her stuttered words brought a slight smile to his lips and he walked alongside her, maintaining little distance between them. “i am pretty hard to say no to, aren’t i?” he teased, softly nudging her with his arm. “you shouldn’t say things like that though,” he warned, “then i’ll be calling you to meet up nonstop,” he added, offering her a grin as he looked over at her. though they were walking together, z was walking ahead slightly to lead the way. he wasn’t oblivious to any interest grace might have in him. it was another reason why he found himself drawn to her; too much self interest, and how he liked the validation of knowing his effect on her. she made it so obvious without even trying. “hints?” he hummed thoughtfully, wondering if he should bother. it wasn’t like they were going too far, but he shrugged, figuring a hint or two wouldn’t hurt. “green. lots of green,” which was vague enough that she probably wouldn’t be able to figure it out from there, but it was still a hint. he led her up to the rooftop, which he’d previously gained access to through a money bribe with the groundskeeper. zelan learned at a young age that almost anyone could be bought, if he found the right price. walking across the rooftop, he took her hand in his. “this way,” he said, nodding in the direction he was leading her. he opened the door to reveal a greenhouse; some plants were overgrown, some were dead. it was obvious that it’d been abandoned for awhile, but zelan had still been intrigued by the discovery. “so?” he questioned, like she should already know what he’s thinking, “do you think we could do something about it? save the plants, or whatever.”
grace tugged even more nervously on the ends of her hair at his words. she had to remind herself that this was zelan and that his words didn’t have the double meaning that was running back and forth through her head. that didn’t stop the next works that spilled from her mouth, “i mean, i wouldn’t mind,” she spoke her voice soft, almost muffled by the tuck of her head. she was probably the color of a tomato at that point, not that it wasn’t anything he shouldn’t be use too. at the hint she couldn’t help but scrunch her dark eyebrows together perplexed by his words, different options spun through her head at the word ‘green’ but nothing solid really bubble up. so instead of questioning, she followed along side him quietly. at the brush of his hand against hers she couldn’t help an excited thrill roll up her spine, the feeling only amplified as he wrapped his hand around hers and pulling her through the door. she barely even had time to process that he was actually holding her hand before her eyes fell on the setting around them. bright green plants surrounded the rooftop, green everywhere you look. she couldn’t help but pull herself away from him taking an excited little jog forward, “oh my god,” she gushed softly turning side to side looking at each plant around her. all the possibilities of the place filled her mind, colors and colors of flowers along with long winding green patches. she also couldn’t help but imagine the experiments she could have with those plants she grew, testing different types of growth and genetic solutions. her fingers twitched excitedly at the ideas before zelan’s voice spoke up reminding her that he was with her. she blushed again, realizing just how childish she must have looked so excited by a bunch of dead plants, “oh, um, yes,” she responded a gummy smile pulling on her lips, “uh, i already have a few ideas,” she rubbed at the back of her neck, “how did you find this place z?”