after unlocked: a sokeefe fanfic

Chapter 55-Sophie/Keefe

"I thought that you—" Sophie shrugged hopelessly. "I don't know what I thought, honestly. But I was scared."

"We were both scared, Foster. Two teenagers, about to die, and we didn't even know it."

"But we didn't." She whispered.

He scoffed, is voice rising. "You almost did! I was tortured, and you got stabbed. I'm scared, constantly."

Sophie's breath hitched. "You were tortured?" She whispered.

"They said they wouldn't hurt you," he said hollowly. "They said if I gave them information, you'd be fine. That's why. That's literally what was wrong the whole time."

"Has Elwin checked you?" Sophie wanted to reach for him. She wanted to make sure he was okay.

But she couldn't do it.

"He was busy saving your life, and I wasn't going to hurt that. The point is, Foster, everyone's scared. For someone, something. And there's nothing we can do about it."

"We could..." she didn't know what to say. "We could end all of this." She said, hesitantly.

"How would we do that? You can't win a fight with a person you don't trust. Everything could be a lie. You have to double check everything they say, and then you lose important time."

"But if I do—"

"What's the point? What's the point of this? What if someday, maybe not now, we let this boil down, okay? But it festers." His face was stone, voice trembling with anger—and something else. Sophie wasn't sure if she wanted to know what that something was. "It grows stronger, like it has since the day I left the first time, until one day, someone makes a comment, and you don't trust me anymore. And if you don't trust me, no one will."

"I wouldn't do that," Sophie protested.

He scoffed. "Then what was that? When you told me you hated me?" His voice was low.

"But I don't, I trust—"

"You trust me? Sure didn't feel like it. Sure doesn't feel like it."

"I trusted you to get me out of there," Sophie reminded him, wishing she could cool the churning anger in her gut.

Keefe glared at the waves, his fists clenched. "You'd trust anyone to save your own skin."

Sophie gaped at him, feeling like she'd been slapped. Her fingernails dug into her palms, and she realized that it wasn't just rain dripping down her cheeks.

"Oh yeah?" Her voice broke. "Well, trust has to be earned."

"What do you think I've been trying to do? This whole time!" He shook his head. "I regretted leaving, Foster. Every time, I regretted it." He hesitated, then whispered, "But then something happens that makes me regret coming back."

They were both silent, staring into the black water, at the rocky waves.

"Why?"

Sophie didn't realize she was wondering until the word left her lips.

"Why what?" He said.

"Why don't you leave?" Sophie asked. "Why do you stay?"

"I don't know." Keefe muttered, with a shrug of his shoulders.

"You should know," Sophie told him, "we sure aren't forcing you to stay."

"You forced me to come back," he answered.

"I didn't force you to do anything," Sophie said icily. "So why did you come back?"

"I don't know."