A Storm Is Brewing

Crisis Talks

Leah POV

If I had told Sophie the truth last night, she would have understood my decision. She would've understood why it was so important to me to have her make that decision in front of Hannah, to have that moment of telling Hannah that she couldn't get past what she had done. That's what I meant by closure. I trusted that she would choose me, but I wanted her to have the opportunity to feel like, for once, she was in control of the ending between her and Hannah, something she had never had before.

Flashback:

Our last Christmas as an unmarried couple had been everything I had hoped for and more. We had our own moments on Christmas morning: FaceTime with Sophie's family and going to my own family for Christmas dinner. Nothing could've prepared me for seeing Hannah stand in the doorway just two days before the beginning of our wedding journey.

It had been an ordinary day. Sophie had left just after 4 p.m. to collect something, letting me know she would be stopping off at Paula's on the way home. As the doorbell rang just after 6 p.m., I outwardly sighed at the thought that Sophie had forgotten her keys again, wondering how she could possibly have her car keys but not her house key.

"You're such an -" I chuckled as I pulled the door open.
"Hi Leah, Hannah."

I recognised the face right away; how could I not? I had spent months thinking Sophie and Hannah had gotten back together when we were apart. I felt my body tense, and I wondered at one point if I might be considering punching her square in the face for the hurt she had caused Sophie, my Soph. I knew what it was before I had even answered her; it was a last-ditch attempt to win Sophie back.

I wanted to be angry for myself, angry that Sophie's past was once again coming back to cause trouble between us, but this wasn't her fault. All I could feel was anger towards Hannah for her selfish, arrogant belief that Sophie would be vulnerable enough to even hear her out. It was clear from her stance, from her arrival tonight, and from the look on her face that she believed Sophie would fall right back into the arms of the girl who hadn't just left her to move country but had cheated on her in the process.

"Is Sophie here?"
"No." I said quietly.
"Can I come in? It's really cold."

I thought of saying, no, you can't come in; this is my house. I thought of asking her who she thought she was. I also thought of telling her to fuck away off back to New Zealand, where she was far, far away from Sophie, my Soph. In the end, though, I decided that yes, she could come in. This wasn't because I wanted to hear what she had to say; the thought of hearing it alone was enough to break my heart; it was because I wanted her to know that Sophie wasn't that person anymore. She wasn't that person who hated herself so much for who she was that she would settle for someone who couldn't give her the love she needed—that first-place love.

Someone needed to knock Hannah down a peg or two, and I wanted it to be Sophie who did it. Finally, after years, I wanted Sophie to be able to say, you don't get to do that anymore.

"Yeah, sure. She might not be home for a while, though." I smiled through gritted teeth.
"I'm okay to wait. What a lovely place you have here."
"Thanks. Can I get you anything? Tea? Coffee? Something stronger?"
"Tea would be lovely. Milk and one sugar, please."
"Take a seat; I'll bring it through."

The second I got into the kitchen, I tried to call Sophie, but her phone must've been out of service. I waited for the kettle to boil, looking down to notice that my fingertips were white from the grip I had on the countertop.

Stay composed, Leah. This is for Sophie.

"Here you go." I smiled, handing the cup to Hannah and hoping she burned her tongue on the tea.