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The heat inside the greenhouse was somewhat sweltering but Sam could endure it. He and Alex had been asked by Willa to help out with some orders she'd gotten from her job. Apparently Willa had a job where she sold flowers and fruit and veg. She was also apparently quite popular as she often had to work on orders; either putting them together or growing them with her magic.
At that current moment, Sam was helping plant some carrot seeds, using his claws to dig through the soft soil of the planting beds. It felt so good to do some planting again. He hadn't done something like this since he'd woken up in the modern day. And now with modern conveniences, he could plant so much more.
Something that was surprising to the young gargoyle was that Alex was into gardening; it just never seemed to be the sort of thing she'd like. The white haired teen in question was in the flower bed behind him, planting some bluebells. It was nice that they both liked it as it gave them something to bond over.
Sam heard a rustling noise behind him and looked over his shoulder to see Willa frantically searching through a patch of cabbages.
"Is something wrong? You seem distressed," Sam asked, stopping his planting.
Willa stood up and pressed a gloved hand against her head, caking it in dirt.
"No I mean- nothing. It's just I lost a ring that's quite important to me. It's around here somewhere," she rambled, continuing her search around her.
"Well what does it look like? Maybe we can help look," Sam inquired.
Willa slowly breathed in and out before answering, "It's a somewhat simple ring that I normally keep on a chain around my neck; it's gold in colour with three gemstones, two small lime green ones and a larger forest green one-"
"Is this it?"
Both heads turned to look at the white haired teen who was holding something small that was connected to a gold chain. Willa rushed forward and carefully took the ring from Alex, examining it thoroughly.
"Oh my stars I thought I'd lost it. Where did you find it?" the older wizard asked.
Alex shrugged. "I just found it near the door, maybe it got caught on the door handle."
Willa let out a sigh of relief and put the chain back around her neck.
"I got to say it looks like a nice ring, what's it for if you don't mind me asking?" Alex inquired.
"Oh it's my wedding ring. Me and my wife got matching rings but we didn't want to go overboard," the older wizard replied, looking down at the ring with such fondness.
"I didn't know you got married. Why didn't you say anything? Is she still around?" Sam questioned.
Willa had never mentioned anything about a wife. Was she still around? Had they separated? Willa's fondness quickly morphed into sadness.
"She's… not around anymore. She died a long long time ago but it feels just like yesterday."
Sam's heart couldn't help but feel for Willa. He knew what it was like when someone so close to your heart is gone and the heart doesn't know how to respond. There's a certain look you gain; one that's so distant yet so wrapped up in despair. He's seen it in many others, including his friends and he supposed others have seen it in him.
Willa's expression was quickly wiped away and a shaky smile plastered her face.
"I… I need to go finish some orders. You two stay here until I'm done."
And with that, the older wizard was gone. Sam couldn't help but look over at Alex who gave a shrug.
Not seeing much else to talk about, Sam got back to planting. But his mind couldn't help but start to wonder. Who was Willa's wife? Had she met her on their journey to find Zender? Was Willa happy with her? They must've had a great relationship for Willa to react that strongly.
"I can see you're thinking hard about something, may I ask what you're thinking about?"
Sam's head snapped up and looked in Alex's direction. She'd stopped her planting, preferring to lean on the edge of the planter and stare over at Sam. The young gargoyle couldn't help but chuckle nervously.
"Oh I'm not thinking of much, I just… thinking about love. Like Willa and her wife must've loved each other a lot if they got married."
He put his head in his hand and sighed, looking up at the glass ceiling. The sun sparkled through, illuminating the area.
"I wonder if I'll ever find love like that," he sighed.
"Well you never know unless you get out there and try. Let's start by telling me what sort of people you're into," Alex stated.
That… that wasn't something Sam had ever thought about before.
"I guess… I'm not sure. I suppose I don't care about the gender of the person, I'd just want to love them for who they are inside."
Alex nodded in understanding. "I can understand that."
"Oh I'd also not want to rush into anything. If I'm going to love someone it'd have to feel right first," Sam added on, wanting to present his ideals fully.
The white haired teen continued to nod.
"Did you have anyone back in your time? You know, before you came to the modern day?"
Sam shook his head furiously. "What? No! I… never had the time and I… just never met the right person."
"But enough about me. What sort of people are you into?"
Glancing over at the white haired teen, Sam saw her face briefly flush red before a sly smile came over her.
"Me? Well I guess I like several types of people. Men, women, enbies. I just like people," she replied.
That had Sam fascinated. He wondered what kind of people the others were into. Sam hadn't realized Alex was still talking until he zoned back in.
"-I guess in the end I'm just worried that I won't find love until I'm too old. Yeah I'm only just fourteen but I'd rather find love sooner rather than later."
Sam turned around so he was fully facing the young teen.
"I'm sure you'll find love soon. I believe in you."
Alex looked over at him with a knowing smile. "Thanks. I'm sure you'll find someone soon too. Although dare I say you've already found someone."
That sent a wave of confusion Sam's way.
"Wait what? What does that mean?"
No answer was given as Alex simply stood up and walked away.
Sam stood up and scrambled after her, "Alex, what does that mean?!"