The Secret We Share

Kylie

I did, luckily, make it back home by 4:00 as my mother requested. I may have broken a few speed records getting home but overall it was okay.

"Kylie, we're going to the Hamilton for dinner so you might want to throw on something just a little dressier," my mother said jokingly gesturing to my current outfit. I agreed of course, and ran up the stairs to my room.

I rifled through my closet trying to find the dress I wanted. Even though I was constantly organizing my closet by color, somehow it always found its way back to a jumbled mess of clothing.

Finally. I thought to myself, having at last located the dress. I pulled the light blue off-the-shoulder dress from its hanger, slipping it over my head.

After getting dressed, I added a spritz of perfume to my neck and ran a finger through my waves which were slightly tousled from the day.

I grabbed my heeled sandals and a purse before heading back downstairs. I walked slowly and deliberately, not wanting to fall flat on my face. These sandals were definitely not stair-friendly.

The door leading to our garage opened just I reached the bottom of the stairs, and my father walked in.

"Hey kiddo!" He said giving me a hug, and I smiled.

"How was work?" I asked him, returning the hug.

"A little stressful but not too bad, we've just been pretty busy this week." He answered me, and after talking for a few more minutes he went upstairs to get ready for dinner as well.

My father owned his own business, something to do with technology- though I couldn't explain it if I tried, no matter how many times he'd walked me through it. I wasn't very good with all the tech-y stuff. I knew how to work my phone and my laptop and that was about it.

Lost in my thoughts, I walked from the bottom of the stairs to the kitchen, sitting at one of the tall chairs lining the countertop. As I mindlessly scrolled through my Instagram feed, a text from Jordan popped up.

Message from Jordan: hey baby, I have a surprise for you. Let me know if you can get together tomorrow ;)

His message confused me a bit, but I texted him back that I could probably see him tomorrow. He was leaving for vacation next week so maybe it was something special before he left? I wasn't sure but I made a mental note to check with my parents whether or not I could hang out with him tomorrow.

*****

Finally, my whole family was ready to go around 5:30, and I was starving. I could not wait for the food. This place, The Hamilton, was my absolute favorite restaurant because it was one of those rare places where literally everything on the menu was delicious. Not only that, but they have the best bread ever. Enough said.

*****

We had a great dinner, and the sun was just beginning to lower in the sky as we walked back to the bustling street outside the restaurant. The sunlight created a striking contrast between the storm clouds above, the burnt orange rays cutting through the darkened sky.

"Looks like it's about to rain," my mother commented, her brow furrowed as she looked up, also having noticed the strange appearance of the sky.

At that moment, almost as if hearing my mother, the sky opened up. Sheets of rain poured down and we could already hear thunder rolling through the sky.

We all made a break for it, running to the car. I tugged at the car handle, having no luck as it was still locked. Finally, my mother managed to fish out her keys and unlock the car, all of us piling into it. We were all out of breath from the unexpected storm, and we caught our breath as we settled into our seats.

"Well, I guess we could have used this," my mother said gesturing to the umbrella sitting, perfectly dry, on the floor in the passenger side.

"Yeah I guess so," I said and we all laughed.

Driving home, we listened to my parents' favorite radio station, the one that played nonstop 80's songs. At this point, we all knew the words, singing along loudly above the sound of the booming thunder. Lightning crackled violently across the sky, which had deepened to an even darker gray. Opaque clouds swirled in the sky as we drove through the relentless drops of water, that were now cascading in rivulets down the glass windows.

Soon enough we'd arrived at home, my parents kicking me out of the tv room so they could watch Game of Thrones. So, I went up to my room to watch some Netflix on my own. Settling in on my bed with a bowl of ice cream, after changing into sweatpants of course, I searched for a something to watch.

I sighed with contentment as I finally picked a show- Riverdale of course -and cozied up to my pillows and blankets. With the rain pattering against the window and the soft light in my room I felt at ease. These were my favorite kind of nights. I even felt free of the lonely feeling that had followed me around these past few days, somehow able to put that aside for a moment. I didn't understand how or why I felt so blissful just then but I wasn't about to question it. I just lay my head on my pillow and press play.

*****
A/N: sorry for such a short chapter!! I promise there's more *exciting* things to come! Stay tuned :)