Frances had just stepped out of the hospital bathroom, her damp hair pulled back into a lazy ponytail, when her eyes caught the sight of a large bouquet of white roses sitting elegantly beside the hospital bed. The crisp petals glowed under the pale hospital lights. She narrowed her eyes.
"What the hell?" she muttered, walking cautiously toward the bouquet. Her bare feet padded softly against the linoleum floor as she leaned in and plucked the card gently.
The handwriting was neat, soft and romantic.
Dear Cici,
Like petals that reach for the sun,
my heart reaches for you
aching to see you smile again,
to hold you in gentle bloom.
These flowers carry my kiss,
my thoughts, my every wish
that you heal in warmth and grace,
and feel my love in every place.
From someone who cares… deeply.
Her brows drew together. "Who could have sent this?" she whispered. Her fingers grazed the roses, soft, delicate, perfect. They smelled divine, and white roses were her favorite. She felt her chest flutter but immediately shook her head and clenched her jaw.
No. She couldn't just accept this.
Her eyes darted to the cup placed beside the bouquet. A pink Stanley cup, pristine and shimmering. The name Cici was embellished across it with rhinestones that glittered even under the dull lights. A tiny silver heart-shaped charm dangled from the lid. Her hand reached for it, almost in a trance, and she found another small note attached.
Dear Cici,
Do not dispose the flowers.
I know it is your favorite thing in the world.
If you like it, just keep it, there's no harm.
Drink your milk while it's still warm.
Frances rolled her eyes, scoffing. "What a stalker!" she hissed, crumpling the note and tossing it into the trash. But then her gaze lingered on the Stanley cup in her hand. It was… cute. Stupidly cute. She sighed, placed the roses down more gently than she expected, then whipped out her phone.
Click.
She posted the photo on the school site, captioning:
"This seems like the first anonymous gift that I would ever love after the milk in Stanley cup, I love roses not Lilies!"
Then she took another snap, this time of the Stanley cup.
"Survived death but guess who ain't the survivor lol"
And as always, the chaos followed.
@wemblyQueen222: oh my God who is about to die in school now?
@keisha of Dudley: who offended Frances for fuxk sake! Some people don't like having their heads on their necks
@Theoracleboy: I heard Sutton gave Frances Lilies she almost died
@Terry: wasaaa! He chose the wrong way to die bruh
@girlishhh: Somebody buy Sutton a coffin please and prepare some black dress for the candle night
@Mytrumpcard: Frances rarely post anything reasonable on the school site aside from Stanley cups and it always means trouble. I would prefer her picture in bikini instead haha
@moodtoday: I hope Frances is fine now, Allergy is some crazy shit
@Felix: Sutton should say his last prayers something bad is about to happen
@Animefreak: Sutton left everything in this world and decided to propose to Dudley biggest bully, what a sweet way to die
@Bammy: what a sweet way to perish, at least she is a sweet girl i would be grateful if Frances should grab my neck once
@Paul: Frances looks so sweet i would die for her too hahaha
@Prettysaint: why is everyone scared of Frances she's just a pretty girl with no strength he can't do nothing to Sutton at all
@Boobooboo: @prettysaint Kindly check on Sutton in the next few weeks so you can be reminded to delete this comment of yours
@LolaRae: @prettysaint is a new student she doesn't know the queen of Dudley the biggest bully in Dudley
@prettysaint: does Frances just bully people and everyone lets her be? Can't she be reported?
@Swarvy: why report? Frances doesn't look for trouble they look for her trouble, moreover she is close to the principal no one can touch her
@prettysaint: what a psycho! She is just a psycho
Later that day, Frances lay on her side, scrolling absentmindedly when the door burst open.
"Oh my little big sis!" Evie shouted, running over and yanking her into a bone-crushing hug. Frances grunted and shoved him off with surprising strength.
"Get your gay ass off me, idiot!" she snapped, scowling. Evie winced, recoiling dramatically with a pout.
"How can you push me away, Frances? I was worried about you the whole night," he said, fake-crying and wiping invisible tears from his cheeks.
Frances narrowed her eyes, scanning him. "Didn't you go mess around with that clown boy?"
Evie looked away, guilty.
"I didn't! I stopped seeing him!"
"Stop lying, Evie. I can smell him on you. That horrible perfume he wears? It clings. You cuddled him the whole day, didn't you? Did you kiss him too? Holy shit!" She palmed her face in frustration, visibly fuming.
Evie quickly grabbed her hands, his eyes pleading. "I didn't mean to, Frances. He came to find me in school, I didn't go find him."
Her jaw clenched.
"Stop lying, Evie! I told you to stay away from him! He's an adult, you're a minor! I swear, I'm going to report him to the police." She tore her hands from his and he sat up sharply, shaking.
"Hump! Isn't it just that you hate the fact that I'm gay!"
"I don't hate the fact that you're gay. I hate that you won't deal with someone your age. He's 25, for fuck's sake! You're just 17! This is grooming. You don't even know your real sexuality, you've been with a man since this age. It's inappropriate!"
"He loves me, Frances! He'll do anything for me!"
"He's lying to you! He wants your money, Evie. He looks like a fraudster."
"He's not! You just don't like him!"
"You! Why can't you fucking listen?! Have you gone crazy? He's manipulating you, give yourself some brain, for fuck's sake. Stop pissing me off, bitch! Do you have some brains or have you sold it off? Following an adult is some dumbshit, bitch!"
The entire room froze.
Even the buzzing light above seemed to dim.
Morgan stepped forward cautiously, hand outstretched, but Frances snapped.
"Just fuck off! Y'all should fucking leave me alone and go deal with your dumbass lives! Just get lost! Fucking leave the ward!"
Coco, startled, quickly tucked herself behind Abby, eyes wide. She tugged on Abby's sleeve but didn't speak. Abby started to open his mouth, but Lawrence gave a subtle shake of his head.
Silently, one by one, they left the room. Lawrence was the last to go, gently closing the door behind them. Through the glass, they all stared.
Frances was lying under the sheets now, her face red from yelling, eyes stormy. Even though her fever had gone down earlier, now she looked flushed again, like her body could combust.
"Shit," Morgan mumbled.
Outside the hospital, Cora grabbed Evie's ear and dragged him like a mother punishing a toddler. He yelped the whole way until they were outside. Morgan didn't hesitate, he delivered a swift kick to Evie's backside.
"Ow! What the hell, Morgan?!" Evie rubbed his butt, whining.
"Didn't I tell you not to mention that crazy boyfriend of yours in front of Frances?"
"I didn't! She just smelled him on me!"
"You definitely know Frances has a strong nose. You should've stayed back. We shouldn't have brought you to the hospital today!" Cora snapped, folding her arms.
Evie dropped to the floor in frustration, sulking. "How can you all do this? You know I like him! How can Frances hate someone I like? It's unfair! She's so unfair to me! Frances hates me because I'm gay!"
Lawrence nearly burst out laughing but held it in with a tight-lipped smirk.
Abby stepped forward, hands raised.
"Stop it, Evie! You know Frances doesn't mind your sexuality. None of us do. She just doesn't want you involved with an adult."
"Exactly," Morgan added, arms crossed. "We're not trying to control you, but this isn't healthy. You're still a teenager, Evie. He is almost 8 years older than you He could be manipulating you."
"I don't want to leave him! I can't leave him!" Evie shouted, voice trembling.
"If you keep doing this, Frances will really send him to the police. Last time she just beat him up, but this time? Jail," Cora said bluntly.
"Frances will kick you out of the group if she finds out anything later on"
"No! I won't allow her. Please, guys keep this a secret for me. Please!"
Abby rolled his eyes but sighed. "Whatever. Let's just go check on Frances now. She probably hasn't eaten all day. You know she never eats unless someone reminds her."
"As long as Evie doesn't move close to her," Cora muttered under her breath.
"Cora! How can you say this? I'm the closest person to Frances. I take care of her things, how could I move away from her?" Evie's voice cracked.
Cora gave him a long look. "Your dear best friend hates you now. Don't even think about it."
"Cora, stop pissing me off! She will never hate me! I'm her best friend!"
"Okay, okay, everyone please!" Abby interrupted, rushing ahead. "Let's just go. I'm sure she's cooled down by now."
And with that, they all followed behind, nervous but determined to check on their ticking time bomb of a friend
The hospital hallway was quiet except for the soft shuffle of sneakers against tile as the group pressed back into the ward. They stood just outside Frances's door, hesitating as they peered through the small glass pane. Inside, the atmosphere was unnervingly calm. Frances sat beside the bed, one leg tucked beneath her, slowly caressing the pink Stanley cup like it was a sacred object. Her expression was unreadable, her face void of warmth or fury, it was the stillness that scared them most.
"Why does it feel like she's plotting someone's death?" Coco whispered nervously.
"She probably is," Lawrence muttered back, shoving Evie lightly. "You go first. This is your mess."
They bickered for a moment, then all but shoved Evie into the room like a lamb to the slaughter. The door creaked open and the air inside seemed heavier. Frances lifted her eyes to them, slow and cold, and that was all it took, an invisible chill passed through the group like a ripple.
Coco tugged on Abby's shirt. "Frances is still mad," she whispered, voice trembling.
Abby nodded grimly. "She hasn't blinked in like ten seconds."
Gathering some courage, Abby moved forward. He poured water into a glass from the jug at her bedside, then gently took Frances's hand and guided it to the cup.
Frances finally blinked, glancing at him sideways. After a beat, she took the glass and drank. Silence.
"Don't be mad at Evie, big sis," Abby said carefully. "He's just being naive."
"Or stupid?" Frances shot back with a dry scoff.
"Yes! Stupid! He's just stupid," Abby said quickly, raising both hands in surrender. "He doesn't know that you're just worried about him."
Frances looked away, her lips twitching slightly.
"Who is worried about him?" she said with mock indifference. "He can do whatever he wants. It's his life, not mine."
Evie, who had been nervously inching closer, finally sat down beside the bed, eyes wide with guilt. He clutched the blanket between his fingers, his voice small and wounded.
"Frances, don't you want me anymore? I'm your best friend! Why are you doing this to me? You were yelling at me…"
"Okay, hold it right there!" Frances said, raising a hand. "Don't start your crocodile tears now, please."
The room exploded with laughter. Even Coco had to clap a hand over her mouth.
Evie pouted dramatically, but there was relief in his eyes. "Are you not mad at me anymore?" he asked, hopefully.
"I'm no longer mad," Frances said, and the room fell silent again. "I'm sorry for yelling at you."
They gasped in unison.
"Frances just said sorry?" Coco squeaked. "Is this a dream?"
Morgan elbowed her to shut up, but everyone was thinking the same thing. Frances Holland, the hurricane in human form just apologized?
Evie's eyes watered. "Oh my big sis! I knew you still love me the most! I love you so much, Cici!" He lunged into a tight hug.
Frances leaned in and whispered in his ear, her voice chillingly soft.
"Don't make me kill you next time if you go fuck with that older man."
"I'm not like that, Frances!" Evie squeaked back. "I'm still a virgin!"
"You better be," she said with a threatening smile, then pulled away from his hug like nothing had happened.
Morgan stepped forward and picked up the bouquet of white roses. "Frances, these flowers are beautiful. Who sent them?"
Frances tilted her head lazily. "Frances has a lot of admirers," Coco said, nudging him playfully. "I'm sure it's from a crush."
"The milk stalker sent it," she said flatly.
Morgan blinked. "Frances, aren't you scared of this stalker? It's been years since he started sending you this stuff!"
"He should be scared of me instead," she said without missing a beat. "Who gives a shit about him? And he doesn't stalk me he just sends gifts. I have no reason to be worried. If he comes to stress me out, I might break an arm and a leg."
They all exchanged glances. That sounded like a very real possibility.
"Are you keeping the flowers?" Abby asked.
Frances looked at him, a sly smirk stretching her lips.
"Yeah. For Sutton's funeral," she said coldly, and the smile that followed had just the right amount of wickedness to make them all fall silent.
Coco paled. "I feel bad for Sutton…"
Morgan muttered under his breath, "He should've just sent candy or something."
Outside the window, the sun cast soft rays into the room, but inside, tension still clung like fog, because everyone knew, when Frances Holland smiled like that, someone was going to suffer.