed off as he began to push open the back door.

Bene began to bark as he stepped in, and Livano had to hush him as Danielle giggled softly again.

Livano carefully stepped over the excited spitz and made his way to the lamps on the far side where some seedling flowers were beginning to push their way out of the small containers they had been planted in. He came to some of the more mature plants, which were beginning to flower and reveal their colorful and ornate petals.

On another side of the room were a rainbow of similar plants with strangely shaped petals not natural in the normal flora of Italy. Livano had taken the liberty of tampering with already existing species to create the right flowers which were sure to catch any passerby's eye. It was rather fun and quite satisfying to create a unique flower or a new plant, and Livano was glad that he had the time to do just that. He supposed it was a good thing that he was a freelance "botanist", otherwise he may have had some explaining to do if he worked in a larger corporation.

Livano didn't really consider himself a professional florist in the least. He didn't even think of himself as advanced. To him, it was more like just making a life with what he had, as he had never truly been able to finish a college education. It had just been a bit too expensive, and even with both of the siblings working together, they just couldn't pull out more than a sparce thousand liera, hardly enough to even consider sending one of them to get a true education. And with Martino having to get a new job every few months, he could never keep a consistent paycheck, resulting in their pooled funds experiencing dramatic changes in amounts.

They were both freelance in a sense, and Livano could never imagine it being other way.

But despite the fact that they barely got by on a daily basis, Livano enjoyed his life. He enjoyed that he and his brother were so close. The fact that they would support the other, no matter what would happen.

It made living together tolerable.

Even though, Livano slightly chuckled, pinching the bridge of his nose, Martino would have perhaps a little too much fun at the worst of times. Especially if he was invited to a quote "Work Party", which usually resulted in Livano having to stop by every bar on the south side of Florence to find his sibling.

Maybe that was why Livano brought Bene along on every trip.

Pushing aside those lingering thoughts, Livano focused on the lilies again, selecting a pair of scissors from a desk where he had been pruning some younger flowers.

He awkwardly gripped the handle in his right hand, trying to steady the razor-sharp blades. At one point he almost dropped the tool, resulting in a small panic attack on his behalf before recovering and aligning the tool properly. It had been April Fool's Day when Martino had gifted these scissors to Livano, making sure that they were indeed for a right hand.

To Livano's chagrin, that was. Because, as Martino knew, and as he succeeded in revealing a more... violent tendency in his younger brother... Livano was left-handed, and therefore found it quite difficult to manage the scissors presented to him.

But, as Livano always reminded himself, beggars couldn't be choosers, and he would take what he was given. Even if it meant accidentally cutting himself when he had first used them.

After fumbling with the tool for a frightful thirty seconds, Livano finally gathered the lilies together, clustering the blooms in the artistic pattern he had made his trademark.

Livano glanced around the room once more, noting Bene, who was laying on a dog bed in the far corner. The spitz was awake, and had its ears perked, its head goofily tipped to one side, as if asking a silent question of its master.

"Sono solo fiori, bene. Niente di più, niente di meno."

(They're just flowers, Bene. Nothing more, nothing less.)

Livano stared at his dog for the longest time, and Bene gazed right back. Finally, Livano began to speak, this time using a slightly more upbeat and shrilly tone.

"Ma, signor Livano... Non credo che siano "solo fiori"... Non avresti segreti con il tuo cane, vero?" Bene lifted his head, and funny enough, tipped it's head further just as Livano was coming to the end of the question.

(But, Mister Livano... I don't think they're "just flowers"... You wouldn't keep secrets from your dog, would you?)

Livano frowned at his dog with mock disappointment.

"Bene... Dovresti vergognarti, origliarmi così. Pensavo di averti addestrato meglio che fare questo!" Livano returned to his natural voice.

(Bene... You should be ashamed, eavesdropping on me like that. I thought I trained you better than to do such!)

Bene began to wag his tail, listening to his master scold him childishly. Livano did this often, especially if he was lonely or if Bene was in a playful mood. He usually tried to imitate the sound of Bene barking, a sharp, young sound, which always sounded excited.

Bene stood, shaking himself before gently trotting to where Livano stood with the lilies.

Livano continued in Bene's voice.

"Mi hai addestrato abbastanza bene, Livano, che ho la capacità di sapere quando origliare o no. Consideralo il tuo fare per avermi insegnato, non il mio per usare la conoscenza."

(You trained me well enough, Livano, that I have the ability to know when to eavesdrop or not. Consider it your doing for teaching me, not mine for using the knowledge.)

Livano looked at his dog, exasperated before nodding and letting out a deep, staged sigh.

"I suppose, Bene. I suppose."

Without another interruption, Livano nudged Bene to move aside before he made his way to the door.

"Augurami buona fortuna, Bene." Livano smiled as he began to open the door.

(Wish me luck, Bene.)

Bene looked at his master quietly, head still cocked in slight wonder as Livano pushed the door open.

Livano heard Martino before he saw him.

Martino was speaking in rather quick English, leaning against the doorway to the front. Danielle sat on a bench near the windowsill, toying with a stem hanging from one of the pots overhead.

Livano was quiet, listening to the conversation, not wishing to interrupt it.

Danielle was speaking now.

"Hang on, you're a doctor too?"

Martino shrugged, nonchalant.

"Technically a nurse, but I end up executing the same treatments, yes."

Livano now noted that Martino was indeed dressed for his doctor's job. A neat pair of black pants and his traditional red short-sleeved shirt. Martino almost never went anywhere without his signature color, but whatever, Livano thought, works for him, works for me.

Martino looked away from Danielle, now spotting his younger sibling standing behind the counter, lilies in hand.

"Oh, Livano! You surprised me!"

Livano said nothing, only nodding silently and closing his mouth, now realizing he had been slack-jawed.

Danielle also stood, now making her way to him.

"Livano! Your brother was telling me that you run this place full-time! It's immaculate! How do you do it?"

Livano glanced at Martino, who was smiling no longer. Martino gave a curt nod and raised his eyebrows, indicating Danielle with his stare.

"I..." Livano looked back at Danielle, hesitant, before smiling, "I have un sacco di tempo. Much time... to... prepare."

"All alone?" Danielle's azure eyes looked concerned.

"Well..." Livano looked down and spotted Bene. He chuckled. "Bene is good companion. Not always lonely." Livano turned his attention back to the lilies, remembering why he held them. "Gigli, si?" He said, extending them to Danielle. As he did, he hoped that he wouldn't do anything awkward.

Danielle didn't seem to notice Livano's discomfort, only reaching for the bouquet.

"Yes." She looked them over once, at times fingering back the immaculate white petals to look inside of the blooms themselves. "They're so pretty. How do you just have time to do things like this?"

Livano shrugged, still observing Martino leaning against the doorframe. He was beginning to look quite cross, and he discreetly tapped his wrist, as if willing Livano to understand to hurry the conversation.

"I am... fortunato." Livano laughed softly, "I am felice to be who I am. And I am lieto to have meet you." He gingerly handed the flowers over, carefully lifting a few of the drooping leaves to sit correctly.

"How much?" Danielle asked, beginning to withdraw a vivid orange purse. She flicked her bangs to one side and looked at Livano with bright eyes.

"Only two lira." Livano said, showing two fingers.

Danielle looked at him, tipping her head in a small look of surprise.

"Only two? For a dozen? That's kind of... minimal for such quality, isn't it?"

Livano shook his head. "I ask for poco. I don't need much. I only volere for contentedness. For your... ahm..." Livano hesitated, unsure of his word.

"Satisfaction?" Danielle asked, sliding the money across the counter. "That's a nice way to think of it. Not many people are like that anymore..."

Livano nodded, still warily eying Martino, who was still giving him a slightly warning look. Finish the conversation. Danielle was still speaking, observing the flowers as she put her purse away.

"People are always trying to take advantage of others. Outrageous, really." She looked up at Livano, a smile forming, "But it's nice to know that there are some people out there who really wish the best for others."

Danelle extended a hand, Livano carefully took it, shaking her hand politely.

"It was nice to meet you, Livano. I hope to see you soon." Danielle said softly, releasing Livano and turning towards the door.

"I am always here if you wish to trovami."

Danelle turned, looking at Livano brightly.

"I'll keep that in mind. Good day, Livano!" With that, Danielle passed Martino, giving him a brisk nod. Mariotino made a soft comment to her and Danelle let out a quiet laugh before leaving the household.

Livano stared at the door for an unknown time, thinking about the conversation he had just ended. Danelle would come back to visit? He had never had anyone just come by to just visit...

Martino interrupted his thoughts, knocking on the counter.

"Don't get all blushy on me, Livano. Hey, look at me!" Martino harshly smacked Livano's arm. Livano was thrown out of his daze, looking at his brother and rubbing his arm.

"Ow! Fa male, Martino!" Livano looked at his brother, concerned.

(That hurt, Martino!)

Martino rapped on the counter again, pushing aside Livano's words.

"Ho visto quella conversazione. Stai entrando in un territorio pericoloso, Livano." Martino nodded towards the front door that Danelle had just exited by.

(I saw that conversation. You're entering dangerous territory, Livano.)

Livano continued rubbing his shoulder, frowning at Martino. Dangerous? Dangerous how? "Come potrebbe una conversazione essere pericolosa? Era solo una chat!"

(How could a conversation be dangerous? It was just a chat!)

Martino let out a sharp laugh before looking Livano in the eyes with earnest. Livano felt a flicker of uncertainty. Martino only got that look if he was being serious and failure to acknowledge the fact would result in something bad happening.

"Perché lei è una ragazza, Livano. So che sembrerò stupido per averlo detto, ma le relazioni a volte sono estremamente pericolose." Martino looked down at his hand, tapping quickly for a few moments before acknowledging his younger brother again.

(Because she's a girl, Livano. I know I'm going to sound stupid for saying this, but relationships are sometimes extremely dangerous.)

Livano snorted.

"Sei solo geloso che sono riuscito a incantare una ragazza prima che tu fossi in grado di farlo per una volta." Livano reached out and tugged on his brother's ear in a teasing manner. "Inoltre, solo perché sono il fratello minore non significa che non sono capace. Sono vecchio come te, Martino, e tendi a compiacere le signore abbastanza spesso da quello a cui ho assistito. Perché non lasciare che la piccola Livano abbia una ragazza per una volta? Non è che tu sia l'unico uomo al mondo, lo sai."

(You're just jealous that I managed to charm a girl before you were able to for once. Besides, just because I'm the younger brother does not mean I'm not capable. I am as old as you, Martino, and you tend to please the ladies quite often from what I have witnessed. Why not let the little Livano have a girlfriend for once? It's not like you're the only man in the world, you know.)

Martino pulled away, causing Livano to release him. Livano frowned as his brother shook his head.

"Lo so, Livano. Capisco. Ma alcune persone ... non sono gentili come te. Alcune persone fanno cose terribili se le cose non vanno a modo loro. Io non voglio che tu ti ritrovi tra quegli stessi crosshairs."

(I know, Livano. I get it. But, some people are... not as kind as you. Some people do terrible things if matters don't go their way. I just don't want you to find yourself between those very crosshairs.)

Martino allowed himself another laugh, knocking on the counter once again before walking towards the door, picking up a brown leather jacket and slinging it over his shoulder. Just as he was about to leave, Martino turned, smiling at his younger brother with a slightly mischievous gaze.

"Ti giuro, un giorno una donna sta per arrivare mi ha ucciso. Io non voglio che tu vada allo stesso modo, Livano."

(I swear, one day a woman is going to get me killed. I don't want you to go the same way, Livano.)

With that, the door closed silently and Livano was left alone in silence, with quite a bit more to think about on his mind. There was a small rustling, and claws began to carefully scratch Livano's pant leg, closely followed by a sound of whimpering.

Livano looked down at Bene, who was lowering himself to the ground in a submissively pleading position. After staring at his dog for a good while, Livano shook his head and left his position at the counter, looking out over the hill towards Florence. The two lira he held in one hand, toying with them and thinking of Danelle. He could see both Danielle at the bottom of the hill, walking across a bridge by balancing on the sides, and Martino, who was beginning to pull on his jacket and was sprinting down the hill at full tilt by a different path to go into town, leaving his younger and more lonely brother behind.

Livano finally turned away, walking back to the counter and putting away the money before opening the door to let Bene outside.

Livano too, walked outside, leaning against one of the pillars of the veranda as Bene excitedly began to sniff about. The air was light and smelled slightly of rain. Livano looked up to the sky, which was cloudless, save for a few fluffy cirrus clouds hanging high over the earth. But, Livano warned himself, things could change rather quickly. After all, Italy was in its wet season. Weather could become a monster of its own if it wanted.

Soon, Bene came sprinting back to his master, yapping and wagging his fluffy tail. Looking at Bene, Livano couldn't help but smile.

"Sarete sempre qui per Livano, diritto Bene?" Livano bent down and began to rub Bene behind his ears. Bene began to growl with pleasure.

(You'll always be here for Livano, right Bene?)

Livano stopped petting Bene and the little dog looked up at him with bright eyes, as if to agree wholeheartedly.

Looking out over the landscape for a while longer, catching a whiff of acrid motor oil from the cars within Florence, Livano thought about what Martino had said before turning away towards the house, whistling for Bene to follow after him.

Livano could tell already that it was going to be one of those days of deep thought and lonely hours.