our crooked love

Foxfire University (part 1)

"Driver's License?"

"Why would I need my- ok fine, yes."

"Underwears?"

"MUM. I need to-"

"Hmm. Not that you'll be needing them, eh?" Edaline shot Sophie a cheeky grin.

"Mum, I'm going now." Sophie squeezed her foster mother with a tight hug. Their dog, Jolie, kept bouncing on Sophie until she picked her up. "You're not going to miss me very much, are you?" Jolie barked and licked Sophie's nose. She laughed. "That tickled, Jolie!" She turned to her mother again, who was tearing up. "Call everyday, okay? Wait no, you might be busy. Call every weekend, okay?" She sniffled. 

"Mum, I'll be 8 hours ahead of you, but I'll try!" Sophie kissed her cheek. Grady honked the car in the driveway, getting their attention. "It's 5:31 Soph, and I'm not so sure that you want to miss your flight!" Sophie laughed and waved goodbye to her mom and their dog. She got in the car after she octuple checked that she had all her stuff in the trunk. "Let's go then, shall we?"
"Only after my cup of tea."
"I'm afraid all the Americans have knocked the tea into the ocean, Father."
"Well, let's hope you don't start." Sophie giggled and they pulled out of the driveway and started their way to the airport.

"This place is huge." Sophie said as they pulled up to the airport. She clutched her backpack as she and her dad stared at the terminal she was supposed to go in. 

"Fitz says that Foxfire is even bigger. I'm not discouraging you or anything, but you can always come home whenever you want, okay? And speaking of Fitz-"

"No boys, I got it."

"No-well,- I mean no boys in a, uh, sexual way."

Sophie gawked at him. "Dad, I'm going to make this easier for us and just say-"

"And I bought this, just in case." He reached behind his seat and pulled out a small package labeled 'CONDOM'. 

"Grady! I am not hooking up with anybody! I am very hurt by the fact that you do not trust me!" Sophie exclaimed looking at the condom and back at her dad again.  She wondered how awkward it must have been for a 50 year old man to walk out of a store with THAT. Hopefully nobody got the wrong idea. *cough cough* drake *cough cough*

"Sophie, I trust you. I don't trust THEMM." He waved his arms exaggeratedly at their surroundings. He really did look worried for her. Sophie softened a bit. "Well, what's the worst that can happen? I end up marrying a guy named Bartholemew? Or Jinkie? Or, uhh, Neefe?"

"Ew, what kind of name is Keefe?"

"Neefe, Dad, I was making stuff up."

"Whoever you marry, make sure they have a nice name. Unlike 'Keefe'. Who names their child 'Keefe'?"

"There's no one named 'Keefe', Dad. I promise I'll stay focused. I have to go now!"

Grady looked at Sophie, smiling. His eyes were a little too shiny. "We're really going to miss you."

"Aw, Dad. I'll miss you too. Now I really gotta go!"

"Okay, go then! Bye, we love you! Call when you land!" He said, shooing her out of the car.

"Byee!!" She called as she walked away from her dad. Her phone started buzzing because Biana was calling. "Hey Bi, what's up?"

"SOPHIEEEE!!! WHERE ARE YOU???" came the shout from her. It was so loud she could almost actually hear it in real life. Sophie turned to the baggage check place, and there she was. Biana. Screaming, "SOPHIEEE? ARE YOU THEREEE???" into her phone. Sophie hung up on her and walked over behind her. 

"SHit, no wifi already?!" Biana stared at her phone. Sophie tapped on her shoulder, laughing as Biana's jaw dropped. "Sophieeee!" she finally squealed, hugging her. "Hi, Biana." Sophie grinned at her best friend. 

"Okay, so since my hair and accessories suitcase was overweight, I had to take out one of my hair straighteners and, like, two bags of mascaras and eyeliner. Uh, the nerve of that guy! Like, excuse YOU, because the only thing overweight here is YOU, you FATTIE." She pointed at a, uh, round man yelling at another person with an overweight bag. Honestly, Sophie wasn't even surprised anymore.

"Ok, well, I have room for some stuff in my backpack. I can fit ONE makeup bag and ONE straightener. You have to lose the other bag." Biana pouted. "We can meet at the cafeteria when we get to campus and I'll give you your stuff there."

Biana grinned at her mischievously. "Guess what? I bribed the headmaster to let us share a dorm!"

Sophie gawked at her. "No way!"

"Way! I found my old piggy bank when I was packing! Ha! I knew I was a genius!" Sophie smiled at Biana, shaking her head. She was glad she got to spend the rest of the year with her.

**when the plane is landing**

"Biana. Biana. Biana. Biana. Biana. Bian-"

"Shut the fuck up Sophie, I'm trying to get my bloody beauty sleep."

"We're here! Look out the window!" Sophie said excitedly, moving her head so Biana could look out the window. It was nighttime in the city, so all the lights were on, and it was so beautiful. Sophie thought she could almost see the seashore. "Wow. It's really gorgeous, isn't it?" Biana said, the buildings reflecting off in her blue-green eyes. In the sunlight, some would even say they were teal. Sophie couldn't relate. Her's were just brown. Biana said that there were gold flecks in them, but that could have been Biana being Biana. 

**waiting to be picked up from the airport** 

Sophie and Biana walked out of the Starbucks store with a cookies and cream frapp and an iced latte. "So who's picking us up?" Sophie asked. Biana had lots of family living literally all around the world, and she said she would arrange a ride for them. "My brother's car is getting fixed, so he and his friend are coming to pick us up." 

"Sorry?"

"My brother an-"

"Alvar is coming?"

"No Sophie, Fitz-"

"FITZ?!"

"Look, I know you guys never really talked after your failed, uh, fling, in middle school, but he's the only one who was available. Plus, he's going to Foxfire, so it'll be awkward if you lot don't sort yourselves out."

"Sorry?"

"He's going to Fox-"

"FOXFIRE! AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ME!" Sophie accused her.

"I'm sorry!! He didn't tell me till yesterday, and I wanted to tell you, but I didn't know how you would take it!"

"Biana. Look at me. Please don't keep anything from me, okay? I've got your back, and I really hope you've got mine. I want to us to be there for eachother."

"I know love. I'm really am sorry. But on the bright side, his best friend is hot!"

"Sorry?"

"His friend is hot! The one who's picking us up!"

"And how would you know that?"

"Because they're waiting for us right there?"