Girls were supposed to be happy when boys gave them flowers, but Topanga looked anything but happy as Cory presented her with the dandelions he'd pulled from the grass.
"You shouldn't do that," she scolded. "These flowers are alive, and by ripping them from their cherished home, you've hurt them!"
Cory rolled his eyes.
"...hurt them. Topanga, they're flowers, someone was gonna pick them eventually! And come on, it's dirt, how can anything be happy living in dirt?"
She took his hand and pressed it against the severed stems, he felt a sticky moisture on his palm.
"Can't you feel their pain?"
He burst out laughing, and she made that low growling noise she was so prone to when someone pissed her off. Usually him.
"That's not funny!" she snapped.
"You totally got that line from that dumb Ferngully movie!" he said, trying to catch his breath.
"It wasn't dumb, it had a valuable lesson to teach!" Topanga protested.
"Look, I know flowers are living things and stuff, but all I did was pull them outta the ground," Cory said. "It's not like I stomped on them, or set them on fire, or made them sit through Feeny's English class!"
She softened a bit.
"Why did you give me flowers anyway? This isn't like you at all."
He blushed and looked away.
"I wanted to do something nice, and when I saw 'em they reminded me of you. Cause of your dress and all."
She looked from the flowers to her ankle-length orange and yellow sundress to him. Turning around to face him, she kissed his cheek.
"Then I accept your thoughtful gesture, Cory, and I'm sure these dandelions were glad to sacrifice their lives for your moment of kindness."
But he wasn't even thinking about the flowers anymore. All he could see was her.