Jade's "forgiveness training" is about as difficult as I expected it would be. I feel like my head has been sloshed around with the words "I forgive you. You're family. I forgive you. You aren't perfect. I forgive you. I will control my own actions. I forgive you. I love you. I FORGIVE YOU FORGIVE YOU FORGIVE YOU."

  Forgive doesn't sound like a word anymore. But Jade swears that saying these things aloud, even if I cringe at them right now, will help.

  We'll see about that. Right now, I still kind of want to write a manifesto onto a tree trunk about how awful they all are and then point at it every time they enter my territory.

  The sun is hot today. Too hot. The blistering kind of heat that makes me stay inside my den, despite how much good the photosynthesizing would do me.

  The plants are feeling lazy in this heat, too. They don't even tell me when Jade enters my forest, causing me to startle up from my bed when he knocks on my doorframe.

  "Hey!" I scramble down and walk up to him. His eyes are bright. Excited, even. "What are you doing? It's too hot to be out there!" I grab his arm and manhandle him into the cool shade of my den.

  "I have something to show you!" Once we're in my shaded room, he shuffles through his bag and produces a book. Not a notebook like he usually has. No, this one is nice, with a hard cover and pristine pages that still smell of wood. "Ta-da!"

  "What is that?"

  He sidles up beside me and opens it, showing me the contents. It's the encyclopedia. Each page has Jade's trademark illustrations, somehow printed just as he draws them, along with information and facts about the plants. The words on page are more readable than Jade's messy handwriting.

  "Whoa..." I take the book and skim through it. It's odd seeing all the plants presented in this form. I hate to admit it, but I catch some facts that even I didn't know among the words. Jade's professor must really be an expert.

  "Check it out." Jade reaches over and flips to a page near the end of the book.

  And back there, I see a drawing of...me.

  He had asked if he could include one in a small section about forest nymphs, and I had stupidly given him permission. Of course, he used a drawing of me with flowers in my hair. The notes on nymph biology are brief, mostly listing us as mysterious and worth our own book of study, and mercifully they don't mention the meaning of those flowers or who they're for.

  "Do you like it?"

  I look up at Jade. He shuffles and stares at me hopefully.

  "It's alright."

  "Yay!" He grins, his smile warmer than the sun. I feel my flowers bloom brighter in response. "This copy is yours, then."

  I suppress a grin and close it up. Now that his book is done, a strange feeling overtakes me, like Jade and I have moved on from something huge and are left teetering by the cliff of possibility. This encyclopedia was the only reason—no, the only excuse for letting him visit. "Well, then, what's next?"

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  Jade blinks. "Um...well, I have another year of study, and I'll be helping my professor with more projects. Then, I'll get my degree, and I'll be able to do whatever I want! What about you?"

  "I'll be here," I say. My words reduce to a murmur. "I'll always be here." All those long-term goals most nymphs have—finding a partner, growing kids, terraforming our land and expanding our den—they catch in my throat.

  What am I going to do? If Jade moves on...if he pursues human things...then what?

  Why does it matter to me?

  "Well, then, I'll always know where to find you." Jade smiles again.

  "Will you go far?" I almost burst. "I mean, will we—" I turn away, running a hand through my hair. "How much will we see each other, now that this is over?"

  "That's one thing I was thinking about." Jade pauses. Though I'm still looking away, I feel him step toward me. "Um, Thistle, I have something to ask you."

  My own body moves closer to his on instinct. I drag my eyes up and finally meet his gaze. "M-hm."

  "Do you...want to, um..." He chews his lip and shuffles back an inch, only for me to step closer again.

  "Want to what?"

  "I'm not sure how to ask this. It's okay if your answer is no, or if I'm silly for even wondering, since we're..."

  "It's okay," I breathe. A hope sparks in my mind, but I temper it. This could be about anything. "I won't judge you."

  "Um, Thistle..." Jade's face steadily grows red. "Do you want to be my girlfriend?"

  "Yes!" I respond immediately. "Yes, I want to be with you." I grasp his hands in my claws and bring them between us.

  He stares at me, apparently losing his words. He continues as if I didn't just give my response. "I...um...well, I want to learn everything about you. I want to understand you, to fall in love with you. Even if it's complicated, even if it takes work, I get the feeling that it—that you—will be worth it."

  I grasp his hand and hang on to every word he says. "Jade, I want to be with you so bad. I want to be close to you, and talk to you, and hear you explain everything about every plant, even if I already know what you're talking about. You make everything seem okay and right and I don't want to let you go, I don't want you to leave—" Dahlias, what am I saying? I'm completely blubbering! "I think I'm already in love with you."

  His expression softens more with every word. "Thistle..."

  I wrap my arms around him and spin us in a dramatic hug. I can't believe it. Jade wants to be with me. I don't care about acting cool, or aloof, or like anything I'm not right now. Because I am his, and he is mine, and for once the world feels perfect.

  Jade pulls back a bit, but keeps his arms around me. "Can I, um, kiss you, then? Or is it too soon?"

  A kiss. A kiss! I nod vigorously. "Please kiss me." I let my claws rest on his chest and press myself closer to him. Then, I close my eyes and prepare.

  I wait for a moment. And another moment. Then, Jade's forehead bumps squarely into mine, and our lips meet for less than a second before he pulls back. "Owww..."

  "Were you closing your eyes, too?" I open mine and squint at him.

  "Yeah..." Jade rubs his forehead.

  A smirk pulls at the edges of my mouth, and I stifle a rather juvenile giggle. "Why don't you let the less clumsy person take the lead?"

  "Okay." Jade slowly lets his eyes fall closed, leaving his lips parted.

  I slide a claw to the back of his neck and guide his face closer to mine. Then, I close my eyes right as our lips meet.

  Kissing a human is strange. Then again, I've never kissed a nymph, either. But I don't think I'm missing out on much. Right now, there's nobody I'd rather have in my arms. We stay pressed together for a long moment, long enough for flowers to bloom all along my hair and tail and begin marching down my arms.

  We separate, but not by much, and Jade blinks his eyes open. "Your flowers smell really sweet."

  I groan and press my forehead into his chest. "You can't just tell a nymph her flowers smell sweet!" I playfully nuzzle his shoulder.

  Jade watches as I bring his hand in front of me and drag my claws over it. I caress his dull fingers, then hitch onto where they meet the breadth of his hand. I run my thumb over his skin, utterly intrigued. Then, I plant a kiss on his knuckles. At the same time, Jade leans over and gently kisses the top of my head, right among my flowers.

  Eventually, the sun goes down, and Jade has to leave. I wave him out of my den, still savoring the moment. When he's gone, I grab the encyclopedia off my shelf and scan the pages, tracing each picture of his, a fragment of him for myself even when he's gone.