Before We Burned - Book One| [Currently Being Rewritten]

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

"So what are we looking for exactly?" I asked Deena as she stared at a bunch of perfectly-aligned indoor plants.

She lightly stroked her chin, a little engrossed in thought. "Well, something greenish-" she was instantly cut short by Reem.

"Duh. Aren't most of the plants green?"

Then she resumed talking. "Who knows? I'm just following dad's instructions." She shrugged. "Now back to the qualities, we said green, air purifier, doesn't need direct sunlight and what else-" she hummed. "Oh, and pet friendly. We don't want Max getting poisoned now, do we?"

"Max as in your dog?" Asked Reem.

"Yup."

According to Deena, her mum was a huge lover of indoor plants, and her dad would buy her some every couple of years and leave little notes on them. Talk about successful marriages.

Unlike my parents'.

I wished my dad would do something like that too. Except that he couldn't since he divorced mum and ran out on us three years ago. He never even called to check in.

I sighed and let my eyes roam the interior. Everything looked green, fresh, and nice. Honestly, I had never been a fan of plants but this place could make literally anyone spend their money on stuff they didn't even need to keep by the windowsill.

Reem pipped up from behind us. "I think I found the right one for you! Look-" she pointed at some sort of description beneath the pot. "It says it's a strong air purifier, pet friendly, and doesn't need direct sun."

I noticed the name and cringed instantly. "It's also named Spider plant and apparently it grows baby spiders, I don't even know what that means."

God, I hate spiders.

"What's wrong with spiders?" Asked Deena.

Reem rolled her eyes at me. "Hazel has a phobia."

"They are creepy." I gritted my teeth. The mere thought gave me goosebumps.

I rubbed my forearms and let my eyes wander around, shaking the thought off. Then I caught a glimpse of a beautiful, royal green plant in a baby-blue pot. I strode towards it and called out for them. "Come here, I think this one's nice." I read the description. "It's written here that it needs to be kept moist without over-watering, produces oxygen at night so it's advised to keep it in your bedroom and it has pollens-" then I craned my neck to Deena. "Do your parents have any particular allergies?"

She shook her head.

"Then, fine. No issues. It also removes ammonia, benzene, and other stuff that I couldn't read because they have like sixteen letters in them. So?" I arched my eyebrows. "Piqued your interest?"