Roots and Oxygen

Chapter 26 - Blooming Quirks

"We go home tomorrow," Sage said as Taro buttoned up his waistcoat. "I requested it. I'm sick of having nothing to do."

"Is that your way of getting back to Mrs Beecham to question her about why she lied to you?" Taro asked with a grin.

Over the past two days, things between them had been smooth and easy. Sage asked his questions, and this morning was the first morning he didn't feel the need to stare oddly. He still stared at the plant oddly, but Sage had manners and did his best not to look at human Taro that way too. Human Taro? What the f-

"Should I pack for you tonight, then?" Taro asked, brushing down his shoulders and closing Sage's shirt sleeves with plain gold cufflinks.

"Yes." Sage wore smart brown shoes that matched his brown blazer. He had to look smart for his distant family who were attending lunch. He knew the day would crawl, but the thought of going home would fuel him. Sage didn't feel so scared about going back now that he knew about Taro, the rumour that his kind were once protectors of the Royals, and the fact that Taro slept in his room.

The night after their talk under the oak tree, Sage struggled to sleep with the plant sitting on his bedside table. He felt like every move was watched until he asked Taro to change back to his human form, so he could quiz him.

Sage had asked if Taro could see him in his plant form. Taro had said that he couldn't see him but could sense his movements by air movements, and he could hear him. He also went on to say how Sage talked in his sleep quite a lot. Sage had then rapidly told him to go back to sleep and watched again in fascination as he transformed.

Taro fitted a black tie around Sage's neck with a concentrated crease between his brows. "Thank you for accepting me," he said. "I know this isn't easy for you, and I know that in some ways I've added more stress to your already stressful life."

Sage's hazel eyes struggled to circle his face when Taro was close. He had slept well over the past two nights and felt brighter than he had in a while. "Thinking about your transformation has made my stressful life irrelevant. Thank you for showing me your true self. That can't have been easy, especially when it made me faint and throw up. I don't deal with shock very well."

"Now you just have to show me your true self too."

Sage rolled his eyes. I'm talking to a plant man... shut up, Sage. "Come on, we both have a busy day today."

As expected, the day dragged at a ridiculously slow pace. Sage checked his watch every hour. By dinner, he felt as though the day had been three whole days combined. Taro served him a creamy pasta dish with tomatoes and overbearing garlic. Sage ate until he was full and left the table quickly, wanted to ask Taro about his close family.

"Come to my room to pack for tomorrow. Come as soon as you're able."

Taro looked down at the table and said, "I can come now. Someone else can clear this." He walked towards the door, but Sage hadn't moved from his spot, so Taro paused. "Fine, I'll clean it."

Sage stopped staring sternly and surpassed him to the door. "Good," he said, but glanced back in time to catch Taro's eyes generously trailing him up and down. Taro froze again, grinned guiltily and hurried away to clear the dishes. Sage hurried away too, but his heart was thumping.

Sage had always been so cautious about how he looked at other men; he left little time to prepare himself for when men looked at him that way too. He locked himself in his bathroom until he heard Taro rummaging around. He fixed any frizzy curls and smoothed down his waistcoat, taking off his blazer because the heat of a lit fire warmed the bathroom too, and he looked better in just a waistcoat. He even thought about brushing his teeth after such a garlicy dish.