Young Writers Society

Finnley gave his mom a kiss on the cheek before pulling himself out of the car and walking into the hospital. "Here to see Emily Hart," he told the man at the front desk.

"Oh, right. She's on the second floor, in room nineteen," the man replied with a polite smile.

"Thanks," Finnley said, but he was already walking away, and the man was already typing something out on his computer. Finnley pressed the button for the elevator, then changed his mind and took the stairs. His shoes tapped against the green tile stairs, and that tiny noise echoed around the empty stairwell and knocked itself into Finnley’s brain. It made him feel lonely. He hoped that Mia would be there, visiting her mother.

The door was on his right, and it had a little smiley face on the door. He knocked lightly before pushing it open — it was left ajar, so he figured it was probably alright. Mrs. Hart was sitting up in bed with Mr. Hart on one side and Mia and Uncle Fred on the other. They all turned to look when Finnley came in, and he felt suddenly as if he had put on the spot.

“Uh, hi,” he said, leaning awkwardly in the doorway. He had wanted Mia there before, but now he almost wished he was alone with Mrs. Hart. “I was just coming to see how you were doing, it looks like you’re better—”

“Finnley!” Uncle Fred said, grinning. “Come in, come in! It’s so good of you to visit.”

Finnley walked over to where Mia and Fred were sitting and pulled up a chair next to them. Mia squeezed his arm reassuringly. “How are you, Mrs. Hart?” he asked, leaning towards her. She didn’t look bad at all, considering she was stuck in a hospital bed. On that note, she somehow didn’t have a bedhead. There were some bright looking cards on the bedside table, and she was sitting up and lookin around attentively.

“I’m doing just fine,” she said, smiling. “I should be released in a few days, and I feel much better now.”

"That's fantastic!" Finnley said, genuinely smiling.

"Wouldn't it be nice," Mia broke in, shooting Finnley a sly, slant wise look, "if we all ate dinner together?"

"Why, that would be lovely," Mr. Hart said. "Finnley, do you need to get home or could you stay with us?"

Mia discreetly stepped on Finnley's toes. "Ah," he said, trying to maintain eye contact with her father. "Yes, I can stay. I think my mom is working late again tonight, she won't mind."

"Great!" Mia spoke too quickly, but no one else seemed to notice. Uncle Fred looked like he twitched in surprise, but Finnley couldn't be sure. One thing he was sure of though, Mia was scheming again. "How about pizza?"

Mr. Hart shrugged. "That would be nice, we could order in. Do you think they deliver to hospitals?"

"Oh sure. Finn and I will go down to the front lobby and wait for it just in case they don't do room deliveries," Mia added.

"Sounds good to me," Mrs. Hart said.

"I'll order," Mr. Hart decided, pulling out his cell phone. "Do you all know what you want?"

"Cheese," Mia said with a wink at Finnley, and he suddenly remembered the day he had started at Mr. Vaughn's and promised Mia pizza. It seemed like it was years ago, but it was less than a month. It was impossible to believe.

"I'll go for mushroom, if that's okay with you guys," Finnley said.

Mr. Hart smiled at Finnley, exclaiming, "That's my favorite too! Perfect. And how about the rest of you?"

While the rest of the family ordered, Mia grabbed Finnley's arm.

"C'mon, Finn," she said, practically dragging him from the room. She opted for the elevator, where she held the doors politely for a patient being pushed in in a wheelchair. Although the elevator ride would have been fine for anyone else, Finnley felt tense and awkward, waiting to hear what Mia so clearly wanted to tell him in private.

After standing aside so that the nurse and patient could leave, the two exited into the foyer and found seats in a corner where they could watch the front doors, but were isolated enough that no one could easily overhear them. The man at the front desk was still typing away at his computer, seemingly oblivious to most things.

"Alright, what is it this time?" Finnley asked. The sterile smell of the hospital and the faded blue chairs added to his anxiety. The last time they'd messed around with schemes, her mother had ended up in here. It didn't bode well for whatever Mia had planned next.

Mia quickly skipped her eyes left and right, a double check that no one was listening in. "Look. I've been wanting your help with something. You know how my uncle was sort of documenting the monsters in the forest?"

"Yes," Finnley agreed. Fearing she'd gotten the wrong idea into her head, though, he quickly followed with, "and you saw what happened with that! You're not thinking of going looking for the creatures, are you?"

"Exactly," she breathed. She leaned forward, and her dark eyes were glowing with an inner flame. "I don't just want to document them, though. I want to find them and track them, hunt them down to make sure they can't hurt anyone."

"Mia, did you just hear me? Did you hear the words I just spoke to you two seconds ago?" Finnley hissed, feeling slightly panicked. "You attacked a monster with a baseball bat! You totally can't do this."

"I thought the baseball bat was pretty effective," Mia sniffed. "Besides. I know I can't do this, at least not on my own. That's why I'm bringing you!"