Once I Was You

Chapter two – Killed by a Pillow


Laura Hardy's face lit up in a smile when she heard the well-known sound of "message received". Fetching her phone and a cup of tea from the kitchen, she flopped down on the sofa. The soft leather gave in to her weight and made her a cozy little hole to vanish into.

The blonde woman was about to read the message from her youngest son, when she noticed there was no such thing as a message from Joe. Instead, it was Frank's name that greeted her from the screen. Strange…

Laura's astonishment grew when she read the short message. Or rather: Messages.

"?4U"

New message: "DYM me staying at Biffs' 2nte? Staying to 2moro."

New message: "WYCM? NNTR, though, JC with u."

New message: "CUS!"

New message: "ILU. HAK!"

"Darling?" Laura's voice cut through the silent house. Fenton soon appeared in the doorway, his dark-brown eyes resting at Laura. "I think I have a mystery to you" the blonde woman announced with a twinkle in her baby-blue eyes.

"Really?" Laura nodded in response to the question and patted at the seat next to her. "Look at this." Fenton let his eyes skim over the screen. "Yet another message from Joe?" he asked with smile. "Well, I guess we better start decipher it, then!"

"No, Fenton, it's not from Joe. It's from Frank."

Laura watched in amusement as Fenton's eyes widened. "What?!" he spat out. "But… Frank always write quite the essays when texting with me!" Laura nodded her head in agreement. "It seems like the constant influence of "the younger generation" has taken it's toll on him" she smiled.

"The younger generation…" Fenton couldn't help but smile. "Ok, I so gotta admit this look exactly like Joe. Does he think we miss our youngest so much he gotta be a stand-in?"

Laura didn't answer that as she was deep in concentration, trying to figure what on earth Frank was telling them. Bright, bluish light flashed from her phone. The words she muttered under her breath weren't directed at ears, but Fenton heard them nonetheless. "Which idiot was it that thought text-slang was time-saving?!"

F&J F&J F&J F&J F&J

"What exactly did you tell your mother?" Frank and Biff walked through the silent evening streets of Bayport. They were on their way to Biff's house.

Frank smiled at the question and showed Biff the message. "Uhm… and what is that supposed to mean?" Biff inquired, seriously impressed. "I thought I knew my slang, but here I am, beaten by Frank Hardy. Frank Hardy! That is legit embarrassing."

"Don't even go there, Hooper. Of course, I beat you! I always do!" Biff stared at Frank in utter shock, until he remembered that it was Joe he was confronted with. He would never admit it, but he was already starting to wonder if Frank would win the bet.

"Okay." Frank continued. "So, to enlighten you: What I wrote, was this: "Do you mind me staying at Biff's tonight? Staying to tomorrow. Will you call me? No need to reply, though, just checking with you. See you soon! I love you. Hugs and kisses!"

"I see…" Biff smiled sheepishly. "Have you gotten any reply?" This time, it was Frank's turn to look sheepish. "Ehm… no. I mean, it might take some time to, you know, read it. It's… yeah, you know."

Biff chuckled. "Yeah, don't you worry, I know exactly what you mean."

The small Livingroom that greeted them at Biffs' was warm and beautiful. Frank enjoyed the feeling of warmth that spread through his body. Being an early riser, he liked using the evenings on something relaxing. Reading, for instance. Playing chess.

"Puh! Do you mind me opening a window? It's terribly hot in here!" The voice was his own. Even though his brain screamed at him to shut up the nonsense, he let a broad grin spread across his face when Biff shrugged his shoulders in a "suit yourself-gesture". The gush of ice-cold air sent shivers down the brown-haired's back. But…

"Ah, wonderful!" Frank exclaimed happily. "There is nothing as awesome as some fresh air." Biff's only respond was a long stare.

When Frank finally shut the window, the room was a recreation of Siberia. Biff didn't mind; he was standing by Joe's side in this temperature-thing. But Frank?

Biff couldn't tell if he really meant it, or if it was all an act. "Okay, so what should we do?" he finally asked. "It still isn't too late."

Frank seemed to consider that for a moment. After a short pause, he stared at his watch. Immediately, a fiercely glimpse lit up his eyes. "Not too late?! What nonsense is that? It's literally half past nine! Half past nine, Biff! It's super-duper-awesomely early! We have the whole night in front of us!"

Frank ended his statement by throwing a pillow at his friend. It hit Biff right in the face. "What on earth were you thinking? You could have broken my nose!" Biff squealed, not noticing he was slipping into the modus he only used around Joe.

"What I was thinking?" Frank asked with a mischievous grin. "That thick-headed you would survive a feather-light touch of a pillow. Apparently, I was wrong. I beg you pardon. I sincerely hope your intellect didn't disappear in the process. Not that anyone would have noticed, but…"

Frank was brought to a halt when a pillow made contact with his own nose. "Aw!" The brown-haired boy collapsed, ending up in an unmoving heap on the floor. The only prove he was still alive, was the constant stream of painful moans that erupted from his throat.

"You dead?" Biff asked triumphantly. Another moan, and then…"Yes, Biff, I am dead. You killed me. Shame on you."

Frank sounded toughly disappointed. He hurriedly sat up, though, when the smell of cacao floated from the kitchen. "Come to think about it, that pillow didn't hit anything major."

With that, he stormed into the kitchen. Biff only stared at the place he had been lying, his eyes going wide. Exactly what was it that just happened?!

Author's note: Short chapter, but more will come soon. A big, big thank to ErinJordan, RightPerspectiveOfWhump, Exactly, HappyReadingGirl and Sofia! You all made me so happy, thanks a lot!