Controlled *Unedited*

Chapter 32

Sophia:

I set the box down on the floor and examined my new room. It was huge, complete with a bathroom and a tiny balcony. The walls were dark green and my furniture was a light oak. I walked back out of the room and walked down stairs.

I walked outside to where my mom was carrying more boxes. I took one from her and helped carry it inside.

“Where do you want this one, Mom?” I asked her.

“In the living room is fine,” she replied, turning a corner and walking into her room. I turned the opposite way, passed the kitchen, and entered the living room. I set the box down on the ground and returned outside.

“Hey, stranger,” I heard a familiar voice call to me. I turned around to see Justin leaning up against the mail box, arms crossed. I put the box down and ran up to him. I through my arms around him and kissed him. I felt him smile and kiss me back, pulling me closer to deepen the kiss.

We finally pulled back when we heard barking next to us. Naomi jumped up on Justin, who laughed and pet her. I laughed, too. I loved how Naomi loved Justin as much as I do. My smile faltered a bit when I saw her scar down her side. It would always be noticeable, and it made me want to cry every time I thought about it.

“You guys need some help?” he asked, putting his arm around my shoulders and walking to the truck.

“That’d be great,” I said, wrapping my arm around his waist. I was always in a good mood when Justin was around. I handed him a box. “Here, this goes to the kitchen.”

“Okay,” he said, carrying it inside. I backed up and examined the house. We finally moved to a new house. It was bigger- and prettier- than our last house. I saw Justin come back out with Naomi and walk to the back of the truck. “Okay, what’s next?”

I ran up to him and hugged him from behind. “I love you,” I said, burying my face into his back. He turned around and hugged me.

“I love you, too, Sophie,” he said, kissing the top of my head. “Now, what’s next? You two girls aren’t going to get this done by yourselves in one day without the help of the J-man.”

I laughed, and handed him the next box, which went into my room. “Here, my room. Upstairs and the first door to the left,” I told him. He nodded and walked into the house.

“Hey Sophie!”

I turned around to see Zoey running up to hug me. “Zoey!” I said, smiling. We both hugged, then she back up, looking at the house.

“Wow, nice! I love the house, Soph,” she said. She looked at me expectantly and said, “Alright, put me to work.”

I smiled and handed her a box. “Living room,” I told her. She said okay, and walked inside the house. I grabbed a box to my mom’s room and carried it in.

I walked into my mom’s room to find her hugging Darius, gazing around their room. I set the box down and went to hug both of them. We’ve all finally moved on. Oh, by the way, Darius is Detective White. He and my mom started dating a few weeks after what had happened. They’re engaged now, which made me happy. He thought of me like a daughter already, and I thought of him as a father.

“We can finally start over,” he said, hugging us both.

“Yeah,” I whispered. We all pulled apart.

“Let’s get this house finished,” he said, guiding all of us out of the room. “And afterwards, let’s have a cookout. Sophie, your friends can stay if they want to.”

“Okay, I’ll go and tell them,” I said, walking out of the room. I saw Zoey bringing in another box from the truck. “Hey, we’re going to have a cookout. You’re more than welcome to stay.”

“Okay, sounds great,” she said, disappearing behind the corner. I went upstairs to find Justin, who was sitting on my bed. I walked over to him and sat on his lap.

“Hey, want to stay over for a cookout? Zoey is staying, and you could sleep over,” I said, smiling.

“Of course I’ll stay over, Sophie,” he said, leaning down to kiss me. I smiled and kissed him, entangling my fingers in his hair. To intensify the kiss, I pushed him down with my body onto the bed, and laid on top of him. His hands wandered to my lower waist, pulling me closer to him. One of his hands was tangled in my hair, pushing our lips closer and closer.

We both jumped when we heard a knock at my door. We pulled apart and looked to see who it was. We were both panting heavily, and I know our faces were red from embarrassment.