Page 18 of Deadly Secrets

(Ander)

“What the fuck, man?” Noah exclaimed, swiftly turning around with his hands raised in the air.

The blond girl just went after Sienna, who clearly left upset. Good. I hadn’t seen her in over six years, and although I had moved on, some wounds apparently never closed. Seeing her again brought back some memories I wished I had forgotten. She stood there with a big smile and doe eyes, and all I could think about was how much I hated myself for falling for her.

“What?” I shrugged.

“Look. I don’t know what happened between you two, but you obviously have an issue with her. Did you date her or something?”

“No. I didn’t date her. We used to be friends, but not anymore.”

“Oh, did she break your heart?” Noah mocked, putting his hand on his chest.

“Drop it. I’m serious.” My words were sharp. I didn’t want to dwell on what happened years ago. The past was the past, but it seemed like the universe had another plan and a fucked-up sense of humor.

“Okay, okay. I’ll drop it. But just so I’m clear, there isn’t an issue if I, let’s say, want to make a move on her? I mean…if you say there’s never been anything between you two…”

I didn’t know why Noah’s interest in Sienna pissed me off so much, but it did. Yet should I disclose what happened to him, he might assume I still harbored feelings for her, which was far from the truth. No. Those emotions were long gone. I might have been a fool as a kid, but I learned my lesson and will never make the same mistake twice.

“You wanna fuck the girl? Don’t mind me. I don’t fucking care, but the less time I have to spend around her, the better.”

* * *

“Good morning, son.”

It didn’t happen often that my father called me. He was the kind of businessman who would ask his assistant to call me rather than do it himself, so the moment I picked up the phone, I knew he was either calling to tell me how disappointed he was or to ask me to do something for him.

“Hey, Dad. What do you need?” I deadpanned.

“Is that a way to greet your father? Where are your manners?”

I sighed.

“Dad, I’m busy. Is there something you need, or are you just checking on me?”

I began pacing around my bedroom like those pigeons in Central Park, just going in circles. Whenever I talked to my dad, it always got me anxious. I paused in front of one of the mahogany shelving units and started meticulously organizing each book and DVD until I came across The Notebook.

My parents spent the whole afternoon shouting at each other. It had been their daily routine for the past year, and I sometimes wished they’d get a divorce. Things hadn’t been good lately. My father spent most days away from home, traveling or at the office, and the time he was at home, he would either yell at me or my mother for the tiniest shit.

“The Notebook or Pride & Prejudice, your choice,” Sienna said, holding two DVDs in front of me. She came to my house almost every day since our classes finished a couple of weeks ago, and every day, we would pick a different movie. It was Sienna’s turn today, and she was determined to choose a romantic drama. She lived for romance, for happily ever afters, and Ryan Gosling.

“Do I have to choose between those two shitty movies?” I really enjoyed pissing her off, and I couldn’t help myself.

“You’ve made me watch all the Star Wars movies. Be happy that I haven’t picked a Harry Potter movie yet.”

She’d been one of my best friends since I could remember, and I’d always considered her like a little sister, but in the past year, she’d physically changed a lot, and I must admit that I’d surprised myself by staring at her more than once and maybe for too long. Last week, Sienna invited me to her house to spend the day at the swimming pool, and when she took her dress off, my mouth dropped. I hadn’t seen her in a bathing suit since last summer, and the last thing I expected was to see her wearing a Quicksilver bikini that barely covered her chest and round ass. I couldn’t take my eyes off her, and every time she got closer, I couldn’t think straight.

By the time we finished watching The Notebook, Sienna hugged a pillow and silently cried at the screen. I’d watched her for most of the movie and hoped she hadn’t noticed.

“Hey, Son. Are you listening?”

I quickly realized I hadn’t heard a single word my father said over the phone.

“Sorry, I got distracted.”

That was what Sienna was—a distraction. Out of all the colleges in the world, even in the US, it was just my luck that she got accepted into Stanford. This was my place, my little kingdom, to rule away from my father’s claws. He always ruined everything I wanted, and now her presence also threatened my peace.

“I was saying that Claudia needs your schedule to book an appointment with the tailor within the next four weeks. Email her your details ASAP so she’ll stop bugging me.”

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