Hidden Thoughts

Chapter 1: Secrets.

Heidi stared in horror. Her best friend's father lay dead in front of her. She ran, she couldn't bear to stand there after seeing what she had just seen. She ran the mile from her best friend Ronnie's house to her parents house; her breath was caught in her throat. Ronnie had escaped after slicing her father's stomach open with a pair of scissors, plunging her hand deep into his stomach and ripping his ribs out one by one; she then carved a doll shape out of his skin before standing up and admiring her work.

She left before she could get caught.

Heidi didn't know where else to go. She didn't want to risk being caught by Ronnie; she didn't know what would happen to her if she did. After witnessing what Ronnie had just done, Heidi didn't know what Ronnie was capable of or what lengths she would go to to keep everything that had happened a secret. She ran up to her front door grabbing her keys out of her pocket; she fumbled for the right key, checking over her shoulder every few seconds for any signs of Ronnie. After finding the right one, she stumbled in the door making sure to lock it behind her. Heidi ran up the stairs and into her box-shaped room; she slammed the door, sliding down it so that she was sat on the floor in front of it. She pushed her back into the door thinking that if she put the extra weight against it Ronnie wouldn't be able to get to her; she knew this was false, as Ronnie was far stronger than Heidi was, but all the girl had left was hope. Flashbacks of the previous events played through her mind, she shook her head attempting to clear her mind of cynical thoughts; failing as Lucas' dead body lay limp before her again. Heidi pulled herself up off of the floor and slumped on to her bed, forcing herself to fall asleep only to wake up a couple of minutes later to the high-pitched sound of a whistle; she sat bolt upright in a matter of seconds knowing it could only be one person.

"I always wondered if you were serious about our friendship, about us. But I guess now I know the truth!" Ronnie was still, almost spiritless, limiting even her micro-expressions of her face.

Heidi didn't quite know what Ronnie was saying, her voice was raised slightly and her tone was cold and demeaning. Heidi knew that Ronnie was a little psychotic, she had always envisioned Ronnie as the kind of person who would inflict mild pain on someone for fun; but never someone who would murder their own father without giving it a second thought.

But then no-one ever would.

Heidi had encountered some conversations where Ronnie had been saying strange and questionable things, things that made Ronnie unique to her best friend; it was never anything that could make Heidi question Ronnie's sanity, nothing that could ever make Heidi see her as anything less than her best friend.

"Ronnie, please; i'm your best friend, don't do this. Please." She pleaded not to be killed, but saw that Ronnie wasn't listening and made a dash for the door. Before Heidi could get any further, Ronnie was stood in front of her blocking the only exit. She took a step closer to Heidi closing the gap between them considerably. Heidi didn't want to step away, being this close to Ronnie again sent thrills through her body.

Their friendship hadn't remained a friendship for long. Ronnie had always known she was attracted to women and it was something she had always been proud of. For Heidi the realisation came much later and caused quite the disruption to her life. After many months of questioning her identity, Heidi came out as bisexual and her romantic relationship with Ronnie blossomed from that point on.

She had missed the times when Ronnie would make her feel like the most important girl in the world, when she would take her on romantic dates or moonlit walks along the beach. They were simple gestures that made Heidi feel special and loved; gestures that, in the end, broke Heidi into a million pieces.

"Trying to escape are you?" Ronnie cackled.

Heidi checked the room around her, surveying for possible positive outcomes. Results, none. Ronnie raised her frail, ghost-like hand and grabbed Heidi's throat lifting her off the ground, making it impossible for her to escape. Heidi knew not to resist, it would only put her in more danger; and somewhere deep inside of her, she thought she kind of enjoyed it. Upon witnessing Heidi's reaction, Ronnie's face formed a wicked smile, reaching ear to ear.

"Well, that was not the reaction I was expecting. It appears that dear, little Heidi can't seem to control herself."

Heidi reached out and moved Ronnie's sleeve further up her arm, producing a silver bracelet around the girl's wrist. Ronnie looked at the bracelet and then back at Heidi. This bracelet had significance for both Ronnie and Heidi, their mothers had been best friends before they died; the only thing that had been left to the girls were two silver bracelets, one belonging to Heidi's mother Amalia and the other, to Ronnie's mother, Claire.

After thinking about the situation, Ronnie loosened her grip before dropping Heidi to the ground and racing to the window. Heidi stood up to catch her breath, making sure she looked in the mirror to check if she was likely to bruise. Not to Heidi's surprise, her neck was red and the small cuts where Ronnie's nails had resided just a moment earlier

"Why are you doing this Ronnie? You nearly killed me!" Heidi said in-between breaths. She looked at Ronnie and noticed a single tear run down her face. This was a new sight for Heidi she had never seen Ronnie show this much emotion and if she had, she couldn't remember it.

"I'm sorry Heidi, I can't help it. I didn't know what I was doing. You know I'd never hurt you." Heidi didn't know how to feel, she caustiously walked over to Ronnie and placed a shaking hand on her back; she was worried that she would scare her friend and seeing her in this fragile state worried Heidi further. She felt Ronnie tense under her touch but relax as she remembered the familiar scent of Heidi's perfume.

"What do you mean you didn't know what you were doing? Are you ok? Did something happen? How can you not know what you were doing?" Heidi asked, pretending that she hadn't just seen her best friend kill her dad. Ronnie turned around, her mascara was now a river flowing down her face and her eyes were red and blotchy.

"In January of last year, me and my father had an argument. We were camping in the woods, we were in the middle of nowhere. No cell phone reception, not roads anywhere to be seen. He got so mad he hit me on the back of the head. The hit was so powerful I was knocked unconscious and I collapsed, when I hit the ground one of the pegs holding the tent down cut the back of my head. Or that is what I was told had happened; I don't remember anything after him hitting me." Heidi instantly felt sorry for her friend, she didn't normally have sympathy for others and it wasn't often that she saw her best friend cry, but something about Ronnie's behaviour was telling Heidi that Ronnie needed her now more than ever. She wrapped Ronnie in a hug, being careful not to startle her anymore than she already had.

"When I woke up in the hospital my dad was sat by my side, but I didn't know who he was. I felt threatened and tried to defend myself in the only way I know how. I punched him in the gut and attempted to make a run for it. The doctor came in and said I had an unseen case of amnesia."

Heidi could remember that trip, she remembered Ronnie telling her about it. She remembered how excited Ronnie had been; but she also remembered how Ronnie didn't speak to her for months after it. Why hadn't she told her about it sooner?