XIV. TAEK WOON

I stood dumbfounded in front of the door step.

There was a bouquet of flowers sitting on the cold ground. I took a good look at it.

Camellia? I guess... I was never good with flowers, nor with figuring things out. Where did the flowers come from? With an eyebrow raised, I bent to get the cluster. Just then, the door opened, my wife's head popped out, with a warm smile on her face. "I knew you'd be here - " Her sentence was cut off. She noticed the bouquet. "...Wow." She gasped, which was later followed by a genuine smile. "I never expected these! What's the occasion?" Filled with excitement, she took the flowers from my hands and gazed at them. "Thank you very much!" She jumped in joy; her lips then met my cheek.

I myself never expected flowers to greet me as I come home. All I could do was nod.

The flowers kept on coming. Primrose. Tulips. Gardenias.

My wife might have been delighted with these "gifts", but I wasn't. Every day, they kept on coming. The next thing I knew, there were chocolates. "My sweet tooth's gonna get pulled if this keeps up!" She playfully nudged me as she nibbled on a bar of Hershey's. "...Don't." I blurted out of nowhere. "Hmm?" She looked at me with confused eyes.

I sighed, "Are you meeting with someone lately?" I ended up asking.

"No, why?"

"...Nothing." I said as I took the chocolate bar from her. "There might be poison here." 

She kept on receiving anonymous gifts. It got me really worried. She probably thought that I might've brought them. I told her the truth. "Then who?" My wife asked me with fretful eyes. "I don't know either..." I sighed. I felt a heavy weight being placed upon my shoulder. I saw my wife bit her bottom lip - She was scared. My heart sank. I might've been carefree all this time. I thought that it wasn't that important of a deal... But as soon as I saw her petrified face, I died a little inside. I took her hand and rubbed my thumb across her palm to comfort her, even just a bit. "It's going to end soon, I promise." I gave her my word, and she gave me a crooked smile.

I might've said that, but it got worse.

Today, there was this weird bag placed on the stairs. It was filthy. The stench was too much. I tried opening it, and I can't even talk about it... I threw it away before she could see it. The next day came; there were withering flowers on an antique vase. "Jonquils..." She whispered in dismay. 

"...Desire for affection returned."

Today, too, there were gifts. I couldn't even call them "gifts". They were horrifying... Sickening! "Gyaaah!!!" I ran outside the house - My wife was there, her whole body was shaking. I grabbed her shoulders and moved her out of the way. I looked down - A dead cat. A note was attached to it. "Cocoa" - It said.

My wife had a cat named "Cocoa" once...

It didn't stop.

We reported it to the police. 

One Wednesday night, we drove back home from dinner. I closed the car's door, pocketed my car keys, and headed straight for the door. But then, my feet came to a halt, and my eyes widened in terror. She closed the door and approached me. I was rooted on my spot. 

"Honey, what's wrong?"

She took a peek from behind, and I felt her stiffen. A shriek followed after. 

We were both looking at a bloody head.

600 words.

PROMPT 17. Your character starts receiving flowers and anonymous gifts. She doesn't know who is sending them. Her husband is uneasy, and the gifts begin to get stranger...

In the language of flowers: Camellia (You're a flame in my heart). Primrose (I can't live without you). Tulips (Believe me). Gardenia (Secret love). Jonquil (Desire for affection returned).