Mellie's Secret

I spend so much time in my garden, you could say I've put my heart and soul into it. The rose garden always needs pruning and the topiaries need trimming constantly. I love my flowers. I even have a separate part of the garden that I grow specifically to sell potted plants and cut flower bouquets. Every Tuesday and Thursday I go to my stall at the local indoor market and make people happy with my arrangements. Some even ask if I can make custom bunches on occasion, and one girl asked me to do her wedding flowers. She offered me a small fortune, too.

I had invited Hannah to my garden to show her what I had available and to see if there was anything specific she wanted that I didn't have. We would also go through what arrangements she wanted, how many and design ideas for them. And, of course, the all-important bridal bouquet.

She had decided to settle on pastel colours for her theme, so she wanted her flowers to reflect that. It was a spring wedding so it was the perfect time of year for those beautiful, pale yellows, blues and pinks. Peonies, lilacs, hyacinths, snowdrops. She also requested baby's-breath and eucalyptus leaves to bulk the bouquets out and to add in some more green and white.

"I don't want it too over-the-top, but I definitely want the centre pieces to be pretty and eye-catching. Can you grow a few shades of peonies for my bouquet? I'd like them to be the main part. I was thinking of having the tables be colours instead of numbers, like Blue table, Yellow table, White table and Pink table." I had my book of the majority of plants and flowers I have grown or can grow that we were flipping through while talking. At this stage, Hannah had her heart set on the flowers and plants she had already mentioned, but was willing to flick through just in-case she found something else that caught her eye that would go with the rest.

"And what about the top table? And what sort of tables are you planning? Long, trestle tables or round? Or both?" I asked, to get a sense of placements and sizes. These things are so important, because you don't want to make 5 centre pieces that don't even fit the tables.

"The top table will be a long trestle or two for the bridal party and then four large round tables for the guests." Hannah quickly counted out the number of guests on her fingers, "There should be eight to a table, but there will be plenty of space for a centre piece this big." She held her hands out in varying directions to indicate a vase around fifteen centimetres around, with the flowers being able to sit around a foot around. This also gives me a chance to find some trailing greenery to add.

"Okay, so how would you like several smaller pieces along your top table, maybe incorporating all of the colours and along the edge?"

After confirming the rest of the details, Hannah asked to see the plants and flowers in person, so we went out into my beautiful, serene centre. The rose bushes lined the pathway, the sweet scent filling our lungs as we stroll down the stone pathway. I had an orchard too, the juicy apples were a favourite among my family. We wondered through the varying shades of pinks and into the leafy greens while taking a moment every so often to stop and breathe in the aroma. She spotted the massive collection of hyacinths, both potted and in the earth and nearly fainted - happily - at the sight.

We arrived at an ivy-covered wall with an ivy-covered wooden arched gate and a metal handle, and as Hannah went to open said ivy-covered door, my chest tightened and my hand grabbed hers, "This is my private garden, I'm sorry. I don't show this part."

Her face soured slightly, but no put up no fight.

We walked back in the direction of the house, but my mind couldn't stop thinking about the ivy-covered walls that held my biggest secret.

A lie I have been telling for so long; a secret so big, no one knew, or could know.