𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐬 || 𝘸𝘢𝘭𝘬𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘤𝘰𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘭

𝟐𝟏: 𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐩𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐬

——— 2 months later ———

She hadn't seen Walker since New Year's Eve.

Since she was pulled from his arms right at the moment her whole life was finally falling into place.

And now it was crashing down. All of it.

The one who tore her away that night was her mother. Panic-stricken, angry, and hurt. Her mother, who told her that her father had just called. And so had his lawyer.

They should've checked the fine print on the divorce papers he signed late. Should've read the minuscule words which declared that if Sophia was removed from him without contact for more than three months, it was legally considered as kidnapping.

Kidnapping.

He had known all along. The second he realized she was going away he knew it would happen, and he let it. Sophia had a feeling he just couldn't help himself. The perfect opportunity to have his little girl around all the time. Just like he wanted.

And now she was back in her hometown, hundreds and thousands of miles away from almost all her friends. But she wasn't in her childhood home, just a couple tree branches away from Walker's window.

No. She lived with her dad. In his shoebox apartment 30 minutes across town, down a backroad off of Main Street.

She knew her mother was fighting every day to win her back in the custody battle, but her dad was meticulous. Using loophole after loophole, she was fighting a losing battle.

And so was Sophia.

No phone. No messages. No calls. It was as if the whole world had gone on mute. She didn't know what the fans were being told about her disappearance, but as the months crept by, she started to care less.

That would only be a problem when the press tour started mid-March.

Wake up. Go to school. Come home. Do homework. Go to bed. Repeat.

Over and over, every single day. She had taken up a dog walking job on the weekends, but she could never bring herself to walk down her old street. To peer into the Scobell's window and see him.

Not after the typed note she found in her bag when she arrived at her dads place...

"Hey Sophia. I've been thinking about us. A lot. And I realized something. This would never have worked out, not in the long run. We have responsibilities to take care of, and I know now that you can't be one of mine. I'm sorry for leading you on, and I'm sorry for pulling you into this life that was never really meant for you. I hope you're able to grow, and live comfortably with your dad. I'll be seeing you."
~ Walker

Each word had ripped her heart to shreds. She punished herself by reading it over and over again, hating how she believed he really wanted her.

She knew she couldn't be what he needed. It was only a matter of time before he had realized that too.

Her dad was always attempting to bond. Bringing her little bouquets that he made her display on her desk. Forcing her to watch a movie on Friday nights. Insisting she tell him about her day the second she stepped through the door.