Coming Back to You ✔

24. December - Two Years Ago

The sound of pots and pans didn't wake Sophia up, but the smell of cinnamon and sugar wafting from the kitchen sure did. Her eyes flickered open and her stomach immediately grumbled. Dean's arm still rested heavily across her, and she moved at a snail's pace trying to get out from under it, not wanting to wake him.

"That smells amazing," Sophia said when she entered the kitchen.

Sandy looked up from the frying pan and gave a grin that looked exactly like Dean's. "I'm glad to hear that," she said. "Cause this is breakfast."

"Can I help?"

"If you'd like." Sandy handed her a clump of bananas and gestured to a cutting board already sitting out on the counter. "Go ahead and slice those up for me, we need a lot of them."

Sophia took the place next to Sandy and got to work. "Oh, and Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas," Sandy replied. "I hope you've been enjoying the holiday here."

"It's been wonderful," Sophia confessed. "I really can't thank you enough."

Sandy chuckled. "You know, when Dean called me last May and told me about you, I figured there was something special going on. I mean, it's not like he calls me before every single first date, gushing about who he was about to go with."

Sophia paused in surprise. "I didn't know he told you about me that early."

"Well, technically, he told me about you before then," Sandy amended. "But that was just a story about a crazy lady who jumped off the pier to save some random kid."

Sophia half laughed, half groaned. "I assumed you had heard that story, but didn't want to ask," she said.

"Of course, imagine my surprise when I found out that he was taking you out on a date," Sandy continued. "But, and I don't say this to embarrass him, it's become very clear to me that you make him happy. Very happy. So really, it's me who can't thank you enough."

Sophia felt herself blush. She ducked her head and pushed the sliced bananas toward Sandy, unsure of what to say.

"And you?" Sandy asked. "Does he make you happy?"

The question caught Sophia off guard. It's not something she ever would have pictured Dean's mom asking her, and she wondered what her angle was.

"You look like a deer in headlights, it's not a trick question," Sandy said, smiling gently. "But it's important to me that he's in a healthy relationship, not just one that makes him happy. So how you feel matters, too."

Sophia swallowed hard at the care in her voice. "Yeah," she replied. "He's, he's amazing, sometimes I can't seem to put into words just how happy I am."

Sandy gave her a knowing smile. "Good. I'm becoming quite fond of you, so I'm happy it sounds like you'll be sticking around for a while."

Sophia's blush only deepened. "Sandy," she said hesitantly, "um, I'm not sure how much Dean's told you about my past."

A slight look of understanding crossed over Sandy's face. "Not much," she said. "But there was a point when he talked to me a lot about how he could be a good partner when the other person had been through some things in a past relationship he couldn't relate to. When I asked, he said it wasn't his story to tell."

"Right." Just another reason for Sophia to be in love with him. "Um, in college I was with someone who caused me a lot of pain, in a lot of different ways."