"Hey, Soph, wait up a minute!"
Sophia glanced over her shoulder on her way to class one Friday afternoon and paused when she saw Luke rushing to catch up to her. When he reached her side, she gave him an expectant look. Luke's gave her a broad smile and she instantly knew the look.
"What do you need?" she asked and crossed her arms over her chest.
Luke gave her a look of mock hurt. "I am wounded that you would think that I, your closest friend, only talk to you when I need something."
Sophia raised an eyebrow, but remained silent. Luke slumped in defeat. "Okay, fine. Yes, I need your help."
"With what?" Sophia asked as she tilted her head to the side in a gesture for them to begin walking.
Luke scratched the back of his neck. "Well, it's my sisters' thirteenth birthday party tomorrow. We want it to be a surprise, and I was hoping you would help me decorate because I'm clueless. My parents are busy with fetching the food and keeping Mary and Olivia distracted."
Sophia frowned. "What makes you think I would be good at decorating?"
"Well, you did the final touches on that history project and our group got full marks for presentation so ..." Luke explained and turned on the puppy eyes, that were slowly but surely becoming Sophia's weakness.
She sighed. "Fine, message me the details."
"Thank you!" Luke beamed at her as the warning bell rang.
He bit the inside of his cheek and before he could talk himself out of it, he quickly kissed her cheek before dashing down the hall, leaving a stunned Sophia behind him.
-
"Okay, how about now?" Luke asked for the umpteenth time as he repositioned the 'Happy Birthday' banner.
Sophia shook her head. "A little more to the right," she said, causing Luke to huff before stretching in the way she directed.
Sophia tried her best to focus on the straightness of the banner, but she couldn't seem to stop her eyes from gravitating towards Luke or, more specifically, the muscles on his arms that stretched and contracted with his movements.
She swallowed and forced herself to look away. She just couldn't get that kiss on her cheek out of her head. Although it wasn't even a second, it's affected her more than she would like. Her brain couldn't stop envisioning it. What would have happened if she had turned her head towards him at that exact moment? What if-
"And now?"
Sophia blinked and looked at the banner then at Luke. When their eyes connected Sophia felt her face flush and she quickly averted her eyes.
"Looks fine," she muttered, and quickly busied herself with fetching streamers from a box.
What is wrong with her? An innocent kiss on the cheek and she's suddenly scatterbrained. She needs to get a grip.
They finished the rest of the decorating in record time and Luke wiped the sweat from his brow. "Phew, my sisters better appreciate this," he stated and glanced at Sophia.
"I'm sure they will," she replied and sat down on the sofa, while Luke plonked down next to her with two bottled waters, apparently exhausted.
He handed her the one and Sophia felt her stomach turn when their fingertips brushed. She bit the inside of her cheek and discretely moved further away from him. Maybe she's coming down with something.
"Hey, speaking of birthdays," Luke began as he took a swig from his water bottle and stretched out on the couch, casually placing his arm behind Sophia's head, "when's yours?"
He seemed oblivious to the fact that Sophia was alarmed by his sudden intimacy, although it was innocent. Granted Sophia had cuddled with him once before, but that was an epic failure that she didn't want to repeat. She also couldn't understand why her body was being so sensitive to his every move; it's best if she keeps her distance.
"About a month's time; the sixteenth," Sophia replied and Luke nodded instantly engraving the date in his mind. He was worried that he had missed it. Nine months he's known Sophia and it never once occurred to him to ask her when she was born. Birthdays were always a big thing for his family; he would've hated to miss hers.
"And?"
"And what?" Sophia asked with a raised eyebrow as she straightened in her seat, away from Luke's arm.
"Any plans?"
A look flashed across Sophia's eyes, but it was gone before Luke could decipher it. "Not really," she said softly and looked away.
Birthday celebrations were never big in Sophia's life. To be honest, she would have thought that her birthday was just another day if it weren't for her Aunt Tess sending an annual present in the mail.
Her father never celebrated birthdays in general, but he never celebrated hers. She knew why though; it was also the day her mother died. So it is always a very solemn day if he happens to be around. He doesn't even wish her happy birthday. They just go on as though it was another average day.
Sophia felt a heaviness enter her chest as she looked around at the decorated living-room. She never quite realised what she's missed until today. She's heard about Sweet Sixteens and so forth, but never indulged in those thoughts. It just made her heart ache.
Of course, her Aunt Tess did try to make some sort of party for her, but it always ended up being just tea and her aunt's legendary triple-layer chocolate and caramel cake. There were no decorations and sometimes it would be weeks after her birthday and consisted of only Aunt Tess, Eric and herself. No extended family, or friends, just the three of them, nothing like what Olivia and Mary would be getting; a house full of guests who would be arriving shortly, presents a metre high, and a ton of food.
But Sophia couldn't complain. It was the thought that counted. At least her aunt made an effort to acknowledge her existence, which is more than her she could say about her father.
"Hey, you okay?"
A touch to the knee jolted Sophia out of her thoughts and she turned to see Luke giving her a worried look.
She nodded, immediately hiding her thoughts and feelings. "I'm fine."
-
Later that evening Sophia found herself seated across from Rachel, as she usually found herself on a Saturday evening. It's become routine now for Susan and her two daughters to come over for dinner every Saturday but, thankfully, they never stayed the night.
And, as her father requested, Sophia kept her mouth shut through every evening with them, answering only when questioned; keeping her emotions in check. She refused to be humiliated in front of Rachel again. How sad it was that Sophia didn't even feel comfortable in her own house anymore.
Rachel, on the other hand, was fast-making this her second home with how easily she conversed with the parents; specifically Sophia's father. Although he was still impossible to read, it was apparent to Sophia that he held Rachel in higher regard than herself.
It hurt, but she refused to let it show. She refused to give Rachel the satisfaction of knowing that she was winning.
-
As the evening was drawing to a close, Sophia sat down in the living-room, her body fatigued from the busy birthday party that afternoon, and having to survive a meal with the Pierce family. Of course, it just had to be the one evening that Susan and her daughters decided to stay longer.
Sophia's dad and Susan slowly walked into the living-room and looked at the three of them before giving each other a glance.
"Um, there's something we would like to tell you guys," Susan began and Sophia raised an eyebrow as she watched them like a hawk.
"What's wrong?" Rachel asked as she sat down on the recliner, far away from Sophia.
Good.
Susan shook her head. "No, no, nothing's wrong ... on the contrary," she trailed off and looked at Sophia's dad, grabbing his hand. Sophia's heart twisted at the sight. "We would just like to tell you that ..."
Sophia's father looked at them each in turn, and Sophia felt her body turn to ice at his following words.
"We're engaged."