I ask him to put me down and the moment my feet touch the ground, I run forward. Once I pass the last of the trees, my eyes widen in wonder as I take in the beauty of the landscape.

"It's an entire field, Ze! Oh my," I exclaim in excitement as I hurry forward.

The flowers are quite tall, reaching my waist. And as I run around, the silky texture of the petals brushes against my hands.

Turning to Ze, I continue to walk backward as I beckon him forward.

"Come on!"

Ze smiles as he watches me.

"Should we take it out with the root?" I ask as I gaze at one particular plant.

"Yes," he replies, handing me our bag before getting to his knees and digging his hands in the ground. He pushes his fingers in the damp soil, moving around until he has a good grasp on the root. Carefully, he starts taking it out. To help him, I get down next to him, brushing away the dirt so he can perform a smooth removal.

"There. One," he says, giving it to me. But instead of stopping, he moves to the next.

"Isn't one enough?" I frown.

"You should always aim for a backup plan," he mutters as he repeats the process with the other plant.

"I see." I nod.

We get a total of three plants, carefully placing them inside our bags.

A foolish smile pulls at my lips, my insides trembling with mirth and happiness and optimism.

"We made it, Ze! We found it. I'm so happy." I jump up and down as I twirl around.

He just stands there, an inscrutable expression on his face as he stares at me.

"That we did," he speaks slowly.

I raise a brow at him, but he simply shakes his head.

"Happiness looks good on you, Luce," he murmurs, walking toward me in that dignified manner of his, spine straight, hands behind his back.

"I bet it would look good on you, too. Come!" I grab his hand and pull him along with me, running around in the field until we reach a portion where the plants are not as tall. Without saying a word, I throw myself on my back, cushioned by the softness of the grass.

I wave my arms and legs back and forth, creating the shape of an angel and feeling the light caress of the grass against my skin. The ground is damp and cool, but I barely register the discomfort. At the moment, the only thing that matters is that we did it. We found the plant!

Ze tilts his head, a frown marring his features.

"What are you doing?"

"Having fun, Ze. You should try it!"

He looks at me, then at the grass, then back at me, the frown on his face deepening.

"Just come," I urge him.