Frankenstein folded his arms, regarding them all with a critical eye. "Now," he started. "What do you have to share about your poetry?" He resisted the urge to grin, knowing full well that the three modified humans before him were woefully unprepared to present him with anything short of a decent poem. But, he was willing to give them the benefit of the doubt.

Tao nudged Takeo, eyeing him pointedly. The sniper in return cast Tao a glare. With narrowed eyes, the two men glowered at each other as they subtly nudged at one another. M21 presented the look of indifference, instead finding the table to be extremely interesting other than his silently bickering companions or his persistent boss.

Frankenstein let them squirm for ten more seconds before loudly sighing. "Takeo," he started, causing the man in question to blink. "Why don't you start?" He leaned back casually with the grace of a relaxed predator staring down at its captured prey. He smiled, nodding encouragingly while somehow transmitting a chilling aura.

Takeo straightened up, swallowing nervously. His eyes flickered downward as he let out a deep, calming breath. His eyes were closed as he composed himself. Finally, his bright gaze was open, transfixed.

"Roses are red," he started. "Violets are blue."

Frankenstein inwardly nodded. He was familiar with the start of this cliche poem, but he had hopes that Takeo would pull something decent off. He wasn't exactly expecting them to succeed immediately and become the next Robert Frost or Edgar Allen Poe in one night. Hm, maybe he should have made that clear beforehand and spare them the nervousness.

"Skirts are...up," Takeo continued, stumbling over his lines. His eyes narrowed in confusion as he stared down, cheeks turning red. M21 and Tao shot their companion perplexed looks, and Frankenstein raised an eyebrow. "Panties are…" Takeo coughed, glancing up. "I'm done," he announced.

Tao blinked. "What…" he drew out slowly. "The...heck?"

M21 gaped.

Frankenstein sighed. "Phones on the table."

With a sheepish look, Takeo dropped his phone in the center of the table. Immediately, it dawned on Tao and M21 just where Takeo had picked up his specific word choice of a poem. "Why didn't I think of that?" Tao complained as he set his phone down. He glared at Takeo. "What? You went from calling girls glamorous and sexy to commenting about their underwear? Is your Korean that bad?"

"Shut up," Takeo grumbled.

"I expected you to compose your own poem, not copy it off of the internet," Frankenstein said, his tone colored with exasperation as he resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose to ward off a headache. Closing his eyes, he breathed in deeply, wondering if this was a bad idea. Bachelorhood was good, right?

Against his better judgment, Frankenstein pointed at M21. "What have you composed?" At least he had them put their phones away. The risk of stumbling across something inappropriate was now minimal.

M21 straightened up, clearing his throat. "You light up my world like nobody else," he said softly. "The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed."

Frankenstein felt a glimmer of hope. He dared not let it show on his face, least he break the tentative spell M21 was weaving.

"But when you smile at the ground," M21 continued, his eyes fluttering closed. "It ain't hard to tell, that you don't know you're beautiful."

Now Frankenstein was gaping in awe. A flood of pride surged through him as he listened to the poetic art that M21 was spinning.

"If only you saw what I could see, you'd understand why I want you so desperately." Now M21 was keeping pace, words spilling out. "Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe that you don't know you're beautiful." M21 finished with a relieved sigh, collapsing into the chair, as if winded from the small words of romance that would surely stir a woman's heart.

Yes, there was hope.

Frankenstein snapped his fingers. "Tao, Takeo," he said sharply. "I hope you learned something. And I thought I told you no phones."

"Ah huh," Tao piped up as he scrolled through his phone. Takeo was hovering over his shoulder, his eyes narrowed. "Just a sec Boss."

Frankenstein narrowed his eyes before turning to address M21. "Excellent work, M21. I must say that I was not expecting that. I am impressed." His eyes flickered over to where Tao and Takeo were ignoring him as they began reading whatever was on Tao's phone. "As of now, you are free from household chores for a week in regards to your commendable work." He could feel the sharp gazes of Tao and Takeo as they snapped their heads up to look at him, but he ignored them.

"Hey, Boss," Tao started.

"Hm?" Frankenstein asked, disinterested.

"Can M21 repeat his poem for us? You know, just for inspiration?"

Frankenstein turned a suspicious eye onto the suddenly innocent gaze of Tao. He knew there had to be an ulterior motive, but he could not figure out how Tao could turn this situation around in his favor. So, with a shrug, he said, "If M21 is willing."

M21 shifted in his seat. "Uh, sure." He sighed. "You light up my world like nobody else. The way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed. But when you smile at the ground, it ain't hard to tell-"

"YOU DON'T KNOW OH OH!" Takeo and Tao exclaimed, springing from their seats. "YOU DON'T KNOW YOU'RE BEAUTIFUL!"

Frankenstein reared back as music blared through Tao's phone. He watched in astonishment as Takeo and Tao hooked arms and proceeded to dance around. "THAT'S WHAT MAKE YOU BEAUTIFUL!"

"So c'c'mon!" Takeo teased as he nudged a mortified M21. "You've got it wrong."

Frankenstein did not know what was going on. He could only stare, flabbergasted, as Takeo and Tao proceeded to sing while M21 tried to melt in his chair as the music that sang his poem was still blaring through the phone.

Wait.

Frankenstein narrowed his eyes as he made the immediate connection between the song, Tao's suspicious behavior with the phone, and M21's poem.

M21 had cheated.

And Takeo and Tao were reveling it.

Frankenstein bowed his head, rubbing his forehead tiredly as the music continued. "Hopeless," he muttered. "Hopeless."

Frankenstein felt someone gently pat his shoulder, offering a small bit of comfort. In response, Frankenstein leaned into the touch, seeking strength in his moment of helplessness.

"They'll get there," Raizel murmured encouragingly, still patting Frankenstein. "You can do it."

"Oh, I'll do it alright," Frankenstein said with a low growl. Raising his head, he stared the modified humans down. He waited until Tao wisely shut the music off, all three of them springing up to stand in a straight line.

As if that would delay their inevitable lesson of romance.

"You will all read romantic literature." He smirked at their startled exclamations as protests arose. But Frankenstein held up a dismissive hand. "Starting with Pride and Prejudice." He raised an eyebrow at their horrified expressions. "I'm assuming you are familiar with one of my favorite" he emphasized 'favorite' "literary novels?"

Takeo swallowed nervously as he and M21 traded looks with Tao. Nothing was said in the room as the three men soaked in the information of their fate. Finally, Tao straightened up, folding his left arm behind his back as he bowed to his companions. Then, in a coy, thick British accent, he asked, "Do you dance, Mr. Takeo, Mr. M?"

Takeo rolled his eyes while M21 smirked. "Not if I can help it," the werewolf replied back snarkily.

A/N: The song M21 cheated off of is called "What Makes You Beautiful" by One Direction.