Keeper of the Lost Cities Story; The Lost Secret

Chapter 2

Kai decided that she didn't have time to go to her locker, so she kept walking down the hall. She liked to take her time and go slow. She waved at people as she walked past, most of whom she barely remembered their names. Randomly, Kai heard someone sucking in a sharp breath ahead of her and she looked up. Right there standing in front of her was Marella. Her thoughts were cut off by the disgust in Marella's eyes. Kai always tried to avoid where Marella was.

Kai was frozen in place, looking back at her. Her headache flared. She hadn't talked to Marella since they had their fight. She looked around and saw Dex Dizznee. He looked worried for Marella; I guess he'd never seen the real Marella. The scared and insecure one. She seemed sad and hurt for a moment, her eyes crinkling with worry. But, just as quick hate and anger flared in Marella's eyes; she scoffed and turned to leave.

"Wait, please, Marella, we need to talk," Kai said. Her head was pounding for some reason. She felt the desperation in her voice, and she knew Marella heard it too. Kai needed to fix the relationship, they both were living with the pain.

"Do you really think I want to talk to you?!" She said coldly. She rolled her eyes, but Kai could see them watering a bit. There was still a chance, Kai thought.

"Please, I think we need to figure this out," Kai said, stepping closer. Marella didn't care. Her face twisted with pain and anger.

"Stop it," she hissed, "I'm not going to pretend to care about you and your pathetic life," she said dryly. Kai felt her eyes water; Marella had never said anything like that before. Even when they had their fight, she never talked like that. Kai just stood there stunned with tears in her eyes.

"Marella-" Dex stared.

"No, Dex, you don't know the story, and you don't know her!" Marella yelled. She said her in a way that broke Kai's heart. 

Marella stomped off, and Dex looked at Kai. She couldn't tell what his face was saying, but she did see sympathy. She hoped Dex would talk to Marella. Maybe help fix a seriously broken relationship, but she wasn't confident that he would.

Kai couldn't focus during history. All she could think about was the moment she saw Marella and the terrible pain in her head. She wondered why it hurt so bad now. Kai's memories with Marella flashed in her head; she wished she never had that stupid fight with her best friend.

"Miss Behar," Kai's history teacher said. "Please pay attention!" Kai nodded. She usually didn't care about history; she would normally just study afterward at home. Today Kai forced herself to pay attention and even take some notes.                                                                                    

                                                                                           ...

Kai rushed down the halls quickly because she was meeting Amaira at their bench spot outside. Kai was still upset thinking through what had happened with Marella. Could they be friends again? Would Marella ever want to see her again?

"Kai?" Amaira said. Kai walked over and sat down. The flowers and the; trees surrounding kept the spot private.

"Are you okay?" Amaira asked when she saw Kai's face. Kai was not okay; she felt sick. She wanted to fix her and Marella's friendship so badly, but now Kai couldn't stop the tears welling up in her eyes.

"No," Kai whispered. "Marella we..." She couldn't finish the sentence, but Amaria understood.

"Oh, Kai!" She said, hugging me. "Just ignore her! She isn't worth this much!" She muttered. Her face was both sad and serious. Kai knew she was right; Marella didn't want to fix our relationship. However, she couldn't let go of hope for her friend. She knew Marella was all wrapped up with the Neverseen and Blackswan stuff now, but Kai still wished Marella was her friend. 

"Thanks, Amaira," Kai said quietly as a tear slipped down her cheek. She hadn't meant to start crying, but she couldn't help it. 

Amaira stayed quiet, knowing that was what Kai needed, and hugged her. They sat like that for a few minutes while Kai composed herself. 

"Kai?" someone asked behind them. Kai froze; she didn't expect people to be in the yard after school. She saw Asher walking up to them. But his usual smile wasn't there, he only looked worried.

"Are you okay?" He asked, his eyebrows scrunched. Kai resisted the urge to stare at him. He only looked this worried when it involved her and her family or Marella. She thought he looked cute when he was like this, it shows he really cares.

"Yes, I'm fine" She replied flatly. 

Kai stood up unsteady. She realized she was blinking or flickering between visible and invisible. Her eyes were wet and she wiped them. Her mascara stained her hand black, and Kai felt self-conscious; her makeup had been washed away. 

Asher walked up close and hugged her. No one said anything for a while; we all just stood in silence. It wasn't exactly uncomfortable, but there was probably some tension. Kai watched the leaves on the trees sway with the breeze. The sun was shining, but it wasn't too hot out. 

"I think I'm gonna go home," Kai said, breaking the silence. Amaria stood up with her and Kai reached to grab her home crystal, which of course was not there. Her life was falling apart! 

"Me too; my mom is probably wondering where I am," Amaria said; she grabbed her crystal and leaped away quickly. Asher looked at Kai; he looked confused. "I guess I forgot mine," Kai said; she pointed to her neck where the crystal was supposed to be. He smiled a little.

"Always forgetful huh?" He said jokingly, "Do you want me to come with you to the LeapMaster?" He asked. He looked super tired though and Kai was actually planning on making a detour, so she didn't want him tagging along.

"It's okay; I need some time alone," She said; it wasn't a lie. Just not the whole truth. 

                                                                                        ...

 Kai walked quietly; most of the students left right after school, but some had extracurricular activities and she didn't want anyone to see her. If you had attention on you all the time thanks to your family, you wouldn't want to be seen sneaking around either. 

As she was making her way up, she froze. There was hushed talking around the corner. They sounded worried. Kai was going to just walk past, but she recognized the voices. Elwin. He was easy to hear; Kai saw him almost every day. The other two were a man and a woman. Kai felt like she knew them, but couldn't exactly remember. Kai pretended to try opening a locker closest to the corner where they were.

"She could be there for weeks now," Elwin said, sounding very worried.

"What if she keeps setting her progress back?" The woman asked. Her voice was so familiar it bugged Kai.

"She'll stop. Sophie is a fighter," The man said. Sophie? Sophie! The realization hit Kai in the gut hard.

Grady and Edaline! Kai hadn't seen them since... No, she couldn't think about them, but she longed to go up and hug them. She resisted. They kept talking, but Kai wasn't listening. She wanted to know what was wrong with Sophie. Where was she stuck for weeks? Why? Maybe Sophie got hurt. Was this why Biana and Keefe made a weird excuse for where she was? Kai made an impulsive decision, she ran.