Sophie lay sprawled across her couch, wrapped in her favorite oversized blanket, her hair in a messy bun that had surrendered halfway through the morning. A half-finished cup of cocoa sat on the coffee table, the marshmallows already melted into a sweet froth. She had been scrolling through her emails pretending to be productive when Darren's name flashed across her screen.
Incoming call: Darren
Her heart skipped.
She stared for three seconds, panicked for two, then hit Decline.
Almost immediately, a text followed.
Darren: Video call? Haven't seen your face in two days.
Sophie scratched her head, groaned softly, and typed back:
Sophie: Uhm… no. My cat is sleeping.
She hit send and instantly winced.
She did not own a cat.
Not even a goldfish.
Not even a plant that counted as alive.
Three dots appeared.
Then disappeared.
Then came back.
Darren: Soph… you don't have a cat.
She buried her face in her pillow.
Of course he remembered. Why wouldn't he?
The phone rang again.....this time a regular call.
Sophie answered, her voice small. "Hi."
"Hey, sunshine," Darren said, warmth dripping through the speaker. "So tell me… how's the imaginary cat?"
She groaned. "Shut up."
He laughed, deep and teasing. "Does it… purr? Or bark? I just need clarity."
"Darren," she warned.
"Okay, okay." His tone softened. "Why didn't you want to video call? What's going on?"
Sophie picked at the hem of her blanket. "It's nothing. I just… I don't know. I'm being weird."
"You're always weird. That's not new," he said gently.
She sighed. She knew he wouldn't let it go. Not when it came to her.
"Fine," she muttered. "I just needed… space for like… ten minutes."
"From me?"
"No...not from you." She paused. "From the feeling."
There was a small silence, the comfortable kind.
"The feeling?" he echoed, low and curious.
"You know," she whispered. "That thing where I… might like you a little too much."
She heard his smile. She could practically feel it through the phone.
He let out a soft laugh, warm and slow. "Sophie… are you avoiding video calls because you think you might love me a little too much?"
She grumbled. "I hate that you can read me."
"I'm not reading you. You literally just told me."
She groaned louder, and he laughed again.
Then he softened. "Hey. Come on. Talk to me....what's really the matter?."
She hesitated, but he waited....he always waited.
"It's just…" she finally said, voice small, "liking someone this much feels… scary. I don't want to rush or mess things up."
"Hey." Darren's voice gentled even more. "I get it."
"You do?"
"Of course I do. I feel the exact same way about you. You think you're the only one terrified you might fall too fast?"
Her heart stumbled.
"Maybe."
"And you think I'm not?"
Sophie blinked. "You? Scared?"
"Terrified," Darren said. "Terrified at how easily you've become the best part of my day. Terrified at how much I look forward to hearing your voice. Terrified that I actually smile like an idiot whenever you text me."
She snorted. "You smile like an idiot?"
"You have no idea," he said. "You'd be embarrassed for me."
Sophie hid her face behind the pillow again not that he could see her but her cheeks felt hot.
Darren continued softly, "Sophie, it's okay to feel a lot. You're allowed to take a breather. I'm not going anywhere."
"You sure?" she whispered.
"Positive," he said. "Besides, I happen to be in love with a few of your qualities."
She froze. "In love?"
"Oh, don't panic," he chuckled. "I mean your qualities, not you." he teased.
"What qualities?" she demanded suspiciously.
"Well," he said, ticking them off dramatically, "your sarcasm which could slice through steel. Your laugh which you pretend you don't like but actually sounds like sunshine. Your stubbornness, terrifying, but charming. And the way you talk when you're excited… your whole voice changes."
Her heart fluttered wildly.
"You're ridiculous," she muttered.
"And you like me for it."
"Unfortunately."
"So don't feel like everything is too much, they're all well reciprocated over here" He assures her.
She smiles hartily.
"So… guess what?" He asked.
"What?"
"It's exactly two weeks and three days until Christmas."
She sat up straight. "Already?!"
"Yep. Time flies when someone steals your sanity."
She rolled her eyes. "Please. You lost your sanity before you met me."
"True," he conceded. "But now I'm booking my flight next week so I can lose it in person."
Sophie's heart flipped. "You're really coming?"
"Of course I'm coming. You think I'd miss Christmas with you?,I promised, didn't I?"
She didn't speak for a few seconds. She couldn't. She was smiling too hard.
"I can't wait to see you again, Darren," she said softly.
His voice warmed. "Yeah," he said. "Me too, Trouble,brace yourself darling, it's going to be an amazing Christmas in Manhattan."
....
Jace was just finishing up cleaning his camera lenses when his phone buzzed beside him. He almost ignored it until he saw the name.
Rebecca.
He smiled a little and picked up. "Hey, Becca. This is unexpected."
"Unexpected?" she scoffed playfully. "Wow. So I can only call my big brother by appointment now?"
Jace chuckled, leaning against the counter. "That's not what I meant."
"I know." Her voice softened into something warm. "I just… felt like hearing your voice. How are you?"
"I'm good" He replied casually.
"And Amy?" she asked finally. "How's she doing?"Jace paused. Too long.
Rebecca immediately caught it.
"Jace," she said softly, "what's going on?, hope nothing's wrong"
"Nothing," he replied quickly. Too quickly.
"Mm-hmm," Rebecca hummed. "Did you forget you don't know how to lie?. I know when you're full of crap."
Jace let out a quiet, reluctant laugh. "You always say that."
"Because it's always true," she said. "Talk to me."
He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's… not really my place."
"I'm not asking you to betray her," Rebecca said, voice softening. "I'm asking because I care about both of you. And because something in your voice sounds… heavy."
Another long silence.
Jace swallowed hard.
Then, quietly: "She… had a rough night."
"Oh." Rebecca's voice lowered. "Bad dream? Or…?"
"No." He closed his eyes. "Her mom called."
Rebecca didn't speak.
Just waited, letting him go at his own pace....just like she always had.
"She didn't answer cause she doesn't like her anymore," Jace continued slowly. "And when I tried to talk to her about it… it didn't go well."
"Jace," Rebecca murmured gently.
He exhaled shakily. "She was hurting, Becca. Really hurting. There's… a lot of pain there. More than I realized."
Rebecca's voice softened further. "Did she open up to you?"
He nodded to himself. "Yeah. More than she wanted to, I think."
"Then she trusts you," she said. "That's not a small thing."
Jace didn't answer.
Rebecca waited. "Is she okay now?"
"I held her," he said quietly. "And she cried until she couldn't anymore. She's calmer, but… she's not okay."
Rebecca sighed, sympathy threading through her tone. "Poor thing. Losing a parent emotionally is sometimes worse than losing one physically."
"Yeah," he whispered.
"Just let her take it slow, Jace. Don't push her to forgive before she's ready. Some wounds don't tolerate rushing."
"I know," he said. "I'm trying."
"I'm proud of you,big bro" she said simply.
Jace blinked, caught off guard. "Why?"
"Because you're learning when to hold someone together… and when to let them fall apart without trying to fix it."
"What's that even supposed to mean?" He laughed.
"You've not always been the type to handle emotions but now you're helping out alot.....you're doing a great job"
He leaned back, emotion tightening his throat. "Thanks, Bec."
Another comfortable silence.
Rebecca cleared her throat lightly. "So… speaking of family.....Christmas!!."
He groaned. "Oh God."
"Don't be dramatic," she laughed. "Are you coming to Virginia? You haven't been home since my wedding nine months ago."
"Well…" Jace hesitated. "I want to."
"And…?" she pushed gently.
"And I just need to talk to Amy about it," he admitted. "It's still delicate, everything with her mom. I don't want her to feel trapped around my own family."
Rebecca smiled through the phone. He could hear it.
"That's thoughtful. And she'll appreciate that."
"I hope so."
Rebecca breathed out softly. "Tell her I'd love to have her here. No pressure. No expectations. Just family."
"I will," he promised.
"And Jace?" she added.
"Yeah?"
"I love you."
He smiled. "I love you too, Becca."
They ended the call with that warm, steady kind of silence only true siblings share where words don't matter as much as presence.