Secrets

Chapter Sixteen

Anya

After leaving Devan's house and getting a lift home from Sam, much to my dismay, I gingerly open the door and see my dad passed out on the couch. I tiptoe to the bedroom and pick up some clean clothes before heading to the bathroom.

A long hot shower sets me up for the day and after I dress I sit down on the bed and call Suzy.

"Anya?"

"Hey Suzy, how are you?"

"I'm good, should you be calling me?"

"Suzy, you know I don't care about that kind of thing. I need some girl time and was wondering if you and Helen were free this afternoon?"

"Sure, Helen and I were going to the mall anyway. Why don't you come? We can be there in an hour?"

"Perfect. See you then!" 

*****

As I walk into 'The Cup and Saucer' I spot Helen and Suzy at the back, sat on the beanbags. Helen spots me and waves me over and I greet them with hugs before ordering a hot chocolate and getting comfortable.

"We've missed you, Anya. How's things?" Helen asks.

"Good, thanks, and I've missed you both too. I've been spending far too much time with boys!" I laugh and they join in.

"Do they mind you being here with us?" Suzy asks conspiratorially and I roll my eyes.

"Suzy they don't know and I don't care if they mind or not, it's nothing to do with them."

"But what if they kick you out?" 

"Kick me out?"

"Yes, kick you out. In sophomore year there was a guy called Harry who was friends with Sam, I think," Helen says, "Anyway, the guys welcomed him in but he started dating some unknown and they kicked him out. Eventually he changed schools."

"Seriously?" They nod. "That's ridiculous. I'm sure they wouldn't do that just because he started dating someone. There must be more to it than that."

"Maybe," Helen shrugs, "so have you been seeing much of them out of school?" I laugh, seeing that they are desperate for the inside scoop.

"Yes, I saw them this morning in fact." They both gush and I find myself rolling my eyes again. "Don't look like that, they're just normal guys."

"Normal?" Suzy squeals. "They're Gods!" I'm laughing again and it feels so good. It's been a long time since I've sat around with girls laughing and chatting. I may not have done it since I got here.

"So what are they like?" Helen asks, her excitement getting the better of her.

"They're lovely. They really are just normal guys."

"And Jackson? What's he like?" Suzy gushes again and I feel a bit sick to my stomach as I remember she likes him. I remind myself that nothing happened between us but I still feel guilty for some reason. 

"Jackson's great. I went with the guys last night to see Jackson's band play at bar out of town."

"Wow, really? That's amazing. I can't believe they took you with them. You've gotten really close, huh?"

"Yeah, I guess so." I blush a little at the thought of how close Devan and I were this morning, but manage to recover before they notice anything. 

"So I'm organising a big party the day after Christmas. You HAVE to come." Suzy insists. 

"Yeah, you'll probably need all the company you can get because the elite all go to Hawaii over Christmas. It's ridiculous, they all fly out in private jets, stay at a six star resort that Josh's dad owns for free and spend the entire week yachting and partying." Private jets? Six stars? My jaw drops. I knew it would be a nice hotel but I didn't think it would be anything like that. I am so out of my league.