Sokeefe AU: The Farmer's Daughter

Part Fourteen

It was more a matter of hearing than of seeing.

Sophie had been taking a walk through the forest to clear her head, her conversation with Fitz still partly ringing in her ears.

She still couldn't believe it. The fact that she had hung up on the Fitz Vacker.

Wow.

Still, part of her ached with guilt. Fitz wasn't a bad person, she knew that, but everytime she thought of him standing her up, she felt like she might puke all over his fancy shoes.

She should've let him explain.

She realized, startedly, that part of her didn't care.

Biana didn't yet know about any of it, happily chatting about Tam on the phone for what seemed like hours.

"Oh, Soph, he's got the lightest eyes that are so gorgeous, and his hair is dyed, but I really like it. He has a twin sister, Lihn, and she's so sweet, and--"

Sophie had cut her off, a while later, when her head had started to pound and her breathing sounded hitched.

"Biana, I have to go," she had said, quietly.

Which was partly a lie, a little truth mixed in and dashed around.

She didn't necessarily have to go, but she wanted to. She loved Biana with all her heart, loved the way she talked and was sweet and listened to her, but Sophie's room had started to close in, which only made her feel worse, and she had to get out of there.

She had needed to get out of it.

Biana had understood, as she always did.

"Sure, Soph," she said, and there was something in her voice that Sophie couldn't place no matter how hard she listened. "I'll talk to you later."

And that was that.

Now she was walking on a half-hidden path in the forest, partly overgrown with roots, the floor of the forest scattered with leaves. The trees created a sort of tunnel over her head, the branches touching like clasped hands at the top. Sun danced through the fingers and touched her skin softly, reminding her that beauty wouldn't die even if she felt like she might.

Her mind wandered, circling around to thoughts before dismissing them again.

Fitz.

Keefe.

Her parents.

The fire---

Nope nope nope, she scolded her own thought train, rubbing her temples. Going there would made everything seem a hundred times worse, would make her heart ache and dig up things she had been trying so hard to forget.

The sound of a baby crying while her skin burned. The way the house had gone completely still, then collapsed so suddenly it had sent her to her knees. The way her own burns didn't hurt until later, because Where were her parents? Her baby sister?

Nope.

She did not have the strength to think about that.

So she didn't. She roamed the forest instead, ignoring her shaky breaths.

A catpillar crawled onto her shoes, and she gently picked it up, bringing it closer to her face so she could see it better. Large, yellow eyes looked back up at her, a shiny blue body glowing in the soft afternoon sun.

Sophie smiled, a little, and walked a bit away from the path so it wouldn't get crushed when she came back. Its worm-like body wiggled in her hands and she laughed, softly, shakily, as she lowered it to the ground.