timetripper:
unless they’re working in the floral shop, it’s rare to come across others with a genuine interest in flowers, including multiple variations of said flowers. alessa has a tendency to overwhelm people when talking about her passions — whether it involves flowers, music, or art. her excitement can sometimes get the best of her. nonetheless, she is so grateful she hasn’t steered basil away. it’s hard to make and keep friends these days.
time travel doesn’t help either.
“i knew it. i could see it in those shifty eyes.” her head shakes playfully when another laugh falls from her lips. even though it’s a joke, she’d love to have a familiar face in the shop. although she doubts much work would get done. the two would be too distracted and too involved in their own conversations to eagerly help customers. still, it’s a nice thought. “really? well, if you stick around, you’ll end up becoming an encylopedia too. i have way too much up here.” she gestures by tapping a finger to her temple. to be fair, there’s still so much more to learn but she’s confident in her floral knowledge. she’s willing to share everything as long as he’s interested.
alessa’s smile grows wider and wider as the other speaks. she offers a small nod, humming in agreement.
“honestly, i feel the same way. i think every flower is special.” of course she has her favorites but all species are beautiful in their own way. at least that’s how she views them. at the mention of zinnias, her head tilts to the side. “zinnias are a great choice. you have taste,” she confirms. “i can totally see that. i think zinnias match your personality.” running a hand through her hair, she takes a seat next to him, attempting to catch a closer look at the sketch. she can take a moment to rest her feet, right? she’s quiet for a second before giving up another confession. “if i had to choose, i think hydrangeas are my favorite. specifically french hydrangeas. they’re kind of all over my apartment… along with succulents. too many succulents. i have an addiction, i think.”
his grin turns bashful at the remark. maybe if it were anyone else, it would just be something to say, a retrospective claim to familiarity : oh, of course that’s your favorite! that’s so much like you. don’t i know you so well? as if friendship were a competition and bragging rights were the goal, something he’d seen more than enough times from acquaintances and family alike. but basil knows alessa well enough to understand she isn’t the type, that she means it when she says zinnias match his personality — and it’s the nicest, most inadvertent compliment anyone’s ever given him. “really?” there’s a childish curiosity, of course, to ask for specifics — a small flash of egotism to know the similarities — but he’s not about to ruin sincerity with vanity. “i’m flattered. i don’t know if my personality is very colorful and poofy itself,” he recalls his words about his favorite flower with a chuckle, “but i won’t disagree.”
he finishes the outline of one last petal before moving to draw the stem. the sketch is slow as he listens, nodding at the mention of her own choice of flower. “you’ve also got taste. hydrangeas are beautiful. the purple ones are my favorite.” in his limited (and nowhere near encyclopedic) knowledge of flowers, basil only knows colors, not types. in fact, he didn’t even know hydrangeas had types. so he’s not one-hundred-percent sure which ones are french, but he hopes the hydrangeas he’s thinking of aren’t too dissimilar : the ones that could arguably also be called poofy, with all their many petals arranged in colorful spheres.
with her next confession, his mouth quirks a little higher. bright eyes looking up from his paper to smile over at her, amusement tucked in his gaze.
“how many succulents is too many succulents? because i think i might be right there with you.” although now that he thinks about it, he’s never really known anyone who’s ever had just one. the amount of succulents in a home seems to be less of spectrum and more of a coin toss between none or too many, at least from his experience. “though in our defense, i think it’s pretty hard to have anything less than too many.”
