Little Things ✓

Chapter 8

My friends slowly hand the album to one another, going through pages and gasping every once in a while as they look at each and every picture in it. I tap my fingers on my laps as I wait impatiently to see what Leayah hid here four years ago. Okay, pictures might not be such a great deal, but after finding out something I've never expected to find out, I'm surprised and worried that things haven't fallen out after since.

At last, as my turn finally comes, I stare intensely at the first photo from the album. It portrays the entire group, smiling and laughing between one joke and another. Then, more pictures of the group as a whole, doing even the silliest things and having fun all together. This, at least, is what I see in the first pages.

However, as I reach the middle, I notice that the pictures there are not as happy as the previous ones. I see more sad faces, more tension and, in some cases, more glares and forced smiles. Worse still, I don't even appear in those. Anyway, I wonder when and why Leayah would take these pictures. While I know perfectly about her passion for photography, I can't understand what brought her to take such pictures.

I quickly close the album, hurt by those painful sights, and attempt to return it to a surprised Leayah, but she stops me short. "No, no, Blen, you have to look at all of them," she points out, shaking a finger straight up on my face, "so that everyone sees what you tried to do back then."

What the fuck is she talking about? Has she turned into a devious bitch like Hailei? Please, someone tell me it's just a fucking nightmare, that everything's going to be okay and that there's nothing that can stop me and my friends from being happy, finishing this task and leaving while we pretend that nothing bad happened. However, reality is not like that. I mean, it's more painful than how I depicted it, and it hurts.

I gather the little courage that's left inside me and reopen the album at the exact point where I closed it, but, as I see the next set of pictures, I literally cringe. The only thing I see in that stupid album is Leayah hand in hand with Aaron, hugging or even kissing him. Okay, I've seen enough. I want to puke. I thought their liaison would be only a brand new feeling; instead, it looks like they rekindled it after keeping it hidden to the rest of us for years. What else do I expect of them, by the way?

"You-" I quickly stand up, point my finger at a shaking Leayah and glare at her, but Aaron drags me down, gesturing at me to put it down. He also intervenes, "Well, now that Leayah has found her album and shared it with us, shall we move on? Penelope, I think it's your turn, right?"

I don't know what else I should do to thank this guy. He literally saved my butt from making another poor figure; yet, I haven't paid him forward at all. Maybe I'm not that good of a friend, after all. I put the damn album on the chair in the middle of the room and sit back down at my place, trying hard to avoid Hailei and Rheta's hard stares.

Penelope, on the other hand, stands up, stretches her legs—she claims she has sore knees—and moves towards the cupboard, opening the three drawers and inspecting each of them closely. At the same time, Aaron leaves me behind to sit back next to Leayah, hugging her and pressing his lips on her cheeks. Now that I've caught them in the act, there's no more need to hide, right?

But who am I to talk about hiding when all I've done for years and until now is being elusive and keeping secrets all the time? I think I should stop caring about what other people think of me and how they'd react if I shared my secret with them. In other words, I have to be honest to them. There's no more room for hiding anymore—okay, I've already stated this before, but it's crucial. I shouldn't let bad judgement ruin everything with my friends, yet I still do.

Okay, I'm definitely the most messed up person in this fucking house.

***

After the others took their time to find their items, I'm surprised that Penelope's search is already over. I mean, she has barely gone through the cupboard drawers and nothing else. Perhaps, she was just confident to find it quickly in order not to waste any more time. She sits on the chair, holding a golden necklace with a P-shaped penchant of the same material.

I nudge Kaiti and Shannon to wake them from their sleep—or trance, or whatever it is—while still dodging Hailei's icy glares and Leayah's insistent purrs at Aaron's direction. Kaiti spaces out as she's left open-mouthed at the sight of the jewel, whereas Rheta is staring at the penchant when she comments, "Nice one. My mom also used to have one."

Penelope asks in response, "Oh, really? What happened? Did she die and hand it to you? Or did she lose it? I mean, I'd totally freak out if I lost such a precious item-" She cuts herself off as she realizes that she's zoning out, which is confirmed by the fact that Aaron and Hailei are shaking their heads in disapproval.

"Well, actually she sold it," answers Rheta, shocking everyone. I mean, I know Rheta's mom. She's not greedy and she's not in extreme need of money, so why'd she sell it? I can't believe she did it for no specific reason; however, as this is not exactly my business and we have no time to waste, I refrain from asking.

Instead, I say, "Okay, people, maybe we should let Penelope talk, what do you think?" Everyone nods in agreement, so she can talk. While she does so, I'm captured by the twinkling brilliance of that penchant. I've only seen her wear the necklace once: at prom, when she was dumped by some stupid guy whose name I even forgot... Oh, never mind.

Between one compliment and another from the other girls—with the clear exception of Hailei, who just frowns out of annoyance—Penelope explains, "This necklace is so beautiful, I used to keep it in a special box in my drawer, but after what happened at prom with that guy, I decided that keeping it wouldn't be worth it anymore. It'd just bring more painful memories-" She doesn't finish the sentence; instead, she sobs, struggling to let tears out.

He was an asshole, I know. He dumped her for some shallow little brat; he couldn't give a damn about Penelope. For me, he was and still is dead. No-one messes with my friends' hearts. Not wanting to see her cry anymore, I try to reassure her. "I know this is hurtful," I say, "but letting go of your favorite necklace doesn't help to move on. Perhaps you should try something el-"

"Don't you dare!" She interrupts me in a very rude manner, shrieking so loud that I fear I may go deaf at any time. As she approaches me to face me, her blazing glare cutting the air filled with tension, I just turn my back at her, stand up and hide at the corner.

I'm done with this shit. I just want to find my item and leave this stupid hut.