Limelight

Zane and Paizley: The Stand

(Tbh, I love this one. I didn't really think about pairing these characters up at first, but Paizley doesn't appear much in the movie so she doesn't have many interactions to base any relationship ideas off of. But she is sitting at a table by the cauli-brains stand at the start of My Year, so I put her with Zane, the guy who works there, and I ended up having some fun with it. I don't think it's worth putting descriptions for this one, there's only two characters and I feel like it's clear enough who they are)
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Zane spent his weekends and mornings before school covering his parents' cauli-brains stand in Zombie Town. It wasn't such a bad job to have; the family business was pretty popular and his friends would always hang around to talk while they ate. But his one big gripe with it was how little respect zombies seemed to have for his workspace.

Zed tended to drop muddy footballs on the surface, right next to the food, until Zane decided enough was enough and flat-out banned him from bringing footballs anywhere near. Eliza and Bonzo kept using it as a surface for their computer and keyboard, respectively, but neither of them were doing enough harm to warrant a ban. According to Zane's mom, that is, who would always insist he was overreacting.

Paizley spent her weekends, mornings, and practically any other free time she had wondering around the Zombie Town streets, abandoned buildings and Seabrook's dump, hauling her wagon behind her, picking up any old thing that interested her. Maybe she'd fix it up and put it to use again, or trade it for something else or just keep it as an ornament. And she'd stop at the stand for a snack and a rest and a chat with Zane.

Usually she'd sit down at a table beside the stand, her wagon parked next to her, but sometimes, she felt something was just too special to not show Zane (and anyone else who would listen). And today was one of those days. Her wagon was next to the table, as always, but Paizley was standing right against the front of the stand with some unidentified object in her hands. Zane tried to ignore how close she was – she wasn't quite leaning on it, not disrupting his space or anything. She was safe, for now.

She was idly chatting with Zane as he prepared a fresh batch of cauli-brains for the hungry zombies that would no doubt be flocking to him in a matter of minutes. It was noon, about time for the lunch rush. The thing in Paizley's hands looked like some kind of box with rounded-off edges, encased in plastic. It had to be some kind of electrical appliance or scientific apparatus – there were dials and a switch and what was probably a screen or something underneath all the grime that she kept picking at. There had obviously been a label on it once upon a time but it was half-peeled off and faded now. Maybe it came from the old power plant.

Paizley suddenly got tired of the usual small talk and changed the subject to her latest find.

"Hey, look at this, though. You see this thing? This has gotta be, like, at least fifty years old. You know what that means, right?" she grinned up at him and he raised an eyebrow, the slightest hint of a smile tugging at his mouth, "This was here before the outbreak. This is pre-zombie. BZ."

"... What is it?" Zane wasn't all that into this stuff, but he could humour Paizley while he worked. She always got excited about these things.

"I have no idea but I'm gonna figure it out."

And then she made the mistake of resting her elbows on the edge of the stand as she stared down at the box, placing it on the counter. Zane's shoulders slumped and he gave her a flat look, which she didn't even notice.

"Get off the stand, Paizley."

"Hm?" Still not looking.

"Paizley."

She briefly glanced up, "What?"

"Off the stand."

"I'll just be a second, I need a flat surface." She was turning the thing over and over, trying to make out what she could from the torn label or the worn-away lettering on the back.

"There's a table right there." He gestured towards it. She kept her eyes down.

"Not the right height," then, out of nowhere, she smiled wide and held the object up, "Hey, this part flips open...!"

Other zombies were starting to appear.

"Paiz, I need that space."

No response. She was fiddling with the little latch-type-thing she had found.

"Look, I got customers, buy or stick or get going."

"Got no money. You wanna trade for something? I found this grill-looking thi-" she stooped down, reaching for something in her wagon.

"No."

Paizley stood upright again with a roll of her eyes, "Pfftt, fine..." and went back to what she was doing.

"... Why don't you sell some of this?" Zane nodded at the wagon, overflowing with random items, "Get some cash."

Paizley gasped in shock and clutched the box to her chest, "Sell my babies?"

"You give them away all the time! Half of Bonzo's sculptures are made from junk he got from you."

"We trade! They're not junk, they're treasures. I couldn't sell them."

"You don't even know what that thing is."

"Doesn't matter, I love it. Look at it."

She shoved the few stalks of cauliflower in front of her out of the way so she could push the box towards Zane. She did, he noted, keep her hands firmly clamped around it. As if he'd try to take it from her.

"Are you kidding me right now, Paizley?" He indicated the cauliflower she had just moved and the space she was taking up.

"No. It's pretty. Look at it." She was grinning again. Zane just shook his head.

"Why am I friends with you?"

Paizley grinned and dropped the box back into the wagon. She leaned as far across the counter as she could, propping her chin up on her fists so they squished her cheeks. "'Cause I'm adorable!"

"Get off my stand."