A/N: lil reminder to get help if you need it,,, don't be like Sophie(read: don't be stupid she is an idiot don't be like her pls), get professional help when things get to be too much. You don't have to deal with your pain alone <3

"Grady, you can't be serious! Taking her to visit Brant?"

Edaline's voice carried up the stairs and to Sophie's ears, and though she tried not to pay attention, it was impossible to ignore the frantic murmurs when they concerned her.

"Well, I figured it'd be good for us," Grady pleaded with his wife. "We need to stop hiding from him. From everyone."

"Hiding?" Edaline hissed. "She was trembling when you two got back! I'd rather hide than subject my daughter to that."

"Edaline." Sophie could hear the soft rustling of Grady's jacket as he moved. "You need to trust that she can handle herself."

"She was shaking, Grady," Edaline whispered. "So hard she could hardly carry her bag. In her condition... what were you thinking, taking her to see him?"

"Well," Grady sounded unsure now, "I thought she could handle it."

Sophie blinked, shifting from her uncomfortable curled-up position on her bed. Even Grady was doubting her now? She was fine. Sure, the visit had shaken her up a bit, but why wouldn't it? Even her dad had looked worse for wear by the time they left.

"Maybe... maybe it's time to get help," Edaline said quietly.

Sophie bolted upright. Help?

She could tell from Edaline's tone that "help" meant sending her off to a shrink. But they had promised. They'd promised that no matter how tough it got, they wouldn't take her to therapy unless she wanted it. Besides, if anyone needed someone to sit them down and interrogate them about their mental state, it was Brant.

"I think Brant needs therapy more than any of us, Eda," Grady said, voicing Sophie's thoughts. She breathed out a sigh of relief.

"Maybe they both do. Maybe I should call..."

Sophie jumped out of bed, unlocking her door and throwing it open. She dashed down the stairs, nearly falling as she stopped at the first step.

"You can't!" she yelled. Edaline and Grady whirled around from where they stood in the living room, faces painted with shock.

"Sophie, what-" Edaline tried, but Sophie barreled on.

"You can't send me to a shrink! It's bad enough having to talk to Tiergan about my feelings at school, and I really can't deal with some stranger prying into my life on top
of that. And honestly, Mom, with each day that passes I'm getting better and better. I'm healing!"

Sophie was surprised to find that she believed the words tumbling from her lips as she frantically tried to convince them that she didn't need a therapist to do the healing for her. She had faith in herself, and faith that she could repair. What she didn't need was a counselor barging in and ruining her progress.

"A-Alright, Sophie," Edaline stuttered, caught off guard by Sophie's sudden speech. Though it could have just been the light, Sophie thought she saw tears swimming in her mom's eyes. But they weren't sad, no. They were fond, and maybe even just a little bit proud.

Sophie's heart swelled. She walked over and took her mom's hand in hers. "Please, Mom. Let me fix myself."

Edaline put her other hand on Sophie's cheek. "You don't need to fix anything, Sophie. You're more than enough just the way you are."

She pulled her daughter into a tender hug, a comforting one filled with warmth that only a mother could give. Grady wrapped his arms around both of them, and for the first time, the three hugged as a family, with Jolie's spirit lingering over them, almost wrapped in the embrace too, by mind rather than by body.

Eventually, Edaline pulled out of the hug, a stern expression on her face. "But, I still say Brant needs help, and I think you'd agreed." Grady and Sophie looked at each other, and then nodded vigorously. "I'm glad we can all admit that. But," she turned to her husband, "since your poor decision is the reason we're in this situation." She tapped him on the shoulder almost teasingly. "You're the one who has to convince him."

"But Eda," Grady groaned.

"No but's." Edaline put her hands on her hips. "Convince Brant to go to therapy, and when you do, I'll make the call."

For every day following that night, Grady headed straight to Brant's house after work. And every night, he came back looking just as defeated as the day before.

Between ice skating, work, school, and anxiously waiting for the day Grady would finally succeed, before Sophie knew it, the rest of November had flown by and winter had come.

Though no snow fell yet, the ground and roofs of the houses was covered in sheets of glistening, rough frost each morning, and the temperature dropped lower and lower as the last of the leaves on the trees fell.

On the first day of December, Biana came over. The last time she had been at Sophie's place was after the funeral, and needless to say, she was much more excited about this visit.

On Friday, she wouldn't stop talking about how much she missed the warm, homey environment of Sophie's house, and Edaline's mallowmelt, which she claimed couldn't be beat. "It feels more like home than mine ever will," she had complained after school. Sophie had laughed and reassured her that the house was just as boring and cozy as she remembered it.

So when she heard the eager doorbell on the early Saturday afternoon of December the 1st, she was more than a little surprised when it was Grady at the door and not her impatient friend.

"Dad?" She blinked with confusion at him, and he beamed up at her with the biggest smile she'd seen on his face in a long time. "Why did you ring the-"

"Where's your mom?" he asked eagerly, reminding her of an excited puppy desperate to show off a new trick.

"In the house?" Sophie laughed as she followed her dad inside, locking the front door behind her. What he could possibly be so impatiently excited about, she hadn't a clue.

Edaline emerged from the kitchen, toweling her hands with a rag. "Grady..." She trailed off as she caught sight of her bouncing, grinning husband. "Are you alright?"

"Spectacular!" He beamed. Edaline looked at Sophie questioningly, who shrugged and laughed in response.

"Well," Sophie's mom asked when Grady looked like he was about to burst from excitement, "what happened?"

"I convinced him!" Grady crowed triumphantly. Sophie jumped up from her spot on the bottom stair, and Edaline's eyes grew wide.

"You what?" Sophie asked with disbelief.

He spun to face her. "I did it! He agreed to try it, albeit grumpily." Grady scratched his neck sheepishly. "I think I wore him down with my pestering."

"However you did it, that's great!" Edaline said, hugging him tightly. "I'll make the call as soon as Biana leaves."

Just as the words left her mouth, and equally eager doorbell rang through the house.

"And that would be her." Sophie grinned. She ran over to the door, throwing it open to reveal her friend, shivering in a long, magenta overcoat and gloves.

"Took you long enough," Biana huffed, though it had only taken Sophie a few seconds. "It's freezing out here."

Sophie side-eyed her dad, who was still gushing about how he had managed to wear down Brant in the living room. He must have been too excited to mention the cold.

"Sorry!" she apologized to her snappy friend. She'd have to make him some hot tea.

Biana sniffed and entered the house, rubbing her hands together dramatically. Once she had warmed up enough to stop complaining and Sophie had produced and given Grady a mug of tea, the two headed up to Sophie's room.

"Wow," Biana said once Sophie had finished regaling the tale of the past two weeks. "I'm surprised that Brant agreed at all."

"I know! I'm curious how it'll go," Sophie replied, rolling over in her spot on the carpet to look up at the ceiling.

Biana leaned over to look down at her from Sophie's bed, which she'd claimed and forced Sophie to lay on the ground. "Why don't you, then?"

"Why don't I what?"

"Go!"

Sophie blinked. "Go? But only Mom and Dad are. And besides, I could barely convince them not to cart me off to a mental hospital," she scoffed.

"Yeah, but you managed to convince them not to. I'm sure you could if you wanted." Biana rolled back over. "Unless you don't want to."

Sophie had to admit that she was curious. But would she be able to handle it? Her eyes traced patterns in the smooth, cream-colored ceiling in thought.

She sat up. Yes. She thought she could.

"I'll go."

Biana peeked over. "Really?"

"Yeah!" Sophie grinned up at her. "I can do it."

Biana beamed back. "Go Sophie! Let me know how it goes, okay?"

"Aye aye, Captain." Sophie mock-saluted.

Biana laid back down, happy with herself, and then bolted right back up. "It's December!"

Sophie raised an eyebrow, propping herself up on her side with her elbow. "And?"

"And?" Biana's eyes shined. "It's Christmas soon!"

"Okay..." Sophie dragged out the word. Biana was more excited than any normal human would be for a holiday that was a month away, not that Biana was ever the normal amount of excited for, well, anything.

"Sophie!" Biana said impatiently. "The Christmas party?"

"Oh." Sophie slumped back as she realized.

Every year, the Vackers held a huge party during Christmastime. Sophie wasn't the hugest fan of parties, so it wasn't exactly something she got excited about or even thought about when the holidays crossed her mind, but Biana made sure to go all out every year. It was something that pretty much everyone, Sophie excluded, anticipated. Even Dex looked forward to it, and he hated just about everything Vacker and fancy, besides Biana, who happened to be both of those things times a million.

Biana wiggled her eyebrows knowingly. "So? Who are you inviting?"

"You know I never invite anyone," Sophie groaned.

Everyone invited could bring plus-two's, which was part of why the party was so big and well-known. That, and all the connections with rich, important people the Vackers had that brought in all kinds of guests.

"I know, but you should change things up a bit! Step out of your comfort zone!"

Sophie rolled her eyes. "You say that every year," she pointed out.

"Yeah, but this year's different ." Biana bounced on the bed. "I can feel it. Plus," she added teasingly, "I know you've been hanging out with certain new people recently. I'm sure you could think of someone."

Sophie rolled over so that her face was in the carpet. "Fine, I'll think about it," she mumbled.

"Yay!" Biana clapped her hands together excitedly. "And speaking of new people... I should invite Keefe."

Sophie's face shot up off the floor to look over at Biana. "You should what?"

"Invite Keefe! You know," she said nonchalantly, "since you two are so close these days."

"But-"

"In fact, I should invite him right now." She propped her chin up on her hand, grinning down at Sophie mischievously. "Give me your phone. I'll call him."

"I don't think so," Sophie refused, tucking her phone into her back pocket stubbornly.

"Come on. You know I'll just ask him at school anyway, and it'll be much more embarrassing for both of us."

Biana held out her hand, and Sophie begrudgingly placed the phone in it, pulled up to Keefe's contact. Her friend raised an eyebrow before wiggling them at Sophie. "Snowflake Boy?"

Sophie flushed, sure she was tomato red. "It's a nickname..."

"Oh? And he's aware of this nickname?"

"Don't you have a phone call to make?" Sophie huffed.

Biana smirked. "Interesting..."

Sophie locked herself in the bathroom as soon as he picked up. She couldn't hear any evil giggles or shrieks coming from the other side of the door, so she figured it couldn't have gone too badly.

When she finally opened the door again, Biana was twirling the phone in her hands with a thoughtful grin on her face. "It has been done."

Sophie snatched her phone back and sat back down on the floor. "I'm never giving my phone to you again."

Two people...

She thought about who she wanted to take. Biana had already invited Keefe, and she wasn't completely sure she even wanted him there. Who else did she know?

Suddenly, a thought occurred to her, and she grinned. She knew exactly who to invite.

A/N: A party, you say 👀

So sorry about how late the chapter is! I've been very busy and distracted and ✨happy✨ and basically all i wrote was a marellinh one shot and then my brain said "lol no❤️" and i lost any motivation i had left for the rest of forever,,, wow that was awfully ranty ANYWAY it's here  now

also let me know if you want to see the marellinh one shot on here? i could make a one shot book or put it in my random book or whatever :O