Page 37 of Uprooted
“Then what are we waiting for?” I say as I pass him, turning back briefly to smile. It’s safer up here. I’m not tempted to let my eyes linger on him from up here.
Aro pulls to a stop outside a door like all the rest. He scans his palm to open it, and I’m immediately hit with warm fresh air. It’s enough toknock me over. There is no comparing it to the recycled air we’ve all been breathing. The entire ceiling is clear plexi, and I look at the blue sky for the first time in months. It feels like heaven—the warm suns on my skin. The smell of soil draws my attention down. There are dozens of rows of large raised gardening beds.
“The seedlings sprouted a few days ago. They’ll be ready to start their migration soon,” Aro tells me as he walks toward the short soft tufts of greenery.
I lean down and watch a sprout slowly unfurl and sway. I’m too afraid to touch the small leaves. They look so fragile at this stage. I’m transfixed, watching the tiny movements of the green barely peeking out of the soil. Little fingers wave back and forth, reminding me of a tiny sea anemone’s tentacles moving with the ocean current.
I had no idea we were cultivating in the dome. This definitely beats the storage room.
I walk up and down the aisles between the raised garden beds, completely spellbound. Their little roots are secure in the soil for now, but in a short amount of time, these little sprouts will be fully mature and ready to seek out resources and pollinators.
“In a few weeks, my team is going to disassemble the boxes so the flowers can rove,” Aro explains. “I was just in here going over the plan with the greenhouse staff and I thought you would like it in here.”
"They have you guys doing yard work now?"
"Gotta put these muscles to good use," Aro says. I detect a tiny flex in his chest and avert my gaze back to the plants.
“I bet it’s amazing to see them move around.”
“It is. They remind me of you. These beautiful little things exploring, searching for what they need,” he says.
“You make my drifting sound so poetic.”
“I think it is,” he says and walks farther into the greenhouse.
His observation stabs me in the chest. I’m surprised by the sweetness behind his words. I thought I had him figured out. But he’s not just a perpetually joking arrogant alien—he’s so much more.
“Can I take one of these? I want to analyze the apical meristem,” I ask Aro, even though it’s not his approval I would need.
“The what?” he asks.
“They make the plant grow. I want to see if they’re similar to the ones on Earth,” I explain.
“I have an idea, and go with me on this. Why don’t we just sit and watch? The microscope can come later. Let’s be in the moment,” he suggests.
My mind races with the discoveries this could uncover. “This could be the key that unlocks a breakthrough. I haven’t looked at this stage yet.”
“You can do that later, right? Come sit with me.”
Aro sits between two raised beds cross-legged and leans back, using his arms as support. I make a mental note to come back and collect a sample before the sprouts grow too quickly.
I settle in next to him, using the frame as a backrest. I try to make myself relax, but I’m eager to take a closer look in the lab. This might be the critical stage I’m missing.
“You really can’t turn it off, can you?” Aro asks, sensing I am still in my head, and not in the moment with him. He picks up a small rock and turns it in his hand.
“I don’t know how youcanturn it off,” I say, confirming his suspicion. “How do you stop your mind from racing? Worrying about every possible outcome?”
“I dunno. Right here right now feels pretty nice.”
I take a deep breath to give myself a chance to think of what to say next. The air smells so good. I close my eyes and savor the feeling of the suns on me once again.
I slowly open my eyes and Aro is watching me. “See? That wasn’t too hard.”
“And you live like this every day?” The idea that someone can do that blows my mind.
“Not all the time.”
“I’m not very good at being in the moment.”
