Plot Twist(14)

Sophie clocked the framed photo of her and her mom on the desk and had a twinge of guilt. She sighed deeply, then continued, “So instead of writing, I’m meeting up with one of my exes to see if they can help me figure out why I’ve never fallen in love. Because yes, I know I need help, and I’m not afraid to ask for it. But before I tell you about the first one I decided to reach out to, who I will call Serenity for privacy reasons, I wanted to lay out the rules for who I’ll be meeting up with.

“One, we must have dated for more than three months, which is the threshold for whether a relationship is a relationship, in my opinion. Two, I must ask the question Why didn’t we fall in love? And three, I need to ask if they’d ever be open to dating me again. After all, I write romance, and second-chance romance is a big and beautiful trope in my world. I’d be missing out if I didn’t at least explore that option, right?

“Serenity is spiritual, and thoughtful, and all around a much better person than me. I’m sure they’ll have some great insights into why we didn’t work out. So let’s all do a little sun salutation and hope that I don’t say anything too humiliating and that this experiment helps me to learn more about why I can’t say those three very special words.”



COMMENTS

@JessErrera you got this!!

@EditorLynnHere Friends-to-lovers is my favorite trope, for the record. ??

@Lizzy4Cats Yoga instructor thirst traps. Look them up.

@NoelleLovesBooks You know what they say about yoga instructors...

@FloWithMe no, what?

@NoelleLovesBooks they’re heavily meditated

@FloWithMe ??

@tokcrafty2me good vibes only



5

SOPHIE

Cardio was not Sophie’s thing. But she wasn’t sure if carrying a yoga mat while speed-walking counted, exactly. Still, the overhead afternoon sun made her sweat through her sports bra and caused her thighs to rub together in a deeply unpleasant way. So yeah, it counted as cardio.

The first ex she was meeting up with was Jewel—aka Serenity—who led a weekly Vinyasa yoga class in a nearby park. Jewel was decidedly not a dramatic person—not just because their entire life was devoted to finding inner peace but because they’d made a point of ending the relationship on good terms. Well, relationship wasn’t a word Jewel would’ve used, so much as coupling. But still, after four months they’d uncoupled, and Jewel had told Sophie she would always be welcome in class despite their mind-body-soul separation.

When Sophie arrived, there were two rows of people on their mats, seated in Lotus pose, with their eyes closed. Gregorian chants played softly in the background, and there, in bicycle shorts and a fitted tank top, was Jewel. Their hair was buzzed, drawing more attention to their thick, dark brows and strong jaw.

Sophie hoped to go unnoticed until the end of class and took a seat behind a woman and her Pomeranian, both of whom had matching pink hair. She was late, and the class had already started. She laid out her mat and moved into Downward Dog, as Jewel instructed. As Sophie’s eyes closed and she exhaled, she felt something poke her big toe. Her head whipped around, but there was nothing on the mat. She readjusted herself, closed her eyes and...poke, poke, poke. Yes, there was something pointy repeatedly nudging her foot. She jumped off the mat with a squeal, no longer caring if Jewel saw, because what the hell was underneath her?

She moved the mat, and there was the unmistakable furry, buck-toothed grin of a little mole digging out a hole. Sophie clutched both hands to her chest as she watched the mole pop its head out before diving back down and into the earth. She let out a yelp of fear because, really, moles had aggressive-looking teeth.

Sophie turned her attention back to the class and found her fellow students were all on their mats and looking directly at her, but she locked eyes with Jewel, who stared back. “I’m...” she started to say. “There was a mole, I swear!”

The class ended with an abrupt Savasana from Jewel, and though Sophie couldn’t be entirely sure, even the Pomeranian seemed to glare at her.

Sophie sheepishly walked up to where Jewel was at the front of the group and shrugged an apology.

“You always knew how to make class fun.” Jewel stood with their hands on their hips and smirked at Sophie. “Remember when you fell asleep and snored so loudly I had to wake you up?”

“Child’s Pose is very serene,” Sophie said. “Unfortunately, I seem to have a history of animals trying to court me. There was an incident with a peacock in a garden...” It was hard to forget Reginald, the peacock who’d tried to mate with her.

“You’re lucky, you know. Peacocks can symbolize new growth.” Jewel rolled up their mat. “Maybe the universe was sending a message.”

“And what message do you think the universe is sending with a mole?” Sophie laughed.

“Hmm...that one I’m far less familiar with.” Jewel tucked the mat under their arm.

“Do you have some time to talk before your next class?” Sophie asked, grateful when Jewel nodded.

There was a bench under a nearby oak tree with many branches and much-needed shade. They parked themselves there, and as Sophie sat, she gave Jewel a hopeful look. Hopeful that they could talk and she would find some answers.

“I’m surprised to see you.” Jewel put their hand on the back of the bench.