After a messy, family-dividing divorce with her now ex-husband, Lynne notices a change in her son's behavior. Outgoing and friendly as a child, Richard is now quieter, always anxious, and has buried himself deep within his books; befriending fiction...
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GIVE UP THE FANTASY ( a hsmtmts au) • chapter five || butterflies • word count: 1,117
"we delight in the beauty of the butterfly, but rarely admit the changes it has gone through the achieve that beauty"
[ maya angelou ]
~⏳~
"HAVE A SEAT," Lily instructed, "Miss Jenn will be with you shortly."
Ricky obliged, awkwardly patting the leather cushion beneath him, rubbing his sweaty palms on the back of his pants before sitting down. He looked around as Lily and Antoine disappeared behind a red curtain in the front of the room, behind Miss Jenn's large, wooden desk.
The setting was dim, windows enveloped by drapes, illuminated only by a candlelit chandelier hanging on the marble ceiling. Display cabinets covered every inch of the walls, trophies, and framed certificates accompanying the leather-bound books, some encased by glass. Mid-roar, a leopard head hung above Miss Jenn's desk. Her chair looked like a throne: Gold and grand. An escritoire sat in the corner, a typewriter on top as well as a quill and ink. A grandfather clock—similar to the ones in the hallway—stood beneath a landscape painting of EHPH, one of the hospital's towers painted over by a red X. But what unsettled Ricky the most was the dagger still stabbed into the bottom of the canvas.
Well, that's comforting.
"Oh, Number 14!" Miss Jenn exclaimed happily, clapping her hands together, entering through the same curtain her two henchmen exited, breaking Ricky from his fast-paced thoughts. She took a seat on her throne. "How are you?"
Miss Jenn's smile reached her hairline. "Outstanding. How are you settling in? Any new friends?"
"I'm...uh, I've settled in just fine. EHPH is a er...it's a nice place," he lied right through his teeth, but the headmistress didn't seem to notice as she sat up straighter, eyes glistening with interest, "And, uhm...yeah. Big Red and his friends. Nini, actually. She introduced them to me first."
Miss Jenn's faltered smile didn't go unnoticed by Ricky, but as quickly as it fell, it curved right back up, teeth as white as paper. "Oh yes. Sorry about that, by the way. Number 13 was the only patient available for touring."
Ricky knitted his brows. "What? Oh, no, uh it's okay. Really. I'm glad, actually. She's an okay tour guide, sure. But, but a good person."
Miss Jenn cleared her throat, inhaling sharply, shuffling a stack of papers. "Of course." Her lips folded into a thin line. "Number 13. Always first to fly," she said curtly, "Always first to fall." Her last sentence fell far below a whisper, only for her to hear.
