Sophie opened her eyes. She was laying down in a cave. Where was she?
"I brought you here- I didn't know if the Healing Center burned down or not."
Sophie turned around to see Keefe sitting on a rock. Tension immediately rose between them. But she let it go.
"Thank you."
Sophie turned away from Keefe. An icy silence fell.
Sophie looked outside where there was rain slowly dripping at the entrance. Why had Keefe brought her here at all?
"Why are we here?" she asked. She glanced at Keefe, who's face seemed haunted and scared.
He gulped.
"You could've just leaped us to Havenfield or you could've found Elwin. Why here?" Sophie asked again, bitterness creeping into her tone.
"I can't trust them," Keefe muttered.
"What?" said Sophie.
"I can't trust them!" Keefe said louder, a tear rolling down his cheek. "That wasn't Biana I was dancing with- it was fake. It was some mirage or something, and I don't know what's going on. What if none of them are real? What if it's all fake? What if I'm fake?" His voice cracked as the terror broke through.
Sophie didn't know what to say.
"What if you're fake?" Keefe whispered, "I can't even look at you anymore." He turned away.
Sophie felt that she might know why. She looked down into a little puddle of rain on the floor. Her reflection shone in it.
She was thin, scarred, and burned. Her hair as been burned off to chin length and in some parts it was singed. Her face was scratched and raw. And her eyes no longer had little golden flecks dancing in them. They were just brown. Plain, blank brown.
And in the inside? What scars were etched in there? Sophie closed her eyes.
It was her faith.
She had hope for a while- but now. . .
Sophie didn't understand.
What was she made for?
Certainly not this, Sophie thought to herself.
It was true. Whatever Sophie was- loving Keefe just felt. . . wrong somehow.
They didn't seem to flow together. Maybe in a different universe.
There was some other girl for him- not her.
No, the fire wasn't evil. It had awakened the truth inside of her. It had shown who Sophie really was. Could Keefe even love her now?
"Sophie? Say something, you're scaring me!" said Keefe's agitated voice from somewhere far away.
Sophie looked at him.
For the first time there was no barrier of jokes and nicknames and friendliness separating them.
They were seeing the raw image of each other- all the filters taken off. No more hiding. No more secrets.
The Lost Cities had only brought Sophie misery and pain. Maybe Forkle was wrong. This wasn't her destiny either.
"I'm fine," Sophie said slowly. They held each others gaze for hours. Keefe fell asleep first.
Sophie slipped out of the cave and began to walk out in the night.
No- there was nothing worth anything to Sophie anymore.
Sophie wanted to be someone they hated- someone reckless, someone feared. There wasn't much kindness left in her anyway.
As Sophie walked, a voice eerily echoed in her head- numbing her brain so that all she could do was continue to walk.
Fire is my friend and it can't hurt me.
***
YOU ARE READING
These Broken Tears || Kotlc
Fanfiction"holding back will break you. holding on will kill you. letting go will destroy you." "maybe it's time to turn back" "we're only kids!" "you were never kids" "please make it stop" "wake up, please let me wake up" "you can't if you're not dreaming" ...
