Healing Sophie

35

Sophie frowned, watching Chase jump back and forth between texting on his phone and scrubbing the counter. She swore she could actually hear the tiles withering away into nothingness. Whenever he was stressed, it was usually followed by him obsessively cleaning. When he picked up her plate of food and went to wipe underneath, Sophie finally put a comforting hand on his arm.

"Chase." He looked at her but his eyes were elsewhere, unfocused. She grabbed his face in both hands, his light stubble poking into her skin. He was always so in control, so poised. It was unnerving seeing him so dysfunctional. "Look at me."

He finally centered his focus on her and relaxed a heartbeat.

"Breathe in... Breathe out." He followed her instructions until his shoulders slacked and his jaw loosened. He met her hand on his cheek with his own and closed his eyes, breathing deeply. "What's going on?"

His stormy eyes opened and he searched her face for something, relaxing when he didn't find it. "My parents won't stop calling me and texting me, letting me know that I'm a disappointment and that I'm no longer their son."

Sophie's mind burned with an inner fire, and anger filled her every cell. She hated anyone who hurt her guys, and wanted to destroy them. Chase was strong and brilliant, and didn't deserve to be feeling anything less than that. She held his gaze and said with utter certainty, "You are not a disappointment." He tried to look away, tried to continue his abuse on their counter, but Sophie pulled the small towel from his hands and pulled his face back towards her. "You are not a disappointment." His blue eyes swirled deep with emotion and he placed his forehead against hers.

He muttered slowly, trying to calm himself, "Everything I do, everywhere I go, I have their damn voices in my head." His voice cracked along with Sophie's heart. "I can't relax, I can't sleep, I can't even eat without hearing their judgmental words. I remember one time I came home and was so excited because I had gotten an A on a film-making project for history class. It was the first time I had ever loved something I did. I told my parents and my dad had me yanked out of the class the next day because it was a 'waste of time'."

Sophie reached out and gripped his hand. She wanted him to get it all out, to let go of some of that control and self-discipline that he held onto so tightly. She wanted him to lighten his shoulders so he could finally relax in their new home and figure out who he was outside of his awful parents.

"Sometimes... Sometimes I get this unbearable voice in my head. I try to relax or to eat and it tells me I can't do that until I do something productive first, to earn it. Like cleaning, or making sure the house is in order, or that we have food in the fridge."

Sophie squeezed his hand. "It sounds like you found a way to turn your parents' control into you being a good caregiver," she said. His eyebrows rose as he considered her words. "But despite how amazingly you take care of all of us, you have to remember to take care of yourself, too. Or let us take care of you."

He gave a soft smile and brushed a thumb over her cheek. "My strong, smart, little Bunny. What would I do without you?"

She giggled. "Be incredibly bored." She winked and hopped off of her stool. She was still a bit sore after playing two days before. "Let's go on a date tomorrow, you and I. We can get your mind off it."

School would be starting back up in a week and Sophie wanted to get all of her time in with her guys before they were busy with classes.

Chase gave a full, genuine smile that had her heart melting and said, "Yes, ma'am."

When Chase had disappeared upstairs for a while, Sophie took it as her opportunity to formulate a plan she had been thinking of. She needed help, though. She was smart and fully capable, but physically, she might need some strong arms on her side. She was the brains of the operation, she just needed her brawn.