Between Us

☆ part thirty one ☆

Larks pov

I was curled up on the edge of my bed, reading the book I'd picked up at the shelter the other day. Bob, the puppy that had somehow become mine, was napping on my lap, his little body twitching every so often as he dreamed. I absentmindedly ran my fingers through his soft fur, my thoughts drifting as I followed the lines of the page. It was the first time in days I'd felt calm, like I could breathe again. Everything else seemed distant in this moment—the fight with Kitty, the confusion of what to do with my feelings for Sophie, the mess I'd made with my brother... It was all far away.

That is, until I heard the soft knock on the door. I didn't need to look up to know who it was. "Come in," I called, my voice sounding almost too loud in the silence. Liam stepped inside, his usual confident demeanor softened somehow, like he was carrying a weight that didn't quite fit him. I looked at him curiously, but didn't say anything at first. His eyes scanned the room, then landed on me and the dog in my lap.

"Everything okay?" he asked, though his voice already sounded like he was preparing to say something important.

"Yeah, just... trying to read," I replied, shrugging a little. I was still a little on edge from the trip, from the fight with Kitty, and especially the tension I could feel hanging between me and Sophie. But at least Bob was still asleep, and I found comfort in that for the time being.

Liam moved to the edge of the bed and sat down, his posture unusually rigid for someone who usually seemed so calm. "I need to talk to you," he said, not meeting my eyes.

I felt a shift in my stomach. "Of course. What do you need?" His gaze finally met mine, and there was something I couldn't quite place in his eyes—something serious, almost too heavy for the moment.

"It's about Sophie," he said softly, his voice low.

The moment the words left his mouth, my heart stopped. I immediately tensed, looking at him wide-eyed. "Did something happen on the way home? Is she okay?" I almost leapt to my feet in panic, but Bob, thankfully, stayed asleep in my lap.

Liam, sensing my alarm, quickly shook his head. "No, she's fine, Lark. I just... I need to tell you something."

I exhaled a breath I didn't even realize I'd been holding. "Okay, what's going on?"

He looked down at the floor for a moment, then back up at me, his expression unreadable. "I broke up with her."

My stomach dropped. I blinked, confused. "What? Why on earth would you do that?"

Liam sighed and leaned back against the bed's headboard, clearly uncomfortable with the weight of the conversation. "Because, Lark... I know she'd be much happier with someone else. Someone who... who can be with her the way she needs, not just in the way I can. I've been feeling it for a while. I guess I knew deep down, and I was just ignoring it because I didn't want to lose her... but I finally had to face it. I can't be the one holding her back from what she really wants."

I felt my chest tighten, a painful ache filling the empty space inside of me. My heart dropped into my stomach as I processed what he was saying. He was giving up something good—something real—just so Sophie could be free to be herself. I admired him for that, but at the same time, it broke me. "I really tried not to like her," I whispered, the words escaping before I could stop them.

Liam's face softened, and he reached out, putting a hand gently on Bob's sleeping body. "I know you did, Lark. I know. It's hard."

I shook my head, my thoughts racing. "It's... not just that. It's... it's everything. I... I can't believe she's really not with you anymore. And I can't even think about... how this all ends for me, for her." I felt a lump form in my throat.