Blurred Lines 1: CHASE
Chapter 63

~Chase-

My jaw fluttered, balling my hands as I shoved them into my pants pocket.

Sofia stood. Her movements were slow and calculated. She picked up a white folder from the documents on her desk. I carefully regarded her actions, reading her body language until she stood before me.

Her scent, even three feet away, made my stomach tighten. My hands itched to grab her, kiss the life out of her, tell her f**k everything Derek said and believe me instead.

Lips pulled between her teeth, she lifted the folder between us, her hands shaking.

The sullen sunset bounced on her cheeks. It made her lonely blue eyes paler. She smiled nervously when I just kept staring at her.

If this is the last time I'm gonna see her, then I want a frozen photograph of what I'd done to her. This lonely Sofia, with all the pain, confusion, and uncertainty. I'm the reason the glow in her eyes was gone. I've got no one else to blame but myself. "This is the summary of my report. We made enough progress, and Georgia is really good. She's my mentor. I learned the ropes of this job from her. You'll be in good hands," she said without a pause. Clearly, she rehearsed this statement.

Infuriated, I growled and grabbed her arms, maneuvering us until her back was pressed against the glass wall.

She squeaked, calling out my name. Long lashed gaze pinned me with annoyance and confusion. "What the hell, Chase?"

The folder dropped on the floor, documents scattered on the side.

"You think leaving will solve anything?" I leaned in, my nose grazed hers, and Sofia buckled.

There was so much going on inside my head. I have a lot of questions, but all I can think about was losing Sofia. It was agonizing, just the thought of not seeing her again.

It had been hard to leave her without a word ten years ago. Waking up knowing she hated me was already agonizing, and now she's leaving? Fuck if I'd let that happen.

"You did ten years ago!" she gritted her teeth. "You and Derek thought leaving would solve the problem. Why can't I do the same, huh?"

Her accusation was fucking valid. "That was wrong," I admitted. My hold on her slackened but never letting her go.

She lowered her gaze, remaining perched where she was.

"I don't want to be here anymore." Her lips quivered. "I want distance from you and Derek... and Carlota." Something about her statement made me realize the pain we caused her. Letty was Derek's girlfriend, she was my friend, but we had forgotten that she was a big sister to Sofia. Some sentences are incomplete if you are not reading this novel on FindNovel.net. Visit FindNovel.net to read the complete chapters for free. They were close. Losing Letty was painful to all of us, but Sofia thought she had died in an accident. Now she knows she was killed... and in Derek's story, I caused Letty's death.

"You hate me." Those words tasted bitter.

"Chase..." she whispered, misting ocean eyes met mine.

"I understand your anger, but you haven't heard my version of that story," I murmured, but Sofia shook her head, her dainty fingers spread over my chest.

She wasn't pushing me away. She was getting a feel of my thudding heart.

"I don't wanna hear any of it," she pleaded. "Whatever story you and Derek tell me, she'll remain dead. I grieved her death. I accepted that she was gone. I can't go through that again."

Alligator tears rolled down her cheeks.

I inhaled deeply at the amount of pain accompanying her tears. She moved on, and now we are dragging her back to the past, the one we run away from.

We deal with grief in different ways and in different timelines.

Derek held onto his grudge against me. It kept him moving forward. I finished what Letty couldn't finish and blamed myself for her doath. That became my motivation, but Sofia went through the process of grieving the proper way.

I want her to know that I didn't betray Derek, nor did Letty. But what good will it do? She'll only suffer all over again.

I released her arm. "Will leaving give you peace?" My throat was rough like sandpaper.

"I don't know, Chase," she answered truthfully, inhaled deeply, and hugged herself. "I need time, but I'm not asking you to understand or wait for me. I've dealt with things backward. When I learned of Kyle and Katerina, I ran away, and that led me to you. Running away didn't solve anything, Chase. We fooled around. It made me happy. It numbed the pain, but the problem in Boston is still there."

She wiped her cheeks harshly. "Whatever this we have between us, I'm not running away from that. I'm leaving so I can find myself again, and I couldn't do that if I'm still hurting because of Kyle's betrayal. I need to heal properly. Deal with the reason why I left home and be whole again."

She was seven years younger than Derek and I, but she was thinking with so much years ahead of us. We should be the ones guiding her, not the other way around.

"I don't believe you killed Letty," she continued. "You'll never betray Derek like that. There is a reason why you are with Letty in that car, why you are behind the wheels, but I'm not ready to hear it."

I inhaled a deep breath at the amount of thought she had put into this. I am astounded by how sure she was that I had my reasons. Indeed, Sofia knew me like the back of her hand. Even Derek, my best friend, believed I could backstab him, but not Sofia. "Wouldn't it be easier if you knew what truly happened between Letty and me?"

Sofia shook her head no and stepped closer to me. I inhaled sharply when she curled her arms around my waist and buried her face in my chest. "You're in pain, Chase. But I cannot help you deal with your demons. You must get back to your feet and heal from losing Letty. You and Derek."

Her words knocked the air out of my body. She peered up at me, cheeks glistened with salty tears.

"No matter how long you try to avoid facing the truth, it will still be there. It will keep hunting you like nightmares in the night." She cupped my face and stood on the tip of her toes, pressing her lips to mine. "We all need to grieve, Chase."