Frankie Stein didn't always have the best instincts to tell her when something was wrong. Being a barely two-year-old construct stitched together with industrial strength thread and powered by electricity, getting through the day without misplacing her limbs was hard enough. Luckily though, she had a great group of ghoulfriends to cut her some slack even when the world didn't, making her unlife just a little bit easier.

Letting a boy into her heart however? That had brought on a whole new level of difficulty, especially since it was technically two boys in the same body who had won her affections. It had only been three months, but so far Frankie felt really fortunate that Jackson Jekyll and Holt Hyde thought she was worth waiting for, even after their rough patch when they first met and the boys were still unaware that they were the same person. They had made a lot of progress since then, that she knew for sure, but there were still moments that left Frankie feeling uneasy about whether Jackson and Holt were truly in sync.

Like when she opened her locker first thing Monday morning and a dozen red roses wrapped in a florist's expertised hand fell from the top shelf onto the tiled floor. More like a dozen red flags shooting up in Frankie's brain as she stooped down to pick up the bouquet. Sure enough, the initials HH were scrawled on the tag in haste.

"Aw, how sweet!" came a high-pitched Romanian accent, and Frankie whirled around to see Draculaura eyeing the roses from behind her. "Which one?"

"Holt," Frankie sighed out, not taking her eyes off the card. Most ghouls would be thrilled to get a bunch of roses from their boyfriend, but in this case…

"Uh oh." Clawdeen Wolf appeared on Frankie's other side, leaning her elbow against her locker tiredly as if she'd just rolled out of bed. "What'd he do this time?"

"I don't know," Frankie shook her head. "I mean, he had to have done something, right? He doesn't usually give me flowers unless he's messed up big time."

"I remember those days." Frankie craned her neck around Clawdeen to see Operetta swinging her locker shut with a clang. The southern phantom of the opry glanced between Frankie and the roses with an all-knowing glance, "He did the same thing for me the morning after our solo date eons ago. Trust me, sugar, I do not envy you. But I do reckon you should hunt him down and get the details."

"You know something, don't you?" Clawdeen eyed the fiery red-headed ghoul suspiciously.

"It ain't my news to tell, and it ain't yer business to be stickin' yer little doggy trackin' nose into," Operetta frowned in Clawdeen's direction, who growled in response.

"When it comes to Frankie, it is our business," Draculaura cut in with an uncharacteristically sharp tone. "And if there's trouble in paradise, we'll be here for her no matter what."

"No wait, Operetta has a point," Frankie finally said, holding the roses against her chest. "This is between me and Holt, and I've got to talk to him now." She lifted her gaze tentatively to meet Operetta's, "How bad is it?"

"That's for you to find out, sweet pea," Operetta shook her head, almost sadly, before sauntering down the hall to her first class.

"Ouch!" Frankie cried out in pain, letting the roses fall to the floor again. She hadn't realized how hard she'd been gripping the stems until she felt the long thorns pierce her fingers.

Whaddup JJ?

Not talking to you

Aw cmon hear me out!

You've said enough

I told u i didnt mean it

It doesn't matter what you meant, the point is it happened

Its not that big a deal Jackie boy

You don't know that. No one knows yet.

I'll tell em it was self defense

Except it wasn't. It was just you being Hyde again.

So ur just worried bout how this affects YOU huh?

It's not just us. This might affect everyone we care about. Mom, our family, our friends.

There u go bein overdramatic again

Frankie

Hey if any1 will understand its Fine Stein. U know her she always looks on the bright side.

Then you owe it to her to tell her that there may not BE a bright side.

Relax JJ Im gonna tell her tomorrow school

Everything?

EV RY THANG

Good

Already left a lil hint in her locker

Jackson was still in a sour mood by the time he got the latest text from his other half. The guy could be a real pain in the neck, sure, but it was usually nothing more than an annoying brother would do. He could deal with that, and it was the primary reason that he and Holt had been able to reach a sort of compromise in their existence within each other. He would allow Holt to keep his gigs no matter how late they might go, and in return his rambunctious alter ego would let Jackson get his schoolwork done when he needed to. And then there was splitting up their time with Frankie, which was an entirely different matter that often led to spats between them. It sometimes grew just as tiresome for Jackson as it did for Frankie, there were only so many ways he and Holt could emphasize "I care about her more than you do!" Then she would gently remind him that they were the same person, and somehow that would make Jackson feel a bit better. Not about the fact that he was half blue, loud, unreliable, awful taste in music Holt Hyde, but that there was a beautiful, sweet, loving, headstrong ghoul who accepted them both as one guy. She might have been the only one in the world who did, besides his mom. For the most part, that was all Jackson needed to get him through the day.

But would she still want to be around him after she found out what Holt did over the weekend? Part of the burden of sharing his existence was that if Frankie got angry at Holt for something he did, she often would avoid Jackson as well. The great thing about Frankie though was that she always bounced back into that cheery disposition of hers by the end of the day and was easily forgiving. The half normie wasn't so sure if she would be this time. This was bad. This had the potential to be very, very bad.

"Hey." Jackson jumped a foot in the air, his head whipping around to see the childlike inquisitive face of his girlfriend gazing back at him. He managed a smile, not wanting to scare her with a deadly serious expression.

"Hey yourself," he said back. Taking her hand, he pulled her closer to place a soft kiss on her cheek. She was wearing a new fragrance, peppermint to match the howliday season that was almost upon them. It made him want to just stand there and hold her for a moment, but the roses she was holding that were crushed between them were a sharp reminder that it would have to wait. Dropping her hand reluctantly, he reached up to the top shelf of his open locker and pulled out a pair of headphones he always kept on standby. "Holt has something he needs to tell you."

"Yeah I, uh, kinda got that impression," Frankie said with a dry chuckle, holding up the bouquet. "He needs to make it quick though, we've got class in ten minutes."

"Will do," Jackson nodded before slipping the headphones over his ears. Frankie stepped back, promptly shielding her eyes from the expected flash of green light that transformed Jekyll into Hyde.

"Whoa! It is way too early for the Holt-ster to be outta bed!" Holt Hyde exclaimed upon his arrival. He stretched his arms over his head dramatically and let out an obnoxiously obvious yawn towards the ceiling, before his head dropped down to see Frankie standing in front of him. "Hey, there's my number one ghoul!"

"Hey Hol - whaa!" Her greeting was cut off as Holt grabbed her around the waist and swung her so she was pressed against the locker beside his. Quite the contrary to Jackson's subtle gesture, the fiery hot DJ planted a deep kiss on her full glossed lips. Frankie would never forget the first time he did this, she had sparked so badly at the bolts that every student along the main wing lockers had felt the electrocuting side effects. Now after a few months of getting used to it, she only released one or two tiny sparks as Holt's kiss left her breathless.

"Mm-mm, is that peppermint?" Holt said slyly, sniffing as he sneaked a kiss or two at her neck.

"Holt, stop stalling," Frankie said firmly, pushing him back a little so she could hold up the wrapped bouquet. "The roses are beautiful, but they never come with good news. So let's hear it."

"Al-right, it was at the gig I had Saturday night," Holt began, a bit quieter so the students around them wouldn't overhear. "This one was supposed to be huge, I'm talkin' double the dough I usually make. It wasn't fancy, but man was there a ton of people! And the space and the dance floor! Good thing I had Heath and Oppy helping me out 'cause I was gonna need all my equipment to make this a night to remember."

So Clawdeen was right, Operetta did know what happened because she was there that night. "So what went wrong?"

"Nothin' at first. The jams were pulsin', monsters and normies were drinkin' and dancin', looked like a ritzy Christmas party or sumthin.' Would've invited you to come along too, but-"

"I know, I had to finish my half of mine and Jackson's final project for Mad Science," Frankie finished, glancing up at the clock. Five minutes 'til the bell. "Then what?"

"The normie who ran the joint, can't remember his name, was all set to pay us when we were packin' up to leave. Only he thought I wouldn't notice that the check looked a little lacking in the digit department." Holt gritted his teeth, the simmering rage from two nights ago about to resurface just thinking about it, but relaxed when he remembered Frankie was standing right there, a worried expression lining her features. "I thought the amount I was gettin' was for each of us, not the grand total. So I tracked him down to the parking lot behind the building and asked him 'what gives?' Next thing I knew, I had the dude slammed to the pavement yellin' at him to give us the rest of the money."

"Holt, no," Frankie moaned as if it were exactly as she feared, clapping a hand to her face as she shook her head. "How many times have we gone over this?"

"He cheated me, Frankie, he cheated all three of us!" Holt exclaimed in a loud whisper, still trying to not be overheard. "I couldn't let him get away with that!"

"Holt, your short temper is going to get you in some serious trouble someday," Frankie went on. It didn't sound like when his mom scolded him, or even when Jackson scolded him. It was more anxious, far more desperate, and it made Holt feel way worse than when someone just stood there yelling at him. "Is that all? You just punched him a few times?" Her bicolored eyes bore into his red ones, biting her lip as she waited nervously for his response. And Holt knew he couldn't do it. Not with the way she was staring at him, expecting an answer that would ease her fears rather than heighten them. Now he knew what Jackson meant, about how much this would affect Frankie. After she praised Holt time and again for how great a guy he could be when he put his mind to it, it would just shatter her if she knew the truth.

"Yeah, I just roughed him up a little," Holt consented, nodding tightly. "He took off in his fancy car after he paid up the rest. No big deal."

"At least that's all," Frankie breathed out in relief as she reached over and held him by the arms. "But you can't do this anymore. You need to learn to negotiate peacefully, even with people who cheat you. No more fights, okay?"

"No more fights…" Holt trailed off, the corner of his mouth turning upward in some sort of assurance.

"Good," Frankie smiled as she leaned forward to peck him on the lips. "Tell Jackson I'll see him later in Mad Science." With a cheerful wave, she dashed back down the hall as the bell rang, leaving Holt in the nearly deserted hallway. He was used to lying to people to get himself out of trouble, but doing it to Frankie was different. It made him feel sick to his stomach. The entire debacle was like he'd spilled a glass of red wine all over a pure white tablecloth. Frankie was the tablecloth, and the truth about what happened Saturday night was the wine.

"Holt, your short temper is going to get you in some serious trouble someday."

Too late, Frankie Fine, he thought as he shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his pinstriped pants. It already has.

Frankie slid into her seat in Mad Science a few hours later, setting down the binder of work for her final project she'd slaved over the past weekend. Including the Saturday night that Holt had made a real spectacle of himself. She sighed deeply as she recalled what Holt told her, idly playing with the stitching on her wrist. Was she angry? No, not really. She had been at first, but after a minute she realized that if she got mad every single time he screwed up, she'd drive herself crazy. Now she was mostly disappointed, both in Holt for failing to keep it together and in herself for not being able to be there that night. She didn't know for sure if that would have made a difference in the outcome, if she would have been able to talk him out of it, but she still felt guilty. She was his ghoulfriend now. It was, like, her job to be there for him. Cleo and Draculaura were always there for Deuce and Clawd when they were in trouble or upset or just needed to talk. Frankie resolved that she was going to have to make room in her already hectic schedule to do the same thing. After school and the welcoming committee meeting and Fearleading practice and the avalanche of homework she still needed to complete before the scaremester ended on Friday, Frankie would somehow make time to talk with both Holt and Jackson.

As if on cue, the bespectacled boy came sailing through the door just as the bell rang and crashed into his seat next to Frankie. "Sorry I'm late," he panted.

"Where were you?" Frankie asked.

"According to Clawd, jamming out to my latest mix in the music room," Jackson rolled his eyes, flinging his own binder on the table.

"Cuttin' it a li'le close, eh Jekyll?" came the booming voice of Mr. Hack.

"Yeah...I guess…" Jackson exhaled over and over, taking off his glasses to wipe the sweat from his brow.

"Well since you're top o' the class, I'll let it slide this time," Hack rumbled before he slammed down his ancient crossed ax to indicate class was in session. "Yelps! de Nile! You're up to present your final project!" Ghoulia Yelps was already setting up her materials on the lab table at the front of the class as Cleo de Nile sauntered down the aisle from the back of the room where she had been cuddling with her boyfriend Deuce Gorgon. Once she'd left, Deuce leaned over to Heath Burns on his other side and they began whispering with their heads close together. Frankie was almost positive Heath was telling Deuce what happened at the gig he'd accompanied Holt to.

"Did Holt tell you?" Jackson whispered out the side of his mouth as Cleo and Ghoulia began their presentation. Frankie looked around quickly to make sure everyone was preoccupied, then nodded.

"I feel awful that you always get caught in the middle of his mistakes," she whispered back, taking his hand under the table.

"It just makes it harder to communicate with him like you want us to," Jackson said, returning the grip as he rubbed his thumb over the smooth green skin on the back of her hand. "Usually I can deal with it, and I'll get over it later. But this-"

"Jackson, I've accepted the fact that being aggressive is in his nature, and I can't get mad at him every time it flares up," Frankie said softly, voicing the exact thoughts that were in her mind at that moment. "You shouldn't either. I understand that you two will always have your disagreements, but over time you've developed a bond that's really special. I care about you both too much to watch it fall apart."

Jackson closed his eyes, squeezing her hand as he swallowed back the hard lump forming in his throat. "I can't. I can't forgive him for this one, Frankie."

"Why not? I already have."

"How?" he turned to look right at her, his voice heightening to a stage whisper. "Frankie, he put a normie in critical condition in the hospital just because he shorted him a hundred and fifty bucks! There's nothing worse he-!" He stopped suddenly as he watched Frankie's face evolve into stunned silence as if she'd been bludgeoned over the head, letting her hand fall limply from his.

"Wait...what are you talking about?"

Jackson blinked. "What have you been talking about?"

"Stein! Jekyll!" The two of them jerked back around to face the front of the classroom. Mr. Hack leaned dangerously over his desk, picking up another unidentifiable sharp object threateningly, "Stop makin' eyes at each other and pay attention, or I'll fail you both on your project before you even get to present!" Jackson blushed and Frankie sparked as a few murmurs and giggles rippled through the room. Cleo was far from amused and glared at them from the front table, and Frankie shot her an apologetic glance.

"What did he tell you?" Jackson asked in a livid undertone as Ghoulia resumed moaning through her demonstration. Frankie slid down in her seat a bit to hide behind the tall muscular gargoyle in front of her.

"He said he roughed him up a little until he paid up, then he got in his car and left…" She trailed off as she looked at Jackson out the corner of her eye. "Jackson?" He remained silent. "Jackson, that's what happened. That's what Holt told me."

"Idiot...that complete and utter idiot."

"Jackson, what did you do?!" Frankie couldn't care less how loud she was now. "I mean wha - what did he do?"

"He didn't tell you. I should've known but - I mean - if anyone, he would've been honest with you."

"You're not being honest with me!" Frankie reached over and latched her black fingernails onto his shirt sleeve. Jackson hesitated, then wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer. For one wild moment, Frankie thought he was going to kiss her right there in front of Mr. Hack, but realized quickly he was just whispering in her ear.

"He did more than just rough him up. He practically killed him. He's in really bad shape right now as we speak. And if anything happens to this guy, I don't have to tell you how serious this'll get real fast." Frankie's hands trembled as she brought them to her mouth. "And it's not just Holt. If this takes a turn for the worst, then everyone in Salem will know that a normie was slaughtered by a monster."

"The entire monster community will be in danger," Frankie mouthed back as quietly as she could. "It'll be like it was over a century ago."

"Except now they'll have a valid reason to hunt you all down, not just wild speculation. And that's nothing compared to what'll happen to...me."

It was too much to take in at once. Frankie's head was spinning so badly she thought she might be sick, but one surefire fact remained with her apart from every new piece of information Jackson hurled at her. He'd lied to her. Something this serious had transpired and Holt had lied right to her face about it. The same hands Jackson was holding her with now had nearly slaughtered someone two nights ago. It was all just too much.

"Frankie...Frankie, say something."

"Who is speaking while I'm speaking?!" came Cleo's commanding tone from the front of the classroom, and all heads turned this way and that to find the source of the disturbance.

"I - I can't-" Frankie pushed Jackson's arm away from her shoulder, and he looked pained that she had. All she could focus on was Jackson's features that he shared with Holt. His face, the feel of his hands, even his eyes, though a different color, were still the same. And she just couldn't face him right now. Not after what he'd done, and not after he'd lied to her about it. Flinging back her chair, Frankie jumped up from the lab table and dashed out the door, her heels clacking loudly against the tiled floor.

"Oi Stein! You need a hall pass!" bellowed Hack as she breezed past him into the hallway, Cleo and Ghoulia exchanging wide-eyed glances as they watched her leave.

"Frankie, wait!" Jackson called as he took off after her, not caring if his Mad Science grade suffered for it. Looking up and down the hall, he'd lost sight of her, figuring she must have ducked into the ghouls' bathroom. "It wasn't me!" he called down the empty hallway, hoping his echoing voice would carry.

But as soon as he said it, he knew it was false. No matter how much he wished it wasn't so, no matter how disassociated he tried to remain from his other half's endeavors, no matter what he as Jackson Jekyll tried to do to make up for it, there was nothing on earth that could change the fact that if Holt was guilty, then he was guilty.

He and Holt Hyde were the same person, for better or worse. And the only one who had ever fully understood and loved him for that had just run out on him.