And Today Was a Day Just Like Any Other (What If? - Open)

[Your Mom~]

It felt weird waking up in her old childhood room. Though instead of her siblings Gabri, Melody, and Darien in the adjoining rooms it was her bandmates Garret, Lor, and Marten occupying their beds. She was back in Long Beach for the first time in years if you didn't count holidays. Stir Fry Friday was touring the west coast from Seattle down to Phoenix, and Long Beach was one of the stops.

Stretching rather cat-like, twenty five year old Olesya Jean Van deBogart rolled out of bed, ruffling her multicolored hair with a yawn. Right now only blue, red, and purple intermingled with her auburn locks, as the green, yellow, and orange were extensions since the colors didn't like to stay in that well. She slid down the fireman's poll to the second floor where Mr. Van deBogart was cooking breakfast. Mrs. Van deBogart was downstairs running her cafe and florist.

After a quick breakfast, she showered and changed and joined her mother on the main floor of the converted fire house. Since all her children left the nest, Mrs. Van deBogart had to hire other people to help her run the combination cafe and florist shop called 'Blossoms Bistro.' When she was home, Olesya would help out like she had been since the bistro opened a decade ago. It was a blistering hot summer day, which meant tons of iced beverages for the heat-stroked citizens of Long Beach. She grabbed an apron and took over the blenders to help push the production along.

[Kyrie Blaze]

Kyrie closed her eyes and inhaled. The humidity of the florist shop - in the back - didn't bother her. With her hair mostly clipped near the nape of her neck - a few "pesky" curls trailing over her shoulders - the blonde young woman was happily watering the potted and boxed flowers.

With the din of the crowd and the increased whirr of the blenders, Kyrie tucked the watering can away, stashing it just beneath a table so nobody would trip on it. Straightening, Kyrie brushed the back of her hand against her forehead and then plucked at the edge of her tan-and-white mottled shirt as she strode to the middle of the two conjoined stores. Popping her head around the corner, she spotted someone new--though her keen blue eyes were observant enough to pick up the similarities in features between the brunette with her colourfully-dyed strips and her bosses. Offering a quiet yet open smile, she wriggled her fingers in a wave to the young woman she didn't know - but could guess who - and Mrs. Van deBogart.

"If you need help," She lifted her voice, projecting it over the noise, "Just call. I am going to finish up with the plants."

And, obviously, tend to any customers.

With another smile, the blonde ducked back, heading to resume her watering if she hadn't been stopped.

Some people may have questioned why Kyrie, with her growing and well-rounded educational repertoire, would choose to work several part-time jobs. For the blonde, however, it was as much a challenge as it was to keep her life dynamic and interesting. One of her other part-time jobs was tuning pianos, and she loved it. This flower shop? Definitely enabled her to relax - sometimes - and she loved gardening.

To her, it was a win-win situation. Her other jobs perhaps were not quite so interesting, but they were work and experience. And they enabled her to pay her parents for rent and go to school, and still have some afternoons to do as she wished.

With a smile for the flowers and a watchful eye on the door and register on this side of the re-purposed (and lovely) firehouse, Kyrie hummed a tune as she tipped the watering can to shower the flowers and plants once more.

[Your Mom~]

Olesya waved back, stopping the blender with the push of a button and pouring the contents into a plastic cup. She popped a top on it, grabbing a straw from the stand and handed it to the customer before moving onto the next drink. It was like a dance, and much like riding a bicycle, Olesya hadn't lost her touch in the time she'd been away.

"She's adorable. Who's that?"

She asked her mom, who was putting a couple muffins in a bag for an elderly couple. Mrs. Van deBogart tucked a strand of her honey colored hair behind her ear, smiling and waving at the couple as she handed over the bag. She turned to her second youngest child, smiling mildly.

"Her name is Kiyr, very sweet girl. I hired her on when Gab left for school."

Gabriella, or Gabri/Gab (or a mix of other nicknames), was the youngest of the Van deBogart kids. Melody was the oldest, and was finishing her residency in a hospital in Seattle. Darien, the second oldest and only boy, was taking after his father's love of adventure. He was apprenticing as a stunt double in Hollywood. Gabriella, the youngest, was at Musashino Art University in Japan...not that Olesya was jealous or anything. Despite the distance, all of the Van deBogart children promised they would visit on Christmas, no matter what. This was the first time Olesya had been home for any amount of time since then.

[Kyrie Blaze]

A new customer entered, and the blonde called out a greeting as she moved to the next potted plant; the last in this row. As she set the can back down and out of the way, a splash of red caught her eye. The blonde froze. Blinked.

'...mon dieu! Is that..? Did Mrs. Van deBogart order..? They are here!?'

Carefully moving away from what caught her eye, towards the customer, it wasn't hard to be cheerful and excited. A Lycoris radiata. Her favourite! She couldn't wait to go see and confirm even though she knew exactly what the plant was. Its appearance was distinctive. Excitement bubbled in her chest, causing her heart to skip a beat or two.

"Good morning~ My name is Kiyr. Is there anything you're looking for, specifically? Chances are if we do not have it, we can certainly place an order for you."

[Your Mom~]

The customer was a willowy framed, middle aged woman with short cropped gray hair. Meridian Van deBogart recognized her as she came in, nodding to Kiyr as she greeted the customer.

"Oh! Mrs. Gilacudy, good to see you! Kiyr, she ordered the flats of petunias on the rooftop garden. There's two, Les could you help Kiyr with the flats? I can handle it down here for a few."

Olesya wiped her hands on the towel draped over the strings of her apron, walking out from behind the counter with a grin.

"Yeah, sure mom. Hi Kiyr, I'm Olesya, Meridian's third oldest."

She didn't want to say 'second youngest!' Third oldest sounded a little better, in her opinion. She stuck out her hand to shake Kiyr's before walking to the back room and up the stairs to the roof. The only downside of the renovated fire house was that that meant three flights of stairs.

"How long have you been working here, Kiyr?"

She asked by way of conversation as she started up the stairs. That was an interesting name, Kiyr. Was it short for something? Not having seen it on paper, it seemed more like "Keer" to her. Kirsten? Kiera? Kieran? It was a heck of a climb, but the Van deBogart's didn't have enough money to completely remodel to include an elevator, and it was healthier (Meridian's words, everyone else called it a 'pain in the ass').

[Kyrie Blaze]

"Oh--of course~" She called to Meridian with a bit of a sheepish smile. She was still getting used to the variety of customers that came and went, and not always did they come frequently. So she was doubly thankful someone knew.

"Olesya? Pleased to meet you." The small blonde nodded, extending her opposite hand to shake Les's before she pivotted to begin walking towards the back, and up the stairs, a swing and bounce to her stride as she took to the stairs quickly and nimbly. "Well, a couple summers, actually, and off-and-on when I am not attending university. Mostly whenever your mother needs me to help out."

She nodded, chipper but calm.

"How is your Tour going..?"

What proud mother did not speak well of her children, after all? It was no surprise Kyrie would know--and even more than that, even if Meridian didn't talk about Olesya and her other children, chances are Kyrie would have found out, being avidly into music and scoping out some of the lesser-known artists that were quite often diamonds in the rough.

[Your Mom~]

"Nice to meet you too!"

She smiled, this girl was really sweet, no wonder her mother hired her. Running the business by herself was out of the question, and she'd gotten by by only hiring like one or two other people for the hours when her kids were at school. Now that they were empty nesters, the need was more constant.

"I'm glad you're able to help my mom out. All us kids used to work here, I started when I was probably thirteen or so. Now that Gabri's away for school, she needs the extra hands."

Kiyr probably already knew this, her mother was a chatterbox sometimes. It was endearing though, because she was the type of woman that both loved to share stories about her family and hear about other people's families as well. Because of this, Meridian Va deBogart had a huge list of people and families she sent holiday cards to every Christmas.

"Uhh...the tour's doing well. Seattle is gorgeous, we got to stay with my sister, we all crashed on her living room floor. Oregon's nice, though I liked Washintgon better. The shows here have been smaller turn outs because we were getting a following mostly in the New England area, but we figured we'd try our luck out here too to try and broaden our fanbase. I'm hoping to get a decent turn out here since it's my old stomping ground. Did you go to 259?"

She asked, turning to look at the girl every minute or so as they climbed up the stairs. They'd made it past the second and third floors, and were rounding their way to the rooftop access.

[Kyrie Blaze]

"It really is no problem. It keeps me busy, and the hours are flexible enough that I can work another job or two, and go back to college, otherwise. And my mother passed her green thumb to me, so I like tending to the flowers...and the Bistro itself is just fun, and sometimes a challenge~"

Her voice was light, but with what Olesya said next, she felt excitement bubble up. Seattle? Of course she would have been there; it would have been a prime stop along the West coast. Her heart gave a little flutter of excitement, which only faded a little at the question of if she attended two-five-nine at all.

"Two-five-nine? Briefly. Very briefly, only about a month or so. We moved here within the last month of the school year. From Seattle, actually, so I am incredibly happy you find my home city gorgeous."

Kyrie flashed a smile as they bounded up the steps, the short blonde keeping pace easily, her breathing quick and light to compensate for the rapid steps. Just up ahead was the door. The last set of steps covered, Kyrie's hand found the doorknob with ease and twisted to push it open, swinging herself out of the stairwell to hold the door for Olesya, and then press the stopper down so the door didn't close on them, and to make taking the boxes down easier.

[Your Mom~]

"Probably why you're not a familiar face. Between Varsity Captain and running the cafe, I got to know just about every face at 259."

She said kindly, giving the girl a smile. It wasn't like she was bragging or anything, but it was no secret that Olesya was a social butterfly. This didn't mean that she knew everybody, but she at least could recognize faces from her high school days.

They reached the roof, Kiyr propping the door open so they wouldn't have a hard time getting back downstairs. Les gave her a quick 'thanks' before stepping out onto the roof. The garden was one of her favorite spots, it hid them away from the busy city street below and granted a sense of serenity.

"I used to come up here to write songs. It's just so peaceful..."

She mused, a gentle smile on her face as her eyes filled with nostalgia.