#rootbound au

Rootbound by tak_cajaz

bloodymary • flowershop au • 16/25 • 165.8k •

Ryland looked down at his clipboard, where he had written a reasonable script, supplied earlier that day by Adrian. Unfortunately, the moment his eyes landed on the words, his brain supplied only terrible ways to say them. He chose the worst one. “I need flowers with prominent reproductive structures.” The man went completely still. Ryland could feel his soul attempting to leave his body. “For a plant anatomy lab,” he added quickly. “For my students. Middle school students. Not–” He cut himself off, because there was simply no end to that sentence that would improve his situation. Instead, he just weakly smiled, and added “Science.” -:-:- Ryland Grace is brilliant with biology, awkward with adults, and far too invested in giving his students the lessons they deserve. Simon Fleischer is a guarded florist who trusts plants more than people and has no interest in being needed by anyone again. But when a forgotten school lab brings Ryland into Root & Thorn, their lives begin to tangle in quiet, unexpected ways – through flowers, roots, and the terrifying possibility of being cared for properly.

(additional tags below the cut!)

What are Simon's and graces favorite flowers? (specifically flowrs not plants) becouse im a sucker for flower language and I want to see if it fits

(Also im not sure if Simon's favorite flower was stated in the fic, im re reading it rn becouse i realised that I forgot a couple of things that happend )

Thank YOU for reading it!! As for favorite flowers, I don't have one in particular for either of them, but a couple ideas come to mind for me!

For Ryland, I think he naturally gravitates towards sunshine-y, warm yellow flowers. If a kid asked, he'd probably say sunflowers (no I am not projecting onto him... much), because of how neat they are (the florets and the spirals!!) and their cheer. I also think he sees them and sees himself a little: tall, bright, unmistakably there. He struggles with feeling like he takes up too much space (physically, sure, but emotionally), so maybe he's told himself to stand tall, to be more like them (something he'd never admit to anyone, but I think Simon would make similar connections if he learned Ryland liked them.)

Forget-me-nots are also up there for him. He loves their color, a shade of blue so rarely found in nature that he finds it fascinating (he IS a science teacher afterall!) In a lot of ways, they’re the opposite of sunflowers. Sunflowers are tall, warm, and impossible to miss; forget-me-nots grow low to the ground and can disappear into everything around them until enough bloom together to turn the whole space blue. I think Ryland sees himself in both. The sunflowers are the part of him that stands at the front of a classroom and fills the space, while the forget-me-nots are the quieter part that only really makes sense through all the people and memories he carries with him. I think they also make him think of his parents. Maybe his mother’s field guides have plenty of them drawn in, and there are pressed flowers in frames that his grandparents held onto for him. And while Ryland can’t remember his parents for himself, he also can’t ever forget them. He carries them with him in everything he does.

I also think he likes yellow carnations as something kinda ruffled and messy looking, long-lasting, and cheery without being too in your face. He doesn't care that they're "ordinary" or "boring". I like to think carnations were the kind of flower he got his Gram when he and his grandpa went to the grocery store, so he has some nostalgia for them there. I know the meaning of yellow carnations and I think it makes it that much more sad though. (For anyone who doesn't know, they tend to symbolize rejection and disappointment.) For Ryland to pick a flower that symbolizes some of his greatest fears, it just fits too well.

(Simon, who has maybe read up on flower language during quiet hours at the shop, hears that they’re one of Ryland’s favorites and makes the connection on his own. He isn’t huge on flower language, purely because he cares more about how flowers make someone feel than what some long-dead Victorian decided they meant. Still, he doesn’t want to give Ryland yellow carnations at first. Even if Ryland is unaware of their traditional meaning, offering him any suggestion of rejection (especially after hearing the way Ryland speaks to himself) is exactly what Simon wants to avoid. Eventually, he does give them to him, because to Ryland, they don’t mean rejection. They mean Gram’s kitchen table. They mean something ruffled and ordinary and long-lasting. They mean messy and bright, just like him.)

For Simon, he’s a bit tougher to me. I think he’d probably like your everyday chrysanthemum. There are so many different varieties (some very neat and compact, some a little weird and spidery), and I think he’d enjoy that they’re sturdy and long-lasting without looking boring. People do tend to treat mums like generic grocery store flowers, but Simon absolutely does not care about a flower being “ordinary.” Call them boring and Simon will quietly decide you don’t know enough about flowers to have opinions. They’re reliable, more complicated than they look, so... kinda like him!

Calendula also keeps coming to mind, though I’m not sure it would be his actual favorite, so much as a flower that feels like him. They’re warm and kind of sunlike, especially the dark orange and rust ones, but they can symbolize grief, sorrow, and remembrance. They’re also associated with healing and protection, which gives them this whole "hurt and healing can exist in the same place" thing that I really love for Simon. The healing doesn’t undo the hurt; they just become parts of the same flower. Calendula is also hardy and useful instead of only decorative, so I think he’d approve of it on principle. There are other reasons this one fits him especially well, but those are none of your business yet <3

I also think Simon has a much softer favorite that he’s less likely to admit to: sweet peas. His mom grew them, and I think he associates them with helping her tie the vines up and finding little jars of them around the house. They’re ruffled and delicate and almost aggressively romantic, which does not seem very Simon at first (he is well aware of who he is, you don't have to point it out), but I think that’s why they fit the part of him we haven’t seen much of yet. They also don’t last especially long once they’re cut. He can grow the same varieties his mom did and recognize the scent immediately, but he still can’t make them stay. Anyway, Simon is doing great and I have no further comments at this time lol

Okay I mostly made this for me to keep things straight, but I have had a few people ask specific questions about the character designs (namely Adrian since there's no one most popular design for them!). I'm not a great artist but! I am a canva girly :)

Without further ado, Rootbound character palettes and style notes!

I also have notes on what Adrian and Rocky look like if that's something that interests people! (idk if this even interests people, but I was making it so thought I'd share hehe)

apologies for the bad handwriting, but I'm trying to figure out how to visualize the store properly and I thought I'd just ask you. I love your fic dearly, it's my favorite. Sorry to bother! 😼

No apologies for bad handwriting, and you are NEVER a bother!!!

To be completely, a hundred thousand percent honest with you. Before this ask, I have been writing with NO idea what the inside of Root & Thorn looks like!

In fact, I've been meaning to go in and make a floor plan. Instead?? I have been doing everything but. Admittedly, while answering your ask, I totally realized I don't think I have every single detail in a compatible way. Had I done what I told myself I'd do (make the stupid floor plan smh), things might match up.

ANYWAYS. I did a quick mockup on floorplanner while answering this, though the quality is a little buns lol. The shop would likely be much longer and skinnier, because that's just how the lots in San Francisco are (don't wanna talk about how much I got into the weeds on SF zoning and construction laws lol). There is also a backyard type area, bringing the lot length it 100 feet, but I didn't include it here.

One detail that I don't mention until later is that there's actually a service alley between Olesya's and Simon's!

Thank you for your kind words!! This one is also gonna stick with me too I think :)

I am a teacher! I teach high school science in an urban/inner-ring suburb of a mid major city, so it’s not the same as teaching in a large district in a big city like San Francisco, but a lot of the kiddos deal with a lot of similar things (we also have a lot of kids from the city open enrolled, so we have a lot of urban kiddos). I also have the same certification Ryland would have, 7-12 science. While I teach older kids, i find it’s not too hard to adjust the behaviors I see in my 15 year olds to fit his 12 year olds better.

I also, much like Ryland, started as a biology major but switched over to science ed! His backstory is so so special to me. Yeah, in canon he went far far deeper into science than I did, but there’s such a joy of getting to share the thing you loved and studied with young minds.

It makes me so so happy that other teachers found this fic and love it :) I try to show my experiences through Ryland as well as I can.

As I’m sure you know, it can be hard to be a caring, compassionate teacher sometimes. Being one doesn’t inherently mean you have to burn yourself out, but some days, you really can’t help it. Sometimes it’s overwhelming, and the kids ask good questions in completely asinine ways, and they’ll ask you for more than you are contractually obligated to give, but you want to do it anyways. You want to because the kids are just… well, kids! They are growing and learning and deserving of kindness and respect. And so many of them are missing something important in their lives: attention, love, a patient presence, a gentle hand on their shoulder, a safe place to rest. You want to give them that. And sometimes, you can’t help but want to give more than you probably should.

It’s tiring and crazy and some days I come home dead on my feet, but I can’t imagine anything more rewarding! My first group of kids just graduated and seeing them grow from 15 to 18 was so lovely :) I’m so so proud of them. Reminds me to be patient with my current 15 year olds when they’re being verifiable ass pains, because they’re just KIDS and they’re growing and I’m an adult they feel safe being an ass pain to.

You're too kind!! I love love love being a teacher (even though, much like rootbound Ryland, I let those heathens walk all over me!!), and I always love to hear people considering it!! It's not an easy career, and teachers don't get the love or compensation they deserve, but man is it still rewarding. I saw my very first group of students graduate this year and I cried because I was SO proud of them. It really is awesome to see them grow :)

As for Adrian, I based their character design a little bit off Yasmin Finney and Zoe Kravitz! Nothing too closely related, but I was kinda thinking similar vibes but sharper face shape.

Also I actually made a whole reference sheet about the four main character builds when I was first planning! Here is what I have for Adrian!

Adrian Eridani is 5'11, nonbinary, mixed race Black and white, and quietly striking. They have warm, medium brown skin with olive tones and cool, grey-green eyes. Their presence is composed, observant, and steady. They are not intimidating, but they have authority. They look like they can calm a room without raising their voice. Their beauty comes across as natural and easy, rather than decorative.

Their features are elegant but grounded: high cheek bones, a defined jaw, full lips, a Nubian nose, and eyes that miss very little. Their hair is long, thick, and curly (approximately 3a-3b curls), and it falls past their shoulders when loose. They usually wear it in ways that are both beautiful and practical: half up in a claw clip, a low puff, loose twists, a bun with a pencil through it, or their curls pinned back on one side. A few curls are almost always escaping around their face. While their face and eyes are sharp, angular, and precise, their hair softens them.

They are toned, but not in a showy way. Their strength is graceful and functional. Long arms, strong shoulders, good posture. They look like they may swim or climb, or simply just have the build of someone who carries book boxes, rearranges library furniture, and refuses to let someone else do all the heavy lifting for them. Unlike Ryland, Adrian doesn't shrink away from their height. In fact, they are known to wear heels to exaggerate their height, something their 5'7 husband adores. They stand tall, move deliberately, and make stillness look like a decision.

Their wardrobe is cool greens, jewel darker jewel tones, and warm neutrals. They dress intentionally, with wide leg trousers, soft button-up, mock necks, long cardigans, fine knits, structured coats, loafers, sleek ankle boots with slight heels, readding glasses, small gold hoops, and the gunmetal wedding ring that Rocky fabricated for them.

Adrian's physicality embodies calm care. They move Ryland's sandwich before he knocks it off the table. They pat Rocky's shoulder to redirect him. They hand someone a pen before it's requested. They notice discomfort early and quietly adjust to room to ease it. Their humor can be a little dry, but their body language is gentle with people they love.

I also mayyyy have sketched them (that's why it took me so long to reply!!) I have been wanting to draw them for a while!

Please be kind, drawing is not something I do often, and when I do, I'm using reference photos for daysssss.... anywho here is the sketch of them :) Obviously not in the right colors, but I love doodling characters in "their color"! (peep the mini rocky... yeah he's just rocktiz but 29 like he is in the story!)

Oooooooooh I see I see!!

To be honest, I think rootbound Ryland wouldn't need a headache or a bad day to get him into his "evil" UNESCO state. He sees someone he cares deeply for getting treated unfairly, and he jumps right tf in. Doesn't matter who it is, he is pulling out no stops for the people he loves.

Since he doesn't go to get his PhD in this story, maybe rootbound Ryland's version of the UNSECO incident is seeing someone (a coworker? a presenter? idk probably a presenter, someone who doesn't know his kids like he does) belittling a student of his and he sees RED. He doesn't like to get like that, not in front of his kids, but he would NEVER want his kids to be made to feel stupid, and not the way that this grown ass adult is talking to them.

Maybe it happened his first year of teaching, and he's convinced Eva is going to fire him. Especially when he goes into her office and Carl is standing next to her, arms crossed.

Imagine his surprise, when Eva admits that he could have been a little more discerning in the words he chose (nothing that is school inappropriate but still a lot. Maybe still staggering waste of carbon is in there lol it's just too good), but she stands by him fully. She knows that that presenter was unsavory and this gave them an excuse to cut all ties with them.

Carl can't help but drop his serious look and laugh at the exact words Ryland chose, at the face on the presenter as he chewed them out royally. It's the first time Ryland sees Carl be anything but quiet and serious, and later on, after his heart stops trying to fly through his chest, he'll realize he is exactly at the school he needs to be at.

The incident gains him so much respect from his students, because he is real and goofy and now has shown that he will stand up for them no matter what. The story lives on as a legend for years to come with the kids, long after that student moved onto high school.

I know your ask was about Simon, but man you really got me thinking about the UNESCO thing lol.

I think Simon would love Ryland's aggression, not because he's aggressive but because he's protective. It has been years since he's had anyone who would openly go to bat for him like that. (Sure, Olesya would, but Simon doesn't see that himself.) He feels... safe. Cared for. Loved.

Plus, this usually kind, awkward teacher that wouldn't dare cross his boundaries, suddenly red in the face, blue eyes sharp, and shouting at a customer because they were a little ruder than necessary to Simon? Simon thinks it's hot.

Lowkey might have to write some oneshots about this (after RB is done, I plan on making a small collection of one shots hehe)

And if so, would he play it for simon at some point

I TOTALLY FORGOT ABOUT THIS

I think he would definitely know piano, it was something his grandparents signed him up for as a kid, and he can still doink out a couple tunes decently well. As for organ, I'm not so sure? I think if his grandparents took him to church, maybe he would have been interested and gotten the organ player there to teach him, but idk if they would have been a church going family at all.