HEARTACHE | F. DE JONG

Chapter 3

FROM THE WAY PIERRE WAS angling his iPhone, it was clear that he was filming her instead of aiming the front camera at himself. Ada saw him, and she heard him—"Surprise!"—but she still couldn't quite believe he was here, in Zurich, positively more than five hundred miles away from Tokyo, even when he set his device next to her laptop and enveloped her in his arms and scent. He still reminded her of crème brûlée.

Ada didn't realize she had reciprocated his embrace until he pulled away and perched next to her on the edge of her bed, beaming at her with that devilish, devastating smile of his.

"W-what are you doing here?" she asked, her voice shrill with amazement.

"Brielle wanted to come skiing." Pierre turned toward her ancient Acer and grinned at the others. "Surprise," he sang again, "I'm in Zurich!"

"You little shit," said Sandy, jabbing a finger at into the screen.

"Language!" screamed Becks. It would have scandalized her parents—and Ada's—but for the teenagers, this was just ridiculous. Becks pointed at Pierre as well, but any reproachfulness she meant to project was thwarted by her giggles. "You. Little. Liar!"

"Why didn't you tell us?" asked Frenkie, his calm tone in stark contrast to Beck's, his face passive.

"That would have defeated the purpose of a surprise."

Out of nowhere, Pierre slung his arm around Ada's shoulders, and her heart gave a stutter that had nothing to do with her congenital condition. She turned toward him wide-eyed, but if he noticed her gaze, he didn't show it. She studied his profile: the dark curls he'd left long, the angled line of his jaw, and the slight pallor of his cheeks—from exhaustion? It was thirteen and a half hours from Schiphol to Narita on a nonstop flight. How long had it taken him to travel from Japan to Switzerland? When was the last time he slept?

Dimly, she heard him speaking to the others, but Ada didn't make out the words until Pierre addressed her all of sudden.

"... Right, Ace?"

She blinked. With no idea what he was talking about, she replied, "You always think you're right."

"That's because I am."

Ada rolled her eyes. "Ass."

"Language!" cried Pierre, in a rather convincing imitation of Beck, causing all of them to laugh.

Now that the call was just a trio, everyone's faces were larger on her screen. Ada wound up examining Frenkie, seeking the creases that always appeared at the corners of his eyes when he smiled. Her display's resolution wasn't the greatest, but she knew it wasn't because of outdated hardware that she couldn't find what she was looking for. Something was bothering him, and she was doubtless what it was.

It wasn't about his brother—not entirely. Even if there was truth to the tale Frenkie had regaled her with earlier this morning, Youri was adored by all. It was difficult to believe that he'd gotten himself into any serious trouble with the coaches, regardless of whatever silly prank he'd played, but it wasn't hard to guess why he did it. Youri was always the more expressive brother; Frenkie, on the other hand, only ever spoke of his problems to his closest friends. Sometimes, only to his closest friend.

Frenkie cared for the people around him a great deal, which was why he was especially affected by the fact that his parents were splitting up. He'd come over to Ada's—she was just next door—in a rage when he first stumbled upon the news and didn't go home until his mother came looking.

Just the week before Ada had left Arkel, John and Marjon had completed their year-long separation and finalized the paperwork for their divorce. Michel, Marjon's new partner, was officially moving in, and the upheaval at home couldn't have been easy for anyone, let alone Frenkie. Like Pierre, however, he had focused on Ada and not talked about himself much, if at all. A lot could have happened in the week since she'd last seen him in person, but Ada didn't know how to broach the subject.

Everyone was well aware of his family situation, but the details weren't something they discussed at length. The others just did their best to cheer Frenkie up, which had led to his new profile picture in her contact list. His smile had been so rare the last year that its appearance had compelled Ada to capture the moment, to eternalize it. If only she had some pastries and a lot of sparkling cider. She didn't need to lift his spirits, though. She just needed to distract him, in the same way they were all distracting her now.

Despite her preoccupation, Ada knew the exact moment Pierre's arm left her shoulder. By the time her parents stepped fully into the room, he was on his feet with his hands behind his back, flashing that winsome smile of his that never failed to get him into an adult's good books. While her mother's surprise was almost comical, her father was serene as he clapped Pierre on the back. They waved to the others back in Arkel, Pierre apprised them of his sister's whim, and then the inevitable happened: the nurse arrived.

With her temperature and vital signs checked and recorded, Ada was instructed to change into her scrubs. It was usually at this point that she had to hang up on her friends and would be left in the company of her own nervous energy, which was often exacerbated by her mother's hovering. Dr. Rice had taken to inviting her parents out for a chat—regardless casual or surgery-related—just so Ada could have a few moments of quiet. That practice didn't change, even though her physician since childhood, who had performed countless procedures on Ada, would simply be an observer in the operating theatre today. Another difference was that Ada didn't have to be alone.

As Pierre made to follow her parents outside, she said, "You don't have to go."

He craned his neck around, his perfect brows arched. "I don't?"

Ada peered around him toward her father. "He doesn't, right, Daddy?"

It was her mother who addressed Pierre.

"When are your parents coming to get you, honey?"

"The resort shuttle runs every hour from the church. I'm meeting them at noon."

Digesting this, her mother nodded slowly, then crossed the room to give Ada's shoulders a gentle squeeze.

"But don't get too excited, alright?"

Before Ada could respond, she was wrapped in an embrace so tight it was impossible to speak. Her mother held her with a familiar urgency, one that befitted the occasion, and tears spontaneously pricked Ada's eyes.

"Mom—"

"I love you, baby girl," whispered her mother.

"I love you, too," sobbed Ada, her own arms locking around the woman who had dropped everything to raise her. 

"Alright, alright." Her father literally had to peel them apart and stand between them. "Don't excite her, remember?" To Ada, he said, "Go get changed, honey. We'll be just outside."

She did so, but robotically. Her mind felt so overwhelmed it felt numb. She had forgotten Pierre was there until he piped up.

"How are you doing, Ace?" He was watching her like a glass figurine about to shatter, and she felt like one.

"I'm scared," she confessed, her voice trembling. Frankly, her whole body was trembling.

"Of course you are," said Pierre quietly, guiding her toward the bed, where both of them perched on the edge. "You're getting a new heart, Ace! You wouldn't be human if you weren't—at least—terrified."

Somehow, this made Ada chuckle. Pierre truly had a knack for always saying the right thing.

"You're a champ, Ace," he continued. "Always have been. You are the strongest person I know, and if there is someone who will come out of this, I know it will be you. I'll see you on the other side. We will."

"Which other side?" she asked meekly.

"Don't do that, Ace," chided Pierre.

"Why do you call me that?"

What if she died on the table and never found out?

"Ace is the strongest in card in a deck."

There was a strange quality to his hazel eyes when their gazes met. As Ada tried to unravel this, she realized too late how close they were—and that under her flimsy gown, she was nude.

Thankfully, a knock promptly sounded, and Ada turned her torso toward the door. As expected, it was her surgeon for the day: Dr. Cristina Yang.

AN: France vs Netherlands! Who are we supporting tonight??? 🥰