THE SUNLIGHT BLINDED Sophie as she stepped outside, into its abundance of warmth. She cringed and lifted a hand to shield her eyes from its wrath. It seemed like she'd been inside for ages. She felt like a vampire.
Eli hummed lightly under his breath, his hands still shoved into his pockets. She glanced at him from the corners of her eyes and noticed him trying to hide a grimace.
"Are you okay?" she asked.
His mismatched eyes darted toward her, shocked. "What do you mean?"
"You looked uncomfortable," Sophie explained. She frowned slightly and ducked her head with embarrassment. He was probably just as unused to the sunlight as she was. It wasn't like the castle had many outside pathways.
Eli chuckled under his breath. She glanced at him again, and this time he looked greatly amused, as if she'd said something hilarious. He just shook his head at her when she arched an eyebrow in question.
He lead her toward a sleek ink-colored charger that had been parked in the round-about drive way in front of the castle. Sophie stared at it curiously as they approached; it wasn't there when her father had dropped her off.
"Where did this come from?" she mumured under her breath as Eli unlocked it.
Eli climbed into the drivers seat, and Sophie gingerly sat down in the passenger seat. The inside was covered with smooth black leather. She and Eli were the only pops of color within the car. Eli cranked the engine up and the car purred. Then he smiled impishly at her. "I had my old butler drop it off. Pretty nice, huh?"
"Sure," Sophie said, and ran her finger along a leather arm rest.
"We're not allowed to have cars on campus," Eli said. "I was deeply saddened to have to give up my precious car when I came here." He fake sniffled. Then he glanced at her and winked. "But now I'm happy I did."
Sophie rolled her eyes. The car peeled out of the drive, and zoomed through the winding roads that lead back into town. Her gaze remained focused out the window. The scenery blurred as it passed. She remembered the drive to the academy; the jerky swerves and slurred shouts of her father. Her thoughts flickered toward the town. She wondered whether she would see anybody that she recognized. Would her father still be the town drunk?
Her gaze shifted toward Eli. Her lips pressed into a firm line. Did she really want Eli to know that her father was the town drunk?
The thought made her stomach churn.
Within minutes, the blurry greens and browns outside her window changed into a more focused backdrop of concrete and brick. She pursed her lips and watched as the car slowed at a traffic light. Nothing had changed much since she'd left.
"We aren't stopping here," Eli stated quietly.
Her gaze darted toward him. The shock was evident in her expression. He shot her a sheepish smile. "My sister told me about the day that you got dropped off. I wasn't sure what your relationship was like with him, but I figured that you might not want to see him."
Sophie frowned. "What gave you that assumption?"
"Aubrey said that he kind of just abandoned you here."
She turned to stare out the window. While there was truth to both his statement, and his assumption, she didn't feel that he had the right to make it. He hardly knew her father, or anything about her family. He didn't know her situation. But then again, based on the information that he did know, what else was he to assume?
"Then where are we going?" she simply asked.
Eli glanced back at her face. His gaze scanned her expression, and Sophie arched an eyebrow at him. He returned his gaze to the road. "My home town. Don't worry, it isn't far."
Another spell of silence passed between them. Then Sophie asked, "How did you know that I lived here, by the way?"
He smiled sheepishly again. "Aubrey."
She harrumphed. "This is borderline stalking."
He hummed. "At least I don't sneak into your bedroom at night and watch you sleep."
Sophie blinked, and then shuddered at the thought. He grinned slightly at her reaction. Sophie watched her home speed away, and eventually fade into the next town over. She'd only visited once or twice. It was more of a historic district, filled with old shops and cobblestone streets. Eli skillfully parallel parked in front of a strip of stores. Each shop front was entirely different from the next. It ranged from classy, girly boutiques to an Irish themed pub. The engine cut off and they climbed out of the car. Sophie glanced at the shop they were parked in front of as Eli slipped several quarters into the meter.
"This looks like an old arcade from the movies," Sophie stated.
"That's kind of what it is," Eli laughed at her.
The shop front was awkwardly shaped, with an out of place bay window and an old wooden door with a round pot-hole shaped window. It looked like the remains of a boutique. In the bay window, a display of cardboard cut outs were set up, each a character from an old video game. Sophie immediately recognized the yellowed, spherical shape of Pac-Man.
Eli opened the door, and held it open. Sophie thanked him as she stepped inside and then glanced around, her eyes wide. The inside of the store looked nothing like the outside. It was a single room, filled with an abundance of machines and people. It reminded Sophie of a darker Chuck-E-Cheese. The neon lights that piped around the tops of the walls, along with several dying florescent lights embedded within the ceiling, did little to illuminate the room.
Sophie blinked with surprise when Eli slipped his hands into hers. "Come on," he laughed like a kid, and dragged her toward one of bulky machines. "Best two out of three!"