Keeper of the Lost Secrets

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE: An Awkward Dinner (With a Side of Redemption. Woo!)

I gulped and nodded. I took a seat in my usual chair, the velvet cushioning me. I wished I could sink into the throne-like dinner chairs.

In front of us was a platter of Elven foods. I didn't know the name of most of them, but they were all unappealing lumps of food. I grabbed one particularly yellow one and tasted the food. It melted in my mouth instantly. I reminded me of human pasta, if somehow pasta were tangier and more had an elven spin on it. I devoured it.

"Fitz, how was your day?" My mother asked, a smile on her face. She had thin smile lines that crinkled anytime she was happy, but only our family knew that she smiled most with her eyes.

"It was alright." I said quietly. Even her kind smile couldn't coax information out of me.

"Really, Fitz?" Biana grinned evilly. "You didn't seem fine earlier."

I glared at her. She shrugged and continued her dinner. My mother stared at me worriedly and my father hadn't said anything. He sat watching the exchange. My mother cleared her throat.

"If there's anything wrong, you can always talk to us." My mother said. I nodded but I didn't say anything. Instead, I pushed around the food on my plate with my fork.

"Yeah, Fitz, we're listening." Biana said. Now my mother stared her, sort of confused. "But anyways, I saw Fitz and Keefe go out to a café."

"Oh, that's great, Fitz." My mother smiled. "Who else came with you?"

I opened my mouth to speak, but Biana cut through. "I took some pictures. I have them–"

"Biana, no imparters at the table." My father said, scrolling through his imparter.

She muttered some complaints under her breath but placed her imparter next to her, face down. She glared at me, crinkling her nose as she so.

Dinner went by in a similar fashion. Biana and I stared at each other, willing for the other to say something. My mother interjected with a few questions every so often, but Biana could only go back onto the topic of the pictures she took. I looked down at my food until the end of dinner, willing myself not to cry.

Biana and I finished dinner first. We both excused ourselves from the table and we ran to her room.

"What is your problem?" I screamed, tearing at my short hair. "I'm happy and in a relationship with someone I like! Why is that such a problem?"

"I like Keefe! It's not fair that you get him." Biana growled at me. She was far from the nice girl she was with her friends. "Besides, you and Keefe are both . . . guys."

"Yeah? And?" I stood forward. I stared at her so intensely, she looked scared. "What about it?"

"You know that matchmaking doesn't even allow that stuff, right?" She said, picking her words carefully. "Also, it's kind of . . . weird."

"I'm sure for you it is." I gritted my teeth. "But for me, it's just so wonderful. And also, it's totally fair! We both liked him, and he liked me back. How is that not fair?"

"I don't care." Biana huffed. "I'm telling mom and dad. And after that, you and Keefe are over."

She stomped out of the room with her imparter, her dress flowing behind her. In a fit of panic, I stepped on her floor length dress, so she tripped.

When she fell, she let out a high-pitched howl, echoing through the hallways. My father and mother came running to the crime scene.

"What happened?" My mother knelt and helped a red-faced Biana up. She pointed to me.

"I hate Fitz. He takes everything that's mine!"

I stared her down. "I didn't take anything, and nothing belonged to you in the first place. Why can't you understand I'm happy! Just move on, Bia."

Biana looked at me for a second with contempt, but she looked back down at the floor. My parents stared at each other and then back at us. I could see their questions written on their face, but they didn't dare ask them in case they risked upsetting the balance of this house.

My parents left the scene, leaving me and an upset Biana to ourselves. She looked at me.

"I still don't like that you're dating Keefe." She sniffed, wiping her runny noise. "But I'm still your sister. I'm not going to tell them anything. As of now."

I conjured a soft smile. "Thank you."

"Whatever." She rolled her eyes. "And I'll try to be openminded about being . . . queer, I guess. No promises, though. And only for Keefe."

I rolled my eyes. "Of course. But still, thank you."

She walked back to her room, her dress trailing behind her. For a moment, I was stunned. I flopped down on the carpeted hallway and wept. My heart was racing, my legs were shaking and my sexuality as too close to being revealed. I picked up my phone and said, "Hail Keefe,"

A few minutes later, Keefe picked up, worry all over his beautiful face. "Fitz? Is everything alright? Did your parents find out?"

I shook my head. "No, they didn't. But they almost did. I've got so much to fill you in on."

I took myself and the conversation to my room. I nestled into the comfortable sheets and switched off the lights. The perfect atmosphere for a late-night conversation with your boyfriend. I filled him in on the evening's events.

"Woah! She switched up just like that?" Keefe lay down on his sheets. The moon lit up his face. "Any idea why?"

"Not a clue. I just asked her, rhetorically, why she couldn't just be happy for me. Then I swear I saw something in her eyes, and she came up to me and told me she was going to try to be more open minded."

"I'm so happy." Keefe squealed and lay on his back, holding the imparter up, so I could get a clear view on his cloudy blue eyes. His blond hair fell on the pillow majestically. "I guess we won't have to as secretive as before."

"Still, we have to be careful." I said. "If anyone from Foxfire finds anything out, we're dead."

"Yep, got it," Keefe playfully saluted at me, grinning. "Are we still meeting Tuesday, after school for our date?"

"Definitely." I said. "I wouldn't miss it, babe."

He laughed. "That's good. I'll be looking forward to it. Bye."

"Bye." I cut the call, Fitz clicking away instantly. I yawned and rubbed my eyes. Today was too eventful for my own good.

As I lay down, the memories of the day bounced in my head. Images of my date, Biana being a terrible person, and her finally redeeming herself. I did my best to push the memories away. A few minutes later, I was out cold.