Beautiful Secrets

Unexplained Confessions - Hunter

"Landen, I'm really worried about Andrea. Have you gotten anything?"

I stare into Landen's eyes which are focused elsewhere. He gives off a blank look. There was so much on his mind, yet he couldn't speak. He couldn't find a way to let it all out. Nobody could. Andrea couldn't keep her eyes off her phone. It's like when Lia went missing the whole world stopped for her, I guess that's how she would have liked it, no matter how fucked up it was.

"Has no one else gotten a message?" Landen, snapping out of his daze, shifts in his seat silently.

"Am I the only one who is going to talk today? Cassie your hung over, Landen you did god knows what, and Andrea I get your scared, but don't you at least want to talk about it?"

Andrea opens her mouth, but is saved by the bell ending this one sided conversation.

"Meet me at my car after school." Andrea says quietly. The group separates leaving me alone at an empty lunch table anxiously worrying about everyone. She was all I could think about until the final bell rang. I was the first one there, the rest came a few minutes after. Neither saying anything, as we all got into her gray Subaru.

...

The moment we get inside Lia's apartment Andrea goes frantic looking for pens and paper in her bag. She disappears into the kitchen coming back a moment later with a metal bowl.

"I have an idea," she says setting everything on the floor. "Whoever has gotten a message, write it down and put it in the bowl."

Once we are all done, Cassie grabs the bowl and lays out each piece, displaying every message we already know of, Andrea's. We were all thinking it, but Andrea was the one who said it.

"Come on guys, I can't be the only one." She said as anger began to fill inside her.

Landen shifts again.

"Landen, what is it?" Landen freezes. He hesitates, reaching into his pocket pulling out a piece of paper. He looks at me.

"Here." He sighs throwing the paper in my direction.

Andrea and Cassie scoot closer, their faces just as curious as mine.

"Let's hope this isn't a secret that you keep like the ones you and Lia had. Though, I'm not one to kiss and tell."

"What are they talking about?" Cassie gets up to sit next to him. Landen shakes his head.

Andrea's face is far from sympathy. "Don't comfort him, Cassie."

"He's our friend, it doesn't matter what he did."

"Ask him then?" Andrea says glaring at Landen.

"He's not going to tell us, Andrea. If he isn't ready."

A tear escapes from Landen's eye rolling down his face dropping to the ground.

"Damn, if he isn't ready. He's kept enough secrets as it is and with who? Lia our best friend or did you forget she's even missing. Secrets overtake people Cassie, for all we know it could've been Landen." Andrea goes after Landen, Cassie quickly blocking her path.

"I understand you're worried about Lia going missing, trust me we all are, but coming at Landen isn't an option right now." Cassie snapped.

Looking at this play out I realized the world didn't just stop for Lia, it sped up going in all directions wrecking havoc. The way I see it, we all see things how we want them. In a way we all have our own universe and in Lia's universe we don't exist without her.

"Guys!" They all stop and look up at me except for Landen. "Do you not see what's happening? Lia's been gone for two days and we're already letting her ruin us. She's not some poor innocent little girl. She's vindictive, sneaky, and she kept secrets. What Landen did doesn't matter. We can figure that out later. Stop fighting and just sit down."

Andrea backs up and sits on the couch, Cassie following her. Landen raises his head looking around the room his eyes stopping on me.

"What are we going to do?"

It was such a good question, though it's always the best questions that have the hardest answers.