Jia Li nodded when Xan revealed the true cause of his upset, but she didn’t say anything. She didn’t want to encroach on such a personal and sensitive area of thought. She was the sort to suffer in silence, so she allowed others to do the same. The dryad knew if someone wanted to talk to her, they wouldn’t hesitate. Some people just didn’t know how to silence themselves before their entire life stories were revealed. It wasn’t that she didn’t want people to talk to her. It was that she always feared she would be expected to do the same.
The dryad wasn’t entirely family oriented. The only family she really had was her father. He had lost his parents to a forest fire as a kid, and he had been adopted by a dryad and a human who cared about supernatural beings. They had transplanted his tree into the reserve where Jia’s own tree grew strong and tall. His tree was also a white ash. Her adoptive grandparents were still alive, but she had never really been able to become close with them. They were incredibly strict, and neither her father nor she appreciated that aspect of them.
Jia’s Chinese family didn’t want anything to do with her. They were upset that Yanlin, their daughter, had chosen an American who wasn’t Chinese for herself. They had already had a husband chosen for her, but she had ignored them in favor of love. Even while they were saddened by her death, they felt that it had served her right for abandoning her heritage for an American.
“I guess that could work. I don’t really know a lot about it. I like animals, but I’ve always been more interested in the environment itself.” It was true. Animals and Jia worked well together, but it wasn’t anything incredible. Squirrels and foxes and creatures of that nature didn’t immediately run from her approach as if they could sense what she was, but they didn’t really want her touching them, either. Tamed animals were as fine with her as with any other living humanoid in whom they sensed an innate goodness.
“I may just take you up on that offer. Maybe I can teach you a few dance moves to keep you from getting lost if you take a girl on a date or something.” She chuckled. Of course, if they taught each other anything, there would be enough people around to witness it. He looked a lot stronger than her, and she doubted there were trees very close to a tennis court. It was even less likely that there would be trees in the mirrored rooms where they practiced dance. Jia was still in the process of trying to convince them to place at least a small tree in one of the corners, but it was deemed a “hazard” if someone was to trip and fall into it.
“Ah. Racing really isn’t my thing. I don’t like to have to follow a set path. That’s why dancing is so much fun. I get to really move around and do what I like. I’m sure tennis wouldn’t be too bad. I mean, as long as I’m the designated side of the court, I get to move around a lot.”
Jia cocked her head to one side. “You mean a motorcycle or a bicycle?” He had said he liked mechanics, so she assumed it was the former, but it was never good to assume something about anyone.