Day in the story: 12th January (Monday), afternoon
It’s between silence and whisper that all things laid. All the words left unsaid burrow into the corners of the mind. They grow there in that damp climate of regret, feeding quietly until they swell—fat grubs of poisonous, maddening noise—no longer content to stay still between thoughts.
So when you think everything is good and orderly in your life, or in your relationships, think twice. Maybe there is already a worm chewing through the psyche of your friends, hollowing them out until the vessel has too many holes to keep anything inside.
I didn’t know it yet, but I would be facing exactly that tonight—even though it started well. It started beautifully well.
Anyway.
Sophie ca ho first, wearing a smile that didn’t match what her brows were doing. I hobbled toward her, my empty pant leg flailing with every step, announcing my approach like a surrender flag. Her eyes flicked to it briefly before rising to et mine.
“What happened, Soph?”
She exhaled a breath that seed too long for one body to contain. “It shows?”
“Of course. You won’t fool with a smile that bad.”
“I kind of hoped I wouldn’t. I want to talk about it,” she said, hanging her coat and slipping off her shoes. We always took off our shoes in the apartnt. I usually took off my socks too—or sock, in my current condition. Barefoot was the way to go.
“I just didn’t want to burden you with it while you have much bigger issues.”
“Soph, the biggest problem of your life is the biggest problem of your life. The fact that soone else out there has it worse doesn’t make your issues smaller in your own circumstances. I’m pretty sure you told that more than once. Listen to yourself.”
“Can’t argue with my own wisdom, can I?” she said, this ti smiling for real.
I crutched my way to the couch, lowered myself down, and turned toward her. She moved into the kitchen and poured herself a glass of water.
“Were you… at ho the entire ti?” she asked, surprised.
“What? No, of course not. I tested my power over music most of the day,” I replied, glancing toward her green wall where my spiders nested. “And I gave Liora a mouth to speak like a human, which might have been a mistake.”
“I’d love to hear him speak. That’s aweso.”
“Don’t get distracted. Spill.”
Another long exhale. She really didn’t want to say it.
“It’s my father. And my brother too, for that matter. Father heard I was in Paris and noticed the changes to The Hoppers. He wants to discuss my future with .”
“And Josh?”
“Joshua called to inform that I’m not going to sway Aunt into giving the entire estate just because I visited her a few tis. Can you believe that?”
“Honestly? Yes. You’ve painted him as an entitled brat in every story so far.”
“He’s not all bad. But yes. He loves money too fuckin’ much,” she said, the curse slipping out like she’d tried to catch it mid-air and failed.
“Why do you think they want to et?”
“It’s not they. Father does. I think he doesn’t like that I’m making my own moves. He always hoped to marry off to one of his business partner’s sons.”
“Wait. Seriously? That still happens?”
“Yes. And for the record, I am not going along with it. Especially now that you’ve given so financial safety net. But it still sucks to be reminded that, in his eyes, I’m a commodity.”
“I’m sorry,” I said. “And excuse for probing, but wouldn’t having your own business make you a better catch? Or do they just want a pretty face to parade around?”
“The latter. Spot on.”
“Yeah,” I muttered. “I kind of figured that out as I was saying it.”
“Would you like to hang out? Just drinks and so talking?”
“Yes. That would be sweet. Let change into sothing more comfortable and we can have it,” she said, heading toward her room.
I teleported to the paper spider I’d left in the kitchen. As I landed, I summoned the rest of them to . It was long past due that I beca a full-ti Disney princess with my assortnt of helpful animals, and now that I could turn songs into aningful events, it felt even more justified.
I opened the fridge just as the main door opened.
“Hello?” Zoe’s voice echoed off the walls.
“In the kitchen,” I called. “Preparing an ergency girls’ night with appetizers and drinks.”
“Ergency?” The expression I caught through the spider tattoo on my neck showed her distress imdiately. Her pupils dilated. Her arms dropped to her sides before she clenched her fists. “How can I help?”
“You can join us if you want. I’d gladly have you,” I said, pulling a tray of cheese from the fridge and setting it on the counter.
One of my spiders already held a knife while another steadied the cheese. They began slicing it into neat pieces. I moved to the olives, leaving the jar for another helper to unscrew.
“I was going to propose helping in the kitchen, but…” Zoe said, watching my small army at work. A few spiders opened the cabinet above the counter and carefully carried wine glasses down along the wall, gripping them with their front legs.
“It seems you upgraded your skills by a lot.”
“Aren’t they great?”
“I didn’t think they could handle such intricate tasks. I observed them briefly this morning, but they were just crawling around.”
“I gave them a mission this ti,” I said, as a small procession of folded arachnids carried glasses and platters toward the table in the main room. Two of the last ones hauled the wine bottle between them while I placed grapes into a small bowl.
“You can take this there,” I told her, handing over the fruit. “It’s still difficult to walk and carry things at the sa ti, and I don’t want to teleport everywhere. I need to move so my body doesn’t get used to being idle.”
Stolen story; please report.
“I’ll get properly undressed,” she said, placing the bowl where it belonged, carefully avoiding stepping on any of my minions. “Give five minutes, okay?”
“Sure. Any news from Peter?” I asked.
Of course her eyes flicked to my missing leg. Just a second. Just enough for pity to register.
“No.” Her smile faded. “I don’t know if I want to talk about it, okay?”
“Sure,” I said, hobbling closer to the couch while she shrugged off her jacket and slipped out of her shoes.
“I’ll do my best to be the ergency Sophie needs. Be right back,” she added, disappearing into Peter’s room.
I dropped onto the couch and sent a silent command to my helpers.
One spider climbed onto the wine bottle while three others braced it in place. The climber reached the cork, drove his front legs into it, and with one sharp sweep pulled it free. The pop echoed cleanly through the room.
Half a minute later, they tilted the bottle in perfect coordination and filled my glass without spilling a single drop.
“Cheers,” I muttered, lifting it and catching my reflection in the angled surface of the wine. My face fractured in the dark red triangle of liquid.
Then I took a long sip.
I was glad, deeply glad, that tonight wasn’t going to be about for once.
**********
Both girls wanted to just chill and watch a movie. So brain-rotting attempt at portraying “real emotions.” As if the people who wrote those scripts had ever interacted with an actual human being. Still, I was happy to see through it and throw in comntary from ti to ti if it ant Sophie would feel a little better.
Halfway through, right when the so-far-so-happy relationship hit its mandatory and completely outlandish struggle, Sophie couldn’t bear the silence anymore.
“I loved them both,” she said.
She adjusted the pillow she’d been holding behind her knees—pulled up to her chest for most of the movie—then set it aside. She slid down to the floor, sat cross-legged, and turned toward us. Zoe caught the cue imdiately and paused the movie.
“Past tense?” she asked, placing her feet on the ground in front of the couch she’d been sprawled across.
“No…” Sophie exhaled. “I still do. It’s just… I’m disappointed in them. I know my brother loves in his own way, although he always felt inferior in how father saw him compared to . That makes him treat like an adversary instead of family.”
“Sins of the fathers…” Zoe muttered.
“Yes. My pops was never big on expressing feelings, but he did tell he loves on occasion. And yet he always told I have a duty to the na. I felt it for most of my life.” She stared at her wriggling toes. “But I don’t anymore. Not for so ti.”
“You feel betrayed by him?” I asked, reaching for a cube of cheese that one of my spiders held up to with careful dedication. I bowed slightly to it in gratitude before popping it into my mouth.
“I thought he’d abandon those foolish marriage ideas once he saw that I wasn’t studying just for show. That I wanted to work for my success with my brain and not my… you know.”
“I do,” Zoe said quietly, her hand resting against her stomach as she let herself get lost in her thoughts.
“So he surprised when he told we’d have to talk about my future, so I don’t do anything foolish I would regret later.”
“He ant himself,” I said.
“Yes. Sothing he would regret.”
“Go tell him you’re a big girl now,” I replied.
“I’m planning to. But it’s not easy to stand up to your father.”
She was right. It felt simple to suggest it, but I wasn’t any different when it ca to Penrose. Standing against soone who shaped you—even when you knew better, knew that he was a scumbag—was never simple. Parental figures held a certain authority over the soul. It didn’t dissolve just because you turned into an adult.
“I’m sorry,” I said. “I know it’s not easy.”
She gave a small, grateful smile.
“This must seem trivial compared to the problems you are facing.”
“Please, let’s not speak about tonight. I have my issues and you’re already helping with them. I’d prefer not to be the center of attention anymore.” I glanced at Zoe, who closed her eyes briefly in understanding. I had learned my lessons. So of them just kept in class longer than others.
“My grandmother used to say that every aningful change begins with one small decision, Soph,” Zoe said, looking at both of us. “You can’t change how your father sees you, no matter how hard you try. But you can change how you present yourself to him.”
“That’s a beautiful way of putting it, Zee.”
“Yes. The burden of perception is on him, but the burden of changing yourself is on you. Both are heavy to carry.”
“Especially when you get used to one state of things,” I muttered.
“I should do it, right? Stand up for myself?”
“I think so,” Zoe continued. “I think I would.”
“Okay, okay, okay… I might break the bond between us, but I’ll do it.”
“You won’t break it,” Zoe said gently. “You’ll keep it alive by showing him you’re not a tool but a person. You’ll give him a chance to notice. Then the ball will be in his court to do the sa.”
“Thank you,” Sophie whispered, a single tear sliding down her cheek.
She stood, walked around the table, and hugged Zoe. Zoe rose to et her, patting her back slowly. Over Sophie’s shoulder, she looked at and smiled—but her eyes lagged behind the expression for a fraction of a second.
“Zoe, what’s going on? Is it about Peter’s absence?” I asked, unable to hold it in any longer.
They separated at that. Sophie turned toward her, hands still gripping her elbows.
“It is,” Zoe said quietly, sitting back down. Sophie joined her imdiately. “But not only that.”
“You’re angry at him for leaving?” Sophie asked.
“No… fuck, yes. I am angry. But more than angry, I’m disappointed. Not about him leaving—about him lying.”
“What?” Sophie and I said at the sa ti.
“He lied?” I pressed.
“I asked him, not long before he left, if he was sure this was what he wanted. He confird. So I told him I love him and that I’d wait patiently for the end of his training and hope he’d call often.” She swallowed. “You know how he replied?”
We both shook our heads.
“He stayed silent for a few seconds. Then he said he’d contact as soon as possible. And that he gave you a ring to paint, so you could reach him when he’s at Quantico.”
“Fuck,” I muttered. “He really did it.”
“How? I don’t get it,” Sophie said.
“He kept silent first,” I explained. “He does that when he doesn’t want to blatantly lie. He avoids saying anything at all if he can’t say the truth.”
“Yes,” Zoe said bitterly. “For , that’s still a fucking lie.”
“So he knew he wouldn’t be staying at the FBI facility for this,” Sophie said slowly. “He left the ring there and went sowhere else.”
“That’s my assumption. And not only did he leave to deal with my emotions, he left Lex in a ti of need.” Her voice trembled. “I can’t forgive him for that. It’s eating from the inside out, girls. I can’t… I just can’t. I thought he was better than other guys.”
I felt the reflex to defend him rise in my throat. But Zoe was right. And the weight of that realization settled heavily. It made think of my own half-truths, my own carefully curated silences and lies—and how easily they could wound the people closest to .
“You said it’s not the only thing,” Sophie said carefully.
“What?”
“She’s right,” I added. “I asked about Peter, and you said it’s not only him.”
“So what else is bothering you?” Sophie pressed.
Zoe inhaled slowly. She looked at Sophie first, then at , and finally at the floor between her feet. “It shouldn’t have happened,” she said. “It just shouldn’t have. But it did.”
“What? You cheated on him?” Sophie asked.
“No.” Zoe’s head snapped up. “Of course not. I despise cheating. My father was a dirty cheater and an alcoholic. I would never do that to soone.”
Her words made my eyes drift to the wineglass I had poured for her earlier. It was still untouched.
“You’re not drinking tonight,” I said. “Were you never drinking and I just didn’t notice?”
“No, I drink occasionally,” she replied quickly. “I’m just careful not to get drunk. For obvious reasons.”
“So if it’s not cheating, what happened?” Sophie asked.
The obvious reasons she ntioned earlier were not the sa that settled into place in my mind.
I spoke before Zoe could. “Are you pregnant?”
She looked at . Her breathing stopped for several long seconds. She bit her lip and pressed her fingers against her stomach as if she could hide behind the gesture.
“You are,” Sophie whispered.
Zoe broke. Tears spilled down her cheeks as she covered her face with both hands. “I don’t know how,” she sobbed. “And he left .”
“Does he know?” I asked.
“I found out two days ago. It must have happened…” She paused to steady her breathing. “When we were together on his island. Or around that ti. I’m on pills, girls.”
“They don’t always work,” Sophie said gently.
“And he was wearing protection too.”
Anger flared in . “This is probably his water powers,” I muttered. “Made his sperm too strong.”
They both stared at .
“I hate him for leaving with this,” Zoe said. “I’m not ready to have a child.”
“You can—”
“No,” she cut off imdiately. “I won’t do that. It’s sacred to . There’s a soul inside . I’m already imagining what she or he will look like.” Her palm moved slowly over her stomach. “I’ll have to tell my mother. She always warned to be careful. And I was careful. It’s so unfair.”
“The boys really left both of you to face your troubles,” I said quietly.
“At least Nickolas will be back soon,” Zoe told Sophie. “I have no idea where Peter is. Or how long he’ll be gone. Or if he’s even still alive.” The last words faded into the room.
“I’ll keep my eyes on his soul core,” I said. “He was still at stage one, but if he’s doing sothing connected to his powers, he’ll advance quickly. I’ll notice.”
Zoe looked up. “You can do that?”
“I can do it right now,” I answered.
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