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Elphaba, personally loved flowers. Their fragrance, brightness, and beauty. How could she not love them. Well, she loved them as much as she hated them, for the things they represented when given to someone
Flowers were given in gratitude, love, or perhaps in remembrance and sorrow.
Elphaba had never been given flowers. She had never expected any. No one would give flowers to a green skinned girl. Elphaba hated flowers because she knew she would never receive any because of no one would feel any of those emotions she had previously stated.
So she'd continue to grapple with her nuanced relationship with flowers until death, she supposes.
Well that's what she thought.
Someone had given her a flower. Of all people, Galinda had given her a flower.
Elphaba couldn't understand why Galinda had given her a pretty pink flower. Did she know what that meant to Elphaba?
And not just that. She called her beautiful. Galinda Upland, calling her beauty. As if she hadn't looked in the mirror.
Elphaba had to rush to leave the room. She couldn't let Galinda see her eyes welling up at the gesture. Especially not when Galinda didn't hesistate or stutter when she said it. Like she said like it was easy as breathing. It was all too much.
Elphaba tried to flush it from her mind. Galinda didn't mean it, she was just being nice, to further strengthen their newfound friendship, that's all.
Elphaba thought it would be a one time occurance, realy, but she was wrong.
...
Elphaba opened her eyes to the sun shining in her face and her ears being filled with her roommate's shuffling, as always.
But, this wasnt a normal routine, Elphaba would find out when she opened her eyes.
Seeing as she and Galinda had classes beginning at 10 and it looked to only be 8 in the morning, Elphaba found it odd that her perky roommate was already fully dressed, not in clothes she usually wore though.
In the 3 short weeks she and Galinda had become friends, Elphaba learned a few things. One, the girl was undeniably clingy, and two, her wardrobe was usually quite extravagant, which she knew ever before they became friends. But now, Elphaba knew that there wasnt a slight possibility that Galinda owned something more than 4 months old.
Apparently she was wrong though. As Elphaba put her glasses on, she noticed Galinda in a long pink skirt that looked a little worn and a white shirt.
"Have I been rubbing off on you?" Elphaba said teasingly, voice a little hoarse from sleeping as she watched her roommate come out of the bathroom
"Oh Elphie you're awake." Galinda said as she rushed over to her bed as she heard her voice
"Good morning." Galinda said as she pulled Elphaba into a tight hug
"This might be the last good morning you get if you keep squeezing me so hard." Elphaba said as she loosely wrapped her hands around Galinda's torso
"Sorry, you just took forever to wake up." Galinda said as she giggled lightly
"Galinda, it barely 8:30." Elphaba said as she followed Galinda's movement as she headed back to her side of their dorm
"Exactly." Galinda said
"So, have I been rubbing off on you?" Elphaba asked again, as she slowly sat up, trying to wipe herself to not go back to sleep
"What do you mean?" Galinda said as she took a makeup brush, that Elphaba didn't know the name of, to her face
"You don't look like yourself." Elphaba said
"Elphie, oh no. Why are you just now telling me. What's wrong my highlighter. Do I have a pimple?" Galinda said as she examined herself in her mirror frantically
"No, no Galinda. You look perfectly fine. I mean your clothes. They look a little simpler than usual. Are you wearing that to class?" Elphaba said as she chuckled a little at her dramatics
"Oh Elphie, don't scare me like that. And, uh, hmm, I um, was up a little earlier and didn't want to put my clothes on too early, that's all." Galinda said as she hesitated a little, as if planning out her response
"Hmm, ok." Elphaba said she shrugged
After Elphaba finally willed herself out of her bed, she went to shower and put her clothes on for the day. She was still a little tired so she took only 30 minutes. Galinda said still putting her makeup on by the time she came out. Elphaba dint know how she had enough patience to do it all.
Elphaba herself went to go sit in front of her own mirror to do her hair. She, unlike Galinda, wouldn't take 2 hours. She just had to pull back her braids. Well, it would take a little longer than usual, given that Galinda was calling her. She always prolonged whatever she was doing by 5 minutes with her clingyness.
"Elphie, oh Elphie. I've got something for you." Galinda said as Elphaba heard her feet patter on the floor as she focused on finding a scrunchie to put her hair in
"Elphie, you're not paying attention." Galinda said with an audible pout in her voice
"Yes, yes. What is it?" Elphaba asked as she put her head up to see Galinda next to her with her hands behind her back
"I got you something." Galinda said as she put it in front of Elphaba
A flower. A pretty pink Marigold. This was the second time Galinda had given her a flower. It hadn't even been a special occasion. Just a regular Tuesaday.
"Um, I think it's a Marigold. I don't remember. Do you like it?" Galinda asked eagerly, getting a little too close to Elphaba's face
Elphaba twisted the flowers stem in her hand in adoration. She still couldn't believe Galina had given her a flower again. She didn't to much care about the type.
"Elphie? Do you like it?" Galinda said, lowering her voice a little
"I love it. Thank you." Elphaba said softly
"Good. That's your morning gift." Galinda said, moving out of Elphaba's personal space and boipuncing back over to her side of the room
"Morning gift?" Elphaba repeated, searching for clarity
"You have the start your morning right Elphie. You need breakfast, an amazing outfit, and a morning gift to do that. Speaking of, I'm starving. Are you almost done?" Galinda said
"Hmm, yes I am." Elphaba said
She and Galinda walked arms intertwined as they walked to the dining hall to pick up a quick breakfast.
Elphaba wasn't didn't have enough shame to not bring the flower Galinda had given her and enjoying it's fragrance throughout the day.
Elphaba's mind perked in sudden curiosity.
"Where'd you get this from?" Elphaba asked softly
"Hmm, I take it you really like it then." Galinda said as she smiled, showcasing a dimple
Elphaba tilted her head, indicating she wanted to hear Galinda's response to her question.
"Oh, uh, well. They were delivered of course. Hmm, Momsie and Popsicle love sending gifts when I'm away." Galinda said as she paused a couple of times
Elphaba was a little suspicious of the girl's response. That was the second time this morning Galinda stumbled over her words, which was rare for her. But, she let it go. She just wanted to appreciate her flower.
...
Even though Elphaba was extremely grateful for her flower, she didn't expect to receive another one. She had come to not expect much, given her appearance, accompanied by her reclusiveness. Nothing was even given to her.
And then, Galinda proved her wrong. Again.
---
It was a relatively short time period when Galinda had given her another flower. Only two days had passed that Elphaba had to wait.
Elphaba was running late this morning, something she hadn't done a lot since she started attending Shiz. Her fairly regular sleep schedule and her roommate's movement early in the morning, usually got her up on time.
When Elphaba had put her glasses on, the clock read 9:30. She shot out if the bed frantically, realizing she only had 30 minutes until class started.
"Elphie, what's wrong?" Galinda said, standing in front of her large collection shoes, noticing her friend's rush
"It's 9:30 Galinda. Why didn't you wake me up?" Elphaba asked, feeling a little frustrated none of her clothes looked good this morning
"Well, beauty sleep is important." Galinda said with a perk in her voice
Elphaba only grumbled at her friend's perkyness as she rushed to the bathroom with her clothes in hand. Great, now her shower could only be three minutes.
To make matters worse, once Elphaba exited the bathroom, she realized she didn't even have any time to do her hair, or eat breakfast. Great!
"Elphie?" Galinda said softly as she tapped Elphaba on her shoulder
Elphaba whipped her head around in a scowl. She immediately regretted taking her frustration put on Galinda as she saw her big doe eyes widen.
"Sorry." Elphaba said lightly
"It's alright. I only want to tell you I got you some grapes and toast. And this." Galinda said as she handed Elphaba a plate
Another flower. A pink peony. Galinda had given her another flower. And breakfast because she knew they'd be in a rush. The Galinda she knew a month ago wouldn't have been so thoughtful.
"For me?" Elphaba asked as she grabbed the flower gently from her hand
This had to be a dream. All Elphaba ever wanted was to be given something, sincerely, and here Galinda was gifting it to her like it was nothing.
"For who else silly?" It's different from the one on Tuesday. Do you like it?" Galinda asked as giggled at what she perceived to be a ridiculous question
"I do. Thank you." Elphaba said softly, eyes glimmering over the pink petals
"You're welcome. And I hope you wear your hair down. It's so pretty like that. It'll be perfect with the flower." Galinda sad, taking the flower back form Elphaba and putting it in her hair
Well, she had to wear her hair down now.
---
Although Elphaba had gotten nearly an extra hour of sleep, she still was exhausted by the time Dr. Dillamomd's lecture was over.
She usually enjoyed his class. Today was just not her day. Well it could be worse. She had gotten breakfast and another gift.
A gift which seemed to be distracting her. Elphaba softly fiddled with the flower in her hair throughout the entirety of class. That and Galinda's constant movement next to her kept her from falling asleep.
Once class was over, she and Galinda, and sometimes Fieryo would head to lunch. The class was almost to hours.
"Galinda, whatever could you be packing up. You barely take notes." Elphaba said as she stood out of her seat
"I'll have you know I take notes. Someone had to. You weren't paying attention." Galinda said
"Whatever." Elphaba said as she rolled her eyes
"You guys go ahead. I know you didnt have much to eat Elphie. Don't let me hold you up." Galinda said to Fieryo and Elphaba
The two took that as their cue to leave. They walked by side by side to the dining hall.
"Rough morning?" Fieryo asked
"You can say that. I woke up late." Elphaba responded
"Well, we all have our days." Fieryo said
"I like your flower." Fieryo said as he gestured to Elphaba's hair
"Thank you. Galinda gave it to me." Elphaba said
"Oh, I could tell. Pink wouldn't have been your first choice." Fieryo said as he chuckled
"Hmm, maybe not." Elphaba said
"Where'd she get it from?" Fieryo asked
"Oh she said it was delivered." Elphaba said as she shrugged
"Really, they don't allow deliveries for me and everyone else." Fieryo said
Elphaba furrowed her eyebrows. Now that she thought about it, it was a bit odd for deliveries to come before 8 in the morning, if at all. Galinda did have special privileges, so usually Elphaba wouldn't have battery an eye. But this information, coupled with Galinda's odd responses when Elphaba asked questions, made her wonder.
---
Elphaba noticed a pattern after Galinda seemed to make a routine in giving her flowers.
Every other day, when the girls were getting ready for classes, Galinda would give her a pink flower. Each time it was a different kind.
Elphaba's curiosity dwindled about were the flowers came from after a week and a half or so. Well, until something peculiar happened.
...
Elphaba waking up late last week was just that, waking up late last week. She was thankful that was just a one time occurance. There was a test in Dr. Dillamomd's and she didn't need that right now.
But, it seemed like someone else's schedule was out of wack.
Galinda wasn't in the room when she woke up. By the looks of it, the girl hadn't even done her makeup, her set up completely untouched.
It was a bit odd not having Galinda in the room in the morning. Elphaba had gotten comfortable with the routine of it all. Sheesh, she's sounding as clingy as Galinda.
Luckily, she didn't have to wait long for her blonde roommate to return. Galinda stumbled in the room at about 8:50.
And then something even more uncommon was noticed by Elphaba.
Galinda was fully dressed in her days outfit. But something was wrong. She had a little dirt on the ends of her dress. Galinda would have a fit. She would never walk out of the room with her clothes looking anything less than perfect.
Galinda moved frantically around her room as she Elphaba looked on in confusion.
"Oh, Elphie. You're up. I woke up a little late." Galinda said as she smiled
"You look ready to me." Elphaba said, not yet pointing out the dirt
"Oh well, I had to go do something. Didn't want to make us late." Galinda said as she fiddled with something behind her back
"Not to make your morning any worse. But you have a little dirt on your dress." Elphaba said
"Oh I do. No big deal. I'll just change." Galinda said
No big deal. Galinda, who strive for perfectness and neatness, didn't make a big deal out of dirt being on her dress.
"Are you sick?" Elphaba said as she put a hand on Galinda's forehead
"What are you talking about? Im fine." Galinda said as she giggled at her friend's sudden concern
"I don't know. You said the dirt is not a big deal. Somethings off." Elphaba said as she squinted her eyes
"Im fine. And I got you something. It's a tulip. Do you like it?" Galinda said as she twirled the flower before giving it to Elphaba
"Thank you." Elphaba said softly after being gifted another pink flower
"You're welcome. Let me go change." Galinda said as she returned her smile
"Where were you?" Elphaba asked once Galinda returned in new attire
"Did you miss me Elphie?" Galinda teased, tapping her nose softly
"No, I was just wondering why it was so quiet." Elphaba said as her ears heated up at the close proximity
"Hmm, whatever you say. And I was uh, helping ShenShen. She was having , um, a wardrobe malfunction, yeah." Galinda said, responding awfully slow
Hmm, that was it. Elphaba had enough of Galjnda lying to her. It shouldn't have been a bug idea. She did to have to tell her everything, but it felt off. And Elphaba didn't like it.
So she'd figure out what Galinda lying to her about. And it always happened in the morning, she could tell that much.
...
Elphaba could've have been a normal person about this and just talked to Galinda. But Galinda didn't seem to be budging.
Elphaba kept her schedule aligned with Galinda, trying to catch her at the time she most likely got up in the morning.
On Thursday night, she willed herself to sleep, cutting her reading time short. It was all for naught because she still woke up at her regular time on Friday. And yet again, Galinda had a flower ready for her as she got ready.
Elphaba tried to catch her on Sunday again. She thought it would be her chance, seeing as they didn't have any classes. She thought she would finally catch Galinda, but was wrong. It was even worse on Sunday morning. Elphaba woke up at 10 . This time Galinda was by her bedside, as if waiting for hr to wake up, and gave her a flower as she fluttered her eyes open.
It seemed like Elphaba's strategy wasn't working, she was about to give up. But luck was on her side on Tuesday morning.
Elphaba had woken up when the clock read 7:50 to use the restroom. She might as well wake up.
Elphaba noticed her roommate wasn't in her room. It was fairly early to be out of their dorm. Just as Elphaba was about to step out of the bathroom after washing her face and brushing her teeth, she heard the door open. Quickly, Elphaba went back in the bathroom, seeing this as her chance to get the slightest clue of where Galinda was going in the morning.
Thankfully, Galinda was too frantic to even notice Elphaba was out of her bed.
"How could I forget this?" Galinda mumbled to herself as she rummaged through her drawer
Elphaba tilted her head as she peered through the Crack of the bathroom as Galinda picked up pruning shears. Why in the world would she need those?
This was a complete invasion of privacy, but Elphaba was curious. So she followed Galinda our of their dorm after she put on some shoes and a coat.
It was a wonder that Elphaba didn't get caught.
On the 5 minute walk, Galina kept looking over her shoulder, as if she knew someone was following her. Elphaba almost revealed herself. The guilt was almost eating g her alive. She was about to just tell Galinda to stop being so worried and that she was the one following her.
Until Galinda rounded a corner of the large library of Shiz.
Small gardens and assortment of flowers were all along the campus of Shiz university. But this one was more elaborate looking from the others. This one had many more colors and variety, Elphaba could tell from the corner she was hiding behind as she peered at Galinda.
Elphaba watched as she watched Galinda crouch in the small garden of flowers.
"Hmm, which one haven't I got her?" Galinda said to herself as she scanned over the assortment of flowers
This is where she got the flowers for her from. Galinda took the time out of her morning to come pick out a flower for Elphaba. Elphaba could feel her heart well and tears form in her eyes.
Elphaba had to tell Galinda how much she appreciated it.
"This is what you do every morning?" Elphaba said softly, trying not to startle the girl too much
"Oh Elphie. Did you follow me out here? It's not what it looks like." Galinda said frantically as she stood up, throwing her arms up, trying to find an excuse
"It looks like this is where you get my flowers from." Elphaba said as stepped closer to Galinda
"Mmh, are you mad?" Galinda said as she fiddled with her fingers nervously
"No, why would I be? But why didn't you tell me. I would've did much better than a thank you." Elphaba said
"Well, it's is technically the Botanical Clubs garden, I'm not really supposed to be here. But they have the best looking flowers." Galinda said as she blinked her big brown doe eyes
"So, you've been stealing just to get me the best flowers?" Elphaba said in utter disbelief
"Well, yeah. Don't tell. I'll get in big trouble. I'll find flowers from somewhere else." Galinda said
She said it so easily. Like it was nothing to give Elphaba flowers. Like she deserved them. It made her immediately tear up.
"Why?" Elphaba said lowly, voice breaking as a tear rolled on her face
"No, don't cry. I'm sorry." Galinda said as she brought a hand to wipe Elphaba's tear away
"Why?" Elphaba asked again
"Well, why not? You like them so I wanted to get you more." Galinda said as she smiled softly at Elphaba
"No one had ever done something like this for me." Elphaba said as she wiped her tears
"Well, I'll have to get you a bouquet every morning now. I'll have to go to all the other gardens if I don't wanna get caught." Galinda said as she frowned
"If you must." Elphaba said as she chuckled at her friend
"Well, since your here, you can pick it. I don't really know you're favorite." Galinda said as she grabbed Elphaba's hand and pulled her down over the garden
"It doesn't matter. I like all the ones you've given me." Elphaba said as she smiled softly
"Hmm, well let me suggest my favorite. Hmm, uh, oh an orchid." Galinda said as she picked out a pink orchid
"It's beautiful. Thank you." Elphaba said softly as she smiled
Elphaba herself looked for a green orchid and when she found it, she gave one to Galinda.
"Now we match." Galinda said excitedly
"Pink goes well with green." Elphaba said
"It so does." Galinda said with a giggle
Then and there, Elphaba felt her heart blossom.
So this is love?