Sprouting Friendship (Adam)

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Tuesday, 4:33PM. Late, late, late. It hadn’t necessarily been a busy day, and still Maebelle managed to end up in a situation where she was rushing herself. Given the season, there were not too many plants to tend to, but in turn that meant that the gardener could take her time and pay more attention to the ones around. Not feeling too much pressure to keep on track had led to the young woman getting caught up in a lighthearted conversation with a plant in the staff room. She had even made herself comfortable, eating some of the cherry tomatoes she had brought along that day.

Despite having remembered her appointment with Mr. Deulane earlier that day, it seemed to have slipped her mind at that point. Only when other staff had stepped into the staff room, making the brunette look up, did it dawn upon Mae what time it was. The fact that she got up abruptly, mumbling something under her breath before smoothing past her colleagues probably didn’t make her look any less weird than how some might label her already.

While roaming through the corridor, her hand plucked a small note from the pocket of her jeans. Classroom 433. Her walking pace increased as blue eyes scanned the numbers. While only a couple minutes late, Maebelle couldn’t help but feel awful and a bit revved up. So once she reached the right door, she first inhaled deeply and then knocked on the door. And even before a reaction reached her ear, the woman opened it ajar and peeked her head inside.

“Hi,” she slowly smoothed herself in. “I am so sorry about being late.” The door quickly being closed before Mae spun around to face the teacher with hands timidly holding onto one another in front of her body. Realizing that they had never spoken before, face to face, made her feel a bit tense, and unsure on what to do or say next.

Then the next day dawned on her: was this the right person she was addressing?

[Adam Deulane]

“Come in. It's not a problem,” a distracted voice answered. The classroom on the other side of the door had long polished benches instead of desks, a chemical hood on one wall, and a model of the solar system hanging in the corner. A young man was just standing up from a pile of papers on one of the benches. He saw her, hesitated, then made his way over to the door and extended his hand as if it were pulled by a string. “Adam Deulane. You're Ms. Davis, I trust?”

The gardener was gorgeous. To Adam, this was like realizing that an approaching warship had plasma cannons mounted on the roof. Panic prickled up his shoulders, neck and cheeks, and his expression shuttered immediately. “It's nice to meet you.” He gestured to the papers he had been bent over earlier. “Right this way, please.”

He just needed to try and ignore it. He felt horribly aware of his skinny arms and frumpy shirt as he pushed a few pieces of paper across the bench. “I'd like to do an experiment on nitrogen absorption for part of our ecology unit. Students will be taking care of their own plants and taking weekly soil and tissue samples. The department approved a $100 budget.” He separated one piece of paper from the rest. “These are the four different flytrap species the article recommends.” His eyes flicked up, then back down. “One of my professors at MIT was doing work with these plants as well, but what his students needed and what mine need are a little different.”

He'd mostly broken himself of the habit of name-dropping MIT, but under Maebelle's manicured blue eyes the nervous tic slipped out anyway.

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The introduction immediately melted the woman’s concern about this possibly being the wrong person, even though his initial reaction had indicated that he had been expecting someone to begin with. “Yes,” she replied while quickly reaching forward to shake the man’s hand. “Maebelle Davis. You can call me Mae though – if you want.” Most people tended to do so, and the young woman had no general preference. Therefore Mr. Deulane was free to make that decision for himself.

When Adam gestured over to the papers, the gardener reluctantly followed. Despite being in an established and happy relationship, Mae was not blind to the good looks of other men. She never acted on that before, and definitely would not start now, but it did influence the level of feeling awkward and very self-aware. In turn, this had an effect on how long and where her eyes would linger, as well on how she carried herself – with less confidence.

While the teacher briefly explained his intentions, blue eyes scanned the papers from a small distance, only for her to bend forward and to pluck the separated one from the rest. “I assume your professor had a more extensive budget to experiment with,” Mae decided instinctively as a soft smile curled her lips. Her gaze momentarily flickered over to Adam, but soon enough settled on the paper again as her back was straightened once more. “But, um, I would advise using the Venus Flytrap. It’s on here.” The brunette shuffled some on her feet to stand closer next to him, making it easier to point out which one she was referring at.

“This one. It’s possibly one of the most common ones, and easy to take care of.” Because, you know, her fear for the plants had nothing to do with the nitrogen for they would mostly benefit from it. She simply feared how his students might tend to them – and what they would try to feed the flytraps.

“Will you keep them here? In the classroom?” Optics briefly scanned the surroundings, but soon enough made contact with Adam’s. It would only be a matter of seconds before she would break it, but talking about plants gave her at least a tad bit more confidence.

[Adam Deulane]

Adam nodded curtly but said nothing. He'd stick with Ms. Davis. Formality was safe, neutral territory.

The comment about budgets made Adam crack something that was, if not a smile, a distant, nervous relative of one. “He did. Most of it was for the gene sequencing equipment.” He looked back down at the paper. “But I don't think that's something that my students will be, uh, utilizing.”

She had stepped closer. Could he smell her? He didn't think he could smell her. What if he did? What did she smell like? What did he smell like? The prickles of panic spiked when he realized that he couldn't remember if he'd showered this morning. He certainly hadn't shaved.

Get a hold of yourself. It's a woman. Half of the people in the world are women. Slightly more than half. He tried to find this comforting instead of threatening and returned his attention to the nitrogen study in time to hear Maebelle's reply. That was what he had expected. “Not unless I can't find somewhere better for them. I don't want them to be disturbed, it will interfere with the results.” He rubbed the side of one stubbly jaw and did not look up to meet Maebelle's eyes. “I may keep them out during the physics class. I want the students to feel invested in the project.”

He turned his attention to the room as a whole, specifically the broad set of north-facing windows where he had imagined keeping the plants. "I don't know how much light they'll need, or if the window will be too cold." And it was Vermont in January.

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Maebelle knew she could have let his reply to the budget comment pass within a reaction of her own, but of course the words slipped out faster than intended. “I think your students would be capable of killing the plants within a day if they were to use that kind of equipment.” There was no malice to her voice though. She was simply stating what felt like a fact. It had nothing to do with his teaching skills; she simply could not image the students being careful enough.

As for his answer concerning the whereabouts of the plants, blue eyes immediately scanned the room. The north-facing windows were anything but ideal. “They’ll need at least four hours of light each day. Windows facing the South would be perfect. If not possible, then East or West.” Of course Mae felt a bit bad about pretty much taking away the option of him using the windows present, but her main concern were the plants – nothing, except for Kieron, could beat that priority.

With that said, Mae placed down the paper on the bench again, letting it rejoin the rest of the pile, before stepping over to one of the windows. “The cold should be alright. They’re supposed to survive outside and it’s warmer in here, so that shouldn’t form an obstacle.” Being able to talk about something that relied on her knowledge and skills benefited her social skills. The fact that the brunette dared to walk around in the first place being evidence of this.

“I do think it’s best to keep them in here though. I mean, I know you would monitor them and wouldn’t let them die.” She paused for a second, looking over at Adam. “Right?” Some confirmation of her assumption wouldn’t harm.

Tearing optics away again, Maebelle continued. “Do you consider artificial light an option?”

[Adam Deulane]

“No, of course not,” Adam said, his gaze skimming over his notes. Not actually looking at her helped quite a bit. “It would ruin the experiment.” He scratched the back of his head and straightened up. “Yeah, I could probably find a light somewhere.” Hardware stores, gardening specialty shops, shacks in the woods that sold 'medicinal herbs.' That would be better for environmental consistency anyway. “Yes, a light would be a good idea.” He glanced at Maebelle again and noticed her hesitation. She was shy. Shy and gorgeous. The faster he could return to the isolated comfort of his office the better. “Do you know where I could get one?”

He was glad to return to the world of genetic sequencing equipment, if only for a moment. He chuckled. “Well yes, they'd have to,” Adam said as he rustled through his notes. “The first step to isolate any genetic material is to liquefy the sample.” He found the budget sheet he'd been looking for and move it to the top. “You should see the centrifuges they have, it's quite remarkable.”

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A light would be a very good idea, especially since the windows of this classroom were facing the wrong direction. Adam came across as a decent and trustworthy man, which explained why Maebelle gave a nod, allowing her more gentle nature to shine through. “I have about two of them. You could borrow them if you promise to return them in the same condition.” Lips pursed some after that, hoping he didn’t take it as an offense. If he knew her any better, the man would know that her suggesting it in the first place was quite a feat. “I mean, if you want to. You can get new ones if you prefer that.” Just to avoid him feeling obligated to accept the offer.

Blue eyes then fell from his face to the note. “I have my own ways of finding out information about plants.” She spoke with a soft smile. The words flowed faster than she intended, without a second thought. Did Adam even know what her power was? If he even was aware of there being one in the first place. The lighthearted moment soon enough passed though, making place for a more serious expression again.

“Will you supervise when they take the tissue samples?” Reaching forward, Mae took the paper from him. Her protective streak popped up at the surface as well. “Maybe I could be here as well?” Optics shot up at Adam. “I… could see the centrifuges then?” In reality, she simply wanted to be there to keep safe the plants.

[Adam Deulane]

"You do?" Adam glanced up from his notes. "No, that won't be any trouble. Thank you." He smiled nervously. "I take it you have some sort of...plant-based ability, then?" Botanical! He thought of the word too late for it to be of any use. Botanical would have sounded so much smarter than plant-based. Plant-based, really?

"I'll be--here," He pried loose a sheaf of paper and held it out to Maebelle. "Here's a diagram. They'll be removing a leaf from each plant as well as sampling the nitrogen content in the soil." Her eyes flicked up to him again, in that shy, sudden dart, and Adam's stomach flopped. The curl of her eyelashes, the refraction of light in her iris... He barely caught her last sentence.

His forehead bloomed red. "Here? Every day?" He straightened up stiffly. "Oh, no, that won't be necessary. It's a simple experiment, the students won't have any trouble. And the centrifuges are for a separate project, we won't be using them."

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Plant-based ability. Maebelle didn't pay any attention to the lack of a 'smart' word. The fact that Adam made the assumption so effortlessly made her smile as a nod followed. She was happy with and proud of her power. "Plant manipulation and empathy," the woman replied as relaxed as she would ever be. She genuinely looked at ease at that point; blossoming just like a flower would.

Of course it helped the conversation some, even though she became a tad bit more sheltered again afterwards, not being one to let an ego take over. "Alright," Mae decided while taking the paper from him. "That does sound like a relatively safe experiment." Of course the gardener had a different view on plants. Removing one leaf, she could live with, but at the same time she was somewhat afraid that if the first attempt failed, more would be plucked off. Same went for possible careless students.

"Would... you be okay with it if I checked on the plants sometimes? Not to control you or anything. Just to make sure they're fine and healthy and stuff? Unless you think that could influence the experiment. In that case it's fine. I mean, I don't want to be a disturbing variable."

As the rambling finished, Maebelle handed the sheet of paper back to Adam. "Or I could help you pick out healthy ones for the experiment?" She wanted to be helpful. It made her offer assistance like this without a second thought.

[Adam Deulane]

Adam struggled in the panicky froth his mind was quickly becoming. "That must be good...for being a gardener," he managed. Was he staring? He couldn't stare! He couldn't be creepy! He looked back down at the papers, begged for mooring in the logarithmic graphs, but the papers didn't have shy blue eyes and nervous smiles...

"Ha ha ha ha!" She hadn't said anything funny, but Adam laughed anyway. People liked it when you laughed, right? That made them like you? "Yes! Perfectly safe! You would know that, with the plant...feelings, the feelings that the plants have, plant-feelings. Ha ha!" He clenched one hand in a fist and swung it in a very small high-ho gesture that he intended to be relaxed and casual, but he immediately knew that it was actually the stupidest thing he had ever done in his life.

At this point, Adam would have agreed if she had asked him for his credit card and social security number. "Yes," he said helplessly, "By all means. Whatever you like." Humiliated and barely cognizant of his actions, all thoughts bent now towards his last hope: escape. "Thank you for coming," he said, smiling as a terrified afterthought, "But I need to go--pick up my sister." From the school that she lived at, yes, nice one. "She's at soccer practice." In January.

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The laughter didn't offend Maebelle. It was a bit strange though, earning him a brief frown. Did she make him feel uncomfortable? That thought made her feel highly self-conscious. At the same time it was a bit entertaining, especially the swing of his fist. "I'm sure the plants will tell me if something is wrong," the gardener mused without the intention to come across as threatening. "But I'm sure they'll be fine." With a reassuring smile to not increase his tension, Mae accepted his agreement of her coming over to check.

And the woman kind of did feel garetful the second Adam seemed to cut their interaction short. They had reached the man's goal, right? His explanation didn't make a lot of sense though, but Maebelle wasn't one to dig deeper. She, however, did not stop herself from making another statement. "Blonde hair, right? I think I've seen her before." It was doubtful the man cared, but at least it wasn't a forced reaction. It felt more like a genuine conversation.

Mae got up in the meanwhile, scanning the spot where she had been sitting for a second, just to make sure nothing was being left behind. Not that she had brought anything with her, but still. "You might want to take a fleece blanket with you in case they have been training outside. It's quite cold today." She mused while walking to the door. Midstep the brunette paused though, coming to a sudden realization. She immediatly spun around again, picking up a pen and piece of paper from the bench as words flowed from her mouth.

"I'll give you my number. That's easier than sending a mail." Noting it down, she soon handed it over to Adam. "You can call me whenever, okay? Even if you have other questions or want to talk about something else. So, um, yeah... I'll get going now. Wouldn't want to keep your little sister waiting." With yet another smile, her hand rose in a little wave before moving to the door again.

[Adam Deulane]

"Yes," Adam replied automatically. It was more of a dishwater light brown, but Adam was not in a state of mind to split hairs (so to speak). "You probably have," he said. His brain was still locked into frozen autopilot, but Nory had her own category. He could talk about her to Maebelle. "Nora Marie. She's friendly with everybody. Small, loud, radiation powers. Acne." He gestured to his own strong, scruffy jawline.

She was almost gone. A few more steps and the floating brown hair and ice-colored eyes would be-- "What?" Adam's mouth dropped open. She was giving him...her number. Adam's heart thundered in his chest. Picked on in high school, uncertain in college, obsessed with his studies as a graduate, and a raging temper as a professional, Adam had never even been on a real date before. He nodded in mute acceptance to whatever she said, and waved blandly as she headed out the door. Then, two minutes after she left, he doused his head in the emergency eye rinse station next to the chemical hood.