Auroral » Titans

9|| What Lives In The Past

The low hum of traffic on the streets below and the shushed voices from the tv were all the sounds to be heard. It was calming, a nice break from all of the noise that came from the crowded apartment.

Sophie used this time to work. She was lost in thought as she scrolled through the judges personal emails. She wanted to be sure this woman was involved in the Mutationist release before Batgirl did her thing. Babs could be quite intimidating when she wanted to be.

The sound of socked feet pattering across the wooden floor stirred Sophie from her thoughts. She kept working well keeping an ear out for Rachel. The couch cushion beside her sank down and the old springs whined.

"What are you doing?" Rachel asked, leaning slightly closer to peer over Sophie's shoulder.

"Working." Sophie sighed. She scrolled to the bottom of what she was reading, her brow furrowed as she was left with unanswered questions.

"Whose the lady?" Rachel asked.

She sighed through her nose and looked away from the screen. Rachel stared up at her with curious eyes and Sophie gave in.

"A woman who might be connected to the wrongful release of a prisoner. But so far all I've found are a few strange emails." She knew she shouldn't be telling Rachel any of this but she had a soft spot for kids.

Rachel's brows creased and her eyes narrowed. "You hacked into some lady's email?" She asked, clearly not believing what she was hearing.

Sophie nodded and a smirk worked its way onto her lips. "Sometimes being the good guy means you have to do less than legal things."

Rachel smiled and shook her head. "I don't think Dick would approve of that." She joked.

"Well he's a bit of a prude." She muttered and turned her attention back to the tablet. She didn't want to come off as cold but talking about Dick was something she rather not do, with anyone.

Silence settled between the two and Sophie clicked on another email. She began reading the well thought out reply to what sounded like a court calling. A cold hand was suddenly placed against hers and her eyes shot over to Rachel.

The young girl's eyes were glossed over and her face was pulled down into a deep frown. She pulled her hand away and quickly averted her gaze.

Sophie's brow furrowed and her lips parted. "You ok?"

"No, yes. It's just," Rachel quickly shook her head and turned on the couch so she was sitting sideways and facing Sophie. "When I touch people I get these visions of their past. But yours, it's confusing."

Sophie's eyes rounded and her heart jumped in her chest. She had a lot of secrets that she didn't need Rachel knowing, to protect her and others. "What did you see?" She asked slowly.

"You and Dick," Rachel began, her eyes downcast to the leather sofa. "In this big house, you were younger, happier, and there was this guy, you cared about him like a father." She looked back at Sophie and the corner of her lips pulled down into a frown. "And your mothers grave."

Sophia's body tensed and she gulped down the nerves that were twisting up her stomach. She placed the tablet on the couch's armrest, giving her full attention to Rachel. "So you can see people's lives by touching them."

Rachel nodded and a smirk wormed its way onto Sophia's lips. "What did you see when you touched Dick?" She asked jokingly.

She shrugged one shoulder, her eyes falling to the couch once again. "The circus, his parents falling." She mumbled.

Sophie nodded slowly and dragged a hand through her hair. Seeing something like that had to be a lot for her, especially now that she was getting closer to him. "What about Hank and Dawn?" She changed the subject.

Rachel's eyes darted up to Sophie's and her cheeks flared red. "When I touched Dawn I saw her and Dick, like intimate, really intimate."

Sophia's eyes widened and a sarcastic laugh left her lips. "Right."

"What is it?" Rachel asked.

Sophie shook her head and stifled a laugh. "Nothing. It's just Dick spent the last six-ish years in this on and off again relationship with a girl. I keep forgetting that they've both dated other people."

Rachel raised a brow as her cute smile grew into a knowing smirk. "Are you the girl?"

"No." Sophie's eyes widened in shock and her lips parted. "No, the girls a friend of mine. And six years ago I was a baby compared to him."

Rachel nodded and shrugged. "I just thought- I know you two love each other, I can feel it." She said softly.

"It's a more platonic kind of love." Sophie shrugged and glanced towards the clock on the wall. She wasn't really looking at the time, she just couldn't meet Rachel's gaze. She could feel the girls curious eyes staring holes into her story.

"How about," Sophie glanced back at Rachel. "I order some food and you set up a movie?"

"Sure." Rachel nodded and Sophie got up. She stretched her arms over her head, feeling the muscles in her back constrict before her arms fell to her side. She grabbed her phone from the pocket of her jeans and glanced back at Rachel.

Her question died on the tip of her tongue when she saw Rachel standing in front of the armchair. Her shoulders were slumped and her head bowed. She was looking at something but Sophie couldn't see what. "Hey, you ok?" She asked and stepped towards her.

Rachel turned around quickly and held out an envelope of what looked like cash and a letter. "Did you know?" She asked, her voice broken and sad.

Sophie took the note from Rachel and instantly she recognized Dick's handwriting. Her eyes traced the sloppy, rushed, cursive. Her heart broke with each pitiful word. She clenched her jaw and scoffed bitterly.

"I can't fucking believe him." She snapped before looking back at Rachel. "That man is a bigger idiot than I gave him credit for."

Rachel was silent, her arms wrapped protectively around her torso and her eyes downcast to the floor. "I-I need some air." She whispered before pushing past Sophie.

She let Rachel go. She knew that sometimes all someone needed was a moment alone, and Sophie could give her that.