Page 97 of Poetry of Flowers

“Alright, there are a few cheap ones online, but most of them are rated pretty low. I tried to search for a safe one. You can say anything you want about Grand Lee, but it’s the safest small town I’ve ever heard of.”

“But we aren’t in Grand Lee right now, just pick one that looks safe.”

I didn’t feel like thinking about home right now.

My Monster - September 5, 2022

The monster covers the world in a haze,

Everyone’s walking by but bodies without a face.

The monster makes no sound as it strikes,

A hill rises, covered in icy spikes.

I ran up to escape the monster snapping at my feet,

But I slip on the icy street.

It’s right behind me in the back of my mind,

The monster has always made me blind.

There is no escaping this monster.

Stop running,

Turn around,

Take the monster by the hand.

ChapterThirty-One

MATILDA

The drive was going alright so far. I kind of hated it and was trying to keep myself relaxed, but tensed up every time we passed a body of water.

My neck began to hurt, which didn’t exactly help my handover.

Sometimes I wished I could leave this fear behind. I was going to get there soon. That’s why I pushed myself to go through this.

“Qui craint de souffrir, il souffre déjà de ce qu’il craint,”I mumbled to myself as I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. We were crossing a bridge. A very, very long bridge.

I felt a hand take hold of mine, but I pushed it away when I saw it was Kayden’s.

“No, concentrate on the road please,” I told him, my tone sounded meaner than I had planned it to sound like.

“Can you translate?” Theo asked from behind.

“He who fears to suffer, already suffers what he fears,” my cousin translated slowly. “Michel de Montaigne, right?”

I nodded and sighed, “Yes. Mom was obsessed with proverbs, so I remember a few. When I’m nervous, I don’t pray, I’ll say one of them out loud,” I explained and opened my eyes to realize we were just driving off the bridge. Thank God.

“It’s a creative way of calming yourself, but I prefer different methods,” Theo commented.

“What do you do?” I asked him.

He shrugged his shoulders. “It’s my secret,” he said with a satisfied smile.

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