Chapter 9: Oh, Sofia!

My legs were spread out on the bed, whereas my hands clutched the coffee mug tightly. I was explaining my encounter with Samuel, to both Valerie and Ivanna. They both sat on either end of the couch, located to the right of my bed, devouring their own coffees. Their addiction to caffeine was levelling up hanging with me.

"So you mean, you will take a revenge now?" Valery asked.

I nodded, mumbling a soft, "Yes."

"And what exactly would that be?" Ivanna spoke, taking a sip from her coffee.

"I don't know." I shrug. "I just know that, whatever the cost is, I should take revenge on them. Not because what they did to me, but because they should know the true value of a person and realise how betrayal is like."

"Oh, Sofia, we know you would never take revenge on a person, this is just 'Giving a realisation attack.'"

"Realisation attack?" I and Valery yelled in unison.

Ivanna shrugged nonchalantly. "Yeah. You know it is exactly not a revenge plan, is it? They need to realise their mistakes of life. Isn't it?"

I shook my head chuckling. "Only you, Ivanna."

"I know," she said, plastering a sheepish grin on her face.

"Putting all this aside, what exactly are we plotting in order for them to realise?" Valery said.

I and Ivanna exchanged glances with a blank expressions whilst I took sips of coffee.

"I guess, Ivanna should make a plan," I said.

Ivanna's eyes went wide. "What? Why me?"

"Because you have a wicked brain," Valery replied with a grin.

Ivanna mumbled some words under her breath before saying, "I don't have any wicked strategies, okay?"

Rolling my eyes, I replied, "And Ethan is a good boy."

"Well, that he is." Ivanna nodded her head agreeing.

"Huh... common! Are you taking his side now? Who said he is too mischievous for a four-year-old in the morning?" I made an incredulous expression. She turns her side, wherever the sun shines brightly.

"My twin sister." She shrugged in nonchalance.

"See....She can be a good actor too. We have a potential person who will take a big role in the plan," Valery said, tapping her chin with her index finger, her features adjusting in an intellectual expession.

"Oh, common! You can't take decisions about me without my concent."

"Oh yes, we can." I and Valery bobbled up in laughter while Ivanna just scowled sipping coffee at an irregular speed.

"Valery, you did not still say anything about Alejandro," Ivanna spoke up breaking our laughter whereas Valery's posture changed from being free to stiff like a stick.

How can I forget such an important matter?

"Don't hesitate to let out okay? If you are not ready yet, we will wait to hear about it," Ivanna softly said, placing her right hand on Valery's  shoulder in an attempt to calm her trembling lip and cease her fidgeting fingers.

"Yes, Valery. Ivanna is right. Take your own time and let out."

What conversation did they have? I thought Alejandro had same feelings for Valery when he reciprocated the kiss back on that day. If that robot of a bodyguard messes this up, I swear to Magnum that he will pay, from me.

"No." Valery shook her head. "I need to let this out of my system. If I keep secrets, I will become fat because of their weight, and we know I like to stay thin." A chuckle left her lips at the end of the statement.

"On that day, after you returned, I spoke to Alejandro about what happened between us. I asked him if that kiss meant something to him." she stopped and by the silence, I figured out hard part was going to come.

"We yelled at each other for quite some time. Then he said something, that completely shut my mouth." Tear by tear rolled down her eyes. She made frantic attempts to clear her rolling tears failing eventually.

WHAT DID HE SAY?

"Stop the attempts to hide your tears, Valery. We know how you feel and let me and Sofia empathise with you."

"Then...then..he said that he is in love with someone already."

I gasped at the relevance. The thought that Alejandro also could love someone never crossed my mind. In my opinion, he was a robotic person.

"He...he..." she sniffed. "He also described how she looks, making me seethe in jealousy, you know."

Had he dropped to that standards? And I thought Ivanna possessed an evil brain. The consequences of your evil actions are going to be hard on you, Alejandro.

I snapped my attention towards Valery, who started, "According to him, she is the most beautiful girl. She has brown eyes with waist length hair. She also has a small oval shaped face with a petite personality. She often acts like an adult whereas she still is a kid from inside.  Whenever he glances at her, his world turns bright." She let out a breath. "Much like, how my world turns when I see him,"  a soft whisper left her lips.

Her words led to a revelation. An individual's world turns bright upon glancing at the person they love. That's what she said, right? It was same for me when I was with Samuel. But, now it wasn't the same anymore. Yesterday when I laid my eyes on Samuel, conversed with him, I did not feel anything. Not even a pull towards him. Did that mean, I am finally over him?

But, my heart said, otherwise. A forlorn feeling washes over me whenever his thought occurs. What does that mean?

Oh, Sofia. It is just a sad feeling. He left you. On the streets. No person does that to their loved ones.  The feeling is just the sadness that washes over you because of the years you spent in tears. You feel sad because of the love Ethan missed. Don't burden yourself.

I heard a sobbing sound which broke me out of the trance. I looked for the source of sound only to find Valery pouring her heart out. Ivanna was struggling to handle a wretched woman.

"Why did he kiss you back? Wasn't he ashamed of pulling such act?" I asked out of anger. He loves someone, how could he betray himself and the girl he loves by kissing Valery?

"I never asked that question. I ran out of the door upon his words. When he tried to speak to me again, I just stopped him by saying, 'save it'," she mumbled against Ivanna's shoulder.

"I think, I know the girl, Alejandro described," Ivanna said.

Valery looked up asking, "You do?"

"I guess."

"Who might she be?" I asked before Valery could. My curiosity level overtook her's.

"Brown eyes, oval frame, petite body and grandma behaviour, doesn't this remind you of someone we know very well Sofia?"Her eyebrows moved up and down, wiggling, in an attempt to suggest me something. How can she wiggle her eyebrows smiling when Valery was in that condition?

Then it clicked.

How dense can you be, Sofia? I chided myself. That dumb, yet smart bodyguard of mine really proved his brain at the cost of someone's tears. He meant Valery, all-along.

"I guess, you should speak to him, Valery," I suggested.

Valery's features twisted into incredulous expression. she let out a huff muttering, "You on his side now?"

"What can I say? After all, he is my bodyguard." A smirk developed on my lips.

"You are impossible, Sofia."

"Sofia is right, Valery. Speak to him and let everything out, in order to get over him."

Meanwhile, my fingers quickly typed a message to Alejandro, informing him to come to my room. I placed the coffee cup on the night-stand and rubbed my hands together to loosen the muscles.

"You two are stupids," Valery yelled, at the same time Alejandro entered the room without knocking.

When his eyes landed on Valery, his eyes clouded with rage. his lips pulled together into a thin line and his jaw clenched revealing his high cheek bones. A raged breath left his lips.

"Why are you crying Valery?"

"It's none of your business!"

"It is. Who did that to you? Just say me. I will make sure he or she will regret their doings."

"What if  say, it is you?" The whisper was soft and laced with joy. Her heart swelled with happiness when Alejandro cared by posing those questions.

"Well, I and Ivanna will pick Ethan. You both clear your differences." I grabbed my phone and ushered Ivanna out of the room, to avoid the awkward atmosphere.

"Don't do PDA while we are out," Ivanna yelled giggling.

"It will not be PDA when we are in private and why would we do that?" we heard Valery's faint yell when we rounded up the corner of the hallway and started descending down the stairs.

"Hey, it is just 11:30. Ethan's school works till 12:30. What will we do till then?"

"Um... How about we go for shopping groceries? And also I need some things."

"So shopping it is." Ivanna fist bumped in the air while I followed her chuckling.

**********

"This, this and this too." Ivanna started throwing all the items that caught her sight in the trolley.

"We don't need all them."

"Hush girl, we need it. We will ask Valery to cook some of her grand ma's recipes, okay? After all, she is going to be a girlfriend of someone."

"Idea is not bad. At least we will get good food to eat."

"Exactly."

Valery's grandmother had written some awesome recipes before her death and Valery doesn't leave a loop while executing them. Her hands contain divinity in them. Just the whiff of her dish was enough to arouse one's taste buds. Yeah, I am using that.

"Hey isn't it Samuel?" Ivanna pointed a slender man, who was going through the products displayed at the other end of the aisle we just turned in.

"Yes, he is," I said, "but what is he doing here? Like, he was supposed to be in meeting with mom and dad right?"

"No dim. His meeting is tomorrow, they will be discussing everything tomorrow, not today."

Oh!

"Just stop day-dreaming. We should hide," Ivanna whisper-yelled in my ear.

"Why?" Why should I play hide and seek with him?

"Seriously Sofia? You know, he made many attempts to reach your room yesterday, just to have a conversation with you. But Valery suggested to put him as far as possible from you."

"What? Why wasn't I informed about this? And why should I hide? like seriously," I said grabbing some protein pills for Ivanna's brain.

She narrowed her eyes. "Will you answer the questions he will pose?"

That situation was never pictured by me. He probably had a bunch of questions about how everything was initiated. How did Bridget become Sofia?

Samuel gets what he wants.

"Boo...." A voice shouted in my ear making me jump in fright. I and Ivanna turned to see Edward stuffed in Spanish attire with a hat on his head.

"What are you wearing?" I asked, moving my hand up and down in front of him.

"Oh, this? You don't know what is this?"

"Of course I know. In fact, everyone here knows. But why are you wearing this?" Ivanna smacked his head causing an 'owch' to leave his lips.

"Darn it, don't hit me, woman. Keeps your hands to yourself, how much ever irresistible I am. Okay?" His eyes smirked at her.

"I'd better watch a dying cockroach than you."

"And that cockroach will probably die just by looking at you." He pointed her face and appearance. Soon, I became the judge of staring match between the two childish souls.

"Will you stop it, you two?" I interrupted grabbing Ivanna's hand to hide in a safe haven.

"Wait, where are you going?"

"None of your business!" I side-stepped him but he blocked my way again.

"I'll not leave you both till you say me." He sang aloud, grabbing the attention of an old lady who was picking up some chilli flakes.

They should have been beside me.

"You see the man there?" Ivanna pointed Samuel for which the stupid nodded. "He's her ex."

Did she just reveal confidential private information to a total stranger who carried the possibility of being a criminal?

Lol. Edward and Criminal?

Looks can be deceiving.

"Shit! he is stalking towards us. Move away," I yelled in Edward's face, causing him flinch and rub his ears.

"This is not the way how you deal with exes." he shook his head in mock disappointment. The tease his tone was laced with, spiked my anger and curiosity levels.

"Teach us how?" Ivanna interfered. Is this a time to discuss with a pea brain? You really like to jump in ocean, Ivanna.

"Like this," he said, doing the unexpected.

He planted his lips on mine softly and kissed me. In truth, the kiss felt ....weird. The only person I shared a kiss with was Samuel.

I neither responded nor tried to pull back, just then I heard a 'bam' sound.

I broke out of the kiss and witnessed a wide-eyed Ivanna with an open mouth. I jerked my head towards the another end of the aisle desperately to know what happened. Where did the sound come from?

My eyes widened in reflex upon glancing at the place where a couple of boxes containing Nutella laid on the floor and Samuel's retreating figure was clearly visible, too.

I let my attention divert towards Edward who was as wide-eyed as Ivanna.

He kissed me. How dare he? I softly touched my lips to realise them trembling. A couple of tears gathered in my eyes at the realisation. No girl fantacises about sharing a kiss with a complete stranger.

My sanity kicked my butt and I slapped him yelling, "How dare you kiss me?"

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This is not my best update.! Sorry. I have a lot of cold, head ache and fever. So yeah....I did not pay much attention.

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