Secrets

Chapter One- Beginnings

Another hot day, another fun summer coming to an end, I grabbed my pink sequin flip flops and ran across the lawn, the sun beating down on my shoulders, my brown hair up in a side ponytail, denim skirt flailing in the wind, and my Samsung blush phone beeping in my pocket as I ran towards my friends at the end of the street. We all lived in the same neighborhood, every summer we set up towels and brought snacks our mums had made us and set about gossiping, laughing, and sunbathing on the stretch of grass by the end of the street.

This summer was the same as any other, laughing, fights but then making up, watching our leader Lauren bully some poor helpless kid but being too scared to help them, then staying at Lauren's and each vying for her attention. We went to the beach, ate ice creams, and done most of the summer things any group of friends did in the early 2000s.

Except this was the last summer we would ever spend with Lauren. 

Monday morning, August 2004, when Lauren was just fourteen years old, she disappeared. We all searched for her, police tapes were everywhere and police interviewing everyone and their parents, we appeared on national news to give a plea for our friends return and our parents no longer let us out due to the worry and being scared we wouldn't come home. Two years passed and Lauren's memory lived on with us, but still no news on her whereabouts. We all knew she was dead, but it didn't make it any easier when in 2006, when Lauren would have been sixteen years old, her fourteen-year-old body was found, so decomposed they could barely tell it was her at first. They found Lauren in the local park which we called Loggies, Lauren named it, then the whole town caught on.

We attended Laurens funeral, and then the killer search began, there was a killer at large and we needed to make sure Lauren had justice, but we were all so broken, me and my friends drifted apart and we ended up moving to separate parts of the UK and living separate lives. We all kept in touch, we were still friends, but morbid friends. 

My life pretty much moved on as normal, years passed, I missed Lauren but life took over and time is an excellent healer. My life now consisted of coffee runs and writing, being an author was my ultimate goal and dream.

One particular morning my phone buzzed I was now 25 and so the time had completely changed technology since Lauren's murder. *Mum* Buzzed up on my screen so I pushed the answer button "Ma?" it was quiet on the other end of the phone "Mum?" I tried again and this time she answered "Chloe, you need to come home. Somethings happened." My stomach tensed and I knew I would have to face that town once again.

Back home, I packed up my suitcase, putting all my black and army green clothes into the suitcase, strung my hair into a messy bun then shoved on my black joggers and my converse. My partner Lee was coming with me and as usual, he was fussing "Chlo, listen, we need to leave, I want to get there before it's dark." He said worried and I sighed "Ok, ok, I will leave my moisturizer but I'm not happy about it!" I said stormily.

Once in the car, everything packed I shivered as Lee turned on the ignition, He looked over at me "Are you cold?" He asked rubbing my arm and I smiled "No, I just feel like this is a mistake going back" I muttered and concern grew on his face "You haven't been back since...?" And I cut him off "None of us except Dani have".

Dani moved back to Bushfair town a year ago and we had all started to lose contact with her in the last few months, she was acting weird and being aggressive and we had all had enough and decided to distance ourselves from her. 

The street lights shined into the car as the sky turned a dusky blue with orange and pink clouds and rain splattered against the windows, Lee put the radio on and walking on a dream started playing in the background as I looked at him he's curly golden brown hair glinted in the orange glow of the sky and the light of the streetlamps, his perfectly beautiful skin, mixed race with the most gorgeous bright green eyes, he was perfect and the most perfect gentleman, if there is anyone who will help me get through the next week, it was him. My Lee.

I fell asleep and dreamt of Lauren, the same dream I had almost every night, a memory of the last time we were all together, Lauren, Me, Jade, Jess and Dani. We all sat on our towels and the heat pounded down on us, we ate grilled chicken salads that Lauren's mum Sherice had made us and sipped on ice-cold lemonade, giggling but that day, Lauren seemed distracted "Loz, what's wrong?" Jade asked her when Lauren seemed away with the fairies during a conversation and Lauren snapped back into focus, her face growing stormy "What's it got to do with you?" she said and stood up her white glitter sandals contrasting on her tanned skin, her long browny blonde hair swaying and her bright blue eyes with hints of crystal white glimmered "I'm going home, you girls are boring me" she said and stormed off, leaving us all confused.

*BEEEEEEP* I swung up and opened my eyes and breathed when Lee stroked me "Lauren again?" He said lovingly and I nodded, wrapping my black jumper around me tighter. I laid back into the seat and the rain was swatting against the windows with wicked game playing on the radio, Lee was tapping the wheel and I felt warm and fuzzy, but scared and nervous.

By the time we had arrived, it was quite late so when we walked up towards the front door, the white door 139 in gold shimmering in the street lamp, I knocked lightly and gently and I turned around to see if Lee was coming yet with the suitcases and my eyes focused onto someone standing on the corner of the street, right on the grassy part of the street where we spent so many summers before I could comprehend what I was seeing, they were gone, or it was my imagination, who actually knows? but when the door swung open and I see my mums face, I knew something bad had happened "Chloe! Its Dani, she's been murdered." she said before I could even step inside the house, then just like that, my world shattered and I could hear sirens, lots of them.