Sofia laughed. “Try it if you don’t believe me.” She held the cup out to Isaiah, and he scooped a large bite.
After tasting it, he shook his head. “Lucky.”
“Luckyyou,” Sofia countered, pushing her cup over to him and taking his out of his hand. “Caramel is my favorite flavor.”
Isaiah’s eyes widened with delight, and he didn’t try to protest. Instead, he took another giant bite of the purple strawberry-flavored dessert.
“So what do you think about this place?” Sofia was watching him closely, trying not to show her amusement.
Isaiah took another bite. “This is delicious. I still don’t know about this whole tricking-your-brain thing. But I wouldn’t expect anything less from you.”
Sofia arched an eyebrow at him. “What does that mean?”
“Oh, you know. You’re a little bit unconventional compared to the other people I’ve met in Emerald Hollow.”
“Unconventional?”
“I mean, you did just take me shopping at vintage stores all day.”
His voice was teasing, but Sofia was tempted to take her strawberry yogurt back and leave him with the caramel.
“Vintage is more sustainable and also more fun,” she countered. “Most of them have been very lightly used and are way more stylish than the current trends. Besides, do men’s trends really change that much?”
Isaiah shrugged. “I don’t remember.”
Sofia barked out a laugh. “Touché.” She wanted to press more about what he thought was unconventional about her, but she forced herself to bite her tongue.
They sat in silence for a few moments, eating their yogurt. Isaiah’s was disappearing at twice the speed of Sofia’s.
Sofia was trying unsuccessfully not to think about how much she had enjoyed herself that day. Isaiah hadn’t been a totally terrible sport when she was picking out clothes for him. And though he had vetoed one or two of her bolder choices, she felt he’d come away with a solid new wardrobe. She didn’t think Ash would have tolerated it so well if she’d takenhimshopping.
The yogurt shop was mostly empty, and Sofia was startled when a shout came from one of the teenagers at a booth across the room. She’d completely forgotten anyone else was there.
“Let’s go!” one of the boys shouted, jumping from his seat. He looked to be about seventeen, and his face was bright red. The other boy jumped up as well, and soon they stood face-to-face. Sofia’s heart rate kicked up. The girl who was with them was still sitting in the booth, but her eyes had widened.
“What’s wrong?” she shouted, scooting toward the edge of the booth and reaching out toward the one who had shouted.
“Theo just texted me that you two kissed at River’s party last night!”
The girl let out a shriek and put her hands to her mouth.
“It wasn’t like that!” The other boy shouted defensively, putting his hands up.
“Oh really? Then what was it like?” the first boy asked in a low tone.
The girl jumped out of the booth, stepping between them. “Xander, please calm down. Let’s talk about this.”
Sofia’s eyes shot over to the teenager behind the counter, who was looking at the trio nervously. She turned to Isaiah and noticed he was already on his feet, watching with his arms crossed.
She turned her eyes back to the teenagers just in time to see the first boy, Xander, sidestep the girl and shove the other boy.
Isaiah took a step forward. “Hey!” he called, his voice loud, deep, and reverberating throughout the room even though he hadn’t shouted.
All three of the teenagers froze, and the employee behind the counter turned toward Isaiah as well. “You’re not doing this here. Outside.” He inclined his head toward the door.
The girl left out a muffled sob, and the boy, Xander, seemed to relax a little. He turned and walked out of the yogurt shop, and the girl ran after him. The other boy stood there by the booth, shaking slightly.
Isaiah walked over to him. “You good, man?”
