I Fell in Love with Hope - Lancali

braced on the doorframe. “Her parents were there. They said her
doctors had some news, but they don’t know where she went. I
checked the cafeteria already, but–”
“Did you check the roof?” Sony asks.
“I tried, the door’s locked.”
“The library maybe?” Sony tries to think.
I hold the box with one hand on the edge, the cardboard digging into
the crease of my palm.
Where did you run to, my Hamlet? Your want to escape is what
brought us together. The roof, the gardens, the library, ledges, and
bridges– I search those places in my mind for you, but they come up
empty.
“Guys,” Neo says. “She never told us what it is she has. But if she’s
still here after this long maybe the news her doctors gave her isn’t
what she wanted to hear.”
You never told me who your killer is. I always knew it lived in your
blood, but I was never quite sure just how determined it could be.
A dreaded sort of cloud settles over us.
“C,” I say, swallowing on a rough throat. “What’s in your hand?”
He unfolds it to reveal a small piece of paper with a torn outline,
some smudged writing at the center. “It was on her bulletin,” he says,
sliding his thumb across the promise. Tucking its edge between his
thumb and forefinger, he opens the cardboard box and places it
neatly beside the books.
It reads,
For our newcomer,