Keeping Secrets

Meet & Greet

PEYTON

The girls in my neighboring dorms were friendly, but kind of quiet and kept to themselves. Two rooms over, however, was where the queen bitch lived. And I'm not talking about our hall monitor Elizabeth, because as stern and strict as she came off, she was no mean girl.

Helen was.

We all know the type. Drop-dead gorgeous and used to getting presidential treatment from everyone because of her looks. The kind of girl that has gotten things handed to her all her life. She has the award-winning smile down to a science but can flip the switch to full-on bitchiness in an instant if she felt the situation called for it. But that side of her never showed if there were guys or faculty around, especially if the guys were hot. Outside of that, it seemed like everyone else was fair game.

I had dealt with a similar girl in high school and learned my lesson.

I avoided Helen like the plague. Luckily, she hadn't caught me in her claws yet, but I expected that would probably change. Eventually. She didn't seem to discriminate with who she picked on. If you were breathing, you were fair game.

On the day of the concert, I passed her and her roommate in the hallway. I had just taken a shower and was on my way back to my room, dressed in my robe with my bath caddy in hand. They were both dolled up and ready to go, despite it only being lunchtime and several hours away from showtime.

I smiled and said a quick hello but didn't get more than a raised eyebrow and a once-over in return. Not that I expected more.

I'd heard that people were pre-gaming, like they usually did before the football games, and assumed that was where they were going.

When Amanda texted me to let me know they were pulling up in front of the school, I'd already changed three times. The outfit I ended up with was simple; torn blue jeans, a black tank top and a pair of black chucks.

My hair was down, but I'd made some big loose curls and added an extra layer of mascara to my already dark lashes. I wasn't sure if I was concert ready, but Amanda had said that it was hot, which was why I'd chosen a simple tank instead of an embroidered blouse I'd purchased at a chic boutique right before I left for a college but not yet worn.

I grabbed my phone and wristlet and took the staircase two steps at a time as I hurried to get to the car.

"Slow down, girlfriend," Becca laughed when I passed her and Lin on the second landing. They were dressed in their field hockey uniforms on their way to their game. "Where's the fire?" she joked.

"No fire. Meeting Amanda," I called back over my shoulder and pushed the front door open. "Good luck at the game," I added as an afterthought.

"Thanks! Have fun at the concert."

I had a feeling I would and was already smiling when I spotted the car.

"PEYTON!" Amanda shouted as she threw the rear door open and bounced out onto the sidewalk to meet me. She threw her arms around me, and we screamed and jumped around like it had been years instead of months since we last saw each other.

"Oh, my god I missed you!"

"Me too."

I backed away and studied her. She had cut her hair off, which I knew from FaceTiming, but seeing it in person was different. Her hair - which had been down to the middle of her back - now reached just below her shoulders. She'd added a couple of light blonde highlights in her otherwise dark blonde hair to frame her face. It looked great and brightened her blue eyes.

"I love your hair!"

"Thanks," she chuckled. "I love it too."

"It makes you look older, I think." I touched the soft ends of her hair, which was shorter than mine for the first time.