Another day bustled in the local cafe, with the smell of coffee and fresh baked goods permeating the air. At a table near the back, two girls in a deep and heavy conversation, one with fiery albiet dyed red hair, the other with brown pulled in a thick ponytail. The brown tressed girl, reached for the redhead's hand and as she quickly pulled her hand back, avoiding the gesture, an untouched glass of water spilled all over the table.
"Sophie! Look what you've done!" said the redhead.
"I didn't mean to Erinn! I'm ju- I'm sorry," said Sophie, as tears welled in her eyes. Unable to move or to grab a towel or even a napkin, Sophie realized what she was hearing from a girl that had consumed her for 3 years. She can't.
It would seem to outsiders that Erinn only needed Sophie when her on again off again girlfriend Chelsea, was well, for lack of a better word, off. When Sophie would push to move the relationship further with Erinn, Erinn would just grin and move in for a kiss. Which would satisfy Sophie but not really answer the question, leaving Sophie frustrated but the little affection she could get from the game playing Erinn was worth it.
"Look Soph.."
"Sophie. My name is Sophie," she said through the all too familiar tears.
"You know I'm fond of you, and I'm totally flattered but, I just want to do my own thing now. Can you understand that?" asked Erinn. "I've just ended it with Chels-"
"Until you get back together," said Sophie quietly not daring to look in Erinn's direction.
"I can't say what's going to happen, Soph.. er I mean Sophie. I mean who knows if it will eventually be us, or anyone for that matter? I can't tell the future, I wish I could but I don't want any kind of pressure. Can you get that at least?" asked Erinn.
"I get that!" exclaimed Sophie, then remembering she was in public, lowered her voice to a tearful hushed tone. "I'm asking you how you feel now. If you can honestly say you don't see a future for us or if I wouldn't be worthy of dating, then tell me now. Please. I'll just walk away and leave you to it. I've been hanging on for 3 years Erinn. Three! You can at least answer me with the truth," begged Sophie.
"I just can't say for sure anything yet. I'm so so sorry. Please don't be mad or hate me," said Erinn. With that Sophie stood up and walked out of the cafe, leaving a stunned Erinn to do nothing but watch it happen. As Sophie got to the corner waiting for a green light to cross and cry her way home, she felt water drops on her sleeve. Thinking she was crying but not that hard, she looked up at the grey sky and couldn't help but start giggling as she realized it was raining.
"Touche universe, touche," Sophie half-heartedly said aloud.
"Soph! Sophie wait!" said Erinn running to catch up to Sophie.
"Erinn, leave me alone now okay?"
"Sophie you've got to understand. I enjoy our time together, I just can't right now."
"Yeah I get it, change that broken record will ya? You never cared about me, you just wanted the attention I gave you," said Sophie as the light turned green to cross the street. Sophie walked across the street looking down, fighting every emotion. Anger, fear, frustration, sadness, loneliness.
"I'm out here aren't I?! In the rain, calling after you! Embarrassing myself and you! I must care Sophie, think about it!"
Sophie sped up her walking. Where she was going she didn't know, she just had to leave that cafe, making a note to herself to never return to that place again.
After walking for what seemed like hours, and after a good deal of mind clearing, Sophie started to notice where she was and decided to head home to sleep and sleep some more. Maybe for a year. No, her busybody mom would not let that happen would she? Neither would the insanity known as Rosie Webster let her sulk and be moody. Her sister was one of her best friends but sometimes your polar opposite can grate on you after awhile. While Sophie loved her mom and sister, she wished her and her dad could get their own apartment sometimes. Kevin was always forgiving and always the "good cop" to Sally's "bad, pompous, snobby, gossipy, judgmental cop". Their respective relationships had been strained to say the least, what with Kevin having an affair and fathering another child, but now that the dust has settled and the realization that this is how it is now, things were looking somewhat back to normal. As normal as it can be for the Websters.
Sophie walked down the familiar cobbled street, head down, hood up. Hoping not to see anyone she knew, she booked it to her door. Of course everyone was out on their lunch breaks. "Just keep walking Sophie, almost there.." she thought to herself. Sophie unlocked her front door and stepped quickly inside. The warmth that normally would be considered a comfort, intensified all the thoughts swimming in her head. It was over, it was really over. The Webster house was quiet on all fronts, and right then and there, Sophie Lauren Webster admitted defeat to love, slid down the wall and broke down crying the hardest she ever had.
