How Green Becomes Wood

"If you're jealous of a scar, I mean..." Milo shrugged, looking down at his hands, and let his sentence trail off. Then, raising his head again said, "I mean, though, didn't he kind of look like a mysterious rogue before anyway?" He looked at Alec and smiled, "That's really adorable, babies are so cute."
 
"I just think they're neat," Milo said, looking down at his paper. He didn't want to be a father in only ten years, but, he guessed, married wouldn't be bad. That's an important step towards being a father, most of the time. "When I first met her, it was at your birthday party last year, and she was barely functional. Now she talks and can think things through well enough to recognize how she's meant to treat an injury."
 
"Hmm," Alec frowned, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "I'm not sure about ten years, but in five years, I want to be able to run my uncle's store for him."

Xander grumbled softly as he scribbled down some basics about his current life. He wasn't sure what all he was supposed to include, so he did his best to include everything he demed important.
 
"Run it when he can't come in, but, yes, I think being able to run it full-time will be my ten-year goal," Alec stated. "You know, the main reason why he still has two jobs is because of times when he might have to close the flower shop. He can't exactly run a flower shop from home. If he had someone who could competently run it in his place, then he could quit his other job and focus more of his energies on the flowers! I don't know if I want to stay in the flower shop forever, but I bet if I could keep it running even on those weekdays when he's out, he could afford to hire someone else who could." He grinned suddenly. "Maybe I'll study business in school and start my own!"

Xander stared at Alec, somewhat slack-jawed. "You run and own a business," he said carefully.
 
Milo looked at Alec for a few moments and then said, "That's cool. That's like... an actually real actual plan." He looked down at his blank paper, "I don't have anything like that..." Then, looking back up at Alec asked, "You really want to run a buisness like that?"
 
"I don't know," Alec admitted with a shrug. "I think it sounds like a great idea, but I know that even though I work in a small business, I still only see a small part of what goes into it. Xander knows more, but his is not quite the same since it's not exactly a brick-and-mortar store, and he has a lot less to deal with concerning customers and various taxes. I think I'd like to explore the possibility, which I think is enough for this paper."
 
"That is a familiar feeling," Alec assured him. "Well, let's see. Have you ever had a dream of something you wanted to do? Like Xander's fairy princess dream?"

"Shut up," Xander grumbled.

"Or perhaps you can make up something pertaining to something you enjoy," Alec suggested. "Maybe you could be... a photojournalist? Or a musician? Or both, of course. Maybe a travel writer?"
 
Milo shrugged, "I don't know. The only thing I can think of to write... it feels silly. It's not really anything, and not in a... you know, 'it's a longshot, the career is hard to get into,' because I can't even think of a career. I don't want to be a musician, though, I just like playing for me." He looked to Xander, "Fairy Princess dream?"
 
"Not to be too contrary," Alec said slowly, " but I think that's exactly what they are looking for. You do have a goal, and, really, is it that much different from other people's? I want to be happy while doing a business venture, I hope, plus other things. Your goal is to be happy and content, if I can infer a bit there, and that is your top priority. You are seeking the best path to find that happiness, and in ten years, you'll get to see how successful you were."

"If nothing else," Xander remarked, "it's gotta be more satisfactory than 'I don't know.'"
 
Xander scowled at the paper uncertainly. "I don't know," he finally admitted. In truth, he didn't know what kind of a future he was capable of. He was great at math, apparently, which opened a lot of possibilities, but none of the options he knew of sounded at all that interesting. Loans like Tristan? Math teacher? Not hardly. Maybe computer work? Getting stuck indoors didn't sound like a great plan. So, what else was there? He knew his leather business was doing well now, but he didn't have the confidence to think it would actually last. Maybe Cooger would let him stay on with him as a handi person? Beyond that, he couldn't see what the future held for him.

"He doesn't obsess about the future like I do," Alec told Milo. He smiled at Xander. "But you've got a lot of potential! I'm sure there's a lot that'll work for you."
 
"I guess it's good that we have all weekend," Milo said, glancing at the bell which was about to ring, "And we have that career test tomorrow. Maybe it'll recommend you be a Fairy Princess after all."
 
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