SOFIA | ❨ NEVILLE LONGBOTTOM ❩ UNDER MAJOR EDITING!

Chapter Seventy Six.

Tuesday.

Sofia shuffled in her place, her stomach feeling like jelly as she did so. The food that filled her sense was nauseating, and she couldn't bare to keep anything else down but one single piece of toast. She had a bad feeling from the moment she had woken up that day, and it didn't seem to have any intention of faltering away.

"Sof, why aren't you eating?" Neville asked from beside her, concern taking over his whole body as he watched his loved stare blankly down at her food.

The past few months for them had been amazing. To Neville, he felt like he was in some sort of endless day dream. They spent almost every waking moment together. They made love, studied together, hung out at their spot every opportunity they had, and it all was magical to him.

Until, the hurricane hit. And, Sofia had received a letter from her Mother that her Father had been put into the hospital.

He hated seeing her like this. It was agonizing. She was simply just waiting for it to happen.

"Not hungry. I'm alright, though, Nev. Don't worry about me."

He knew that her statement was false. He could tell from that look in her eyes. She wasn't alright. Something was wrong.

"So... are we going to that party on Friday? Hufflepuffs always seem to somehow manage the perfect end of the year parties!" Lily exclaimed, trying to brighten the mood a bit.

Most of them turned the offer down, only Dean and Ginny agreeing to go with her.

The group attempted to fill the silence with small chatter, noticing how Sofia was clearly down in the dumps. They all knew the situation, but they somehow hoped that they could make it a little easier for her to manage.

That's when McGongall walked through the corridors. She skimmed the Great Hall with a nervous look on her face, and she held a piece of paper in her hand. Her breath hitched when she saw Sofia picking at her food.

"Miss Cherith?" Sofia suddenly heard from behind her. She turned her body to meet eyes with her favorite Professor.

"Oh, hi, Professor McGonagall. How are you?"

McGonagall smiled small at the girl, inside beating herself up.

"I'm alright, dear. But, I need you for a bit. Bring your things, please..."

Sofia's stomach dropped. Her gut feeling was right. This wasn't normal. It couldn't be about her work, or her grades. It was something worse.

"Um, okay..." Sofia muttered, beginning to collect her things. Neville helped her, putting her bag on her shoulder. Her friends watched intently, chills forming onto Hermione's neck.

She knew something was wrong, too.

"Can I go with her?" Neville asked politely, but on the inside, freaking out.

McGonagall shook her head, "No, Longbottom. This is a personal matter."

Sofia felt like the walls were caving in around her. She knew what was coming.

The walk to McGongall's office was a familiar one, but an anxiety induced one. With every step, her breath seemed to become more unnatural. And, her nausea was becoming worse.

When they stepped into the office, Sofia noticed how the sun made the colorful window pane reflect onto the wooden walls. It soothed her a bit. It reminded her of home.

"Miss Cherith..." McGonagall breathed out, "I received this from your Mother."

She held out the piece of yellow paper, and Sofia slowly grabbed it from her hand. It was flipped over, and Sofia was trying to muster up the courage to flip it to its original side.

When she did, that's when the hurricane hit.

It was a telegram.

She stared at it, and she swallowed the puke that was edging it's way out of her.

"Your Father... he—" McGonagall came to an abrupt stop.

"Your Father passed, Miss Cherith."

What is the worst pain you've ever felt? Was it when you broke your arm as a child? Was it when you fell down a flight of stairs and almost broke your neck? Was it when your first love left you? What was it? What did the doctors ask you? Did they ask to rate your pain on a scale from one to ten?

This was the ten. No amount of broken bones, broken hearts, could ever compete with the shock wave of hurt that spread throughout Sofia Cherith's body. It engulfed her, offering her a place to hide from the woman standing in front of her. She was frozen in place. She felt as if that if she moved a single muscle,

Sofia would die, too.

Her heart felt like it was giving out on her. Everything in that moment, it was pushed onto her. The weight of the world's pain fell onto Sofia's back that day, and she had absolutely no idea how she was going to carry it.

"I'm so sorry, dear..."

That's all the Professor could get out. Sofia wasn't crying, no. She was doing something even worse. She wasn't saying anything. Her face went blank, but her eyes remained on the paper that she grasped onto with both hands. There wasn't a tear, a scream, a sob, nothing. Just silence.

Sofia thought she knew what emptiness was. She thought that she was empty enough already to fit the whole castle into her own body, along with all the students who were inside of it. But, she was wrong. The world always proved her wrong.

The world would always make sure Sofia Cherith knew, that it didn't deserve her.