It took all the self-restraint Alanna had to not tap her foot anxiously as she sat by herself on a bench at the Blackwheel Bus Station. She glanced across the street to see a city bus pull up at one of the stops. Was that the one he’d get off of?

She’d received a text from Franz earlier that afternoon. They’d text often to keep in touch but there seemed to be something insistent in the last:

Franzster: I need to tell you something. Meet me at BWB.

Because it was a text, she wasn’t able to read the tone that well. She didn’t know if it was something serious…well Franz was usually serious but the caliber of seriousness she couldn’t discern. He did, after all, sort of bail rather quickly the week before when he was helping her study for her midterm and never filled her in on the reason. He also left shortly after his confrontation with Reggie, which still shocked her when she replayed the scene in her head. She’d never seen Franz so…forceful before. He always seemed like the most patient, the most gentle, the most thoughtful person to her. It's why he was her best friend.

People piled off of the bus that she was staring at but she failed to see the tall, muscular, blond-haired man in the crowd.

Her imagination went through a whole list of possibilities of what he had to tell her. Maybe he had finally forgiven Reggie for whatever had happened between them? Maybe he was serious about a new book? Or he had invented a new flavor of crepe? He really liked making crepes. Her favorite so far was the ‘Nanner in a Haze’ which he had her try that consisted of hazelnut spread, bananas, and whipped cream. Her tummy gave a rumble, reminding her that she’d forgotten to eat lunch.


“Wrong bus,” she heard a deep voice from behind her. She gave a startled noise and spun around in her seat to see Franz leaning against the pillar that supported the shelter above the benches. His arms were crossed and he must have come straight from class since he still had his bag with him. He wore a slight grin too, probably amused that he had given her a scare. He’d always been good at unintentionally sneaking up on people.

He must have gotten off one of the buses in the Blackwheel station loop in the opposite direction.

“Hey,” Alanna greeted him, putting on her warmest smile. She hated that she hadn’t had as much time this semester to spend with him. Franz never admitted he got lonely but she could tell he needed a social boost.

“Thanks for meeting me,” he nodded, his grin fading into the usual indifference. Alanna had noticed more and more over the past few years that Franz’s indifference was a façade. He felt as much as anyone else but had excellent control and conscientiousness of his expressions—the outside world was rarely invited to know what his real feelings were.

“No problem. Class let out early… though…” She bit her lip and gave an apologetic smile, “Can we go get a bite to eat first? I accidentally skipped lunch again.”


He nodded, “The Delicatessen?”

“You read my mind!” She laughed and led them across the road to board the bus that she had been watching before. It was picking up a new set of passengers to take down to the King’s Station district.

“Looks like it’s going to rain,” she noted before boarding the bus, referring to the clouds that had rolled over the city and were turning dark.


“It’s been gray all day,” she heard Franz agree from in front of her as he climbed the few steps and sat in one of the empty front seats. She sat next to him, still wondering what he needed to talk to her about. Instead of bringing it up, he was looking out the window at the darkening sky, and the tiniest hint of worry was creasing his face in the reflection. That’s when she knew that whatever he needed to talk to her about wasn’t going to be a good thing, so she sat quietly and tried to enjoy this peaceful moment with him before the figurative and literal storm happened.

Alanna’s tummy was starting to full on growl as they walked into the Scandalica Delicatessen. It was a local eatery that had good sandwiches and burgers. Franz had been quiet the whole ride there, which was usual for him but the whole vibe around him was very unusual. She maneuvered herself in front of him to halt his advance to pick a table, “Franz, what’s wrong?”

He looked mildly surprised at her for her insistent tone. Alanna wasn’t one to press matters and allowed Franz time to think before speaking as he usually did.

He shifted his weight and the strap of his bag, then quietly asked, “What do you know about VBTs?”

Oh.

Oh no.


Alanna took a step backward and sat on one of the tall chairs at the food counter. She held her hand over her face, trying to hide her sudden expression of devastation. Franz quickly stepped forward, realizing what she was thinking, and made to correct it.

“It’s not me, it’s my Mom.”

That was a relief! For a moment there she thought Franz had…but no, it still was awful that his mother…she had always been so inviting toward Alanna.

Alanna glanced up at him and saw that he was just as devastated. She didn’t know if it was so much that he couldn’t hide it anymore or if he was allowing her to see just how much it affected him. Either way, she reached out and gave his hand a squeeze, “I’m so sorry Franz.”

“Is there hope?”

She inhaled, not wanting to get his hopes up but at the same time, she needed to give him something to smile about—a VBT was survivable if detected early and treated, and it also depended on where it was located.

“How about we get a table and order something and then we can talk more about it?” she suggested. Or rather, deflected.

He nodded.

They sat down and declined a menu since they’d both been there many times and knew what they wanted. Alanna ordered a hamburger and Franz went with something lighter since he had eaten lunch already.

“The other thing I was going to tell you,” Franz said but his tone made it seem like he'd still rather not tell her, “Is that since treatment is expensive, Mom is planning on selling the bakery.”

It broke Alanna’s heart that this was happening to him. There had to be something she could do to help!

“Has she signed anything yet?”

Franz shrugged, indicating he didn’t know.

“Well, what if we could raise money for your mother’s treatment instead?”

“That’s going to be a lot to raise, and I have thought about it. I just don’t know where to start.”

“We could always have a bake sale!” She suggested jubilantly.

He stared at her, as though he hadn’t considered that idea before.

“I could sell scones for 10 simoleons a pop I guess….and I’d have to make and sell…” He mused and calculated, “eight-hundred of them before it would cover the cost of treatment.”

At first, his tone was flat and serious but then she realized he was being sarcastic.

“Plumbobs, I didn’t realize treatments was so expensive,” Alanna gasped and then frowned, “Kashmire’s health insurance system is ridiculous. I’d wish we’d have one more like the Takemizu region where it’s covered by the government.”

“If Calhoun wins the election, maybe that’ll happen in time, but it’s not enough for the time being. We’re going to have to pay the difference out-of-pocket.”

“Eight thousand Simoleons…” Alanna shook her head at the ridiculously high number. They were going to have to have quite a lot of bake sales.

“So when do you want to have the bake sale? When can we bake?”

“That’s happening?” He arched an eyebrow.

“It’s better than doing nothing,” she raised her brows insistently in reply.

He thought about her answer and then slowly nodded, “Okay I have some time available to bake tomorrow morning after class. Will that work?”

She began to nod but then stopped herself, “Oh darn it, no. I almost forgot Thursday is out. I promised Reggie a cup of coffee before his class.”

Franz immediately narrowed his eyes and his lips pressed together tightly.


Their food arrived then and Alanna quickly started to consume her hamburger, to avoid having to explain herself further and also because she was famished.

She didn’t understand why Franz disliked Reggie so much. They had been friends once. What had changed?

She set her burger down to take a breath after nearly inhaling half of it. She looked at Franz’s salad, thinking of what she could say to change the subject back to what really mattered. Then a thought struck her. Was Franz jealous of Reggie spending time with her? He’d always made it crystal clear that he didn’t have any feelings more than friendship toward her, but why did he seem so bothered when it concerned her spending time with Reggie?


“How about we have it on Saturday? It’s fall break–we could set up a bake sale outside of the coffee shop. I can talk to the owner about it.”

Franz considered her suggestion and then gave a slow nod before eating more of his salad. All that was left was to figure out when they could bake and what they would make.

She smiled, at least now they had a start of a plan and could do something to help his mother and the bakery. They finished eating without much more chatting. She knew Franz was comfortable with silence, and she understood it but it still felt odd between them. He’d still made no spoken opinion on the fact she was going to hang out with Reggie again, but despite his silence, and despite his utter mask of indifference she knew he still disapproved.


As they exited the Delicatessen, raindrops began to fall on their heads. Alanna held out her hands and looked skyward, “It decided to rain after all.”

She looked over her shoulder to see that Franz was also staring up at the sky and his messy blonde hair was starting to stick to his brows. He looked lost in thought. She took off her backpack and found an expandable umbrella that she always kept in it in case of times like these.


“Here, you hold it since you’re taller,” she nudged him with it. He took it and opened it above their heads. Suddenly the raindrops were making pelting noises on the plastic canvas.

Plip.Plop.Plip.Plop.

“Don’t you need to go back to the station?” He asked. He supposed she had to get back to studying.

She bit her lip feeling a bit ashamed and shook her head, “I’m sorry I haven’t had as much time to spend with you as I used to.”

“You’re busy. I understand,” he replied and moved forward and she had to as well if she wanted to stay under the umbrella.


“I don’t have to study tonight, though. I can do it tomorrow,” she said with a smile, “So we can hang out—maybe plan what to bake and—”

“I can’t,” he cut her off sharply.

She gave him a surprised stare, waiting for an explanation.

“I have to close the bakery since Mom is feeling…you know, sick.”

“Oh. Okay,” she looked away, hiding her disappointment, “Yeah, of course, you have to help her.”

He suddenly took her wrist and placed the handle of the umbrella into her hand while ducking out into the rain, paying no mind to how wet he was going to get, “I have to head back.”

“But Franz…”

“It was good to see you,” he said and turned around, walking in the opposite direction with his hands in his pockets—toward the nearest bus stop, “I’ll call you later and let you know what my schedule looks like so we can bake.”

Alanna stood in the middle of the sidewalk while puddles formed around her feet, watching as his figure—a slumped set of shoulders—became smaller and smaller before he turned down the street and disappeared. She was sure he wasn’t avoiding her, but she couldn’t help but feel like she had failed some sort of test. She realized then, that she never really answered his question.

Plip.Plop.Plip.Plop.

Was there any hope for his mother? Franz never seemed to have hope so this whole situation was probably hitting him hard. Alanna couldn’t be sure if there was hope but had to have some, for his sake.