Avery took her hand and Lilith helped hoist him upright, holding onto him a little longer than strictly necessary. The photographer flashed her a sweet smile before dusting at his trouser leg quickly. "I'm just glad we didn't break the little plant. It's so tiny still, we would have ruined it," he spoke quietly, indicating the pot closest to their disaster.
"Yeah, that would have been awful," she agreed, running the tip of her finger over the single white flower bud that the plant had produced so far. The brunette turned her gaze back toward Avery and couldn't stop a giggle from escaping. "Oh jeez, you're a mess now, darlin'," Lilith blurted, stepping closer and reaching out to straighten his sweater so it wasn't hanging off of his shoulder anymore. "Much better," she hummed, running her hands over his shoulders one last time before beaming up at him.
The door bell chimed and Lilith turned to greet the customer, but stopped short when she saw the hateful look the elderly man was casting in Avery's direction. "Disgusting," the other customer sneered at the animal man, before flicking his gaze at the florist. "And you should be ashamed of yourself. What would your mother say?" he asked, before spitting onto the floor and exiting the shop. The former student stepped back, over come with a variety of different emotions. She was angry at the human for being so close minded, sorry for Avery, but what she was feeling most was guilt. 'I'm such a coward,' she thought, running her hand over her skirt subconciously.
"You should probably take your pictures now," Lilith said, not quite meeting his eyes and crossing back over to the work table. She sat down and started trimming the Hyacinthus stems, her mouth set in a firm line. 'I didn't even defend him. I hide myself everyday under these stupid skirts so I don't have to deal with humans and when one of my own kind gets treated like shit, I just let it happen.' She felt her eyes get hot and she swiped at them hastily. 'I am the worst.'
"You're not disgusting," she told him quietly after some time had passed, not turning away from the flowers in front of her.