Greenhouse || Xavier Thorpe x Male Reader

flower language || chapter 2

 After a few months at Nevermore, things have fallen into a routine. Students here seem to take a series of extracurriculars instead of normie academic classes which works fine for me. I was never the best at geometry, anyway.

I seem to have fallen into a small group consisting of Wednesday Addams, Enid's roommate, Enid herself, Xavier, and Ajax, one of Xavier's friends. Weems forced me to join a club a few days after I arrived, and following Wednesday's recommendation, I joined the beekeeping club. It's just her and her friend Eugene, but they said having a third person would increase productivity by 50%, so I joined.

Currently, the five of us sit on a picnic table in the pentagon-shaped quad. Wednesday, Enid, and Ajax sit on one side of the table leaving Xavier and me on the other side.

"Did you know," Ajax tells us, "That the grass is a smidge greener on your side of the table than it is on ours?" Four heads turn in the direction of the ground.

"Oh my god, you're right," Enid exclaims. He is right, I realize. A small section of the lawn around the bench Xavier and I sit on is a much more vibrant green than the rest of the grass.

"Well," Wednesday states matter-of-factly, "[Y/N]'s emotions control the plant life around him, so it's probable that he is currently feeling an emotion related to happiness. Why it would only be around that bench is another matter."

"Look, it's probably just because you guys make me happy, okay?" I say, feeling my face begin to heat up. Enid looks at me and stands up

"[Y/N], can I talk to you over there for a second?" she asks. I nod and we walk over to a nearby tree out of earshot from anyone else. I can feel the group's eyes on us as we stand there.

"Okay, this may sound a bit out of pocket, but I'm a bit better with feelings than Wednesday, as much as I love her she can be a bit... detached. I think you may like someone within this group," Enid explains.

"You're right, this is out of pocket. Strong feelings like that are dangerous for me with the plants surrounding me at all times, you would know for sure if I did," I tell her.

"Well, feelings are stronger once we realize and acknowledge them. Besides, I've seen your greenhouse. You're growing an awful lot of flowers, and according to this article I found on flower language-" she begins.

"Okay, first of all, you broke into my greenhouse. Not cool. Second, flower language is so stupid," I snap.
"Listen to this list. Roses, orchids, tulips, lavender, sunflowers... They're all out of season as well, where did you find those seeds?" Enid asks.

"For god's sake, Enid, that means nothing. Last week I accidentally grew a venus flytrap. Also, I didn't find the seeds. Seeds grow based on my emotions, we've been through this," I say, exasperated.

"Yeah. Your emotions, [Y/N]. Last week you were angry at me for not reminding you that we had an analysis due for botany. That's why you grew a flytrap," she tells me. I shake my head and walk back to the table. Enid can really be too much sometimes.

~=~

I pull off my gloves in the warm greenhouse after transplanting another rosebush. When I look around to take in the wonders of plant life around me, I take survey of the different plants. Sunflowers. Orchids. The billions of rosebushes that I'm considering selling come Valentine's day. Tulips. Lavender... all those goddamn flowers Enid was talking about.

I squeeze my eyes shut and run my hands through my hair. My parents talked to me about this. Refuse any form of strong emotion. Push it away, or I'll cause another accident. I wouldn't be at Nevermore if my father were better at regulating his emotions, and I'm not going to get kicked out of the one place I finally belong in. When I open my eyes again, I see a paper butterfly resting on one of the plants. On its wing is a message.

[Y/N],

Please let me in. It's cold out here and I need to talk to you.

My head is still in a debate on whether or not to let him in as I unlock the door of the greenhouse and feel the cold rush of the night air on my face. Xavier stands in the doorway and I step aside to allow him passage into the warm building.

"Is it always so humid in here?" he asks, walking around the rows of plants.

"Well, not usually, but I have orchids growing and they like the humidity," I explain. He nods, half obscured by flowers.

"This is an interesting mix," he comments. I grit my teeth.

"I'm going to sell the rosebushes around Valentine's day. I've got so many of them now, no use wasting space in here," I tell him. He picks up a flower that fell to the floor in the chaos of my transplanting spree earlier and holds it up.

"Man overboard. What do I do with it?"

I wave him over and he sets it down on a table next to me.

"Well, we can set it in water and hope to create a new root system that way, I can take it and graft a clipping onto another plant, or you can keep it," I say. He twirls it around in his hands before tucking it in his ponytail.

"I think I'll keep it. It's a very nice rose," he decides. "I'm actually here to talk to you, though. Enid told me about her theory."