Chapter Text
First, it was a piece of paper waiting for Amelia after her shift, sitting on top of her folded clothes.
‘You looked pretty this morning.’
She found another note two days later.
‘I wanted to say hi today, but I chickened out. Maybe tomorrow.’
It’s been a week since then and Amelia’s accepted the fact that whoever it was had gotten bored. Even the thought of that being some stupid bet had crossed her mind.
Now she’s being paged to the fourth-floor nurse’s station about something having been left there for her.
A bouquet. A huge arrangement of very colorful flowers.
“Ooooh, pretty,” Monica stops as she’s walking past Amelia, seemingly having arrived at work, “what’s the occasion?”
Amelia’s eyes spot a small card sticking out from between the flowers – she’s a little shy to reach for it to see what it says. “I’m, uhm, not sure.”
“What?”
“I- it’s,” she finally picks the note out of the bouquet and secretly hopes the note has a name on it, “anonymous.”
Monica takes the card out of her hand and reads the note aloud.
“’Have as a beautiful day as this bouquet’,” Monica gives Amelia a look, “okay, not the best sentence structure,” she sticks the card between two dahlias, “but you have a secret admirer?” She teases.
“I’ve been receiving these notes, harmless really, but… now this. It’s getting kind of creepy.”
“You don’t like to be watched from afar? Adored in silence? Worshipped through love letters? Scattered with gifts?”
Amelia chuckles, amused by Monica’s mocking tone. “Not really. Do you?”
“Never happened to me before. Probably not, though.”
They let out a chuckle in unison.
“But,” Monica continues, “I find it kind of flattering – the fact that people notice you.”
Amelia takes a second to think, then concludes, “I think I prefer knowing who I’m being wooed by.”
Monica’s brows arch. “Are they? Wooing you?”
Amelia parts her lips. She wants to say something, ask something.
Monica speaks again. “At least the flowers are pretty. Whoever sent them knows how to impress… if you like flowers,” Monica pauses, clears her throat and her voice thins out when she adds, “I mean, do you?”
Amelia’s eyes dart at the bouquet. “They’re nice, yeah,” she looks back at Monica, “I like them.”
They exchange a warm smile and for a moment, it feels like… like Monica wants to say something.
Her lips part.
Their eyes locked for a second longer.
“Then it’s safe to say this person is one step closer, right?”
Amelia’s not saying she’s disappointed, but for a second there, she was hoping for Monica to say something else.
“Right.”
She finds a few more notes left for her in the upcoming week.
‘Your eyes shine when you’re focused. I really like that.’
‘I’m still finding the courage. I will talk to you soon, I promise.’
With a long day ahead, Amelia makes her way to the lounge to pour herself a cup of coffee and sit for a minute.
The moment she opens the door, she sees Monica almost jumping away from the dining table. She doesn’t understand why, at first, but then she notices an unknown object sitting there.
Sheepishly, Monica turns around and pretends to be looking for something on the shelf of her things.
“Hey,” Amelia shuts the door behind her.
“Oh, hi.”
She can’t help but look at what the thing on the table is.
‘For Amelia Shepherd’
“Another one?” Amelia lets out under her breath. She won’t lie, though – she made sure Monica’s heard her.
“Hm?”
Amelia turns her head and their eyes meet.
“Another gift.”
“What is it?”
“I don’t know,” Amelia says teasingly as she reaches for her gift, “I’ll have to open and see.”
“I will leave you to it.”
“You co-“
When Amelia turns around, Monica’s nowhere to be found. It’s fascinating how quickly that woman can vanish into thin air. Amelia usually doesn’t make much of it, but this time it’s pretty suspicion-inducing. And it’s not only her leaving, but also the way she’s acted since Amelia’s stepped into the room. Is she crazy to think that maybe the person who’s been leaving her the notes and gifts is Monica?