Page 65 of The One Where They Fall in Love

I stop, because on the other end of the phone, my sister is laughing.

Hystericallaughing.

What the fuck?

“What the fuck is wrong with you?” I say, again too loudly, so much so that other dog park inhabitants give me a wary look.

“It’s nothing, I’m just so happy when I’m proven right,” she says, suppressing a snort.

“What?”

“Oliver, you’ve known me for twenty-four years, you really think I’m the kind of person to abandon a dog?”

“I don’t really know you that well, I guess,” I admit.

“Ugh,” I can practically hear the roll in her eyes. “I got the dog foryou, you dumbass.”

I open my mouth to speak, but hesitate. “Huh?”

“Oliver, maybe you don’t know me well—maybe because you don’t pay attention or you’re too busy being grumpy all the time, or maybe because you’re aman—butIknowyou. You were miserable in New York. You left to get away from Dad—from all of us. Maybe it’s a little selfish of me, but I wanted you to see that you could have some happiness at home, and maybe convince you to stay.”

I rub the fingers of my free hand against my temple. “Sophia, you are literally making no sense right now.”

She groans. “Oliver, I learned I was going to Italy the same time I found out you were moving back home. I knew I wouldn’t be there to try to convince you to stay, so I needed a representative.”

“And you chose a dog that could pass for a giant rabbit and named it Thor?” Thor stops running after a fluffy white poodle thing when he hears his name, and I swear he side-eyes me.

“I sure did,” Sophia replies confidently.

“W-why—” I stutter. “Why would you do this? Do you know how hard it has been having a dog and working twelve-hour shifts?”

“Because you’re my big brother, Ollie, and I love you. I don’t want you to live on the other side of the country anymore.” She pauses, and I’m glad I’m not on video at this moment, because I’m not sure what my face would say. A mix of shock and disbelief, probably. “I know Dad is hard on you. I know you were pushed into this life. I know you resent me for how Mom and Dad treat me—”

“I don’t resent you,” I interrupt her, a crack in my voice.

“Yes, you do, and that’s okay. Because I resent you too,” she says matter-of-factly.

Um, ouch.

“For what exactly? Seems like you got the better end of the deal here. Not sure what you have to be resentful about.”

“You’re Oliver Cole, the next greatDr. Cole. How could I ever live up to that?” Sophia reasons. “Sure, Dad was a jerk to you, but you were his golden boy. He bragged about you to everyone—”

“That was just his own ego trip,” I interject, disdain in my voice.

“It doesn’t matter, it is all I heard growing up!” she counters, her voice going up an octave. “I wanted to be the center of attention. I wantedyourattention. I wanted everything thatyouhad.”

“That’s a bit ironic, I guess.”

“Why?”

“Because I’ve always wanted the freedom that you have,” I admit. I rest my elbows on my knees and hang my head.Everything that Sophia is saying is striking a nerve. And I have too many nerves that are sensitive to striking right now.

“You have freedom, Oliver, you’ve just always been afraid to use it.”

“That’s not true. I never had a choice—”

“Of course you had a choice, you idiot! What, did Dad physically force you into medical school? You never stood up to him, that’s on you.”