Everyone was running to all sides, panic clearly showing its effects even on the rational minds that were witnesses of such sudden transformation in front of them. People ran mostly in groups making evacuation a slow process. One of the groups made it to the exit, pushing each individual through the big door; a second one, prisoners of fear who wanted to avoid any motivation for the one who they were afraid of, hid behind the chairs as if that was going to help resisting the hits that Nana's vines gave to anything that was to her reach; a third group, in a clumsy way, tried to get out through the windows. 

Then there was Raina.

Standing in her feet in front of Nana, making her way through the scared crowd, trying to reach her. But somehow, once in front, the look on the super plant's widened and still eyes made her skin to go cold in realization.

Nana felt a slight shivering in her skin, she was not able to describe her feelings as nothing else but a sense of pity towards herself, when seeing the people running away, in a hurry to get out and as far as they could from her. 

To Raina's eyes, it was clear that she was as scared as the people in there, but they both shared a sadness in common. Every effort invested to help her mix with the humans, to be friends with them, to not be lonely, were all lost.

A vine that she didn't notice came from her right, pushing her against the wall. The sound of the body hitting the wall, made Nana's eyes to turn to Raina's figure. The human girl looked back, trying to calm her down, to inspire her some hope of fixing the current situation. It seemed to work, as Nana tried to get close to her, but then a butterfly started to fly close to the human girl, making her to go back in her steps, and finally rushing out of the auditorium.

When recovering some energy enough to stand up, Raina ran towards the hall's entrance. She stopped, looking to both sides trying to figure out where Nana could have gone. A particular glow by her feet caught her eyes. It was one of Nana's roses. When looking at it close, thick drops of a transparent liquid were on the petals.

...Tears?

**

Eunji was rushing on the lab, her steps running from one side to the other were the predominant sound along her accelerated breath, she wanted to finish her research as fast as she could. That was until the screams from people came to her ears. She stopped moving almost immediately and looked behind her, to the eyes of her companion.

"You think it is..?" she made to whisper after a few seconds.

"Yes, it's Nana. I sense her moving" replied a girl of brown hair which length made it until her shoulders. Her features made her look like a really sweet one... if it wasn't for the serious expression she was carrying on her face.

"From here?" asked Eunji surprised.

"The smell of her fresh leaves reaches here easily, they must be big ones, otherwise I wouldn't sense it" the eyes from this girl, gradually went wide open and looked at Eunji, taking a second before parting her lips with a whisper "She's evolving"

"What?" made to ask Eunji.

"It has sense." she stopped before speaking up her thoughts "That crazy doctor is forcing her to evolve. We need to hurry there!" and ran towards the door.

"We?" asked Eunji again for a better explanation.

"If we don't stop her, there won't be a school for you to come back to" she paused and then added "If we're lucky". She was about to go out when Eunji exclaimed...

"Wait! Your cloak!"

"It doesn't matter now, she'll recognize me sooner or later. Make sure to take those roots with you, we need our plan B." Eunji nodded and took a flower pot where tiny roots were kept under the soil inside, showing a light green stem with a beautiful leaf. With the Plan B in hand, she followed the girl to find Nana.

**

Naeun got at the greenhouse entrance at the same time as Raina did, provoking the alow steps and inmediate fury of the latter. "What did you do now?!" Naeun rose her left arm — as her right one was still covered in bandages—, to protect herself from any attack while explaining herself "I didn't do anything! I came here to help!" then she turned to see the panorama inside the place.

The vines were now big and wild, Nana was up in a thick one, her own product for standing up, she didn't move, her eyes were looking up as the wind made her company, looking half-conscious of her actions. Another thing was making her company, to be specific, another someone.

Raina noticed the figure of Dr. Lizzy Park close to the super plant "Is this Dr. Park's doing?" made to whisper to Naeun.

"Yes" she said and gulped "I didn't know what she was up to. I thought she abandoned that idea of studying her when she started to conduct a research on those caterpillars."

"Caterpillars?" Raina turned to Naeun in confusion.

"Look, over there" Naeun pointed to the many butterflies that were flying above Lizzy. "They're now butterflies." Raina looked at them, wondering how all this could just happen. 

Naeun sighed to ease the little fear she was feeling, and drew a brown ball out of her pockets to show it to Raina "She's not going to stop. My cousin has no intention for that to happen, she forced her to evolve, but in the process, she's going to destroy everything in her reach, meaning..." she looked around and Raina got it immediately.

"The school"

"Yes. That's why I prepared this" she said looking at the object "It's a ball of venom. It's gonna disperse a gas and..." then glanced at Raina and looked down.

Raina's eyes opened wide as her head completed the phrase, which made her protest while holding Naeun's hand "I won't let you do that! There must be another way"

"There is no other way!" 

"What about hot water?"

"If she's evolving that's not going to stop her now. I read Lizzy's journal, she made the butterflies as an incentive for Nana to respond to, and to avoid her from stopping until she creates a new system of defense, which means transforming both herself... and shaping the area for it."

Raina knew what that meant, the super plant was going to transform herself and get rid of everything around her. She knew the dangers, but still refused to throw such deadly object to her. She stood up, firm, frowning. "I'm going to stop her"

"Talking to her won't do anything! You couldn't do it when she attacked me! What makes you think that this time it will work?" Naeun said exasperated, she used Raina for a purpose and was well aware of that, but that doesn't mean that she didn't fear about the other girl getting harmed, more than that, doing something stupid that will put all of them in danger.

"I'll try!" Raina reaffirmed herself, then in a soft voice almost breaking when looking at Nana she added "If I don't make it.., do what you think you have to do" and with that she went right in Nana's direction.

"But..!" 

That would kill you too

Why do you think I'm offering myself?

Naeun looked at Raina and felt frustration going up to her head, then she looked at Lizzy and frowned You're just about to do anything to get the super plant for yourself, right?.

A sudden sensation invaded her heart: she wanted to save Raina, at all cost. A sound held on was proof that she hated that yearning, but she couldn't lie to herself. Not everything that happened before was an act.

She was about to run towards the girl, when a hand held her arm. Meeting with a stranger's eyes, she pulled back and bumped into Eunji.

"Naeun... w-what's Raina doing?"

Naeun couldn't dare to look at Eunji's eyes, directing her own to the floor again. The latter was about to run towards Raina, but the stranger held her arm as well.

Eunji looked at her, confused and angry "Am I supposed to just look from here? That's my best friend!" Then she turned to Nana, whispering "And.. that's someone who trusts me". There was another reason as well that made her turn to the one holding her, with a clear expression of anger.

"This can't be stopped"

**

Raina walked slowly towards Nana, stopping to look at her, thinking, wondering what she could do, what she should say.

"You can't stop that." said Lizzy with a smirk on her lips "Face it, she was never meant to be with humans, that exercise of yours was merely stupid. Plants are way superior to humans, so why enchaining this species to the pitiful human existance?" 

Raina made herself deaf to the words of the young scientist. Yes, it might be dangerous, it might be stupid, probably none of her actions would do effect on the super plant. But she was not going to leave her alone, whatever the fate she was going through was.

She approached slowly, with the rose in her hand...

"Nana, can you listen to me?" she asked, not sure whether she was listening or not, but decided to keep going "Nana, Uee, our classmates, every person in this school doesn't hate you..." she took a breath and continued "You see this beautiful rose? People won't forget that easily, it's our best actions that keep us alive in their hearts. I won't tell you that they'll accept you right away, it's not in human nature to adapt or evolve as fast as plants do."

Raina started to climb the giant and thick vine where Nana was standing on. "But hear me... didn't I promise I'll take care of you?" She smiled at the super plant whose eyes were stuck on her. The human girl kept walking as a gentle breeze, the same one that grazed Nana's new leaves, did the same with her body. "I still hold to that promise" Giving every step further that started to require effort "I won't leave you", before finally stopping with Nana's rose in hand, only able to mutter "I lov-..."

The gentle breeze sound was predominant again, after a few seconds, Lizzy chuckled "Stupid girl, didn't I warn you about it?"

"RAINA!!!!!" two crying shouts resonanted in the greenhouse at the view of the still and short...

...plant.