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"Foster... Foster!" Sophie's head snapped up, like she was waking from a dream. She blinked a couple of times and drew in a deep breath to clear her head. She was in the cafeteria, sitting with Keefe, Dex and Biana, all of whom had amused looks on their faces. Keefe was outright grinning.
"What?" she asked. She started nervously fidgeting with her fork, stabbing the bits of her lunch that were scattered around her plate. Her appetite had once again failed her.
"Just trying to make sure you were still with us," Keefe teased, and elbowed her in the side playfully.
Dex chuckled. "You were zoned out for a pretty long time there. Care to share what's on your mind?"
Sophie swallowed. There was no way she could tell them what had been keeping her thoughts busy the past couple of days. No, it must have been longer than that, probably a few weeks.
It definitely did not help that the source of her distraction was sitting right next to her, still looking at her and waiting for an answer, a questioning eyebrow raised. His lips were curving up at the corners but at the same time she could see the spark of something more serious in his beautiful, ice-blue eyes.
Biana cocked her head at her. "Seriously, what is it?"
Sophie shook her head at all of them. "It’s nothing, I just... didn't sleep well last night, and I'm super tired." It wasn't the exact reason, but it wasn't far from the truth either—sleep had been coming to her less easily each passing night. She glanced at Keefe who was obviously not convinced but he kept quiet, and she was grateful for that.
Soon her friends turned back to their conversation, not paying any more attention to the fact that Sophie was spacing out again.
She had been trying to figure out for a while what it was in the boy next to her that made her feel that way. She used to be so focused, so sure of what she wanted.
Now, she wasn’t sure anymore. She had always been good friends with Keefe. Very good friends. And she had always known that Keefe was very good-looking but she wasn’t aware how much.
She started noticing how pretty the glint in his eyes was whenever he was teasing her about something, or how the slightest bit of his teeth showed when he smirked, or how there was a strand of blond hair that somehow never found its place that he always tried to comb back into place with his fingers.
Plus, their interactions, while still light and friendly, had gradually started turning into something… different. There were more times that Keefe touched a hand to her arm sending warmth through her body, more times that Sophie nudged him in a playful way but at the same time feeling a spark of electricity in the air.
And now that they had started hanging out more often—more often than they should have—she was starting to put two and two together. Because, if she was completely honest, it was becoming more and more unbearable to part every single time and be away from him. But she struggled to accept those feelings.
She hadn’t ever felt anything like it before and she certainly wasn’t ready to find out what would happen if those feelings weren’t mutual.
The sound of a bell snapped Sophie out of her thoughts and she realized that she had spent the entirety of their lunch break lost in her thoughts, without having eaten almost anything. Her friends started getting up from their table and saying goodbye, heading to their respective sessions.
Sophie sighed, and dumped the contents of her plate into the trash, then shouldered her bag and headed out of the cafeteria.
She was already on her way toward the gleaming silver and gold towers for her Telepathy session when she heard running footsteps approaching from behind.
"Hold up, Foster!" Sophie turned back to see a running Keefe catch up with her. "It’s pretty lonely walking on your own all the time, isn’t it?"
"I thought you couldn’t wait for you session with Lady Belva today," Sophie teased.
"Nope, I’m ditching," Keefe laughed. "Plus, I figured, why not try to find out what’s going on with all the embarrassment that was radiating off of you at lunch?"
Sophie flushed slightly. "I don’t want to talk about it."
Keefe eyed her up and down, as if trying to decide if he should say anything else. Finally he just smiled. "If you ever change your mind, you can tell me anything, okay?" His eyes bore into hers with an intensity that made her heart race and her face get even redder.
"Thanks, Keefe," she mumbled. She drew in a quick breath to gain control over her once-again racing thoughts. "Now come on!" she said, gesturing for him to walk with her. "You can play hooky all you want, but I have a session to get to."
"Or you could ditch with me. If you listened to me more often, Foster, I’m sure you’d have more fun and less sleepless nights," Keefe insisted, earning him an elbow in the ribs. "Ow, okay, okay! I’m not going to encourage you to ruin your good reputation."
"What good reputation? I’ve had more tribunals than you ever will," she chuckled.
"Is that a challenge?" he asked, eyes sparking with mischief.
"Definitely not," Sophie said, and by that time they had reached the gate of the silver tower. She paused for a moment, looking back at the blond boy, her heart heavy like always whenever she was about to say goodbye to him. "Well, have fun ditching! Don’t get caught," she added with a wink.
"You know me, Foster," Keefe grinned at her. "You still on for tonight?" he called after her before she disappeared through the gate.
Sophie felt a bit of the nervousness return that she tried to push as deep down as possible.
"Wait, what’s tonight?" she asked, trying not to let her voice give away how excited she felt about seeing him after school too.
Keefe gave her an epic eyeroll. "Movie night. Our weekly tradition? That you organize every week? Does it ring a bell?"
Of course. She had almost forgotten. She really needed to get her act together. "Yeah, absolutely! Come by at the usual time," she said and waved him goodbye.
"Can’t wait," she heard Keefe reply and she could have sworn there was a sense of longing in his look before he disappeared from her sight.
Movie night. It was a really pleasant and exciting event that Sophie was usually looking forward to.
Dex had offered to set up Sophie’s very own television in her bedroom at Havenfield, which prompted the idea of getting together with her friends to watch some of the movies she had missed so much. Luckily Dex, who was more than resourceful, had gotten his hands on quiet a few of Sophie’s favorite movies along with several others, and every week they picked one out to watch together.
Normally, it was a small, cozy group of her friends sitting in front of the screen or sprawled across her bed chatting to each other, not so much engrossed in the movie. It really depended on what they were watching.
And Keefe was there each and every week, no matter what movie they decided on, which was probably the reason why Sophie had been feeling so nervous.
Especially since this time the others seemed to be busy with their own things, telling her they weren’t going to make it. Even Dex had cancelled last minute, saying that he was asked to help out with was some sort of mess at home with the triplets. Something about them flooding the kitchen. As amusing as that would have sounded any other day to Sophie, this time all it did was create a sense of panic in her chest.
It meant that she was going to spend the evening alone with Keefe. And Edaline and Grady had gone out for a date night, leaving Sophie all by herself in the enormous house.
She thought about calling him to reschedule but something deep down kept her from it. She never would have admitted it but she was secretly excited to have some time alone with him.
So Sophie showered and washed her hair, then put on an outfit that was a little more special than the casual ones she usually wore.
It was almost time for Keefe to arrive when she was done with everything.
She found herself pacing in the living room. Her thoughts were driving her absolutely insane. How would she pretend to be relaxed when she was already so obviously nervous, even by herself?
And then she heard a knock on the front door that made her heart jump into her throat.
She had to muster up all of her courage to bring herself into the foyer, and she still hesitated before she grabbed the handle and opened the door.
Keefe was standing there, looking his normal, relaxed self. He had changed out of his uniform into a very fitting jerkin and pants combo, no cape. Sophie smiled when she remembered how much they both hated capes. She also noticed that he had put even more care than usual into doing his hair.
"Well, as fun as it is to just stand here, I thought we were going to watch a movie," he winked. "Unless it’s outside, of course."
Sophie rolled her eyes but couldn’t keep herself from smiling. "It’s not," she gestured for him to come in.
"And the others are?" Keefe asked when he noticed that she was the only one inside.
"They’re not coming." Sophie reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, suddenly feeling very self-conscious.
"Oh, so it’s just going to be the two of us then?" Keefe sounded surprised, with a hint of excitement in his voice that Sophie didn’t know where to put.
She nodded. "If that’s okay…"
"Are you kidding? That’s amazing. I finally get to pick the movie."
Keefe’s excitement started rubbing off on Sophie and she felt a little more at ease. "Okay, you do that. I’m going to get some snacks from the kitchen. You can head on up and make yourself at home."
"Look at you, all hospitable," Keefe remarked in an amused tone, as he started climbing the stairs.
Sophie sighed. She was aware that she was overdoing it a tad. After all, it was the same thing every week. Why would it be any different today?
She quickly disappeared into the kitchen, checking the cupboards for something to eat. By the time she got up to her room, Keefe had already picked out the movie and slid the disk into the dvd player.
"What are we watching?" Sophie asked as she plopped down on the bed next to him.
"It’s called Megamind," Keefe replied, showing her the dvd’s cover. "The dude looks so goofy. Look at his enormous head. Why is he all blue?"
Sophie chuckled. "He’s from another planet. And good choice, might I add."
She had seen that movie before, and she did like it a lot. It was so much fun, with a great sense of humor. Sophie was not surprised Keefe had ended up choosing it—she knew he was going to love it.
Then it dawned on her that apart from it being funny Megamind also had its romantic moments, and she could already imagine what it was going to be like watching those with Keefe sitting right next to her. She tensed up at that, trying to brush away the silly thoughts that came with the realization.
"What?" she heard Keefe say. She was sure he sensed her changing emotions, making it even harder to relax.
"Nothing," she mumbled, grabbing the remote quickly, and pushing the play button, letting out a breath as the movie started. "I’m just excited."
Keefe was still glancing at her from the corner of his eyes, so she hid behind her hair and focused on the movie.
"Oh, you brought salipops," Keefe said gleefully when he saw the bowl sitting in Sophie’s lap. He reached out to grab a handful of the flaky snack that looked like popcorn and tasted like nachos. He popped several into his mouth, crunching them with so much enthusiasm that Sophie giggled and copied him.
"I know how much you love them," Sophie replied, then kicked herself mentally. She was sure it sounded a lot like she had just admitted to some of her affection toward Keefe.
"Plus," she quickly added to distract from her previous statement, "they are great for this."
She tossed a flake into the air above her and caught it with her mouth.
"Impressive," Keefe admitted, "but watch this." He tossed his even higher, and with that they started a competition to see who could throw their salipops the highest while still being able to catch it with their mouth. Eventually, they even started tossing it into each others’ mouths, and Sophie was giggling so hard by the end of it that she almost choked on a piece.
Keefe patted her back until she was done coughing and they decided to cool it off for a bit. They turned back to the movie. Sophie loved how excited Keefe got at the amazing songs peppered throughout the movie, as well as the many jokes they both laughed at. He asked about things every once in a while, and she did her best to explain them to him.
"‘Shool’?" he asked, confused.
"He means ‘school’," Sophie said. "He doesn’t know much about how things on Earth work."
"Kind of like how you felt when you arrived in our world, huh?" Keefe teased.
"Hey, I think I was a fast enough learner. I am pretty smart you know."
"I know you are, Foster," he replied with a gentle smile, with warmth in his voice that made Sophie’s stomach fill with butterflies.
As the movie progressed, they got to the more romantic parts Sophie had been dreading. She tried her best to hide behind her hair but it seemed to drag out for an eternity and the silence between them was too heavy and made her feel especially awkward.
She became aware of how close they were sitting together, barely a sliver of space between them, the cushy surface of the bed making them lean toward each other. And when Sophie—with her eyes glued to the screen—lifted her hand to the bowl again to grab some more salipops, her fingers came into contact with something that didn’t feel like the texture of the snack.
Glancing down, she realized that Keefe had his hand in the bowl at the same time. Her eyes shot up at his face, and she could feel blood rushing to her cheeks. Surprising as it was, Keefe’s cheeks were also flushed.
"Sorry," she jerked her hand away.
"No, you go first," Keefe insisted, his voice sounding thick.
Sophie was puzzled. No jokes? No teasing remarks? This wasn’t anything like him. It almost seemed like he was nervous too.
She brushed the thought away as she took another handful of the savory flakes and munched on them quietly, trying to pay attention to the movie. But there was a new kind of tension between them, and Sophie suspected Keefe could feel it too, regardless of being an Empath.
"I want to be friends with Minion," Keefe finally broke the silence. Sophie watched Megamind’s comical sidekick and laughed in agreement.
"I’m sure you two would get along great. Plus, he has great style, so I’m sure he could give you some advice for your hair," she teased, glancing up at his head.
"What’s wrong with my hair?" he asked, an eyebrow raised.
"Only that it’s got some salipop stuck in it," Sophie chuckled, reaching up to brush it out.
Keefe froze. "If you mess up my perfect hair, Foster, you are going to pay," he said, in a deep but playful voice.
"That would be too bad, wouldn’t it?" she grinned, as she brought her hand up and tousled his hair.
Keefe’s eyes narrowed in mock anger. "Oh, you’ve just made a huge mistake."
He reached over and started messing up Sophie’s hair. She squealed and giggled and tried to climb away from Keefe, further onto her bed, arms in front of her head in protest. He followed, set on getting back at her.
Sophie retorted by reaching out and mussing up Keefe’s hair even more and the boy was doing everything in his power to avoid her swift attacks, while also laughing at the comical combination of Sophie’s determined look and her hair in disarray.
When Keefe jumped out of the way to get away from her, the mattress made him bounce and lose his balance. He fell back onto the bed, and since he was holding Sophie’s arms he dragged her with him. She ended up falling on top of him, hair everywhere around her, both of them laughing their heads off.
Keefe brushed her blond locks away from his face, so he could see and breathe properly again. "I guess now I know not to take hair advice from you."
Sophie chuckled lightly at that.
She knew she was supposed to get up but it felt so nice to lie there with Keefe, resting her head on his chest. She listened to his steady breathing and his heart that was still beating pretty fast after their playful fight. It made her relax too, and for a moment everything around her disappeared, the sound of the movie seeming far away.
Slowly, hesitantly, Keefe’s hand reached up to her head and gently started running his fingers through her hair.
Sophie froze. She had no idea why he would do that but it felt amazing and she had to admit that she was enjoying it. So she sunk into it, relaxing with the sensation of Keefe’s fingers combing through her hair. It was a gentle motion but it felt like there was a sense of longing to it.
His heartbeat was still fast-paced, she noticed in astonishment, even though a few minutes had passed already since their game. Then again, she could feel her own heart follow a similar rhythm…
Sophie felt Keefe’s other arm wrap around her waist. With that, her heart was properly hammering in her chest, and she could feel her entire body blush.
What is this? she wondered.
What was Keefe doing, like he just wanted to hug her against him, not letting her go?
She had a sudden urge, a burning curiosity to look up at him and see what his face looked like at that moment but something stopped her. A feeling that she knew what would happen if they made eye contact.
What if we kissed right now? The image in her head made her stomach fill with butterflies, causing a twisting, aching sensation that somehow felt really good.
Sophie couldn’t believe herself and at the same time she knew it was exactly what she wanted. The conflicting emotions were making her confused, and she could feel them holding her back. She felt afraid, a sense of vulnerability that made her doubt everything about that moment.
Keefe’s hand slowed in the caressing motion. "Sophie?" he whispered, his voice incredibly gentle.
Sophie was so surprised that Keefe had called her by her first name that she had to lift her head and look him in the face. Their eyes locked and the intensity of his look made her head swim.
"Yeah?" she asked so quietly it was barely a whisper, her voice trembling. She was sure her face was crimson red, and she could feel her heart pounding in her chest.
Keefe’s expression softened, and she could feel an alarm go off inside as he opened his mouth to speak. "I…"
Her panic must have been radiating off of her, though, because Keefe paused for a few seconds with his mouth open. Then he closed his mouth and just smiled. But his smile seemed half-hearted.
"I think I’ll go get a drink from the kitchen," he said eventually. "Would you like something too?"
Sophie’s ears were ringing from the tension so she wasn’t sure she heard correctly. The words weren’t what she was expecting, and they more than surprised her. She felt disappointed but she noticed that Keefe’s face showed a similar sentiment.
"Oh, um… no, I’m good thanks," she replied. She climbed aside, letting Keefe get up, and watched as he got off her bed and left the room without another glance at her.
She was perplexed. It had sounded like he was going to tell her something important, like he was about to… confess something.
She thought back to how panicked she had gotten.
Why? Why does this scare me so much? Sophie thought. This is Keefe after all. I trust him, and nothing will change that. But what if I misread something, and it wasn’t what I thought it would be? What if I’m just hanging on to false hope? What if it’s just wishful thinking?
There were too many ‘what if’s. She felt a huge knot in her throat, and she tried to fight back the urge to cry. It was all so confusing, the intensity of all those emotions, and it scared her.
But she knew that if she didn’t do something soon, the rest of the night would be really awkward. They would finish the movie in silence, and then Keefe would go back home, probably making things between them even worse afterwards. And she couldn’t bear the thought of that.
She knew what she wanted and what she had to do.
Sophie jumped off her bed and made her way to the staircase. She had just passed the first floor on the way down when Keefe emerged from the kitchen.
"Did you need something?" he asked, slightly confused. ‘You could have told me to bring it upstairs.’
"No, I…"
Wow, this was harder than she thought it would be. Sophie got to the second step from the bottom, Keefe standing below her on the ground level, waiting for her answer. She took a deep breath to clear her head and summon her courage. "I just feel like you wanted to tell me something earlier. And… I want to hear it."
Keefe’s cheeks turned a faint red. "Oh… No, it’s nothing really," he said, averting his eyes and reaching a hand up to run his fingers through his still slightly disheveled hair.
"You can tell me, Keefe," she insisted. "Seriously."
He eyed her suspiciously. "You seemed so scared upstairs. I didn’t want to put you under any pressure."
"I know," Sophie mumbled. "And you won’t… I just… I think I know what you wanted to say but… it scares me." She couldn’t seem to look him in the eye but she still blushed deeply.
"Why?" Keefe asked.
"This whole thing is just new to me, that’s all. It makes me feel…"
"Vulnerable?" he finished for her.
Sophie looked up at him, completely surprised. "Yeah," she said. "You can read that with your Empathy?"
Keefe shook his head. "No, but it’s the exact same way I’ve been feeling. The exact same way I feel right now, too," he admitted, and he stepped up on the stair beneath her.
She blinked repeatedly, feeling her heart beat faster. There was no way anymore that she had misunderstood the situation. Or their moment in her bedroom. Or any of the other moments they had previously shared.
Just like right then. His eyes were on her face, on her nose, her lips. Trying to take in everything about her. And Sophie was doing the same. Her eyes wandered from his hair to his nose, to his chin. Back up to his eyes. Gorgeous, ice-blue eyes that were mesmerizing her, staring right into her soul. She couldn’t fathom how much she loved that they resembled the most beautiful scene from a snowy day.
He took her hands in his, causing the familiar sparks to erupt through Sophie’s skin. "I don’t want to say anything that would make you uncomfortable. Even if that meant that I would have to feel this way for the rest of eternity."
Sophie was stunned. Keefe seemed so genuinely honest and sweet at that moment—it was the side of him that made her develop feelings for him in the first place. Feelings that she was now able to confront.
"I like you, Keefe," she whispered, surprised by the words herself. Keefe’s face lit up with such warmth that it made her heart melt. "And I don’t want you to feel like that. I want you to be happy. I want…"
Words failed her. His eyes were filled with the same intensity from earlier that made her dizzy and turned her whole body into jelly. And they were standing so close to each other that she could feel his breath on her cheeks, that their noses were practically touching…
Before she could change her mind, Sophie leaned down and touched her lips to his. Keefe drew in a sharp breath, frozen for a moment, but recovered quickly and kissed her back.
It was everything she ever wanted. It felt like flying in the bright, clear sky, or a breath of fresh air in the early days of spring. Like sunshine itself, so warm and pure. A squeeze of Keefe’s hands let her know that he was enjoying it just as much as her. It didn’t last long but as she pulled away she realized she wanted more.
So she leaned in a second time. And a third. And once more. Sophie kept leaning in for short, soft kisses, but she couldn’t seem to get enough. And Keefe seemed just as eager himself.
Finally, Sophie just kept her mouth pressed against his, not breaking apart anymore. She let go of Keefe’s hands and brought her arms up around his neck. Keefe wrapped his arms around her waist, squeezing her against him.
Their mouths danced together, moving in such a delicate, harmonious way that it felt like they had always belonged to each other.
I wish I could do this forever, Sophie realized. It was pure bliss. Like a safe place, filled with all the warmth in the world.
Keefe must have read her feelings—or he felt the same way himself—because he squeezed her tighter, until she could feel his heart beating against her chest, along with her own. She could sense the same longing and desperation from Keefe in their kisses that mirrored hers, knowing that deep down they had both wanted to do this for so long.
They parted from each other eventually but neither of them removed their arms from one another. Both of them were still trying to get their breathing steady, with their cheeks flushed but smiles spreading on their faces. Sophie could see the same light in Keefe’s eyes that she knew he must have seen in hers.
"If nothing else, this proves that you are the best Telepath in the world," he told her. "This was exactly what I had in mind."
Sophie giggled. "That makes two of us, then."
Keefe flashed a glorious smile at her that made her insides all warm. He leaned in to plant a kiss on her forehead, then another on her nose, her cheek, and he gave her another small peck on the lips, making Sophie’s heart sing.
"I guess we missed the end of the movie," she said eventually.
"Totally worth it," Keefe grinned at her. "But that doesn’t mean we can’t sit on your bed and talk. Or even have another nice cuddling session."
"Sounds like an awesome idea," Sophie admitted, blushing all the way to her ears and feeling out of her mind with happiness.
Keefe took her by the hand and led her up the stairs.
"Oh, and Sophie?" he said as she looked up to meet his eyes that radiated pure joy. "I like you too."