Fighting Over Love

Chapter Five

The slow sunset was a warm golden orange when Sophia stepped outside. The darkening sky behind her was slowly filling with stars. Sophia let the warm sunlight caress her face. She could hear wind gently flowing through the trees. Earth was beautiful at this time.

"Twilight hours bring out the best creatures," Lance said, standing beside Sophia. She nodded and smiled softly at the thought of the night. They had found a nice place to land the castleship and it was rather secluded from the rest of the large city in the distance. Sophia hoped they were far enough from the light pollution to see the galaxy overhead.

Sophia could see her crewmembers setting up a blanket on a grassy field not too far away.

"It really is. It has always been my favorite time of day," Sophia said and joined the others on a blanket. It was a vacation. The Galra had been defeated for a while, leaving the team with no one to fight, so Sophia had recommended they take a break and revisit Earth.

"That was a really good idea, Soph," Keith said, making Sophia blush. The sun disappeared and it was completely dark out except for the lanterns around the blanket. Looking up at the stars and the bright moon above, the group recounted as much as they could. Sophia listened to them talk, closing her eyes and smiling weakly as she slowly dreamed. About everything she could.

The sun struck the dead grass and the dead garden. A girl ran out and tried to water the garden, crying. But it didn't help. And she began to cry. Her tears soaked the ground and the grass regrows, drinking in the water, the plants in the garden grew to the sun and to the water. And the girl smiled, calming down and running inside to get her father to show him the yard and garden. But she knew he wasn't there, but that he was at work, and only her stepmother was there, making lunch for the two females of the house. She didn't say anything, only waited for her father to come home. When he did, she pulled him outside and showed him the garden, but he only believed that had been watered and replanted by his wife, leaving his daughter to feel unhappy with what she had done.

Later that night, the girl's father came into her room and woke her.

"I know you helped fix the garden, sweetie. Thank you for doing that," he said and hugged his daughter close.

Sophia opened her eyes and sighed, looking up at the moon. It was midnight already, leaving her the only one still away. Sophia shook her head and watched the moon and stars.

"I wish I could understand all of this," she whispered and slowly started to trace and map the stars for herself. She smiled weakly and shut her eyes again.

"Goodnight, Moon and Stars," she whispered.

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Sophia stood up as the sun rose into the sky. She dusted herself off and looked around. She didn't know where she was for a second, but then it hit her. She was on Earth, with her friends. Simple enough. I was sleeping and those dreams become almost real after a while. Can't I sleep normally for once? She gently woke the others and they went to get ready to head into the city. Following the pathways through a small forest, they headed out into the city.

"Let's meet back here at noon to get lunch," Sophia told the group once they reached a little cafe. They nodded and split up, heading off to do whatever they wanted. Sophia and Pidge headed to the mall, looking around and hunting for something to buy.

"I wonder if there are any mechanical shops around," Pidge said, looking at some window displays. Sophia nodded and sighed, pulling out her notebook. She wrote down some notes and followed Pidge to a clothing shop.

"I suppose we should get some new clothes," she said. Pidge nodded and the two headed inside.

Lance and Keith walked around two before stopping at an old fashion jewelry store

"Welp. That was a bore," Sophia said as they headed back to the cafe. It was nearly noon and the sun was already making the air hot. The two girls entered and were greeted with cool air that seemed to attack them.

"Thank goodness," Sophia said and hurried to the table where Hunk and Shiro waited. Pidge followed and smiled as she pulled out her notepad. Sophia looked out the window and watched a few birds waddle around. They were picking at the ground, trying to find food.

"Heh, birds like doing that huh?" Lance's voice startled Sophia. She looked at him as he and Keith sat down.

"I guess so," she replied to his question, grabbing a menu to look at something.

"Hey, I'll get us ice cream. And pay," Lance said, winking at Sophia as she blushed.

"Thank you, Lance," she said. As they waited for the ice cream order to be filled, Sophia looked out the window and watched the birds. Pigeons walking and eating what they could find.

"Sophia, wake up. Your food is here," Keith said, lightly poking her. Sophia took her ice cream and started to eat. Enjoying the sunny earth day was all she needed. Looking up, she blushed as Lance got ice cream on his shirt.

"Awww, come on," he said, before sighing and grabbing some napkins. The others chuckled a little before they started talking again. Sophia hummed softly and finished her lunch, looking out the window at the parking lot.

"Alright, let's head back to the ship," Shiro said, leading the others out. It was odd that no one questioned the small group as they walked out of the building. Sophia looked back and noticed someone watching her. She shook it off and hurried to catch up with her friends, being pulled into a hug by Lance.

"Thanks?" she said confused, pulling away and heading inside. She heard Keith and Lance talk a bit before they walked past her to the main room. Sophia followed and went to a seat, sighing as she sat down.