Lunch with Sophie*

Even though I was used to wearing a posh uniform, dressing up felt foreign to me. It wasn’t me and it brought back memories I’d rather forget. Even still, I needed to put on appearances. Sophie needed to see I was doing well and the best way to do that was dressing the part.

The man in the window wasn’t one I was used to seeing. My hair was slicked back and heavily styled. My stoic face was no different than usual, but the aesthetic was off. Wearing a dark button-down and tie, my slacks were perfectly tailored and shoes were shined to perfection. Without the mop head of mine, I looked like a cold and calculating businessman. Well, as much as my youth allowed.

I stood out. I did not wish to stand out. Even in the brief trip here, I couldn’t stand the stares. Women smiled at me, their intrusive Noise telling me all they would never say aloud. It was the reason why I drove here instead of taking the bus. Besides, Sophie would ask me those needling questions if I didn’t show up in the car she gave me.

Lunch today was at the sort of place you needed reservations for. I don’t know why she insisted on having these at such expensive places. It would have been far better to have a relaxing meal at the burger place down the street.

“Meeting Sophie Rhodes,” I said to the hostess. She gave me a polite smile before leading me into the restaurant. I did my best to ignore the glances she was giving me and focused on the one Noise that was familiar.

“Here you are, sir,” the hostess said before backing away. Didn’t stop her from giving me one last look before going back to the front.

“Jake,” Sophie said with a kind smile. Her eyes ran over me before giving me an approving nod.

“Sophie,” I replied as I took my seat across from her.

“I already ordered. I hope you don’t mind.” I shrugged. “Daniel has a fundraiser to go to tonight, so I have things to do before that.” She paused to look at me. “Everything okay?”

“Fine.” Sophie’s Noise was calm. Out of everyone I’d ever met, she had uncanny control over her emotions. It helped greatly when I was learning to function with my Gift.

Folding her hands together, they rested on the table as she looked at me. “And school?” There was a moment of hesitation, which was enough to alert her that there was something there. “Everything okay at school?”

“Everything is fine. Been working on a research project about terror Gifted.”

The calm and collected Noise broke as ripples of emotion radiated from her. The worry appeared on her face. “Terror Gifted?” I nodded. “Maybe you should pick another one? I can speak with the teacher. Maybe—”

“It’s fine, Sophie. I chose it.”

“Why?”

Another hesitation. Why had I picked the topic? “I felt I needed to.”

She let out a breath, shaking her head. “I would feel much better about this if you hadn’t stopped seeing your therapist.”

“He couldn’t help me.”

“Did you even give him a chance?”

“I’m not purposefully suppressing my emotions, Sophie.”

“I know, but—”

“Even if I can’t feel them the same way other people do, I know they are there. Believe me, I’m fine.”

She didn’t say anything as her eyes stared into mine. I know she desperately wanted something from me, anything. I offered her a smile, doing my best to put what little I could muster into it. Her eyes narrowed. “You’ve gotten better at faking smiles.” My face fell back to its natural state. Of course she could see through it. She raised me through the awakening of my Gift. With a sigh, she relaxed back in her chair. “I wish you would give therapy another chance. I’ve been looking and I found one that works with Gifted people like you. Maybe she can—”

“Sophie,” I said, purposefully softening my voice.

She held up her hands in surrender. “Okay, okay. No more.” She smiled. “You haven’t forgotten how to dress yourself, so I’ll leave it at that for now.”

“Thanks.” I knew she was still worried. She might have been good at controlling her emotions, but she wasn’t perfect. I could easily see the concern and unease in her Noise. Seeing her like that scratched at the walls of my mind. I cared about her and owed her a lot. Part of the reason I declared my independence and moved out at sixteen was to give her and Daniel space. Daniel was a fantastic guy and was completely understanding of our situation, but at the same time, they had just married. The last thing they needed was a teenager ruining their newlywed bliss. After all she had done for her parents and me, she deserved the time to focus on herself.

I needed to give her something more. Something to show her I was doing fine on my own. “I might have made a new friend.”

Curiosity blossomed in her Noise as she perked up at the news. “Oh?”

“Chloe. She’s my partner in the research project.”

“She cute?” she asked with a teasing smile.

“Cute… No. She is considerably more attractive than that.”

“High praise coming from you.” This was exactly what Sophie needed to hear. All the concern and worry were gone. The intensity of her emotions was something I hadn’t seen since she said, ‘I do’ at her wedding. “Going to ask her out?”

I shook my head. “It’s not like that.”

She gave a pout. “She have a boyfriend?”

“Unlikely.”

“Then ask her out!” Her eyes sparkled as she latched onto the idea. “Oh! There is that charity event next weekend Daniel is helping organize. Invite her to that. I’d love to meet her.”

“Sophie—”

“Oh just ask her as a friend,” she said, waving away my objection before I could finish. “There will be free food and dancing. At the very least you can watch the rich people drink a bit too much and wait for someone to make a fool of themselves.” She giggled evilly, no doubt remembering a specific memory of exactly that.

I drew a slow breath before releasing it. “No promises, but I’ll ask.”

“This is exciting news! We should get something to celebrate.”

“Please no.”

It was too late. She was already looking to flag down a waiter. I said nothing as I took slow and steady breaths. It was great that she was in such a good mood now, but what was I going to do? I had said I might have made a new friend. We worked well together and seemed to get along, but there was still a considerable distance between working together at school to schmoozing with the city elite at a ten-thousand-a-plate charity event. The dress alone…

I drummed my fingers against the table as Sophie managed to get a waiter over. She was animatedly ordering something, but my focus was inward. With her so invested in this, not bringing Chloe was out of the question. I needed a solution, but what could that be?

My fingers froze in place as the answer dawned on me. It was still a long shot, but it was probably my best shot at making it happen.

Attention back on my aunt I smiled at her as she looked at me, doing my best to match the smile on her face. I was determined to make this happen, not for my sake, but to ensure that the woman across from me had every reason to continue smiling like that.