I read the deeds to the house over and over until finally my eyes close, and I don't get up until the next day.

I stare at the ceiling of my room, trying to think it all through, trying to make sense of what I think I have in front of me.

The memory of the first day of school has never been as sharp as it is now.

The familiarity I felt seeing her, as if I had seen her before.

The mouth, the nose, the way her body moves, and the way she laughs.

The hair and eyes would be the only thing, but there's no hair that can't be painted, and the eyes....

The feeling that she had contact lenses from day one doesn't seem so far-fetched.

It's the only logical explanation, the need to know about the governor, wanting to hide the house, e and what might be in it.

The question here is whether Oli knows that his father has another house, whether he knows that, perhaps, his mother is not his father's only wife.

The pressure in my chest grows thinking about what Oli will feel when he finds out.

I take off one of my headphones as I approach the table where Luna, Oli and Sophia share some fries.

I try to calm myself after the new information, unable to help but look at her and then at Oli. Feeling stupid at how much they look alike now that I know that maybe they could be siblings.

It doesn't take away the questions of why she's doing everything, maybe she just wants to connect with her father, but why would she go to the trouble of wanting to know his every step if that's all it is?

No, it's much more, much more.

I mentally note that I should do a search with a different last name this time.

"Ian is overreacting, mom called me to go pick up some stuff, and since he sleeps in every class he didn't even listen to me when I told him." the black-haired girl's voice reaches me.

I take her face with one hand, squeezing it without hurting her, making her words stop.

"Why are you talking shit about me if I'm not even present to defend myself?" I look at her, trying not to look completely elated at her presence, not when the memory of her body attached to mine is still so vivid, not when her brother is by her side and he doesn't know anything.

Damn it, Young, you're making things difficult for me.

"I'm telling nothing but the truth." I sit next to her, smiling at Luna and nodding to Oli by way of greeting.

I grab some potato chips, tap Sophia's foot under the table, getting her to open her mouth, and stuff what chips I can into it.

"What a surprise! You look so much cuter when you have your mouth-" To my surprise, the black-haired girl raises her fist, threatening and daring me at the same time to finish my sentence.

I laugh, grabbing more potatoes and eating.

Luna starts to talk to her, but I notice the book lying open on the table. I move closer to her, trying to read the notes to see if she has made more progress for the exams coming up.

I am startled to see a hand in front of my face. I watch as Asher grabs potatoes with a smile on his face as he achieves a separation between the two.

"Shall we go to the movies?" says the brown-haired guy. Luna squeals with excitement, nodding.

My fun at the movies lasted less than I thought it would. Stealing the popcorn and the drink from the black-haired girl was the most exciting part of the movie, although I didn't pay much attention anyway.

Because I couldn't help but look at her and see her reactions so similar to her brother's when he was little.

I say goodbye to Luna and Oli, who had stayed to watch the end of the movie, unlike Sophia and Asher, who had left the theater almost halfway through and never came back.

I look at the time on my cell phone and drive to the office, not looking forward to getting home.

I'm almost surprised not to find Silas inside, very rarely does he actually come out.

I see the note he has taped to the main computer, telling me he is out doing field work and will be back in two days.

I sigh, thinking that we really need to expand, the work will end up crushing us being only two.

I leave my cell phone on the table, take a sip of my coffee before turning on my computer, checking some emails that just came in, trying to get ahead as much as I can.

A few hours have passed, I reach for my cell phone to order something to eat, but I stop when I see a new news from Oli's father.

I smile a little as I see the picture of Oli and his parents posing on the front page, but the news is about collecting signatures for the new gubernatorial election.

I look at the computer in front of me. I hesitate a little, thinking maybe Sophia's reasons are more personal than I think. But I look at the photo once, see the admiration in Oli's eyes.

I look for all the name combinations I can think of.

"Sophia Young" is already more than searched for.

""Sophia Morgan"" on a hunch, I know Sophia is not her real name, but still, I search, I don't find the information I want.

So I go by last names alone.

"Young Morgan," the program skates for a few seconds, I watch the wheel go round and round with the sound of my heart pounding so loudly in my ears.

When the screen finally loads, I frown as I see a picture of a smiling lady. I drop into the chair out of breath as I see Sophia Young in a few years, with blonde hair and blue eyes.

I look at the lady for a few more seconds before working up the courage to read the information underneath the photograph.

This morning, the moment I woke up, I was so determined to face her. I wanted to demand an explanation from her after everything I read about her mother the night before, but all my words flew out the window when I saw her walk into the classroom.

It wasn't her attire that made me tense up—her black long-sleeve t-shirt and skirt of the same color with a little green jacket. It's one of the most conservative outfits she's ever worn, but it's her face that looks the palest.

The black-haired girl barely murmurs a greeting before dropping her body into the chair next to me.

I open my mouth to ask her what's wrong, but the image of a chestnut-haired guy pops into my mind.

I close my mouth, forcing myself not to care, repeating over and over that I'm not the one who should be worried about her.

The class ends, and I finally allow myself to look at the girl next to me and see in surprise how the sheet is almost empty, the few notes she managed to write are barely illegible scribbles. I watch as she shakes her head from side to side, trying to stay awake.

I look at the thermal glass and place it on her table, startling her a little at the sight of it in front of her. My brow furrows.

Sophia tries to give me a smile, but her eyes are really determined to close.

I swallow thickly, thinking I could ask her without feeling like a complete busybody.

"If you can't keep your eyes open during class, you should tell Asher not to keep you up all night." I say, immediately regretting the implications in my words.

Damn it.

"I said goodbye to Asher after dinner, I was doing some stuff on the computer, I couldn't help but fall asleep late," she mumbles, and I feel worse at the thought that she needs me to know, that she didn't spend the night with Asher.

The feeling of heaviness increases as relief coats my body.

I've spent all this time trying to understand this girl and her motives that I've been too tired to even think about analyzing how I feel about her.

What I feel seeing her with Asher.

Sophia doesn't seem to notice the effect of her words on me. I approach her when I see how she tries to separate her turtleneck from her neck, trying to get air. I notice a slight sweat on her neck and forehead. I open my mouth to express my concern, sending any previous thoughts to hell, but by a reflexive act, I manage to grab her arm when she has bent down to grab her purse on the floor and almost falls.

"Damn it, Young, are you still asleep?" I try to see her eyes, but they are narrowed.

Sophia doesn't answer me, she tries to open her purse. I move closer, raising my hand to her forehead.

I squeal when I feel the heat on her.

"You're boiling." I take the purse from her, when she tries to open it again without succeeding, I immediately see what she's trying to take out.

Sophia has a small box with small compartments, each with the name of a different medicine.

If I wasn't so worried, I would tell her how well equipped she is despite carrying such a small purse for a single keychain.

I shake my head, not finding anything strong enough to relieve her high fever.

"You need something to relieve your fever." I say, pointing to the name of the headache pill, wanting to explain that it will help just for that.

"A headache pill will do." I protest, but the girl takes the box in her hands and pulls out a pill.

"Did you bring your car? Let me take you home." I ask, knowing her refusal will come, but hoping she will let me drop her walls, at least in these moments where she can't seem to stay awake.

"I'm fine, I don't want to miss the next class." Sophia gets up as best she can, steadying herself with the table in front of her but breathing slowly, opening and closing her eyes as if to focus properly.

I curse.

"Forget the class, I'll pass you the notes, go rest at home, I'll call a cab, I'll give you your car tomorrow." Sophia raises her eyes to me, but then puts them on my hand, where I wait for her to give me her keys, trying not to tell her how stupid she'd be if she stays in class any longer or even thinks she's capable of driving home.

The black-haired girl plops down in the chair after handing me the keys.

"Stay here, I'll be back in a moment."

I don't wait for her answer, I leave the classroom, calling Luna on the phone.

By the time I reach the redhead's building, I'm out of breath, but I don't stop.

I walk into the back of the building, waiting impatiently in the room Luna pointed me to.

I sigh in relief when I see the redhead enter.

Her cheeks are red, and her eyes search the room as if she expects to see Sophia somewhere.

I quickly explain to her what happened and her symptoms, hoping she will give me some medicine that is strong enough to bring her fever down as quickly as possible.

Luna hands me a blister pack of pills. I kiss her cheek before running to the classroom with Sophia, promising to let her know when she's already home resting.

I see the door close, stopping only to catch my breath before entering. My heart stops as I watch the black-haired girl wipe away a tear that falls down her cheek.

I crouch down in front of her, trying to look into her eyes, trying to figure out what's going on.

But her sad eyes stop me.

I swallowed thickly, showing her the pills in my hands. I hand her my water bottle once more and watch as she takes them.

Questions start to pop into my mind, wondering over and over again if Asher has anything to do with any of this.

Sophia hands me the bottle, and I pull out a package of chocolate chip cookies I bought from one of the vending machines in the art department.

"Something tells me you didn't eat breakfast, you need to eat something, so your stomach doesn't hurt later." I say, I open the package, holding it up to her mouth, ready to argue with her if she decides to refuse me.

Sophia chews one of the cookies, and when I'm about to ask her to eat one more, Asher's message arrives. My annoyance grows, and I have to remind myself that maybe he has nothing to do with it, knowing well that the girl in front of me has more secrets and that the fever could have been caused by her constant unwarm clothing.

I make a mental note that I need to buy her a fucking sweater.

"The car is here, can you walk?" I ask, still with my eyes on my cell phone, trying to calm Asher, but he seems agitated at Sophia's news, as if Luna has already texted him asking for explanations for his condition.

"I have a fever, Hill, not broken legs." Her words bring a smile to my face.

"Mmm, I see that even if you're sick, you don't lose your charm." I reply, hoping the relief is not so noticeable in my voice.

I watch as the car I ordered for her leaves campus before walking to class to write down everything so she doesn't fall behind in class.