❁ Location: Potting shed behind the Maplewood Inn
❁ Closed Starter for @montesgarden
❁ Muses: Monte & Eden
The potting shed wasn't fully done yet; all the appliances that weren't in there originally were now finished and in place, while the only extra item was a mattress. Moving out of her childhood room was desperately needed. Being there had made it so easy for her to not process anything and instead just go at life the same way she did in high school. After some terrible nightmares and hours of talking with Monte, she decided that even if the greenhouse wasn't ready, Eden would still move all her things there. It took only a day to lug all her objects from the Prior household to her new abode. She'd never really had much, only a few items she held close to her chest and some clothes. The owner of the inn had no use for the shed anymore, and once Eden had mentioned her situation, the deal was quickly made.
Inside, there were no sections to the place; instead, everything was an open concept, which only felt odd while using the bathroom. When talking about this annoyance with Monte, he reminded her that he was handy with tools. Since she didn't trust herself with anything sharp, it seemed like the perfect time to invite him over for some help.
The two ended up talking for hours on the day they ran into each other. To be honest, she never wanted to stop being in his presence. Everything felt lighter when he was the one asking her about herself, so unlike the tightness that often followed personal questions from everyone else. Still, she was also terrified of him knowing what she had done and why she had to do it. Anxious questions swirled in her mind whenever the idea of bringing it up and how that could end, most of the time, it was him leaving because it was too much. Eden had always felt like too much, so she decided, after her father died, to keep her preferences and thoughts to herself. But with Monte, it never felt like that, nothing she said was going to be second-guessed or dissected.
The offer for help came with some perks. Eden had taken some leftover side dishes from dinner at the hotel and purchased a chicken to roast as the main course. To top it off, she got some wine even though she wasn't sure if either of them was actually going to drink it. Still, she wanted to pull out all the stops. This wasn't a normal feeling that coursed through her body when she was near him; all her life, she had never once focused on the prospects for romance. Now it was all she could think about, and she specifically envisioned him as the one she'd finally open that door with.
When he knocked on the door, she looked at the clock to see that he arrived right on time, and a soft smile grew on her lips before answering the door. As he came into view, she couldn't help but feel her body grow warm. A sensation of tingling sparks went to her knees. "Hi! I was just setting the table up, come on in." Monte was one of the few people who had seen her childhood bedroom, which was very different than her current space. The walls were white and bare, with no photos of family, not even art to make it feel like home. She'd hoped to get more things done, but right now it was busy season at the Inn, so many families and couples on vacation, that by the time she got back to decorate, she was exhausted. That's why she invited him over on a Friday, hoping that, because her shift was covered tomorrow, it wouldn't matter if she had to sleep in the next day. "It's a work in progress, but they finally put it in a tub, so I don't have to keep using a vacant room at the inn." Closing the door, she then walked towards the kitchen area. "I was hoping you could help me section it off a bit more. I can't figure out how to make it work, but even if just the bathroom area could have some walls, it'd be an improvement."
