A/N.: FOR THIS CHAPTER, YOU NEED TO REMEMBER ANDREA AND BABY AND ALL OF THE OTHER CHARACTERS. IF YOU DONT, PLEASE REFER TO END OF CHAPTER 36 AND BEGINNING OF CHAPTER 37! LOVE YA GUYS!!!

48. Roses Are Red

First thing in the morning, after she dressed and made breakfast, Krislynn slipped into Chase’s room and crawled into his bed. He was still sleeping when she found him and so exhausted that he didn’t even notice her presence as she rested her head on the pillow beside his. She smiled as she gingerly pushed back the front of his hair and studied his sleeping face. What a disgustingly beautiful creature, she thought, everything on his face was symmetrical, every angle perfectly aligned. No wonder the boy grew up with so much arrogance – it was something hard to blame him for.

She sighed, trailed her fingertip down his eyebrow and wondered if he secretly plucked them when nobody was looking. Then she just stayed beside him for another fifteen minutes. If it was true that Ella was with Pedro, there was a good chance she would only have three weeks left with him – three weeks that she planned on doing whatever she liked. She wasn’t going to avoid him. She was going to let herself like him till the last moment, like pigging out on a big meal before going on a diet. That was what she decided she was going to do.

Fifteen minutes passed, and when the time came for her to wake him, she grabbed his shoulder and shook. Chase winced, letting an eyelid open to investigate the person who summoned him, and then smiled sleepily when he saw her. He reached out to touch her and with the back of his fingers gently stroked her cheek before pinching her as hard as he could. “Oww!!! What the hell Chase?! That freakin’ hurt!” She quickly sat up and puffed her cheeks like a chipmunk before rubbing the wounded side. “What the hell was that for?!”

“Payback,” he said.

Krislynn was about to lose it on him, give him double the pain she received, but then he stopped her with a grin as he sat up and stretched his arms over his head. There was just something different about him this morning. It was the look in his eyes, she realized, a glint in his iris when he looked at her that she didn’t remember seeing there before. “What time is it?” He asked, jolting her out of her thoughts.

She turned to the clock. “Like eight. You have a good twenty minutes to get ready I think.”

Chase swore. “That’s not enough time,” he shouted, jumping out of bed.

“That was more than enough time for me,” she retorted and then heard him slam his bathroom door shut. Crossing her arms, Krislynn let out a huff. He probably did pluck his eyebrows in secret, she decided.

By the time the two of them actually managed to get to work, Krislynn was almost positive there was something up with Chase. It wasn’t his personality – he treated her the same as before – but then what was different? She couldn’t seem to figure him out, and never had the chance to. As soon as they showed up at the Paramount buildings, they separated in different directions. She had no idea where he was going, but quickly made her way to Andrea’s dressing room.

Krislynn spent the first few hours doing the usual, getting coffee for everyone, collecting inventory for Boozy and handing Baby his brushes and equipment like a nurse would hand a scalpel to a doctor. Today he created a bunch of realistic bruises and cuts on Andrea’s arms, his ability being even more impressive than Krislynn had expected.

When it was almost time for lunch though, after an hour or so of filming, things took on a weird turn. They were all still on set, the actors on their break while the technicians changed the scene to prepare for the afternoon part of the filming. Andrea sat leisurely in a chair as Krislynn frantically waved a fan to cool her off. Jane was reattaching the loose strands of her hair and Baby was wiping off some makeup when a delivery boy suddenly came on the set holding a single red rose with an extravagant bow tied around the stem.

Baby was the only one in the group who noticed him and with half-interest watched him say something to one of the crewmembers and then get directed over. About a couple of metres away, Andrea looked up and noticed him walking towards her. “I have a delivery,” the boy mumbled, intimidated, having been only seventeen or eighteen.

She rolled her eyes at him and held out her hand. “Only one rose? How pathetic. Whatever. Give it.”

“Oh,” he said, blushing at her hostile temperament. “Well, giving one rose has its own meaning too. In a way it means ‘only’ so it’s a sign of devotion and loyalty. Either way, you’re really special to someone Miss Krislynn.”

Andrea pulled her hand back at the name, her face transfixed with an expression of disgust. “What’s that supposed to mean?” She snapped. “I’m not Krislynn!! It should be Andrea! Andrea Parson!”

The boy stepped back in fear, his cheeks growing even redder than before. “I– I don’t know!” He stammered. “I was only told from the shop owner to deliver this to a Krislynn R.”

“Then you got the wrong girl boy!” Krislynn almost tripped over in surprise when Willow grabbed her shoulders and pushed her toward the teen. “Krislynn right? Then it’s this one over here the rose is for.”

“Oh.” In a state of mortification, the feeble looking thing quickly handed the rose to her before making his escape, leaving Krislynn flabbergasted by the sudden event.

“Ugh. I should have known,” Andrea snorted. “One stupid flower? What kind of person would send something so lousy to someone as remarkable as me?” Her bold statement sent everyone around her rolling their eyes except Krislynn, who was completely pleased with her present, and Jane, whose personality was too sweet for such an action.

“Bet it’s from Chase,” Willow said in a subtle effort to put Andrea back in her place. The suggestion made Krislynn pink with happiness and Andrea red with anger.

“Do you think?” Krislynn asked, looking across the set to where he was working out some technical stuff for the next scene. It did seem like something was amiss about him all morning…

“No way!” Andrea shouted. “He’s never sent me anything all the years we’ve dated! Why would he send someone like you anything!” She crossed her arms and took a deep breath when she realized she was screaming and people were starting to stare. “And even if he did send it,” she added with gritted teeth, “who cares? Its just one stupid rose!”

Just as the words came out of her mouth, another man came onto the set carrying a bouquet, and in the same fashion was directed to their group. This time, the man had the word Bloomers printed across the front of his uniform and held a bouquet of a dozen red roses in his hands. “I’m looking for a Krislynn?”

“Oh my god that’s me,” she murmured, completely stunned by what was happening. But no sooner did she accept the flowers did another person show up from a different flower shop, this one carrying a bouquet of twenty-four red roses.

“Is there a card anywhere?” Jane cried. “I mean, who’s sending you all these?”

“I don’t know,” Krislynn murmured. “There’s nothing. Just the flowers.”

“Oh god bless I think I’m going to faint,” Baby cried suddenly. “There’s more. I can’t believe there’s more.”

Krislynn looked up to where he was frantically pointing, but nothing could have cushioned her from the shock of the bouquet. It was big! Like no bouquet of flowers she had ever seen! “I have ninety-nine red roses,” said the man, “for a very beautiful Miss Krislynn R.”

Krislynn tried to accept the roses from him, but she was already holding so many that the newest addition almost toppled over her so Boozy and Willow had to run to her rescue and take them out of her hands. Andrea, fuming, snorted and looked away. Krislynn was so dizzy from the whole thing that she could hardly think. She kept her gaze lowered, scared that it might meet Chase’s if she glanced up and find him smirking at her.

“There’s a card this time.” Boozy mentioned and then quickly handed the tiny envelope over. “Open it. What’s it say?”

Everyone crowded around Krislynn, but her hands shook so much that she couldn’t hold the envelope steady. Might as well because the next thing she knew, Baby was screaming as he snatched the card right out of her hands. “I can’t wait any longer!” He shouted. “I’m going insane! I need to open it!” He quickly ripped the envelope open as Jane and Willow peeked over his shoulder in giddy excitement.

“What does it say Baby?!”

“Come now! Quick! What’s it read?”

Baby tossed the torn envelope aside and then, with gleaming eyes, flipped the tiny card open. His face fell instantly as he closed the card shut.

“Well?!” Andrea demanded, having lost all her self-restraint. “Don’t keep us waiting! Tell me what the hell it says!”

Baby stared at Krislynn meekly. “With,” he said.

“With?”

“With?”

“With?” She asked.

“With,” he said. “Here. God bless. Read it yourself if you don’t believe me darling. All it says is one word: with.”

Krislynn took the card from his hands as everyone around her released groans of disappointment. “How anti-climatic,” Boozy muttered.

“Tell me about it.”

The fifth bouquet came in due time, only three minutes after the fourth one. The man who was sent to deliver the flowers didn’t even need to ask anyone where to go. One look and he spotted the girl with the roses in the back and started walking towards her. “I’m guessing you’re Krislynn?” He asked. “Seems like you’re really popular today.”

Krislynn just smiled like crazy as she took the flowers from him – this time, the bouquet with a beautiful trim of baby’s breaths surrounding the crimson buds. “How many?” She asked.

“One o’ one,” he said.

“Is there a card?”

“Right here.”

Krislynn quickly took the card, but again, before she even had the chance to open it, someone stole it from her. “Dang it girl! I’m reading it this time!” Willow ripped the envelope open in one second flat, and then, released a squeal so loud Krislynn had to cover her ears. “It’s says love this time!” She cried. “It says love! Maybe it’s supposed to spell out a message!”

“Then there’s more coming,” Jane shouted, and sure enough, it came. This time the bouquet was so big it took three men to carry it in. Nine hundred and ninety-nine red roses. Nine hundred and ninety-nine red roses shaped into the image of a heart. It wasn’t even a bouquet anymore – more like a mini float. Boozy started counting the flowers to see if there were actually that many, but Krislynn just wanted to know what it said inside the card. She swiped it the moment she saw it and ripped it to pieces before anyone else could have a chance.

“What does it say Krislynn?”

“Come on girl! What’s it say?”

Krislynn flipped open the card. Her heart stopped. She closed it.

Annoyed, Baby grabbed it from her hands and read it for himself, letting out a petrifying scream when he was finished. “Ewwwwwwww…”

The card read Troy.

With. Love. Troy.

Krislynn wanted to crawl in a hole and cry. She had thought it was Chase! It was the single most romantic thing a man had ever done for her, and she wasn’t even sure if the man who planned it all was straight! How could this happen to her?

Her eyes quickly darted towards the entrance when she felt a chill and found Troy standing by the entrance just as he was about to leave. He must have stayed to watch the finale of his master plan, and now that he had seen its success, stood proudly with a smirk on his face. He blew her a kiss just before he left, but Baby jumped in front of her and intercepted it, pretending to grab the kiss midair and throw it on the ground before stomping it to death.

Andrea on the other hand, blew up in laughter when she discovered that her nemesis didn’t have a thing on her. “I knew it,” she cried. “It was too weird to be true! Why in the world would Chase send you anything at all! This was just way too pathetic to watch.” Gathering her skirt neatly, she stood up with poise and waved for her manager. “Come on Susan. This whole charade made me work up an appetite. I think I’m gonna go celebrate with a Diet Coke!”

With Andrea gone, it left the five of them standing there with a look of disdain. “What the hell is going on?” Krislynn looked up to see Chase standing in front of her with a look of amusement as he stared at his surrounding. “What’s with all the roses? Was that what the commotion was about earlier?”

Krislynn released a sob. “They’re mine and they’re from Troy!” She moaned. “Except I didn’t know they were from him until the last second! I thought they were from you the whole time! We all thought they were!”

“That’s ridiculous!” He laughed, being his usual jerk self and making an expression at her like he thought she had lost it. “Why would I do something crazy like that?”

“Because you’re her boyfriend,” Boozy muttered, “and it would be super romantic to surprise her at work.”

Chase threw her a glare, but then quickly realized from all their avoidant gazes that they all felt the same way. It was like he was being judged all of a sudden, that he had failed his role as her boyfriend because he neither had the creativity to woo her in that manner, nor had he been able to stop someone else from doing so. Feeling like a bit of a loser, his face softly reddened from anger and embarrassment.

“Well I’m freaking sorry I’m not as romantic as Troy,” he shouted, pushing a paper bag in Krislynn’s face, too shy to look her in the eyes. “The only thing I brought you today was a stupid sandwich and a lousy juice box so we could find a quiet place to have lunch together! But if you don’t want that, then that’s fine!”

“No,” she cried. “I want that! I want to have lunch with you!” And then in a softer voice, “Actually, I’m really hungry…”

He heaved a low sigh, but then surprised her when he quickly took her hand in his. “Well then let’s go,” he grumbled, pulling her along. “If you hurry, I’ll let you have a bite out of mine.”

Shaking her head at them, Willow watched Chase tug Krislynn out of the room before taking a look at all the roses around her. “Don’t think girly’s gonna want these when she comes back,” she muttered. “So what should we do with all them flowers?”

Baby quickly pointed at the nine hundred and ninety-nine red roses in the shape of a heart. “I call dibs,” he said.