“girl you’re driving me wild, but baby don’t stop”—Freak Like Me by Hollywood Ending
Sofia gave me a pretty difficult task. Don’t freak out when you see my family.
Apparently, she wants to know if her parents will recognize me. As much as I’d like to know if they would, I hardly have it in me to keep myself from smiling like an idiot when I spot Karin and Peter standing by the entrance doors to the airport.
All this time I thought I missed Sofia like crazy, but fuck, I suppose I missed her parents too.
I always liked them, they were nice to me, took me to their picknick dates every Saturday morning so Sofia wouldn’t be all that alone. But there was always another aspect I liked about them; their admiration for Lily.
I hated it when someone couldn’t stand my sister, but Sofia’s parents invited Lily and me over to sleepovers after our parents split up, even though they knew Sofia and I would spend half the time arguing and Lily would babble for hours on end.
But I can suck it up. I’m a grown man now, I can approach old acquaintances without smiling and going nuts.
It seems Sofia spotted her parents as well because her hand interlocks with mine without any hesitation. My heart skips a couple of beats at the contact, so many, I have to tell myself—yet again—to keep it down. I’m here to help Sofia, not to fall in love with my once childhood crush.
Not that I was planning on falling in love just right now.
“Sofia!” Karin waves at us, her smile wider than anyone’s I’ve ever seen. Before we even get to approach Sofia’s parents, about a million different emotions run over Karin’s face. She goes from happy to confused, to surprised and God knows how many more.
Peter, however, he just looks me up and down and nods like he couldn’t care any more if he had to. He then whispers something to Karin only to have his eyes back on me a second later.
“Why didn’t you tell me you were talking about Aaron Marsh on the phone!” Karin says the second we’re standing right across from Sofia’s parents.
Does this mean I can get visibly excited now? I think it does.
The corners of my mouth tip up into a subtle smile. Still got to keep it casual, don’t want to come off as strange.
“Look at you all grown up.” Peter slaps me on the back as he chuckles. “Cleaned up nicely.”
“Peter!” Karin glares at him with a warning.
Sofia sighs, banging her forehead against my shoulder as if she’s regretting all her life decisions. Too fucking bad, she’s stuck with me now. At least for the next two and a half weeks.
“It’s nice seeing you again, Mr. and Mrs. Carlsen.”
Just like that, I earn myself another slap on my back but this time a less greeting one. “Don’t tell me you forgot our names, son.”
I have not. How could I? Ever.
Honestly, I couldn’t tell you what I thought was going to happen if I ever met Sofia or her parents ever again, but it wasn’t anything like this.
I gave up on expecting Sofia and I ever meeting again, but we did. We don’t get along the way I thought we would, and we certainly don’t have the relationship I dreamed of having with her years ago. But at least she’s back in my life.
And her family? Well, I didn’t think they’d welcome me with open arms.
↞♡↠
After giving me a tour of their house, we stand in a pretty blank guest room. All white walls, a well-made bed, sort of empty room. I suppose guest rooms don’t have to have character or signs of someone living there, but that doesn’t keep me from wondering why they didn’t add some color.
The rest of the house isn’t all too colorful either, but it’s lived in. There are pictures of all the three kids everywhere, wedding photos from Karin and Peter, anything you could think of. So why is there one room with nothing but white walls, a dresser, and a double bed?
“You can stay here,” Sofia says. “I know it’s not much but—”
“Here?” Peter’s eyebrows fall into a confused frown. “I thought Aaron is finally your boyfriend?”
Finally. So she did think about me a lot when we were apart? Or maybe not. There’s a chance Peter just always saw her with me, which, I know my father did.
Sofia doesn’t answer her father. She rolls her eyes and shrugs him off.
I look at Sofia, holding a hand to my heart when I say, “Yes, Icicle, I thought I am your boyfriend. We slept in one bed many times before, why can’t we now?”
Sofia narrows her eyes at me until my blood stops rushing through my veins. I’m sure if she had a knife, said knife would have been stabbed me a million times by now.
I just bet she expects me to say I’m okay with staying in the guest room, which I would be… if Sofia and I weren’t supposed to act like we’re in love.
So instead of feeling intimidated by her murderous glance, I smile at her and reach a hand of mine up to the necklace I am wearing for her.
Sofia has mumbled something about making this relationship seem more realistic when we wear the matching Lego necklace that turns into a heart when connected, but let’s be honest, I would have worn it even without that pity argument of hers.
It’s the first time I’m wearing it again ever since I took it off, but I can’t see myself not wearing it ever again.
“If you think me staying in a different room will keep my hands away from you, you’re wrong. I’m addicted.”
Peter chuckles. Karin shakes her head at my words but at least she keeps a smile on her face. One of the kinds of smiles that are unreadable because they could mean a million different things at one. So either she’s glad to see Sofia and I reunited again, or she regrets having been okay with Sofia bringing someone for the holidays.
↞♡↠
As we arrived around eight p.m. at the airport and still had to take on another fifty-minute car drive to their house, plus the tour they gave me… it’s around ten thirty p.m. when Karin kindly lets us know that dinner’s ready.
I’ve been dying to get some food inside of my stomach. Forgive me, but I usually work out half the day when I’m not busy with assignments or hockey, hence I eat a lot in-between. Not having eaten yet, when it would be almost four in New City right now, is killing me.
But thankfully dinner’s ready now and I no longer have to die on the inside.
“Leon is going to be there,” Sofia tells me at the same time as I get up from her bed, ready to sprint downstairs. “He’s always around, making sure to rub his ‘perfect’ relationship right into my face.”
Right. Leon. A fucking asshole I’ll be making sure has a deformed nose before Sofia and I go back to America.
I mean, who goes about and fucks their girlfriend’s sister while still in said relationship? Who even fucks anyone when they’re in a relationship? Unfortunately, too many people, that much I know.
No matter how strong my urge is to give the guy a new nose—maybe even a whole new face—I can make sure of one thing without any consequences: making Sofia shine. Making sure her sister and that fucker named Leon are envious of her and her relationship because that’s what Sofia wants, or maybe needs. To show two disgusting people that getting rid of the weight of some guy only ever brought good things to her life. Me.
I’m the best anyway, so that won’t be all that difficult.
I hold my hand out to Sofia with a soft smile on my lips. Whenever I look at her, my heart tightens, laughing at me because I know she will never be mine. But that’s not what’s important right now. “Once a cheater, always a cheater, Icicle. His relationship isn’t perfect at all.”
Sofia takes my hand, the contact of her skin on mine sending sparks through my body like I’ve never experienced before. It’s like that static shock when touching someone, just that Sofia’s touch doesn’t shock me for just a nano second, it burns my entire body.
“We got this, Sofia, I promise. By the time we leave for New City again, your sister will wish she never even started dating your ex because she’ll envy what you have now. I’ll be the best fake boyfriend you’ll ever have.”
I do plan on putting my whole body, heart, and soul into the next two and a half weeks, even if that means putting myself and my feelings last. And fuck knowing that I’ll spend a whole two weeks and two days pretending to be in love with Sofia when all I want to do is fall in love with her for real.
