Sophitz Forever

Chapter Thirteen

Everyone was staring at Biana, waiting for her to continue. She stared defiantly at Fitz, daring him to stop her. Fitz had his fists clenched and his nails must have been making imprints on his palms. But he said nothing, knowing that his sister, despite being a girl and younger than him, was stronger than him, especially now, when she had him caught. So he stood his ground and pled with his eyes. He was so pitiful in his begging that Sophie almost told Biana to let him alone. Almost.

Biana took no notice of her brother's face or expression. She turned to Sophie. "This is something that I can't tell everyone. Shall we go upstairs?" Fitz looked a little more relieved that everyone wouldn't know, but he still looked scared. "Biana, please...How do you even know? Do you even know?" He was searching, groping wildly for something, anything to say to stop his sister.

"If what your diary says is true...then yes!" Fitz blushed even more.

Keefe snickered, trying to lighten the mood. "Wonderboy keeps a diary? And he writes about girls?" Dex laughed along with him, but his heart really wasn't in it. Both of them felt left out of Fitz's secret. And maybe... something else.

Sophie was nervous. Her heart was beating fast at the thought of what might come. If he liked her, maybe then... but no. She couldn't think that, not yet. She had no idea what was coming. She had only hope, and most of the time, that wasn't enough. Who knew who Fitz liked?

Maybe it was Stina. Maybe that's why he was so embarrassed! Why else would he be so scared for his sister to say? Maybe it was someone humiliating or off-limits or...

Maybe it was someone in the room.

NO. Sophie refused to let herself think these thoughts.

Sophie had liked Fitz since she first met him. She had noticed the dark-haired, teal-eyed boy immediately that day at the museum. She had to admit: she hoped the other girls in her high school class didn't notice him. She had scolded herself for thinking that, because this boy was obviously much older than she was and probably more attracted to the blonde, hot, high-school girls who giggled, wearing designer skinny jeans and crop tops that showed more stomach than Sophie could handle, and showed off their sparkly nail polish. 

Sophie, on the other hand, was only twelve years old when they first met, and her nails were bitten and plain. Her clothes were dark and muted, being a twelve-year-old high school senior.  She had no friends and she was bullied sometimes. But still, she had hoped that this boy would notice her instead.

Maybe, just once, someone would look at her that way.

Apparently, according to Keefe and Biana, Fitz had gone through a lot of girls back then. He was known to be a lady-killer and a flirt at times. He dated one today and another tomorrow. He broke hearts left and right. Sophie tried not to think about this as she pondered Fitz's secret. Apparently, he had broken so many hearts that girls learned to stay away from him. Who was Sophie against all of these other, prettier, smarter girls?

Another story told Sophie about this girl named Carrie Woods, who had had a mega-crush on him. Carrie's friends convinced her to ask Fitz out, but he was talking to Keefe when she did. He liked her, but he didn't want to say so in front his best friend, so he rejected her. Carrie still thought that after all this time, he still didn't like her. She thought he had never liked her.

But he had.

Maybe he still did.

Was the name 'Carrie' going to be the one that was brought up in this conversation?

Sophie thought about all of this as she followed Biana up the stairs. When she reached her bedroom, she slammed the door and sat on the bed. Biana sat down next to her, taking a deep breath.