Shay was... potentially in a lot of trouble.

The golden snake pin -- she practically stole it!

It wasn’t on purpose, but she was definitely keeping something that did not belong to her!

And, apparently, it was really, really important.

She needed to return it to Tyvan as soon as she could and probably apologize a hundred or a thousand times.

What if... what if it was a gift from someone he loved?

What if he was sad without it??

Oh, no. She felt terrible!

Raised voices pulled her out of her guilt-ridden daze. A pair of customers had entered the greenhouse... and they brought their outside arguments with them.

--”Don’t you dare buy anything! You don’t even wash the dishes. And now you want to take care of something basically alive and breathing?”

--”Stop being so dramatic. It’s just a plant. How hard could it be?”

Two boys in stylish clothes.

Shay blinked her eyes.

She thought that... for a moment... she saw animal ears-- on top of both their heads?

But she was wrong.

The stern-looking one had dark skin, dark hair, and sharp features. He wore a slick, black jacket and pants that were a half-size too small.

The other boy had fluffy, sandy hair; distressed jeans, and... an annoying voice.

Together, they were potential problem customers. Shay’s heart ached on Heidi’s behalf.

She turned back to look at the nursery owner... who was frozen stiff, wearing a pitiful expression, and near tears.

“Uh. Heidi?” Shay said, shaking her gently.

“Oh... oh,” Heidi whined, “Shay, what shall I do?”

Awwww. Oh, noOoo~

She was so scared!

Heidi looked to her with her blue, pleading, watery eyes, “I’m not-- I’m not good...”

“At talking to people?” Shay offered.

Heidi nodded sadly.

Shay’s lips stretched out to the sides. Well, she was aLsO not good at talking to people!

And wasn’t it kinda wEiRd that a business owner had problems talking to people?!

But still... a strong sense of responsibility swelled in her heart.

Heidi was an incredibly sweet individual, so if Shay could do something to help her, she would!

She put on a brave face and marched toward the two arguing boys-- each step... a little slower... and a little more hesitant than the last. By the time she got to them, her entire body was shaking.

“C-c-can I help you?” she asked.

“Ah!” the sandy blonde turned, yelping in surprise. “Bitch! What the heLL? Don’t sneak up on me like that.”

“Noah,” the other said. “Quit it. Take a look at the girl’s bag.”

Noah shot a glare back to his friend before looking back to Shay.

His gaze drifted down... and, for a moment, his eyes shot open.

He saw... the snake pin?

Noah made a weird face, then he closed his eyes and turned away.

“Sorry,” he said.

“I hope you can forgive him, Miss,” the other boy added.

“It’s... it’s fine,” Shay said, forcing a smile.

He continued with, “I hope you can help us. We’re looking for something easy to take care of... maybe something that can go days or weeks without watering.”

“Hey, I’m really not that bad,” Noah whined.

“Please,” the other boy insisted.

“Got it,” Shay nodded back.

She looked back to Heidi.

Oh, no. Poor Heidi was hiding behind the counter, peeking just her head out.

She started mouthing something.

‘Eh. Ah. Va. Ri. Ah’?

That... sounded familiar?

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Oh.

Ugh.

Shay sighed and walked over to where she saw the cutest succulent in the world.

She checked the tag before turning to the customers, “This is the Echevaria Cute Bean, and it’s perfect for what you’re looking for.”

...

Only after the boys walked out the door did Heidi get up from behind the counter.

“...You’re not good at confrontation,” Shay said flatly.

“I... I made preparations,” Heidi replied, her voice still shaky.

She proudly held out a pair of gardening shears.

Shay raised her eyebrows, “And what were you gonna do with those? Cut them off?”

“Cut what off?” Heidi asked, tilting her head.

Shay turned around completely. She didn’t want to say. According to the picture date, Heidi was older than her. And the way she spoke-- she might have even been much older.

But... it was entirely possible that she still had no idea what Shay was talking about.

The gardening shears...

She furrowed her brows.

She didn’t realize it until then, but she had gone vampire-hunting without a... vampire-hunting weapon.

If she came across a murderous, fanged, supernatural that wasn’t as cute and friendly and terrified of confrontation as Heidi... she might have ended up just like poor James...

--not that the blue-eyed Heidi was a vampire for certain.

She turned back to face her, “Do you grow any garlic here?”

“Yes?” Heidi said, her voice uncertain.

She gestured to the side door, “I grow garlic year-round, but I must apologize. They’re all reserved for Tyvan.”

She pouted before adding, “He does love garlic so~”

That was wonderful to hear.

Shay loved garlic too! Having something in common with Tyvan made her heart flutter.

“Was there anything else you were looking for?” Heidi asked.

Oh. Shay started to sweat. Despite Heidi probably not being a vampire, she didn’t want to reveal her true reason for investigating the nursery.

“P-pink Camellias,” Shay muttered. “One, please.”

She didn’t know how much that would cost... but she desperately hoped that one was in her budget.

“You’re quite lucky,” Heidi smiled, “I received a shipment of Camellias just yesterday-- oh! And that reminds me: I need to add that to the board.”

Oh, so she was the cursive-writer! She definitely looked how Shay imagined a cursive-writer to be.

Heidi retrieved a small planter pot, one fully bloomed pink flower sprouting from the leaves.

It was really cute. Aquila had good taste.

“Take it,” Heidi said, “as thanks for helping me.”

Shay’s jaw hung open as she struggled to find a response. In retrospect, it made sense, but the price tag on the Camellia was... not exactly cheap.

She tried to refuse, but Heidi was very stubborn.

Shay almost cried. She hadn’t remembered anyone in her life ever being so sweet to her.

--and that fact made her want to cry too!

“Heidi... thank you so much,” she said.

“Pink Camellias symbolize longing... a sweet, enduring love,” Heidi said.

Shay heard Heidi’s own longing and love in her melancholic voice.

She gulped as she took the planter pot into her hands.

“And I’d also like you to have this,” Heidi added.

She placed a new, untouched pair of gardening scissors on the counter-- much different from the older, more rustic-looking one she had as her customer-service weapon.

“So you can cut them off,” she added with a wink.

“Heidi, I can’t accept both of these,” Shay pouted.

“Think of it as a congratulatory gift,” Heidi smiled, “and something to give you more self-confidence.”

“Miss Heidi...”

“I don’t like new things much,” Heidi sighed. “I like my old, worn-in dress; these old gloves... my old, trusty shears.”

She looked up, “But you’re different. You have so much potential... in growing your sweet, young love... and walking by Tyvan’s side. And you’re very brave, Miss Yan. Please accept this.”

Shay sniffed deeply. She put the planter pot down.

“C-can I have a hug?”

“Of course, dear.”

...

Shay spent another half-hour talking to Heidi.

She learned a lot...

Mostly, she learned about how nice it was to cry without being judged. Then, she memorized a few guidelines to taking care of her new pink Camellia. (Also, she borrowed a trowel that she still had to return.)

But most importantly... Shay learned where Tyvan worked.

Of course, she couldn’t go right away.

She spent Sunday studying for the next week at school. Going on new adventures was nice and all-- but she still had house and school responsibilities to take care of.

On Monday, she told Miss Ansari she was leaving early. She needed a good window of time to find Tyvan during his office hours.

It was... the first time she was skipping school-- or something to that effect.

She hoped that Miss Ansari wouldn’t ask why. She tried to think up a reasonable explanation, but... nothing came to mind.

‘MiSs YaN, why are you skipping school, yOuNg LaDy?’

‘Oh, miSs aNsAri-- glad you asked! You see, I’m planning on sTaLking someone I met a week ago! Also, I’m investigating possible leads on vAmPires because I’m not convinced James got got by murderous exTra-terresTriaLs!’

“Shay,” Miss Ansari said, “if wherever you’re going doesn’t work out, let me know. I have a friend that might be hiring. I could even write you a recommendation.”

Shay held her hands over her heart, touched by her favorite teacher’s care and understanding, “Thank you, Miss Ansari~”

That worked.

Looking for a job.

Admittedly, after returning the snake pin to Tyvan, her getting an actual job sounded like a good idea.

Maybe she could ask Heidi if she was hiring. She could probably use the help.

But anyway-- according to her, the complex next to her nursery had an office where Tyvan worked, open only during school hours.

So she thought it was a place with a bunch of tiny little offices, full of doctors and lawyers and tax places. It wasn’t quite like that, though.

Shay reached the building and looked up at the sign on the front.

‘Elysian Heights’