The Secrets We Keep

Chapter One

"Rosario!” exclaimed a person to my right, “Hi how are you?" as I walked by a coffee shop to where I parked my car.

I turned around to find a slimed and older version of Daniela Rivers, an old friend from high school. I smiled. Her arms where covered in shopping bags as she held her Iced Latte with her right hand and her phone in her other. Really the first day I leave my house, where I’ve been secluding myself until school starts, she appears. Danny look fabulous and I looked like a… well… I’m not going there. I tried to hide my grimace when I saw her.

"Hi Danny, I'm fine. God I haven't seen you in so long. How are you doing?" I say making polite conversation.

"I'm great, you know, I'm going the university. Are you in school?" she asked her voice curling up at the end. I can see her looking me over, checking off her list of perfection rules as she went. At least I showered today, I shrug mentally.

"Yeah I just transferred to Florida State." I said cautiously watching her face light up.

"Oh great!” Her voice increasing in volume, “I'll see you around campus then."

"Yeah I guess you will." I replied looking at the ground.

"Dan—oh," said a deep voice behind me. I knew who it was by his voice. My best friend, the best friend I left behind. His blue eyes darken as he recognizes who I was. His mouth was slightly opened and his eyes shrunk into slits. Like he couldn’t believe his eyes, he reached forward and touched my face.

"Rory?" Kendrick said snapping his hand back into place once he had realized that I was in fact standing in front of him. His blue eyes widened. They knock me back to the memories of a childhood unforgotten and often missed.

"Yeah, Kenny, It's me." I replied hesitantly.

"What are you doing here?" He said coldly. His surprised expression gone and was now replaced by the anger, which I was expecting.

"Yeah, I just moved back. It's good to see you again. I was going to call you when I got more situated at the new apartment."

"Yeah, right, okay. You don't write, you don't call, you ignore my messages and it’s good to see me. Is that all you have to say?" He started to yell walking slowly towards me making me back up into a corner.

Danny stepped in. Her eyes worried as she dropped her bags to the ground and put her hand on Kendrick's shoulder, pulling him back.

"Ken stop. You’re not making this better." She said in a relaxed voice. Kenny and Danny have been together since junior year of high school. She was the only girlfriend that Kenny had that didn't hate me. My best friend and I were inseparable once. Not anymore. His malevolence0 was clear in the way he looked at me now. I didn’t know what was worse, his eyes when they flashed me anger or his eyes when they flashed me the pain I had created.

"I can't believe you came back without telling me. You ass! Do you know what you did to me? What you did to Derek? Where'd you go Rory? Huh?"

I was worried about Kenny the whole time I was in New York. He hadn’t known I was in love with his brother, and he had to find out in the worst way possible. Kenny had trust issues. His mother left his family when he turned eight. Luckily though, Kenny’s father remarried to an amazing woman when we turned fourteen. We were everything to each other after his mother’s departure.

I just looked at his forehead. If I looked him in the eyes, his intensity would sear my soul into ashes. I didn't know what to say. It's been four years since I've seen any of these people. Since I had to face what I've done. I have practice what I would say, but it all sounds so stupid now.