Save each other // Joel Miller

Crossed line

Joel entire body felt as if it was on fire and freezing to the floor at the same time. He opened his mouth but no sound came out. Sophie was looking down at him with the most intense and innocent look, her large, round, green eyes darting around his face, waiting for any response. Her question had put Joel into a stupor and he had no idea how to respond.

He closed his mouth and took a deep breath in through his nose. Letting it out with an auditable huff.

"No." He spoke roughly, thinking carefully about what he would say next. "We care for each other... a lot." He bore his eyes into hers to make sure he really spoke to her. "I care for you more than I can handle, Sophie, but love hasn't been brought up." He let the wet rag sit on her leg, moving them to stretch out across the cushions and her back leaning against the arm of the couch.

Sophie looked down at her hands and spoke out softly, almost too quiet to hear. "Sounds an awful lot like love to me." She didn't look up even as he stood and made his way to the other side of the coffee table, cleaning up the mess on the ground. "I feel... brave around you. I feel something.." she clutched her chest with her hands and he could see the blush paint over her cheeks from the corner of his eye.

Joel chuckled softly to himself, thinking about the idea that Sophie before the accident would have never brought this conversation up herself. He couldn't blame her for acting differently, even if he didn't quite understand. He scooped up the rest of the broken mug and made his way into the kitchen, letting the pieces fall into the garbage as he let her hushed words repeat themselves in his head. 'Sounds an awful lot like love to me.' It made his heart leap uncontrollably.

A part of him wanted to storm back into that room and scoop her up and kiss her. To make her really feel what she meant to him. But he couldn't and he knew it. Her face twisted in agony when she dropped the mug and it had something to do with this new development and conversation. He couldn't cause her anymore pain. He would let her go at her own pace, and wait as long as he needed to.

He walked back into the room to find Tommy, on his knees, examining Sophie's leg under the rag. He turned towards Joel with a fire behind his eyes.

"What the hell happened, Joel?" He asked, glaring at his older brother. Joel rolled his eyes and sat down.

"Just an accident. Calm down, ain't nothing to be pissed at." Joel wanted to strangle him. He wanted to jump over that table beat him to a pulp for coming over and telling him that he wouldn't ruin his relationships for Sophie and then act like this, like some overprotective boyfriend.

Tommy scoffed and turned back to Sophie, replacing the rag and standing up.

"I'm fine, really!" She smiled sweetly at him and something in Joel's stomach went sour. He knew he was now acting like the overprotective boyfriend but he couldn't help himself. His jealousy burned through him as he watched her look so pretty at anyone but him. He missed the shelled up Sophie, the one that only opened up when she was with him, in the solitude of the patient rooms or at her study breaks. The Sophie that reserved her sugar sweet smiles and golden laughter for only him.

"She said she's fine, brother. Sit." Joel shot out at Tommy. He paused before letting out a frustrated sigh and complying, sitting across from Joel. Joel eyed Tommy over his mug as he took a long sip. Tommy rubbed the side of his face and then gestured his hands toward the empty table in front of him.

"No drink for me?" He asked half joking, half irritated. Sophie nervously chuckled and swung her legs over the edge of the couch, leaning over, and pushed her cup to him.

"That's my fault, sorry about that. Take mine." Tommy gave her a grateful look and shook his head no.

"No way, a gentleman never steals a drink from a beautiful woman." He pushed the coffee cup back to her as her cheeks flushed and Joel bit the inside of his lip, hard. Joel gave his mug a squeeze and set it down in front of him. The other two looked up to him.