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Fran tucked her nieces into the queen bed in the guest room. Caro was clutching her favorite doll to her chest, black doll hair right by her nose. Bel was staring at Fran.
“Aunt Fran?”
“Yes, Bel.” Fran pulled Caro’s bonnet down so it wouldn’t slide off within three seconds of her lying down.
“How did you and Aunt Kayla meet?”
“Aunt El and Aunt Cress introduced us,” Fran responded. She looked at Bel, who had an eager look on her face. “Why?”
“Aunt Kayla said it was the best accident ever.”
Fran laughed. Michaela would describe it like that. “Well, kind of.”
“What happened?” Caro asked.
Fran looked at her nieces and thought about how to make this appropriate for a seven and eight-year-old.
Francesca (8 PM)
“Are you here for a reservation?”
Fran nodded. “Bridgerton.”
The hostess looked down. “Great. Your party has already arrived.”
Good.
Fran followed the hostess. This wasn’t even Fran’s date!
She encountered a groveling Eloise when she came home from practice, who begged her to go down to the restaurant to say sorry to Cress for standing her up again for some lead.
Eloise owed Fran one lunch, a new book, and six months of chores because Eloise couldn’t be bothered to send a text.
“I can’t. This is the fourth time I’ve had to reschedule, and I know she will dump me if I call. But if you go down there…” Eloise pleaded on her knees for Fran to soften the blow, so here Fran was being led to a table that did not have Cressida Cowper sitting there.
“Enjoy.” The hostess said while Fran stood there, confused.
“You are not Eloise.”
“No. I’m her sister, Fran.”
“Cool, I’m Cress’s roommate, Michaela.”
“Aunt El was going to stand up, Aunt Cress?” Bel was shocked. Fran was shocked that she knew what standing up meant. What was she watching with Daph?
“She was,” Michaela said from the doorway.
“Why were you there?” Caro asked.
Michaela smiled before joining Fran on the bed.
Michaela (6 PM)
“No.”
Michaela ignored Cress leaning on her desk. Michaela glared until she stopped.
“Please, bestie.”
“No.”
“It will take you twenty minutes tops. Just go in and say sorry, Cress can’t come. She’ll call you.”
“I am not breaking up with your girlfriend for you.” Michaela’s eyes were glued to the fight she was having against some minion in World of Warcraft. She was late to her quest start.
“We’re not breaking up. I’m stepping back.”
“Don’t care. I want no parts of your lesbian drama.”
Cress sighed. “If I go and she’s there, I’ll fold.”
“Then you don’t want to break up.” Michaela finished her fight and ran off to meet John at their rendezvous point. She slid the microphone to her mouth.
“I want her to care, you know? I’m not her first priority.”
“Hold on a second, John,” Michaela murmured before turning around. She covered the microphone.
Michaela was such a pushover when it came to the ladies. Her father raised a gentlewoman. She sighed. “Give me the info.”
“Thank you.” Cress squeezed her quickly. “I’ll text you. Thank you. I love you.”
“Leave.”
Cress shut the door behind her. Michaela turned back to her game. She listened to John’s questioning. “I’m breaking up with Cress’s girlfriend for her.”
“Aunt Cress was going to break up with Aunt El?” Bel sounded devastated.
“Can we finish the story?” Michaela asked.
Their nieces giggled.
Francesca (8:15 PM)
“Wow.”
“I know. This is what happens when two avoiders date.” Michaela smiled. It was cute - a cheerful grin.
Fran wouldn’t call this a waste of her time now. Fran was a sucker for a beautiful face, and she had one in front of her. “Well, now what?”
“I have no clue. I was told this would take twenty minutes. I have plans.”
“Oh?”
Michaela gave Fran a thinking look. “Want to tag along?”
Fran laughed. “To your…”
“Game night.”
“You’re what?”
“Board games. With my cousin and some friends. Tag along.”
“We just met.”
"Michaela nodded. “What else do you plan on doing?”
Fran had planned on sitting with Cress for 30 minutes before picking up dinner for herself and then curling up to watch Downton Abbey.
“Will there be food?”
Michaela (8:45 PM)
“Alright, the party is here!” Michaela cheered as she opened the door. John, Will, and Alice looked up from the table to see her and Fran holding takeaway.
“And you brought a plus one,” Alice mentioned.
“Everyone. This is Fran. Fran is Eloise’s sister who took her place on the date.”
Will frowned. “Wait, you were going to break up with Eloise, right?”
“Yes.”
“But she sent her sister?”
“Yes,” Fran replied.
Alice looked at Will.
Michaela frowned. Something was up. “What?”
The Mondriches shared a look. “We invited a friend for you to meet as well,” Alice said.
Michaela frowned. They had seemed very excited for her to come over…she was being set up.
Again.
They should have learned their lesson on this.
“I can go.” Fran offered.
“No.” Michaela must have yelled based on her shocked look. “No. No. This is just…meeting another new friend. Right?”
She glared at Alice, who nodded. “Right.”
“Okay.”
Fran helped her set the food out on the table while Alice got plates and utensils.
“So, she’ll be here in a few minutes,” Alice whispered. “And Fran can play with John.”
Michaela must have looked devastated because she heard Fran softly giggle beside her.
“She’s very nice,” Will added.
“I’m sure.”
“Uncle Will and Aunt Alice should have known you two liked each other,” Bel grumbled.
Michaela smirked at Fran. “We didn’t know we liked each other.”
Caro and Bel looked agog at that.
“How?” Caro asked. “You two are made for each other.”
“What have you been watching with your mum?” Fran asked.
“Aunt Hy was showing us the Belly show,” Caro said.
“The Belly show?” Michaela murmured to herself.
“Yeah, that’s not appropriate,” Fran said, pulling her phone out of her pocket. Hy was getting a long text message with Daph in the thread.
“What happened next?” Bel asked.
Fran looked up from Daphne’s ranting in the new thread to think about what was appropriate to tell next.
Francesca (10:05 PM)
Fran looked up from her bed, she was lying on to see Eloise skidding to a stop in front of her area in the triage section. “I’m fine.”
“You fell?”
“Michaela accidentally hit my head with her head and caused my head to hit the fireplace. It’s fine. I am on concussion watch.”
Eloise paled.
“I don’t have a concussion. Just a bruise.” Fran had a glorious bruise on the right side of her head and a new understanding of Michaela’s fear of spiders.
Eloise sighed and sat in the chair by the bed. “I’m sorry. Wait- Michaela? How did you meet Michaela?”
“She was at the restaurant.”
“They had Diet Coke in the cafe,” Michaela said as she walked in.
“You didn’t have to go all the way down there.”
“I did. You’re going to have a horrible shiner.”
Fran looked at the butterfly bandage on her left eyebrow.
“It shouldn’t scar.”
“Good.”
“I know. Can’t mess up the money maker. This is how girls talk to me.”
Fran giggled. “I’m sure that’s not why.”
“It is. Michaela is a weirdo.” Cress said behind her. “I am so sorry, Fran.”
“It’s fine.”
Michaela finally noticed Eloise in the corner, who was staring at Cressida.
Cressida was staring back.
“Well, I guess you two should break up or whatever,” Michaela said.
“What?” Eloise asked.
“I was going on the date to let you down for Cress.”
“And I was there so El could apologize for standing you up…again,” Fran added.
They watched Eloise and Cressida pout at each other. Maybe, or glare, Fran wasn’t sure. She knew they were having a conversation without speaking.
“Could you all do this…out of here?” Michaela asked. She leaned the straw over so Fran could sip her soda that she technically should not be having.
Eloise and Cressida stomped out.
“Spiders are scary,” Caro said. Michaela nodded in agreement.
“So you fell in love then?” Bel asked.
“No,” Fran replied. “We decided to go on a date, though.”
“After your aunt’s black eye disappeared,” Michaela added.
Bel sighed. “But it wasn’t romantic.”
“Most meet-cutes are rarely cute,” Michaela said.
Bel pouted. "What about your first date?"
Michaela looked at Fran. "That's another story."
"For another night," Fran said. She glanced at Caro, who was asleep.
"Tomorrow morning," Bel ordered.
"Sure. Night, Belly." Michaela winked.
Bel giggled.