Page 107 of Missed Notes (Rixon High 5)

“To the mixer next weekend? Can I bring somebody?”

“Like a date?”

“Yeah.”

“If it means you’ll be amenable, then yes, by all means bring someone. Tomorrow, Cole. Don’t disappoint me.”

He hung up.

“What’s next weekend?”

“There’s a mixer thing at Drexel with some of Dad’s alumni pals. He thinks it’ll be good to introduce me around.”

“Cole, you can’t be serious. If you go—”

“What choice do I have?”

“Talk to your mom. Make her see that it’s okay to walk away.”

“I’ve tried, more times than I can count. It’s a lost cause.”

Sadness bled into Sofia’s expression. “Aren’t you going to ask me?”

“I shouldn’t pull you into this mess.”

“Yeah, well, I remember telling you the same thing and you didn’t listen either. So ask me, Cole. Ask me to go with you.”

“Will you go with me, Sofe?”

“Yes.” She got up and came over to me, leaning up on her tiptoes to kiss me. “I’ll go with you.”

CHAPTERNINETEEN

Sofia

My life didn’t revolvearound school, football games, or hanging out with my friends anymore. It revolved around doctors’ appointments, fertility drugs, and being a human pin cushion.

I’d had more blood drawn in the last few weeks than in my entire life, and now I was injecting myself with daily fertility drugs so that the doctors could retrieve my eggs.

I’d only started the process yesterday. Dr. Jeffries wanted to start my TKI therapy as soon as possible, which meant starting the fertility drugs this week. I was only on my second day, but I already wanted it over with.

I’d missed school Monday, which meant more lies to Aaron and my friends. Only Cole knew the truth. Which also meant he was lying to them.

I hated it.

All of it.

But I still wasn’t ready to tell them. At least now I was still Sofia in their eyes. Sure, I had ongoing complications from the anemia—or so they thought—but as far as they knew everything was fine. And as long as they thought I was fine, they were fine.

“How are you feeling?” Cole whispered as we sat with our friends at lunch.

It was Wednesday and I was exhausted. The kind of tired that got in your bones and made you feel like a zombie, dragging your ass around.

Mom had asked me to stay home again but I wanted to be here.

I needed it.

“I’m fine,” I said around a small yawn.

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