Page 38 of So Not My Type

“Only a split second.” Ella sidestepped an approaching pedestrian. “It’s probably more PTSD than anything. But when something way out of the norm happens, it takes my brain a moment to reconcile the disorientation, you know? It was just shocking, that’s all.”

That actually made sense. When Sophie was around twelve, she and her dad were in a minor fender bender. She had that same reaction, wondering for a hot second if she was hurt. “I get it. I mean, I’ll never fully understand what these situations are like for you, but I can conceptually understand. But the sound of the truck hitting the building…” She shuddered. “So scary. I’ve never heard anything like that before.”

Yes, she researched over the weekend about epilepsy, but she was hungry for more knowledge. How did Ella manage her symptoms? What did it actually feel like? Was she awake or unconscious during a seizure? All the questions seemed so invasive, and the very last thing she wanted Ella to think was that Sophie felt any less about her. In fact, Sophie’s feelings were nearly the opposite. Ella was rising to superhero status. But she refrained from telling Ella that, as she didn’t want to be seen as glamorizing the disorder.

At this point, no words was probably the best option.

Sophie stepped over a dip in the sidewalk and turned the block.Great.Another line out the door. “Good God. It’s the coffee-apocalypse.”

“You going through withdrawals yet?” Ella raised her eyebrows, andoh, if that teasing tone didn’t do something to Sophie’s insides.

“Not yet.” Sophie jutted her chin to the opposite street with a public park. “We could sit on a park bench and hotspot from our cells, but the mist is going to shift to rain any second and we’re gonna get cold and wet.”

“I’m no expert, but I think they frown upon laptops getting wet.”

“Ha. True.” Sophie slowed her steps. Heading back home was the most logical decision. But she’d grown used to spending more time with Ella than anyone else in her life, and the idea of working solo from her apartment didn’t sound fun. She liked having a co-worker she could rely on. She refused to allow her brain to think it was anything but that, but the belly tingles had other ideas. “I guess we could work from home. I know we need to be locked at the hip, but we could just do a Zoom call and share our screens?”

Ella slowed to a full stop. She glanced at Sophie, at her watch, then back to Sophie. “I have an idea.” A grin spread, wide, full, and beautiful. “Want to come home with me?”

FOURTEEN

ELLA

What a strange reality I’m in.An hour or so post-seizure, Ella usually felt like she was in a lucid dream. She could control her actions. She knew, sort of, where she was, but reality was tilted. She’d often look for something she thought she lost but was unsure of what the object was. Or she’d say yes to random things (“Do you like black licorice?” “Yes!,” when really, black licorice is disgusting).

Having Sophie in the back of the SUV as Thomas navigated them to her house, was not what it felt like after a seizure. But it definitely messed with her reality.

Sophie was mostly quiet as they exited the highway. After walking almost two miles to a spot where Thomas could pick them up, Sophie dove into panic mode of how much time they’d lost since being evacuated. She instant messaged everyone and tossed the phone to the side when no one responded. Her phone pinged and she snapped it up.

“Malcolm said the fire department hasn’t cleared the building yet. Tow trucks have arrived, and we should all take the day off.” She pushed her head back into the seat and pinched the bridge of her nose. “It’s nice and all, but we don’t have a day to waste. Everything will be pushed back.”

Sophie’s work ethic was one for the record books, and Ella could understand the need to succeed. And she’d been more than vocal about wanting to take the cruise, which wouldn’t happen if they didn’t complete the launch on time. Ella had a strong inclination to offer to pay for a cruise for her if they missed the deadline. But she hated the idea that Sophie might see that as a condescending offer, not a genuine gift.

As Ella’s neighborhood came into focus, Sophie stared out the window with her lips pressed together. It was impossible to gauge what she was thinking. When Ella first had Jasmine over, she droned on about the home sizes, the intricate landscaping, and asked, “Is it true Dave Matthews lives in this neighborhood?”

But Sophie wasn’t asking about who may or may not live in the neighborhood, she wasn’t lamenting about the gardeners, or the houses, or if everyone had “maids and a bell.” She was just… neutral.

The car pulled into the driveway and Sophie reached for the door.

“Wait.” Ella pressed her hand against Sophie’s. “Thomas opens the door for you.”

Sophie tilted her head. “Why?”

“Ah… because that’s the rules?” As soon as the words came out of her mouth, she wanted to laugh them back in. She had never questioned why Thomas opened the door.

“Hmmm.” Sophie popped open the door with a sly grin. “I’ve never been one for rules.”

Thomas pivoted with a chuckle and stepped quickly to open Ella’s door. “Your new friend is going to get me fired.”

“Oh, stop. My parents would die without you.” She crossed the driveway toward the front door and motioned Sophie to follow. “Please tell me my mom’s not home.”

Thomas shook his head. “She’s not.”

If she didn’t know any better, she’d think that Thomas had the slightest scolding in his microscopically lifted brow, and maybe she deserved it. She’d been pretty hard on her mom these last few weeks. She was trying to show her grace, after her conversation with Colleen, but her mom had turned clingy as hell after she started her job and it was grating on her more and more.

“She’s having a late lunch with friends in Elliott Bay.” He checked his watch. “I’m going to head back to the city and wait for her if you two are okay?”

“Yep, we’re good.” At least, she was good. Sophie looked a little pale-faced and uncomfortable as she scraped at her nail polish. Ella paused at the door, taking a breath. This whole sweaty-palm, dry-mouth thing happening was totally uncalled for. Even though Sophie was drop-dead gorgeous, she was still just a co-worker. And yet, something about the day felt reminiscent of when she brought Jasmine here, when her heart thudded in her chest, when she couldn’t wait to run up to the bedroom to feel Jasmine against her and taste her skin.

---