Chapter 5 Monroe
MONROE
This isn’t real. It’s a dream. A crazy and beautiful conjuring of my mind tricking me. Maybe I’m still alive somewhere, stuck in a comatose space. Maybe this is all some imagined scenario. A way to cope with whatever happened after that bus flew at me.
I’ve hidden away in my room, praying to wake up.
For this hallucination to disappear. I haven’t eaten, only drinking water when my roommates refused to leave the room without seeing me do it.
Not sure why. If I’m truly dead, I don’t need any of it.
I miss my own bed, my old beat-up couch, the rustling of bunnies padding across the floor.
What I wouldn’t give to see Jessica Rabbit’s twitchy nose as she nibbles bok choy or Sir Thumps-A-Lot lounging on the couch, paw thudding contentedly against the cushion.
“Knock, knock,” Cherri calls through the slip of the door she’s already opened. She peeks her head into the room.
“I’m not hungry.”
“Well, that’s good, because I don’t have any food.” She may not, but that doesn’t stop her from picking up the nearly full glass of water on my nightstand and holding it in front of my face. “I wanted to say bye before I head out.”
Begrudgingly, I sit up. “Where are you going?”
She props the pillow behind my back and hands me the water.
“It’s orientation at the Conservatory.” Cherri smiles as I take a few measly sips.
“Already?”
That means I’ve been here two weeks. So much back home that I’ve already missed. Was Richard out of the hospital and home with Beth? Had they attended my funeral? Was there even a funeral? If so, who’d come?
Tink, tink, tink.
My attention snaps from my imaginary casket to where Cherri taps the nearly full water glass, noting her picked-over cuticles.
“Feeling excited or nervous?” I ask, nodding to where she’s pulled off tiny strips of skin.
“Both.” Her voice squeaks, and she laces her fingers together. “I didn’t go to college and I wasn’t exactly what you’d call a star student. But today should be easy enough. Just going to see the building, meet the professors, and get the syllabus—stuff like that.”
I down a big gulp of water this time, wincing as it scrapes my raw throat. “Well, this isn’t a regular school. It’s learning how to bring spring. I’m sure you’re not the only nervous one. Do you have any friends joining you?”
“Not really.” She tucks a piece of dark-rose hair into her bob. “Everyone I know already earned their marks.”
“I see.”
She flashes me a tilted grin. “Any chance I could convince you to sit in today and see what you think?”
“I don’t know…” Setting the water on the table, I glance at the assorted snacks piled there, accumulated since my arrival. Is this it for me? Hiding away in my room? I’ve done that for two weeks and it hasn’t gotten me anywhere. “Is that even allowed?”
“For what it’s worth, I asked the dean and she said it would be fine…
and we were thinking we could give you a mini tour of Florezca on the way.
” Cherri’s rich-purple eyes glitter with her silent plea.
She doesn’t want to be alone. “There’s no pressure to actually attend.
But if you wanted to, you’d just have to decide about enrolling before Monday’s classes start. ”
I bite my lip. Clearly, she’s thought about this for a few days at least. And it’s not as though I have anything better to do tucked under the covers. Stagnant.
The last time I’d been this way was when Charlotte died.
Everything took Herculean effort—even brushing my teeth or taking a bath.
But one action at a time, one choice and then another, and somehow, I found my footing again.
The grief never went away, I lugged it with me everywhere, but moving with its weight eventually became easier.
Moving at all had helped me feel better. Less powerless.
Perhaps this is exactly what I need. It wouldn’t hurt to get a better sense of my surroundings.
“I’ll take you all up on that tour… and maybe on keeping you company for orientation,” I say, not ready to agree to anything more yet.
Cherri’s eyes go wide and a crooked smile pulls across her cheeks. She cheers and bounces a few times, shaking the bed. My stomach growls as she takes my hand and helps me stand.
“We’ll grab something to eat on the way,” Cherri says feverishly, her eyes darting around the room. “Now where to start...”
Guiding me by the shoulders, she swerves me into the bathroom, giddily listing off what I need to do before I escort her to her orientation.
About ten minutes later, my teeth are brushed and face is clean. I glance down at the buttercup-yellow slip I’m in and then around the room, noticing a lack of doors aside from the one in and out of my room. “Where’s the closet?”
“No need for those here. One of the many magical things about this place. Picture what you’d like to wear and wiggle your nose,” Cherri instructs.
“Wiggle my nose…” Sounds ridiculous, but it’s better than going out in public in my pajamas.
I’ll never see my closet again or spend an hour trying on different clothes.
Such a silly thing to miss in comparison to everything else, but I can’t help the pang that echoes in my chest. I close my eyes and picture one of my favorite casual outfits.
Gripping the scalloped hem of my slip, I scrunch my nose and push out my lips to help me get it to wiggle.
I do it a few times, in case there’s a specific technique that’s less awkward than how I feel testing it out.
When I open my eyes, Cherri is frowning. Kendrick and Roxy are in the doorway grimacing. I glance down.
“What are you trying for?” Roxy asks, cocking her head at my slip.
“Jeans and a white blouse.” I try to be more coordinated with my nose wiggling, but nothing happens. “A pair of flats.”
Apparently speaking it into existence isn’t enough. Roxy twirls her finger in the air, indicating for me to try again, but when I do, nothing happens.
My brows draw tight. “Should I be able to do this already?”
Cherri looks to our elder immortal roommates. It’s not one bit reassuring.
“Great. I’m dead and malfunctioning,” I mutter.
“There’s no set timeline,” Kendrick says, shaking his head. “Some Blooms take longer than others for their magic to flourish.”
“Want some help?” Roxy offers.
I nod and zero in on how her nose daintily shifts left and right. Silk breezes against my skin.
“How’s that?”
I drop my chin to the sheer white top with a thin tank beneath it. It’s not the outfit I imagined, but it’s close.
“Hold on.” Roxy furrows her brows and wriggles her nose once more. A pair of emerald teardrop earrings with a matching pendant appear. She smiles in approval. “This is fun! I never get to dress anyone but myself.”
“Don’t worry. Your magic might take a few days to work itself out.” Kendrick holds out the crook of his elbow for me. “Shall we?”
I take it, though my nails tap, tap, tap against his forearm. His attention dips to my fingers, but he’s polite enough to forge on toward the door without comment. Cherri opens it, and Roxy files out in front of us, waving at the people outside.
“This is The Fluffle. All of the single Blooms live in cottages like ours,” says Roxy, waving back toward the quaint foliage-encrusted house we just exited. “The newly mated ones are on the other side of the burrow, closer to The Warren.”
“What’s The Warren?”
“That’s the adults-only section of Florezca.” Cherri shoots Roxy and Kendrick a smirk, and there’s something behind it that I can’t put my finger on… And I’m not certain I want to.
“It’s full of bookshops, cafés, wineries, and other goodies,” Roxy explains, waving off whatever her friend was implying.
She starts down the path toward the City Center.
Bushels of hydrangeas in pinks, whites, and pale green map our trek, laying out a few yards ahead and swerving right or left as needed, converging with other people’s routes until we’re crossing the threshold that takes us into the main thoroughfare.
My head swims, dizzy with the reality of where I am, who I am, and how I came to be this way. But I push it aside, trying to open my mind and absorb what I can as we stroll in sunlight.
Harbingers wander up ahead, visiting various pastel carts draped in thick greenery.
Long, oversized tulips sprout between cobblestones, creating shade for the folks enjoying tea.
Trays piled with macarons, cucumber sandwiches, and cupcakes topped with swirls of frosting are stacked vertically atop delicate periwinkle and blush wrought iron tables.
“What do you want to know about first?” Kendrick asks. His pale-green brows bunch slightly as he scans me up and down.
I bite my bottom lip, glancing where the premade path disappears into the ground. “I’m a bit overwhelmed, to be honest.”
I’d love to crawl back into bed, pretend this is something I’ll wake up from, but I’ve done that for two weeks already and it hasn’t made the situation improve. I only feel worse.
“We’ll save the in-depth tour for another day.” Roxy gives me a soft smile. “The basics for now. Then you can either go to orientation with Cherri or I’ll take you home for some tea before I head to work.”
“That would be great.”
Roxy points at a tall white building with a gradient of soft spring hues leading up the stairs. “That’s City Hall, where most formal gatherings take place.”
Statues of naked harbingers strategically covered in flowers and vines line either side. A few ceramic bunnies hop up the steps. I suppose loving bunnies and spring would go hand in hand, possibly an explanation of how I ended up here.
It’s a small comfort despite the situation. I think of Jessica and Sir Thumps-A-Lot. What if no one thought to take care of her? Did he even survive out on his own after he ran off? He’d just gotten his stitches out. He could have easily reinjured himself—or worse.
A throat clearing pulls me back to the present. Roxy, Cherri, and Kendrick all wait patiently for me to speak without a hint of annoyance.
“Sorry,” I say with a grimace, heat rising to my cheeks. “What’s that past City Hall?”
All I can make out is a massive greenhouse that eats up anything in the surrounding space. It’s got to be three stories tall and is completely encased in glass, showing off the lush expanse of foliage inside.
“That’s The Greenhouse, where Blooms prepare for spring, growing and experimenting with different plants and variations to bring the season,” Roxy says, blowing a kiss to the workers behind the crêpe stand to our left.
“Anything new that we want to add to the Bloom repertoire is developed at The Greenhouse and approved by our Radixes.”
I scrunch my nose at the unfamiliar term. “Radixes?”
“Our leaders. Harbingers can be nominated to become a Radix once they’ve earned all their flourish marks from bringing springs.” Roxy tilts her head to the side, showing off the intricate sprays of inked flowers following the elegant line of her neck.
“Flourish marks,” I repeat, knowing I’ll probably forget half the terms they are telling me by the time this tour is over.
“Radixes also are the liaisons between the rest of the Blooms and Fate, representing our territory and its needs. Each harbinger territory has a group of leaders who have served through many seasons and strive for the collective good.” Kendrick puffs his chest a bit beneath his charcoal bomber jacket.
I glance back up at the statues draped only in flowers and flowing ribbons of chiffon.
“Most of them watch over and care for our youngest sprouts,” Roxy adds.
Kendrick purses his lips, then his brows lift. “Kind of like adoptive parents for the young Blooms who never reached mortal adulthood.”
He’s trying to make it understandable from my perspective, and I appreciate the thoughtfulness.
“They all live over in The Nest.” Cherri gestures to the next burrow. “The houses are bigger.”
Three bikes that look like a cross between a motorcycle and a vespa zoom out from the mouth of the territory, black leather jackets becoming blurs along with the shock of lavender hair of one of the riders.
There are less houses in The Nest than in our burrow, maybe a few dozen.
They all stand like stunning mansions that somehow still capture the quaintness of their smaller counterparts in The Fluffle.
Slowly turning in a circle, I try orienting myself.
The five burrows blossom like petals from Florezca’s City Center.
I stop on the last burrow in the distance.
It’s mostly stretches of earth with a few buildings. “What’s that?”
“That’s where I work,” Kendrick says, pointing a dark-purple finger at the smaller building of the pair. “At the School for Sprouts in The Nursery, the burrow where all learning takes place.”
Cherri waves beyond at the only other structure that’s partially blocked by a massive, curved archway. “That’s the Bloom Conservatory.”
“Where you’ll prepare to bring spring?” I ask, trying to see if I’ve remembered correctly.
“Of course.” Roxy places a hand on my shoulder and lowers her tone. “And where you can too, at some point. Most Blooms wait a while, until they’ve had time to settle in.”
“It’s why I’m not starting until now. It took a lot for me to get used to…all this.” Cherri shrugs and picks at her pink nailbeds. After a few quiet moments, she brightens and smiles in my direction. “But I’m looking forward to learning and earning my marks in the mortal realm.”
In the mortal realm… “As in Earth?”
“The very same,” she replies brightly.
Home.
“Why don’t we get Cherri to her orientation, then head back for that tea?” Roxy suggests, looping her arm in mine. “I think we’ve overwhelmed our new friend enough—”
“Actually…” I clear my throat and lift my chin. “Cherri asked me to audit orientation today and keep her company.”
“Yes!” Cherri cheers.
My stomach drops. I wish I had her enthusiasm about what lay ahead. Maybe I should have told her no. The way Roxy and Kendrick are gawking at me isn’t encouraging.
“Are you sure?” he asks, running a hand through his soft-green hair.
“The dean said I don’t have to commit to anything. Beats wallowing in bed all day, right?”
Of course I want to keep my new friend company, especially when she’s nervous, but the glimpse of what the Conservatory teaches—a way back home—is more than tempting.
It’s a lifeline.
One I won’t let slip out of my grasp. Not until I know more.