“North. Don’t you have a map?”

He grinned. “Is that your question?”

“No!” Laurel said, then glared at Tamani when he laughed. She felt her real question itching to be asked, but she was afraid of the answer. Finally she swallowed and asked quietly, “Am I turning into a flower?”

An amused smile ticked at the corner of Tamani’s mouth, but he didn’t laugh.

“No,” he said softly.

Laurel felt her whole body relax with relief.

“You’ve always been a flower.”

“Excuse me?” she said. “Just what do you mean by that?”

“You’re a plant. You’re not human, never have been. Blossoming is only the most obvious manifestation,” Tamani explained, more calm than Laurel thought he had any right to be.

“A plant?” Laurel said, not bothering to hide the disbelief in her voice.

“Yes. Not just any kind of plant, of course. The most highly evolved form of nature in the world.” He leaned forward, his green eyes sparkling. “Laurel, you’re a faerie.”

Laurel’s jaw clenched as she realized how stupid she’d been. Taken in by a handsome face, conned into letting him lead her far into the forest, and even half-believing his outrageous claims. She stood, her eyes flashing with anger.

“Wait,” Tamani said, lunging forward to grab on to her wrist. “Don’t go yet. I need to know what your parents are going to do with this land.”

Laurel yanked her wrist away. “I want you to leave,” she hissed. “If I ever see you here again, I will call the police.” She turned and ran, tugging her shirt back down over the petals.

He called after her, “Laurel, I have to know. Laurel!”

She pushed herself to go faster. Nothing seemed more important than putting as much distance as possible between herself and Tamani, this strange person who stirred up so many confusing emotions within her.

When she reached the clearing where she’d been before following Tamani, Laurel paused for a few moments to wrap the petals back around her waist and secure them with the scarf. She picked up her guitar and lifted the strap over her back. As she did, her hand crossed a beam of sunlight. She paused and stuck her hand out again. Her wrist glittered with tiny specks of shimmering powder. Great. He left some sort of residue on me. That’s a stupid trick.

When she got within sight of the cabin, she paused, her chest heaving. She looked at her wrist again and anger bubbled up inside of her as she rubbed at the glittery powder till all traces of it were gone.

Chapter 9

THE NEXT DAY, LAUREL FELT LIKE A ZOMBIE. SHE didn’t want to believe anything Tamani had said. But she couldn’t help but think about it and wonder.

Was it possible? Then she would get angry with herself for being ridiculous, and the whole cycle would start again.

David tried to catch her several times in the hallway, but she managed to duck into her classes ahead of him.

But she couldn’t avoid him in biology.

He hurried to claim his usual seat beside her. “What’s wrong?” he asked. “Is it spreading?” he whispered before she could turn away.

She shook her head and her hair fell around her face like a wall between them.

David scooted his chair a little closer as the rest of the class noisily took their seats. “Laurel, you’ve got to talk to me. You’re going to drive yourself crazy holding everything in like this.”

“I can’t—” Her voice choked off as tears welled up in her eyes. “I can’t talk right now.”

David nodded. “Can we talk after school?” he whispered as Mr. James started the class.

Laurel nodded and tried to subtly wipe away her tears without attracting attention.

David patted her leg under her desk, then started doodling in his notebook.

Laurel wished he’d take a few more notes for her to copy.

The day dragged by as Laurel went back and forth in her mind, berating herself for promising to tell David, then being relieved that she had someone to tell.

She wasn’t sure how to even start. How does one just come out and say, “Oh, hey, I might be a mythological creature”?

“I’m not,” Laurel whispered under her breath. “It’s stupid.”

But she couldn’t quite convince herself.

After school, she and David walked toward his house. David seemed to sense she wasn’t quite ready to talk, so they walked in silence.

He was especially gentle as he helped her over his back fence, his hand studiously avoiding her back. He held onto her arms when she jumped down from the fence, and once she’d landed and was steady, he still didn’t pull his hands away.

Laurel felt the urge to curl herself up against his chest and just forget about all this nonsense. But she knew that was impossible. He stared at her unblinkingly until she shoved her hands into her pockets and forced herself to turn away.

“This way,” David said, taking the lead as they walked out to the twisted tree.

Laurel looked up at the dense canopy of foliage above her. It was October now and the leaves were in a perfect state of half-transformation. The edges were orange and red—with some branches boasting yellows and pale browns, the centers still fighting to remain green. It made the forest beautiful with the blends of colors, but Laurel was a little sad to see the green lose its battle to the more flamboyant hues.

It made her think of her own blossom. Would it slowly die like the leaves?