Arc 5: Victory and Roots
Page 84
The Packet in His Pocket
The fairy lights had burned down to their gentlest glow by the time Mr. Chen reached into his pocket and drew out a small seed packet, worn soft at the corners as if it had been waiting through several seasons for this exact night. Chloe took it with both hands, her blue notebook tucked against her side, and for a moment she looked less like a wanderer and more like someone being entrusted with a key. 'For the right person,' Mr. Chen told her, and the words landed with a strange, steady weight. Chloe turned the packet over, searching its face for an answer, then looked up and asked, 'What is it?' Mr. Chen's smile was almost too quiet to catch, but it was there. 'Plant it and find out,' he said. And standing there in the hush of the garden, with Luna watching from the edge of the bed and dusk gathering like a promise around them, Chloe felt that mystery could sometimes be another word for welcome.