TWENTY-NINE

"Trends change, rumors fly through new skies

But I'm right where you left me..."

———

"What brings you to London?"

"Work. You?"

"Same." Dorothea almost turned to look at Taylor in the distance but planted herself in place. "Work."

Sophie's cool, gray eyes lit up in surprise. "Really! Wait, does this mean you're no longer working at that place in Hell's Kitchen?" She asked, intrigued.

"The Pearl. No," Dorothea said, shaking her head. She was struggling to meet the girl's eyes. She didn't want to.

"So! Tell me, what are you doing now?" Sophie pressed.

"Um—" Dorothea knew telling her that she was a photographer wouldn't end the conversation, which was the only thing she wanted to do as her Before and After were now caught in fiery collision with one another. She suddenly felt the baby roll around inside of her and put her hand on her stomach, immediately catching Sophie's eyes as they wandered in the same direction.

"I have a photographer position," Dorothea inserted quickly, pasting on a smile that felt far too tight.

"Oh, wow!" Sophie exclaimed. She was making very little effort to move her attention elsewhere. Suddenly, as though caught with a murder weapon and blood dripping down her arms, she looked up. "Are you...? I mean, are you and Nick still together?"

Nice save. "Nope," Dorothea answered, "we broke up in November of last year."

"Oh." Sophie's glacial eyes melted with concern, and before Dorothea realized what was happening her former roommate wrapped her in her arms. "I'm so sorry, Thea," she said softly.

Dorothea recoiled. It had been years and yet the girl's arms felt exactly the same, finding the grooves of her back where they'd ended up countless times before. Long after leaving New York City to save the whales or feed starving children or rescue hurricane-battered islands or whatever noble fucking cause she found herself fighting for, Sophie was still wearing the same perfume that sometimes laced into Dorothea's dreams.

She stepped back, giving an uneasy laugh. "I don't understand. Didn't you hate him?"

"At the time," Sophie admitted, "but he hasn't been a part of my life for several years. And you saw something in him that I couldn't. I just wanted to be supportive."

How fucking noble. "Well, as usual you were right," Dorothea said.

One of Sophie's dark blonde eyebrows lifted. "Right about what?"

"There was nothing to see."

A beat of silence fell between them. Sophie nodded with sympathy and Dorothea stared at the ivy she'd been photographing minutes before. For a moment, she wondered what would have happened if Sophie stayed in Manhattan. Would she still have gotten pregnant?

"Are you still in the city?" Sophie suddenly asked.

"Huh?" Dorothea's eyes widened. She was almost convinced she'd vocalized her thoughts. "Oh, yeah! I moved recently, though. Out of my St. Marks place."

"Really? Shit," Sophie said. "I was hoping I'd be able to see it again when I visited. I remember helping you move in and falling in love with—"

"You're planning on visiting?" Dorothea interrupted. She'd glanced in Taylor's direction and saw the singer watching them, but keeping her distance. "I thought you were done with Manhattan."

"I was." Sophie smiled knowingly. "But you know how it is. We always go back to the things we swear we never will."

"Right." Dorothea nodded uneasily. She could hear Nick's poisonous voice roaring in her mind. Hopefully you'll at least give Taylor a warning, if you change your mind.

Dorothea felt her jaw suddenly clench. It would have been so much easier if she had a reason to dislike Sophie. Sophie, on the other hand, had every reason to hate her and yet she never would. She was wise and yet also forgiving. Two things Dorothea —selfishly—wished she wasn't.

"So, where are you living now?" Sophie inquired. "If you don't mind me asking? I promise I won't just show up randomly at your door without notice—"

"Chelsea,"

"Damn." Sophie laughed with surprise. "That photography job must pay well."

"It has its perks," Dorothea agreed vaguely, giving a small smile.

"I'd love to hear all about it sometime," the blonde said. "Not sure how long you're staying here, but there's this pub in Paddington I think you'd love. Otherwise, I'm sure I'll run into you in New York. Crazy how many people that city has, yet you always find yourself running into the same ones."

"Yeah. Funny how that works."

"Well, I've actually got a lunch to get to with a friend, so..." Once again, Sophie embraced her, and Dorothea stiffened as her hair brushed against her skin and her bump poked the blonde's own stomach. "It was so nice seeing you! I can't believe we ran into each other."

"Same." When they pulled away from each other, Dorothea had no choice but to meet the other woman's eyes. Unlike the countless nights she'd witnessed them glowing in the darkness, they appeared much flatter. Dull, even.

"Hope you enjoy your stay in London," Sophie said, stepping back. As she was turning to leave, her eyes wandered towards Dorothea's stomach. "Let me know if you want any recommendations for food or things to do. I've been here a handful of times. You still have my number, right?"

"Yep," Dorothea responded, although Sophie had already started walking. Just like so many times before, she watched her former roommate's figure shrink as she got further and further away.

And she had a feeling it most likely wouldn't be the last.

"Hey." Taylor came up beside her seconds later, the sound of her laughter mixing in with her boots crunching against the gravel. "So you knew that girl? Or was that the first official Dorothea Fan Encounter?"

Dorothea burst out laughing. "No. I know her. And I don't have any fans."

Taylor glanced sideways as she laced their fingers together. "May I ask where you know that blonde girl who has more piercings than cartilidge left in her ears from?"

Dorothea struggled to hold back her amusement. "I think that was one of the funniest yet most judgemental descriptions I've ever heard."

"I think you meant observant,"

"I didn't."

"Well?"

"School," Dorothea said. "We met at NYU."

"You were friends?"

"Friendly."

"So you didn't like her?"

"What? No—I mean," Dorothea fumbled over her words. The last thing she wanted to do was talk about Sophie with her current girlfriend on her first trip to London with swollen feet that were slowly trying to kill her. "I guess we were friends. Yeah."

"What's her name?"

"Sophie."

"Sophie what?"

"She doesn't have an Instagram," Dorothea mentioned as she watched Taylor pull out her phone.

"I wasn't about to look her up." The singer laughed.

"But tonight while laying in bed you might have,"

"You're right," Taylor agreed, then sighed, "God forbid I do something every other fuck nut in our generation does when they learn about someone they've never met."

Dorothea laughed sharply. "You ruined it with fuck nut. Otherwise it would have been insightful."

"Is she on Twitter?"

"Nope,"

"Facebook?"

"Nope,"

"Who is this fucking weirdo?" Taylor said, "What sort of reasonably attractive twenty-something isn't shoving her existence in everyone's faces on the Internet? Is she selling drugs or something?"

"No!" Dorothea chuckled, "I mean, not that I know of." She slid her arm around Taylor's waist, leaning into her shoulder. She was trying to meet the singer's eyes. "Don't worry about her."

"I'm just curious," Taylor said. "You haven't told me much about your friends from college."

"Well there aren't many to tell you about," Dorothea admitted. "Once you break up with someone, you tend to lose more than one person."

"Was Sophie friends with Nick?" Taylor asked.

She suddenly scoffed, then laughed. "God, no."

"Smart girl."

Dorothea glanced down as Taylor typed out a lengthy text message to her manager. "What was Tree calling about earlier?" She inquired.

"Besides tomorrow's show, she mentioned the VMAs. They're going to be in Brooklyn this year," the blonde informed.

"When?"

"Late August."

Dorothea nodded. "We might have a baby at that point."

"I know," Taylor agreed softly, looking down at the hazel eyes next to her.

"You should go. To the VMAs," Dorothea said.

"I want to. But I want you there, too,"

She nodded again, sudddenly imagining herself nine-months pregnant. Bursting at the seams. "As long as my water doesn't break on the red carpet."

"Pretty sure that's exactly how Peanut wants to enter the world,"

"She does like to be the center of attention," Dorothea mused.

"Tree also mentioned that there's an after-party being planned. It's early but the place needs a count so they can prepare," the blonde explained.

"Where is it?"

"Looking it up now. Tree said she sent the details in an email."

The pair stopped walking for a moment while Taylor scrolled through her phone. It seemed like minutes. The sun had gone behind a cloud and now Dorothea really had to pee. She shuffled on her aching feet, growing irritated at her mounting symptoms of discomfort. When Taylor looked up at her with a twisted smile, she huffed. "What?"

"Guess."

"I don't want to."

"Please?"

"I have no idea."

"Fine," Taylor sighed. "But just so you know, if Peanut doesn't make her debut on the red carpet, it might be at The Pearl."