cascade | kotlc

10. What Justice Really Is

 The next Monday June came to school, looking more cheerful than she'd ever been before. Sophie was happy for her, although it did make her feel worse about her current predicament.

She'd decided to tell her friends about it. The thought of everyone's pity made her feel as if an angry imp were tearing around inside her body. At least June understood. She never pitied.

Dex barely looked at Sophie as he opened his locker, and his whole body radiated tension.

She cleared her throat. "Hey, Dex."

He didn't turn, keeping one very cold shoulder pointed in her direction.

"I'm sorry. I don't blame you for being mad. I know I've been distant lately."

He reeled around, his face twisted with so much anger she barely recognized him. "You weren't distant with Fitz and Biana on Friday! I saw you hugging them in the hall."

"Dex!" June yelled, turning to face him. "You have no idea what Sophie's going through, it's worse than you could possibly imagine, so shut up! If she doesn't feel comfortable telling you -- which I don't -- she shouldn't have to tell you! This isn't about you being her best friend, Dex, this is about her family!" She looked angry, so incredibly angry. Her eyes were swirling violently again, and Sophie thought she was unleashing the full force of her pain at Dex.

Everyone gets angry. Their reasons are different. But it's not fair for anyone to be on the receiving end.

Calm down, Sophie transmitted to June. He can know. She took a deep breath, preparing for the next words. "Grady and Edaline canceled my adoption."

"Oh." He stared at his feet. "Are you okay?"

She choked back a small sob. The words hurt even more to say out loud. "Not really," she admitted. "But that's why Fitz and Biana knew before you. Alden told them when he asked how they would feel about me living with them."

"What?" His voice was so loud half the prodigies in the atrium turned to stare. "You're going to live with them?"

"Shut up! You've just told everybody here what Sophie's going through, and you don't care, do you? You just care about your stupid animosity with the Vackers-"

"You only like them because you have a crush on Fitz!" Dex yelled. "If you didn't like Wonderboy, you'd-"

"This isn't about me, this is about Sophie, and they'd be friends with you, Dex, they really would! And you just hate them, for literally no reason at all, you absolute-"

"I don't trust them!"

"I don't care if you don't trust them, this isn't about you! Why should Sophie care about your opinion if it's her family-"

"Because I'm her-"

"SHUT UP!" Sophie yelled. "If you won't stop making a scene, I swear to god I'll ditch you-"

"Good!"

"Good!"

Dex kicked the wall and stomped away.

Sophie leaned against her locker, trying to figure out what to feel. Hurt, regret, and anger warred with each other, but anger won. She was in the middle of the biggest crisis in her life, and all Dex could think about was his silly competition with Fitz. It made her want to throw something. Hard. At his head.

June glared at everyone in the hallway. "If you people don't get out immediately, I swear I will make sure you don't leave this-"

Everyone scampered. Sophie grabbed the illegal necklace from the back of her locker, shoved it in her bag, and stomped to elementalism.