Secrets of the Heart

Chapter 1

A/N: Hi there! Thank you for choosing to read my story, "Secrets of the Heart." I hope you enjoy it! Give me some likes/votes, comment telling me what you think, share it with your friends and of course follow me!!

I look at my pale reflection in the mirror; my black, wavy hair hanging loosely around my shoulders as I apply a thin coat of mascara to my lashes, causing my green eyes to pop. I grab my dark red lipstick and swoop it over my lips, rubbing them together.

"Madeline, are you almost done?" my sister, Samantha, calls.

"Yes almost!" I shout, throwing my makeup back into the light blue bag by the sink, stepping back to examine my appearance. "Here we go." I take a deep breath; straighten my light pink lace top one last time, and open the door.

"Is that my shirt?" Samantha asks

I quickly glide past her, "Too late I'm already wearing it!" I laugh, rushing past her, down the stairs.

"IT WOULD LOOK BETTER WITH A SILVER NECKLACE WHY DONT YOU-" she begins to yell down to me

I cut her off, "NO THANK YOU!!" I hear her groan and shut the bathroom door.

I walk down the stairs through the living room into the kitchen.

"Good Morning." I call out, I see my father and little sister sitting at the table, and my mother preparing something in the kitchen.

"Morning honey.. Hey do I look okay?" My mother turns around to face me, brushing her shirt to remove any wrinkles. She wears a grey top accented with a large yellow necklace and bold earrings to match. Her blonde hair is held up in large curls, her dark blue eyes are tinted with a light nude eye shadow, and her lips colored in a cherry red. She was a very beautiful woman.

"The matching earrings might be a bit much." I laugh slightly

She smiles, "I knew it, I told your sister it was too much." She removes the earrings and retreats upstairs to change.

I smile again, knowing Samantha had something to do with the dramatic jewelry. If there was something my sister loved, it was jewelry. I have no clue why, but she was constantly trying to accent my clothing with big, bold pieces.

I take a seat next to my father. He sits staring at his phone, sipping his coffee. Surprisingly, my father and I look somewhat alike. He has the same dark black hair, and a slightly similar face shape. Yet his is stronger, and angrier compared to mine. He furrows his brow.

"Morning Dad...Everything okay?" I ask

I can tell that he is snapped from his thoughts, "Oh, Morning, yes everything is fine." He sets his phone down, and picks up the newspaper.

"Morning Jess." I say, smiling to my little sister as she shoves another piece of waffle into her mouth. She too has the same blonde hair as my mother, but she has my father's dark eyes.

My mother returns back downstairs, and begins rattling on about a story to my father.

Just then, Samantha bounces down the stairs in a light blue dress and dark blue heels. My sister and I look a lot alike as well. She has the same dark black hair and green eyes. People often think we are twins, but we are a year apart; she is the older one. She has a much more natural look however, whereas I consider myself the unnatural one. You see, my sister has always been extremely popular; no matter where we end up she is always loved. She plays tennis, volleyball, she makes great grades, she has an amazing, unique personality and like I said, she is just naturally beautiful.

I, on the other hand, am into art. I love to draw and paint, I make decent grades, and I am incredibly awkward. Almost the complete opposite of my near perfect sister, Samantha.

"Madeline, are you listening to me?!" My mother suddenly says, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"What?!" I ask

"Oh good grief. I said you need to watch Jess tonight." She says

"But I thought it was Samantha's turn?" I say annoyed.

"It is, but I am going to try out for the volleyball team tonight. I promise to watch her the next few times." Samantha says, pleading.

"Fine." I roll my eyes, and begin scrolling through my phone. No New Emails.., I think to myself.

Suddenly, my father's phone begins ringing, causing me to jump slightly. He picks it up and walks out of the room and up the stairs before I could even count to three. I notice my mothers cheeks turn red, as she watches him with worry, following him with her eyes as he walks out. He seems to give her a look of reassurance, as she takes a deep breath, and plasters a smile onto her face again, walking over and handing me a plate of waffles.

Before I know it, Samantha is jumping up, grabbing her bag.

"It's nearly 8:00! We need to go! We can't be late on the first day at a new school!" She says, practically giving me a heart attack.

"Okay girls, have a great day! Madeline, come straight home okay? I have to be at my meeting by 5." My mother states.

"Yes, I will." I give my little sister a kiss on the cheek and hug my mother.

"I promise, things will be fine." She whispers, embracing me harder

"You say that every time." I sigh. "Bye. I love you"

Samantha and I begin walking to the garage, when I realize I forgot my bag.

"Oh wait! My bag, let me go grab it!" I rush up the stairs to hear my father on the phone.

"I don't care what it takes Jeremy.... You will find her god dammit! That's an order!.... Whatever... GET IT DONE!"

I jump slightly at hearing my father yelling on the phone, he is usually a very collected person, or he is around his kids.

"Dad?" I say

He quickly turns around. "Wha- Oh, Madeline... uh.. how long have you been standing there?" He asks

"Uhm.. Not long.. Everything okay?" I ask

"Yes, just work honey... You better get to school, you don't want to be late." He gives me a smile, patting my shoulder as he walks past me and down the stairs.

I don't know much about my father's work. He is very secretive about it, he says he is simply a "businessman", but it has to be more. I mean, honestly, we do not live a "bad" life. We are fairly wealthy. All the houses we have lived in have been large, gated communities and our new home is just the same. We have nice clothes, nice cars... I have absolutely nothing to complain about. And except for the fact that my mother runs a small chain of makeup boutiques, I have absolutely no idea where the rest of it comes from.

I snap away from my thoughts and grab my bag out of my room, rushing back downstairs and into my car.

Here we go again.