Page 34 of Lift Me Up

“Oh sorry, I totally sounded like a creep there. It’s been a long day. I’m Franny, but you knew that… So, Georgie hasn’t really spoken to me in a few days either. She was kind of peeved at me for something that is totally not my fault but⁠—”

“Franny, can you take me to her?” I focus her attention on the goal at hand.

“Yes, sorry. I’m a bit of a scatterbrain on the best of days… This way,” She leads me to the elevator, where we ride up to the 5th floor, and she seems surprised to see that I know that Georgie’s apartment is the second one from the elevator. “Have you been here before?”

“Once.” I brush past that tidbit of information, hoping she’ll just unlock the door and let me find Georgie.

She makes a thoughtful noise, “I’m not done with that conversation, but this is more important.” She unlocks the door with her plethora of keys, and she’s about to walk inside when her phone yells out an obnoxious ringtone that sounds like a siren going off. She curses.

“Hold on,” She mutters. “Hello? Oh hi, Mr. Pisano. Yes, yes, I remember the leaky sink. Oh no, okay, stay where you are, I’ll be right there⁠—”

She looks at me, eyes alight with worry, “Answer these questions and answer them quick, got it?”

“Yes.”

“Has Georgie told you anything about why she was sick?”

“No.”

“Do you care about her?”

“Would I be here if I didn’t?”

“Are you going to break her heart?”

“God, I hope not.”

“Are you an axe murderer intent on giving her the chop when I turn my back?”

“Absolutely,” I say with a playful smile that makes her roll her eyes.

She sighs in defeat, “Doors unlocked. She’ll be in her room. Approach slowly. And if she asks, you used the key in the fern plant. And I definitely didn’t just tell you there’s a spare key in the fern plant. Tell her I will be back after I fix a minor flood in Mr. Pisano’s apartment, and I swear to God⁠—”

“I’ll take care of her, Franny. I promise.”

She glances warily in the house, then back to me, and finally gives me a nod as she pushes open the door for me to enter the house. The walk from her now locked front door to her bedroom door is eternal. Something is clearly wrong, and I need to know what that is so I know how I can help.

I stand outside her bedroom door, sucking in a large breath before knocking. She doesn’t answer on the other side, but I can hear her sniffling inside. I turn the door handle and slip inside the room.

It’s dark, the only light coming from the rainy day outside, but through the dimness, I can see her curled up in bed under her covers. My heart breaks seeing her like this. I go to her side, kneeling so I am face level.

“Georgie, hey…” I say softly, touching her shoulders gently over the blanket, so I don’t startle her too badly. She sniffles and stirs from her blanket burrow, her face appearing, eyes wide and cheeks flushed pink even in the dark of the room.

“Noah, no…” She whines, mostly to herself. She whimpers, “You’re not supposed to be here.”

“I had to see you. I had to know you were okay. Besides, you missed out on our bet…”

She sniffles again and looks away, “Did I win?”

I could tell her that she lost, that I finished the book before I saw her next, but it feels unfair seeing how she’s feeling right now. I still don’t know what’s wrong, but if anything, the only thing I care about right now is that she smiles, “Yeah, you won.”

“How did you get in?” She asks softly, snuggling into her blanket deeper.

“Found the key in the fern.”

She rolls her eyes. “Franny let you in,”

“She did. She’s worried about you too, you know.” I rest on my crossed arms on her bed, ignoring the scream from my squatted position.