Shopping with Sophie (Chloe PoV)

After a great deal of panicking and no small amount of hyperventilating, the moment had come where I was alone with Sophie. I’d dressed my best while remaining in the realm of casual and I was nothing but a bundle of nerves when separating from Jake. It was a good sort of nervous though. Even with the stress, I was looking forward to this. Not to mention I was expecting some good things from dinner. From the way Sophie and Daniel spoke, his skills in the kitchen were quite good.

Sophie herself was nothing short of amazing and I envied her energy. She was upbeat and had an infectious energy about her. Any nerves I had about spending time with her had been eliminated quickly as she pulled me into her world. In a way, she reminded me of Jake—if he could smile, laugh, and otherwise show emotion. She had a wicked sense of having her fingers on the pulse of a situation. There were times I swore she had some form of Jake’s Gift with how keen her insight was.

We were taking a break at a small coffee shop inside the mall, the spoils of our searching surrounding the table. Even though I’d insisted on paying for myself, Sophie wouldn’t hear it. Most of the stuff was mine too, which made me feel bad. I didn’t know if she was treating me as a little sister, or a daughter to dress up.

It felt good.

“Here it is!” she said, drawing my attention to her. At the same time, she held out her phone. Displayed was a picture of a smiling man who looked like a buff Jake minus the hair. His hand was resting on a smiling woman who looked enough like Sophie to know the two were family. Between the two was a tiny kid, beaming a smile filled with teeth—minus one missing from the front.

“Oh my god. That’s Jake?”

“Yep! Cutest little brat in existence. I spoiled him rotten whenever I saw him.” She giggled mischievously, turning the phone around to look at it herself. “I stuffed so much candy in him then unleashed him on his parents.” Her eyes lingered on the photo as her smile gradually faded. “Sometimes, I miss the Jake I used to know. Don’t get me wrong, I love Jake as he is and wouldn’t change him for the world, but… he is a different person than he was before his Gift awakened. Always had his emotions on his sleeve and so expressive!”

I settled back in my seat, spinning my straw around my drink. “That doesn’t sound like him at all.”

“He had a great sense of humor too—for a ten-year-old.”

“Is that when he got his Gift?” Her cheerful demeanor turned more somber. “Sorry, I don’t mean to pry.”

“Don’t apologize. You’ll never hear it from him. Not that he wouldn’t talk about it, but his memories before the Gift… Well… They aren’t all there—another issue entirely. Anyway! I think it was around that time he started developing signs of having a Gift.”

There was a lot to unpack there. It sounded like she was telling me his memory loss, if that’s what it was, was separate from his Gift. Sophie continued before I could truly unpack everything.

“I don’t know too much of the details since I was busy taking care of my parents at the time, but I remember Olivia talking about how Jake was starting to get severe migraines. It was bad enough that he spent some time in the hospital. Next thing I know, they visit and the kid I knew was just… gone.”

“That quick?”

She nodded. “You are seeing him after years of therapy and classes, so he has somewhat normal mannerisms. That first year or two? Nothing.” She rubbed at her arm, clearly remembering something unpleasant. “It’s a bit morbid, but he was something like a walking corpse. You would have to prompt him to eat. Remind him to drink. When you left him alone, he would just… sit there. It was like he didn’t care if he lived or died.”

She took a deep breath as if clearing away old memories. She **** a smile as the mood shifted off the somber tone it had taken. “But he’s been doing so much better now. I was terrified when he moved out. Sixteen and in his condition? Yet I’ve watched how those two years transformed him. Enough that he even got himself a girlfriend!” I felt my cheeks heat at the intensity of her smile. At the same time, I felt a knot in my stomach. It sounded like he grew a lot in two years. The two years he had met Alexis and her sister.

“But lately?” Her question grabbed my attention, her hand reaching out to rest on my arm. “He’s almost unrecognizable. When he brought you to our weekly dinner together, it hit me how much he had changed. The way his eyes always found you. The way he reached for you, touched you.” She stopped, wiping a tear from her eye. “It was like seeing all my efforts finally paying off. I know how hard it must be and how distant he must feel, but I assure you, not once have I ever seen Jake react like he does when he is with you. So thank you, Chloe. Thank you so much.”

God, it was hard to keep myself composed hearing the weight of emotion in her voice. “I didn’t do anything. If anything, Jake’s the one who has changed me. I was in a bad place before he came into my life.”

There it was. That look again. The look that she understood the situation more than she should. She smiled at me, but it wasn’t a happy smile. It was something more than that. “You know you are always welcome at our house. No matter what, for as long as you want. No questions asked.”

“I—” My words failed me as I fought against the dark thoughts that threatened to ruin the moment. Instead, I simply nodded as I avoided her gaze.

“I hate to pry, but I won’t forgive myself if I don’t ask and I need to know. Chloe… Are you safe at home?”

I looked up at her, eyes wide. My thoughts instantly went to him. I opened my mouth and paused. Blinking a few times, I gave her a smile. “Of course.”

Her gaze lingered for a few seconds before she relaxed. “That’s good to hear. My offer still stands though. Always.”

“Thank you, but I’m fine.” Her worry confused me. Why was she asking if I was safe at home? Of course I was. Leon was a cop. It was the safest place I could ever be. No way would he let anything happen to either me or mom.

“There are a few more places I want to stop by,” Sophie said, drawing my thoughts to the present. “I can’t wait to see you in this skirt I saw last week…”