I Choose You | ✓

Chapter 49: Wise Words

S O P H I E   W I L K I N S

I smile at the woman who's pushing her cart towards me.

"Hi, Emily. It's nice to see you again." Well, partially. Her presence brings back a rush of emotions that I was starting to get over and am not ready to go through again.

"I know you're a bit busy right now, but I never got the chance to tell you this since I haven't seen you lately." A bit of emotion slowly drips into her eyes.

"Tell me what?" I ask inquisitively, eyebrows creased together. She pauses for a moment before answering my question.

"Well...I just wanted to thank you," she said, sporting a soft smile.

"For what?" I respond, more confused than before.

"Andrew has always been...guarded, and a bit juvenile at times." I guess that's one way of putting it.

She hesitates before continuing, "But ever since you've stepped into Andrew's life, he's changed. For the better, of course. He's become more open and a benevolent young man. The other week when his father returned home from a business trip, Andrew became less bitter and distant towards him."

Emily sighs, "After his father had become more involved in work, I haven't seen him this euphoric and amiable towards anyone. It's a refreshing sight to see." Her lips curl up into a sincere smile.

"And did you know that he talks about you non-stop?" She adds, chuckling at the memories of Andrew in her head.

"He talks about me?" I raise my eyebrows, an involuntary smile slowly curling my lips up.

"Oh yeah. He talks about you all the time. I've never seen him so euphoric about a girl, or any girl for that matter. He wouldn't speak to me about the matter, but I have a feeling something is going on between you two right now. But I know for sure that he really likes you, Sophie. Heck, I'm pretty sure he's in love with you. He just won't admit it yet."

Her words make me stiffen a bit. Love. Andrew loves me?

Sure, it's one simple word. But to me, it has a much deeper meaning behind it.

"Well, I should probably let you go. I'm sure you need to study for finals."

"Yeah," I manage to spill out with an apologetic smile.

"See you later, sweetheart." Emily grins and begins to push her cart past me.

"Bye, Emily."

Just then, the scent of caffeine spirals into the air, and I spin around. Bree strolls towards me with two cups of coffee in her hands.

"Aw, thanks Bree." I reach out to grab one of the cups, but she pulls her hand away from me.

"Who said this extra one was for you?" She jests. I roll my eyes and she chuckles as she gives up the cup.

I take a sip and the savory taste of caffeine lingers on my tongue as the warm liquid soothes my throat.

***********

When we reached the cashier, I didn't think fifty dollars was going to be enough to pay for our grand total. My suspicions were correct as our total spilled way over fifty dollars, nearly doubling it. Fortunately, I had extra cash on me and was able to make up for the rest of the cost.

"Pft, a few groceries," Bree mocks. "We practically bought out the whole store."

Bree heaves the last of the groceries from her trunk and trudges through the front door.

"These bags weigh a thousand pounds," she complains, dropping them with a relieved sigh on the kitchen island.

"Maybe you need to start working out more," I chuckle, earning a glare from Bree. She begins to speak about something that happened today in one of her classes, but my mind was too preoccupied.

On the drive home until now, Emily's words echoed through my head like a broken record. I've never seen him so euphoric about a girl, or any girl for that matter; He really likes you, Sophie. Heck, I'm pretty sure he's in love with you. He just won't admit it yet.

"Hello? Earth to Sophie?" Bree waves a hand in front of my face, breaking me out of my daze.

"Hm?" I raise a curious brow at her.

"I just told you the whole story about...oh, forget it." She swats the air with her hand and shakes her head. "What's got those gears in your head turning?"

"Nothing interesting," I lie, "Just...finals."

"Ugh, don't remind me," she groans, rubbing a hand over her face.

"Bree?"

"Yeah?"

"Hypothetically, if Bryan broke your heart and asked you for a second chance, do you think you would give him one?"

She raises an eyebrow at me and gives me a knowing look.

"This is about Andrew, isn't it?" I stay silent and she takes it as an agreement. She takes a step forward and places two firm hands on my shoulders.

"Listen to your heart, Soph. If you think he was being genuine, then I think that you should let him explain the whole situation. Sure, Jacob said that Andrew doesn't like you, but Jacob isn't Andrew. Even though they're close, Jacob doesn't always know Andrew's true thoughts because as I said, they're not the same person. I've seen the way he looks at you, with admiration and desire, and I'm pretty sure that boy has fallen for you. Hard."

"Everyone keeps saying that, but I just don't see it anymore." Every time I picture the way Andrew looked at me, all I see are feelings that are fake and just an act. He's had plenty of practice charming girls, so how can I be so sure that he's being authentic this time?

"Believe me. It's there. He would have to be a damn good actor to be able to hide his real feelings for you, and trust me, he isn't. Don't you remember when we had to perform Romeo as Juliet in front of the class, the guy almost forgot a fourth of his lines," she chuckles, causing me to mirror her actions as the moon met lightens the mood a bit.

Even though we had rehearsed our scene for weeks, Andrew had almost forgotten the beginning lines of his part. Luckily, he remembered it just in time and was able to play it off as if he meant to say his previous lines slower than usual.

"If you want to and feel ready, I think you should give him a chance to explain himself. If you think he's calling bullshit, then he's not worth it and you can leave his sorry ass behind and think of the experiences as a build up to something bigger and better," Bree smiles.

Whenever it came to these types of things, Bree's inner philosopher came out and gave me the best advice. I nod and give Bree a brief hug.

"Thank you for your humble words, Bree the Intellect." I joke.

"Always at your service, ma'am." She bows and we both end up laughing.

We shuffle across the wooden floor and file away the groceries as swiftly as possible. Then, we run upstairs and whip out our study guides, groaning in exasperation.

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Thank you for reading! 💕 We are nearing the end. 😭😭

See you in the next one! ~Karlee 💛