Heartfelt love

Chapter 1

“How are you doing, my love?” Sophie's best friend, Cynthia, just walked in. She was fond of calling her pet names.

Sophie is a young woman of average height. Her skin is luminous and flawless, a radiant canvas that seems to glow naturally. Her silvery-blue eyes shimmer deeply like the moonlit sky, despite her disability.

She lost both her parents in an accident when she was 7 years old and partially lost her sight as well. Her grandmother has been a rock of comfort and the only family she has. Sophie gave her a cheerful smile. She doesn't know what she would do without her best friend. “You are late! Don’t tell me... this has Tony written all over it. I have always told you to be wary of him; he’s a sleazy one and a bad influence on you.”

Cynthia rolled her eyes, sitting down. And putting her hands around Sophie, "Hmm... thanks so much, Miss. I know it all and all. Tony might seem so, from afar, but once you get to know him, he's not as bad as most people portray him to be." Mrs. Glight, Sophie's grandma, just walked into the room. She was surprisingly strong and agile for her age. Mrs. Glight walked towards them. "How are you doing, Cynthia? What about your parents?

It has been a while since I saw your mom at church," she said with a look of concern on her face. "Not at all, Mrs. Glight. She traveled to see her elder sister who was ill, though now much better, and only just got back last week. I will let her know you checked on her."

Mrs. Glight gave a gentle, slight nod of agreement amidst her captivating grin and walked down to her room. Sophie's mind was far gone. She was thinking about her life. Through the little her late parents left behind and through the support of the church her grandma attends, being an only child makes it easier.

She has a pretty good education. And a modest lifestyle, but that begs the question: is this how she will live the rest of her days? What about her future? What about love, happiness, fulfillment? Who will take care of her after her grandma dies? I shouldn't be thinking this way, but this is the reality of life. Cynthia, looking at her blossoming friend, knew instantly

that she was in deep thought, spacing out again. “You know it's all going to work out fine, right?” Cynthia said cheerfully, as if she could hear her thoughts. "Come on, put a smile on it. Great things are coming your way, Sophie! Oh! Before I forget, I want you to come with me to a party that a friend invited me to, and he literally made me swear to come with someone dear to me,” Cynthia said in a pleading voice.

She knows Sophie has been through a lot and hardly goes out; making her go out, meet new people, and change the environment for a while isn't a bad idea. She just hopes Sophie won't ask questions about this friend of hers. She has always been skeptical about Tony. If she knew it was him, I doubt she would even consider this. “Come on,” Cynthia said with a pleading look, “we discussed this; you can't be indoors all day brooding about your entire life,” Cynthia said with a look of concern on her face.

Sophie knew she was right; being indoors all day with grandma is not exactly fun, as you know. If it were not for Cynthia, she doesn't know how she would have survived this loneliness. Sophie looked at Cynthia, as if she could really see her, though not that clearly. She wanted to protest against it; she didn't feel like it, she just had this feeling, you know.

Cynthia suddenly took her hand in her two hands and squeezed gently. Sophie knew what it meant; it was a plea, an emotional one she could connect with. How many good friends are out there? She couldn't break her heart. With a smile on her face, she stood up. “Alright, as long as you promise me we won't be out too long, because you know grandma,”she won't like that”. “Scout honor,” Cynthia happily raised her right hand, 3 fingers extended, grinning from ear to ear. Sophie went to her room to dress up.

Walking the entire house is nothing to her, she is familiar with every nook and cranny of the house. Not to talk of her being a smart woman. After deftly slipping into her flowing green emerald dress, through her feeling the texture of the fabric, familiarity with it, and knowing her room environment, combined with her sharp intuition, she can do a lot on her own. Sophie stood before the mirror, her vision blurry.

It does not matter If she can see how she looks or not; just standing there staring at the mirror, feeling the environment and energy around her. Intuitively she knew. This intuitive feeling of hers is a gift she really cherishes. Walking out of the room, Cynthia was nicely taking a bite from the cookies Mrs. Glight, Sophie's granny had served her, when her eyes suddenly caught something peculiarly green, lifting her head upwards and focusing her eyes more.

She saw her best friend beautifully dressed in this flowing green dress. “Wow!!” Cynthia's eyes popped in awe, standing up she went to Sophie, her eyes taking it all in, she took her by the hand and gently guided her to rotate at a 360-degree angle, Sophie laughing like a teenage girl on prom night. “you look like a princess Sophie” giving her a warm hug, pulling back and admiring one last time.

“Ok, let's be on our way; we don't want to keep our hosts waiting, do we?” “I will be going out with Cynthia for a while, granny, raising her voice slightly; I won't be long.” Her granny was in the kitchen, so she could hear her clearly.