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Logan stood on the pavement in front of the store, waiting for Roman to calm down (even a little, physically. It was highly unlikely that he’d stop talking, but Logan didn’t mind listening to him. Infodumping was a language they had in common).
“What do you think they’ll have? Flowers would be good, but not just one. Oh, and then there are these cactuses-”
“Cacti,” Logan corrected him gently.
“-cacti that turn all different colors during their flowering season! I didn’t know that cacti-” he flashed Logan a smile “-even grew flowers until I read about them! There are so many types, and some who grow to even twenty feet tall!”
“We are not getting a twenty foot tall cactus, Roman. Though I do appreciate your excitement, I too am anticipatory.”
“Anticipation? Anticipating? I shall never understand your ever so lengthy words, my dear, but know that I love you,” Roman declared.
Logan rolled his eyes fondly. “Shall we go in?”
“Yes!” Roman said, his eyes lighting up. He continued talking as they walked through the automatic doors.
“Cacti are amazing, but then there are also these plants that have hunting mechanisms! There’s one that has this amazing nectar inside, it attracts insects but then they get stuck and it digests them. Though we couldn’t get one of those, annoyingly, because of course we don’t have any ants or bugs in our apartment for it to hunt...”
Emerging into the store itself, Roman stopped, starstruck. “Logan, look at all the plants. ”
“Well, we are in a store specifically for buying plants, I would be concerned if they didn’t have a good selection,” Logan said wryly, but Roman had already bounded off to find something he liked.
Logan followed at a more leisurely pace, stopping to read the scientific names of several interesting plants and comparing them to the words he had memorized, seeing if he could find a connection.
There was a lovely white-flowered plant, with slightly thicker, waxy dark green leaves. Epiphyllum oxypetalum. It could be related to… epiphany? Or epilepsy? “oxy” means sharp, and though soft, the petals are fairly pointy...
“LOGAN!”
His head jerked up as Roman yelled for him. He hurried over, casting apologetic glances at a few people who were staring at him, annoyed. “Love, I know you’re excited, but you’re a bit too loud. What did you find?”
Roman was practically vibrating with excitement as he stood in front of a flowerpot. It housed a lovely cluster of red flowers with bluish leaves. They were fairly short, but vibrant nonetheless. “Look! It’s us! We should get it. We need to get it. I’m getting it.”
Logan smiled at him and picked it up gently. “A lovely choice.” Roman walked next to him more calmly now as they walked to the register, but he grabbed Logan’s hand as he looked at the flowers again, his smile bright enough to rival the sunshine coming through the many windows.
When Roman’s flowers were safely stored in the car, they walked to the store next to the one they’d just exited. This time, it was Logan who was excited. He drummed his fingers against his leg, looking up at the neon sign of the pet store.
“So you’re getting a cat,” Roman prompted. “Do you know what color?”
“I don’t particularly care about the color, only the temperament of the animal,” Logan said thoughtfully. “I need one who doesn’t require too much attention, that is why I didn’t get a dog, after all, but I do enjoy a companion while I work.”
They walked into the store and immediately Logan looked up at the signs that signaled where the animals were. “Roman, do you want to go look at the birds? I’ve seen them on previous visits, and they’re lovely.”
Roman darted off with a grin, and Logan had to hold himself back from running as well. He found directions to the cat section, and walked - slowly - to their aisle.
But arriving and seeing all the lovely felines finally got Logan to smile warmly, rubbing the cloth of his sweater between his fingers (though he was exercising all his self-control not to flap his hands around, containing the movement inside his pockets).
It really is a shame that self-stimulatory behaviors are frowned upon in public, he thought. It’d be much nicer for Roman and I, and of course any other neurodiverse person, if we could engage in our preferred activities without obstruction.
That train of thought was pushed completely off its rails by the sight of the many cats in the crates around the space. He walked past each one, looking for one of them to catch his eye.
He particularly liked one tortoiseshell with lovely brown patches, and a ginger who was lying languidly on a perch, surveying their domain with narrowed eyes. But his favorite was a grey-blue female with startlingly blue eyes who was sitting tall around his eye level and watching him, tail flicking.
Logan approached and held out his hand, doing his best to keep still so as not to startle the cat. She deigned to sniff it, and he grinned as she pushed her head into his hand.
He stroked her soft fur for a moment, marveling at the texture. It was beautiful. He then let out a soft noise of surprise as she stood, gathered herself for a moment, and leaped. She seemed inordinately graceful, even for a cat, and landed perfectly, poised on his shoulder. She stepped delicately around and lay down like a scarf, her tail draped around his neck.
Logan was caught between awe and delight - there was no secret to who he would be taking home today. He enjoyed the feel of her fur around his shoulders and carefully walked towards the bird section.
Her fur was soft and grey - it reminded him of smoke, or - or ash. That felt like a good name for her. Ash.
She dug her claws in a little, which made him wince at the sting, but he walked more freely after that. Ash wouldn’t be so easily dislodged. When Roman saw him, he laughed.
“She chose me,” Logan said, pleased. “I’ve named her Ash.”
“She’s beautiful,” Roman said, stepping closer and reaching out to her. She let him pet her for a moment before turning her attention to the birds and hissing.
“Not for you,” Logan admonished. She butted his cheek with her head and flicked her tail again. They walked back to the front of the shop, earning many amused looks at Logan wearing a cat like a scarf.
Ash surveyed everyone like she was their queen - Logan theorized that she enjoyed the extra height that he lent her. They bought food, dishes, and a few toys for her, but not a crate. She’s already claimed her preferred perch.
Both Logan and Roman were inordinately happy on the way home, Roman with his flowers and Logan with Ash. She’d purred and sniffed the flowers when they’d gotten in the car, rubbing her head along the pot, so they considered the choice a success.
They ended the excursion with a warm kiss across the console of the car, with the cat flicking them with the tip of her tail. Logan had earned a new companion, Roman a lovely plant to draw and care for.
Perfect matches all around.