The Secrets We Keep

by Kimberly Blackadar

My car zips down the highway and cuts through an early afternoon rain shower. The raindrops paint the road, turning the worn-out pavement to its original blackness, and I have no way to stop the flood of tears from falling down my cheeks. I consider the events from the last week: breaking up with Mike, finding out about the move to Tennessee, and discovering Ryan has a girlfriend. Each of these would have been more than enough to handle, but all three at once is like hitting the teenage-tragedy trifecta.

  As the rain slows its cadence, the highway announces the Riverside exit. I turn off and veer right, not heading toward my apartment but toward the side of town where I used to live. I take another right and head down Riverside Drive. I pick up the phone: “Can you call me through the gate?”

  As I enter the Preston’s kitchen, I find Rob and Chloe at the kitchen table with a game of Monopoly between them.

  “Hey, if you want to play, we could start over,” Chloe says hopefully.

  “No offense, Cal, but no way! I have all four railroads.” Rob points to the board. “And I was about to put some hotels on Boardwalk and Park Place.”

  “Looks like you’re in for a fun afternoon, Chlo.”

  “Yeah, real fun,” she returns and pulls out a chair next to her. “Take a seat. You can be on my team.” She glowers at Rob. “I’m sure this is exactly what Callie wants to do all afternoon, right?”

  I shake my head. “Don’t put me in the middle, Chlo.”

  Rob pushes out a breath and lays his pile of money on the table. “Fine, I forfeit.”

  “Yay, we win!” Chloe claps and then wraps on arm around my shoulders. “Callie is my good luck charm!”

  “This,” Rob begins, “does not go on our lifetime win-loss record of Monopoly games.” He gets up. “And the winner gets to clean-up and put the game away. That’s something new for you, huh?” Rob smiles, and then strolls toward the French door that leads out to the back patio. “I’ll pick you up at six, Chlo.” Before he opens the door, he turns back one more time. “And Callie, you should come with us tonight.”

  “Why? What do you two have planned for this evening?”

  “Something that you should attend, so it will be less painful for me,” Rob offers.

  Chloe suppresses a laugh. “We’re going on a double date with Brandon and Caitlyn.”

  I look over at him. “I’m so sorry, Rob.”

  “So you’ll come, right?” Rob asks hopefully.

  “If Chloe doesn’t mind…”

  Chloe swings an arm around my shoulder. “Not at all.” Rob exits the kitchen, and Chloe starts to sort the money into piles, and then she organizes the property cards in the order they appear around the board.

  “How often do you play Monopoly?” I wonder as I fold the board into half.

  “Too often.”

  “How many times have you won?”

  “Never.”

  “Maybe you should consider playing another game.”

  “Maybe you should consider my boyfriend’s love for Monopoly, and the fact that I may come in a close second.”

  I start laughing.

  “Yep, I wish I were kidding…” She places the lid on the game and returns the box to the game closet in the hall. I follow her up to her room and plop down on her antique sleigh bed. Chloe disappears into her closet and returns with an armful of sundresses. “Which one should I wear?” she asks as she holds up one at a time.

  “The tightest, shortest, sexiest one.” Chloe shakes her head, but I offer her my reason: “Listen, he leaves for college soon, so you need to give him what he wants before he goes.”

  She selects a black dress and drapes it over her desk chair; then she lays the other dresses over the footboard of her bed. “Believe me I would, but he still thinks we should wait. Of course, and don’t tell anyone this, we plan to get married next summer.”

  My jaw drops.

  “We had another talk on the way home from the beach.” She grins. “A really good one.”

  “That’s great, but you’ll only be eighteen.”

  “I know,” she begins and sits down next to me, “but then we can live together at Georgetown.”

  I glance over at her. “Can I come to your wedding, or is it going to be one of those justice-of-the-peace varieties?”

  “It’s going to be a normal wedding with our close friends and family, and yes, I want you to be there.” She reaches over and puts her hand on top of mine. “After all, you’ll be my maid- of-honor.”

  “I will?” I pause, grappling to process this. “Isn’t Courtney your very best friend?”

  Chloe rises from the bed, lifts the other dresses off the footboard, and enters her closet. “We’re not that close anymore.” She continues talking as she hangs her dresses back in the closet. “Something happened while I was in Kentucky.” She exits her closet and looks at me. “It’s like there’s something between us now, but I don’t know what it is.”

  I do, I say inwardly. “Maybe she just feels guilty because it happened at her house.” I say this, but I doubt Courtney feels any guilt about the date rape taking place in her guest bedroom.

  “I don’t know.” Chloe walks over to her dresser and opens her jewelry box. “All I know is that she and I are growing apart, and I have just come to accept it.” She pulls out a strand of pearls and sets them on top of her dresser.

  She sits back down next to me. “Do you want to borrow a dress for tonight?”

  “Nope, I went shopping for one this morning.”

  She scrunches up her face. “You did?”

  I nod. “It’s a long story, Chloe, and I wasn’t even planning on telling you about it.” I let out a long exhale, fall back, and plop my head on the pillow. She scoots around me and lays down on the other side of the bed. I flip over to face her.

  “Does this long story have a happy ending?” she asks.

  I shake my head and then give her a quick recap of my Ryan fiasco.

  “So let me get this straight,” Chloe begins, “you spotted this guy buying flowers for his girlfriend, and since his girlfriend’s grandmother was actually the florist, you found out from her?”

  I nod.

  Her blue eyes widen. “That’s awful!”

  “I have an even worse story.”

  Chloe grabs a little stuffed bear and clutches him to her chest. “Well, I’m ready to hear it.”

  “My mom decided to take a job in Tennessee, and I’m moving in a week.”

  Chloe gasps audibly and then covers her mouth. “Don’t tell me that,” she says, tears seeping out with her words. “Rob’s leaving? You’re leaving? I’ll be all alone. How am I supposed to…”

  I reach out and touch her arm. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to go.” I join her, tears spilling down my cheeks.

  “I’m sorry for my…reaction.” She looks up at me with those icy blue eyes. “I sound selfish, Callie, but I just don’t know what I’ll do without you.” She wipes a tear from her face.

  “You’re strong, Chloe,” I encourage her. “Stronger than anyone of us.” I look at her intently, wiping a few tears from my cheeks. “Just so you know, I haven’t told any of our friends yet, so please keep it a secret for now.”

  “I will,” she pauses. “I promise.” She extends an open palm, and I tap two fingers in the middle of it. I flip my hand over, and she taps two fingers in mine. Then we both form Cs and bump them on top of each other. We complete the secret handshake of the Seven Cs and seal the secret.

  “If we’re going to spend our afternoon crying, then we need something to help us through this situation.” She sits up and swings her legs over the side of the bed. “I’ll be right back!”

  If I didn’t know her better, I’d expect her to come back with a bottle of Captain or Jack from her parent’s liquor cabinet, but this is my sweet friend Chloe. Minutes later, she enters, carrying a tub of Rocky Road ice cream and two spoons. “I keep this for emergencies,” she explains with a shrug. “I was expecting to eat this whole half-g
allon on the morning Rob left for Georgetown.” She lets out a shaky breath. “I wish I could just skip next year.”

  “Me too,” I admit as those scary feelings about a new school surface again.

  We sit in the middle of her bed, chatting, sniffling, and eating spoonful after spoonful of chocolate heaven. After a few minutes, she slides off the bed and starts playing Shania Twain’s “Any Man of Mine” from the speakers on her desk since she knows my secret obsession with country music. She comes back over and pulls me off the bed. I walk a few steps and bump my hips to the side. I lift my arms up and swirl my hips in a circle. Chloe starts singing louder, and I join in, adding a random “ooh” when it feels right. I love to listen to her sing. Her voice is smooth and soothing, perfectly flawless, like our friendship.

  “Oh, I hate this crap!” Chloe and I both turn and find Caitlyn Rivers, dressed in a pale pink dress, in the doorway. “Why aren’t you ready yet?” Caitlyn advances toward Chloe and then diverts her attention to me. “And don’t take any offense, but what the hell are you doing here?” With her snotty tone, it would be impossible not to take offense.

  Chloe answers. “She’s coming with us.”

  “Is Mike coming?”

  I step toward her and shoot daggers at her. “No, and don’t invite him…again!”

  “Oh, yeah, that. It wasn’t my idea, okay? He just showed up at Bran’s house when he heard you were at the beach.”

  “Man,” Chloe steps toward me. “And you left out the part about running into your ex. You really have had the worst week of your life, haven’t you?”

  “Why?” Caitlyn wonders. “What else happened?”

  “It’s a long story,” Chloe and I chime in together.

  Caitlyn shakes her head. “Listen, we can tell stories later, girlies. Right now you two look like crap, and we have a seven o’clock reservation downtown.” She looks at me, annoyed. “I’ll call and see if I can add one more to it.”

  Caitlyn’s words send me bolting down the stairs and out to my car to get my duffle bag and a white bag from the trunk. I run back upstairs; Chloe lets me use her bathroom, and she descends the stairs to her brother’s. I treat getting ready like an event in some bizarre competition. I wonder how fast I can shampoo, lather the body, shave, and condition my hair. I should have clocked it on my phone to see the results. Within a few minutes, I slip out of the shower and use some lotion and leave-in conditioner from Chloe’s counter. I pull the dress out of the bag and put it on, leaving the ends of the sash undone.

  A knock hits the door.

  “I’m almost ready,” I respond.

  “Do you want me to do your hair while you put on make-up?” Caitlyn asks from the other side.

  I open the door and the steam creeps out, and Caitlyn slides in with a compliment. “You look absolutely gorgeous.” She ties the sash neatly in a bow. “You could be a model, you know that?”

  “Thanks,” I say and search my duffle bag for my make-up case. I start with my eyes, lining them in dark brown.

  Caitlyn starts combing through my hair, making small braids. She roots around in Chloe’s hair accessory drawer, finding some elastics, bobby pins, and silk white flower clips. She crosses the thin braids in the back, and pins in the flowers. Lastly, she hands me a mirror.

  “Wow, it’s nicer than my hair looked for prom.” I smile at her. “Thanks, Caitlyn.”

  She raises her shoulders. “Hair is my specialty, you know?”

  Chloe rushes into the bathroom. “Whoa, you look hot! What’s the special occasion?”

  “Well—I just like to look extra nice when I’m crashing a double date.” I eye her up and down and smile devilishly. “Rob is gonna’ change his mind when he sees you in that.”

  “That good, huh?” She tugs at the hem of the form-fitting black dress. “I just hope my dad doesn’t freak when he sees me in this.”

  Caitlyn puts a hand on Chloe’s shoulder. “You can hope all you want, but you better have a back-up plan because your Dad is going to make you change and you know it. Save this one for when he is out of town.”

  Chloe drops her shoulders and exits the bathroom.

  I finish off by sliding some gloss over my lips and toss my junk in my duffle bag. I pick up the white bag off the floor and scoot into Chloe’s bedroom. I find Chloe in a light blue sundress, frowning, and then Caitlyn follows behind me. “They’re here. Let’s go!”

  Chloe rushes over to her dresser and puts the pearl necklace around her neck. It reminds me of the little silver heart, so I reach in the bag, find it wrapped in pink tissue paper, and close the clasp at the back of my neck. I trace the heart with my finger and think of Ryan for a moment, wishing he were not a lying cheat.

  We descend the stairs and stroll into the Preston’s two-story family room, and I nearly faint when I see an unexpected guy sitting on the couch with Rob, Brandon, and Mr. Preston. He glances in my direction and smiles warmly. I could not be more confused, but he reads this and crosses the room toward me.

  “Hey,” he begins, opening his arms for a hug. I accept his invitation and fall into his chest. “I hope you don’t mind, but Chloe thought it would be more fun if you had a date tonight.”

  I step out of his arms, still speechless, and smile into the pale green eyes which belong to Josh Callahan.

  Caitlyn rushes into our conversation. “Are you coming with us too?”

  “If that’s what Callie wants,” he answers.

  I smile, feeling heat in my cheeks. “Yeah, sure.”

  “Great.” She wanders off. “I’ll just call the restaurant again. The hostess is going to think I’m a complete lunatic.”

  Josh shrugs his shoulders. “So how have you been?”

  “Great,” I lie.

  Caitlyn slides through our conversation again. “Bran can only fit five in his car.” She looks up at Josh with a raised eyebrow. “Do you plan to sit on Callie’s lap?”

  “Well, that sounds like quite the offer, but,” he starts, pulling keys out of his pocket, “I’ll just drive tonight.”

  We exit through the garage, and my jaw drops at the sight of Josh’s ride. I know that his family owns a chain of car dealerships, but how many seventeen-year-old guys drive a silver Range Rover?

  Josh pops open the back and puts up the rear seat, so it would accommodate all six of us. Then he guides me toward the passenger door, opens it, and offers me a hand as I slide onto the seat. He walks around the front of the car and climbs into the driver’s seat. He starts the engine, and Luke Bryan spills from the speakers. He eyes me. “You like country music?”

  “Yessir.”

  He cranks up the volume and bullets down Chloe’s driveway.

  I try to breathe and act naturally, but I’m on a date, albeit a pity date set up by my best friend, with Joshua Callahan. When we were young, the seven of us played this game at one slumber party. It was called “Which Callahan Would You Date?” We wrote our choices secretly on slips of paper, but Josh won 5-2. I think Rob must have gotten Chloe and Christina, but the rest of us were infatuated with Rob’s cousin. Courtney claimed Josh for herself and monopolized him with her slutty ways. If Josh had been given a choice, he would have pursued Carly Evans. She did not always lurk around corners in layers of black. She used to be popular and perky—just like Caitlyn.

  Josh glances in my direction as he passes a semi on the highway. “You’re awfully quiet.”

  “Sorry.”

  “It’s okay. You don’t have to talk to me.” He peers slightly in my direction. “You may not even be happy about all of this.”

  “This?” I inquire.

  “Being set up on a date.”

  “But it’s not a real date.”

  He acts offended. “Are you trying to tell me I’m a fake date?”

  “No, it’s just a pity date.”

  “You’re taking pity on me?”

  “No!” I answer with a huff of laughter. “It’s the other way around.”
/>
  “Hey now,” he begins, “you’re much too pretty to be on a pity date, Callie Williams.”

  “Then…?”

  “It’s a real date, little lady.”

  “Who are you calling little? If I recall correctly, you just passed me up in height.”

  “All right, big mama.”

  I start to laugh. “You can just call me Callie, you know?”

  “Not Callista?” He extends the final “a” to annoy me.

  I place my hands over my face. “How do you remember that?”

  “Games of Truth or Dare tend to be quite memorable.”

  I raise an eyebrow. “Especially for you and Courtney, huh?”

  “Don’t remind me,” he grumbles.

  “Speaking of Courtney, she is not going to like this.” I gesture between us.

  “I couldn’t care less what she likes.”

  “Still bitter about prom, huh?”

  “No, I got over that a while ago.” He answers and says “while” with a slight drawl, and I try not to let his southern sexiness get to me. He exits the highway, and we land in a lane of slow-moving traffic. “Everyone okay back there?”

  “Turn the music down,” Caitlyn shouts from the very back.

  “You want me to turn it up?” Josh taps the volume buttons on the steering wheel. “Okay!”

  He sings along to a vintage country song and drums the steering wheel, and I turn, just to catch a glimpse of Caitlyn. She looks annoyed. Brandon remains occupied with his phone. Rob and Chloe sit in silence in the middle row as their hands remain laced together.

  Josh turns down the volume. “Have you committed to a school yet?”

  “No, I’m stalling a bit.”

  “Who’s your front runner?”

  “Vandy, I guess. It would be nice for my mom to have us all in the same school.”

  “Yeah, I understand. The three of us will probably end up at Stetson—just to stay close to home.”

  “Plus, you work for the dealership part time, right?”

  “Almost full time now.”

  “Even during the school year?”

  He nods. “I pretty much manage the dealership in Deland.”

  “All by yourself?”

  “Well, I have forty employees to help me out.”

  I shake my head. “Wow, that’s impressive.”

  “It’s not that big of a deal, Callie. My family owns it, and my dad needs help running all the locations, and it’s the smallest one. Getting a scholarship to play college ball with a top-rated program is a real accomplishment,” he assures me as he enters the parking garage.

  “Thank you, but just like you, I feel like I’m just entering the family business, and my dad had a lot to do with my success.”

  “Well then, we both are very blessed.” He cuts the engine and looks over at me. “Let me get the door for you, okay?” His word “blessed” lingers in the air as I wait for him to come around to the passenger side.

  We stroll through the streets of downtown and end up at a swanky restaurant with a phenomenal view of Orlando’s evolving skyline. The city has grown exponentially over the years, and even at seventeen years of age, I view the city with a tinge of nostalgia, still remembering when certain buildings joined the fellow sky scrapers.

  After the hostess shows us our round table in the back, Josh pulls out the chair for me, and I sit between the two Callahan cousins.

  “This is almost like prom night,” Caitlyn announces after a waiter sets the water glasses on our table.

  “Yeah, but their dates,” Chloe begins, pointing at Josh and me, “are not here.”

  “Thank God!” Josh and I say in unison and then break into a hearty laugh.

  “We’ll have to get a photo,” Caitlyn decides.

  Rob flags our waiter and hands him his cell. He gets five more phones as we all crowd behind a seated Rob and Chloe. Josh swings an arm around my shoulders, and I smile, hoping to find a few friends like this in Tennessee.

  After dinner, we head to a comedy club, and I about explode with laughter when the comedian selects Caitlyn Rivers to go on stage. He puts a sombrero on her head and adds her to an improve skit which takes place in Mexico. She is not a natural actress, which really surprises me since she has acted happy to be Brandon’s girlfriend for three years now.

  Following the show, Josh drives us back to Chloe’s house. Brandon and Caitlyn head home, but the four of us chat easily on the driveway, our conversations moving forward into next year and backward into the past. It’s the gentle ebb and flow that accompanies years of friendship, and I know I will miss them tremendously when I live countless miles away.

  Josh looks over at me. “How’d you survive a whole week with Courtney?”

  I grin, thinking Josh knows her better than any of us, and that closeness infuriates her. She once told me how she could not play games with him, and how she had to be a different person with Josh than with any other guy. She had to be her true self since he can see through her veil of lies. “We got along okay.” I pause. “She wasn’t the reason why I left the beach early.”

  “It was because of that guy, right?” Chloe asks.

  “Yeah, the cheater.” I push out a breath. “Thank God I spotted him.”

  “With another girl?” Josh inquires.

  “No,” I clarify, “but buying flowers for her.” I offer a brief overview of the Publix encounter and my ensuing conversations with the florist.

  Rob rubs his chin. “He buys flowers for her every week?”

  “Yes, every week.”

  “Hmm?” He presses his lips together and looks at me. “I’m a good boyfriend, right?”

  I nod and look at Chloe for confirmation. She kisses Rob’s cheek lightly; Josh sticks his finger down his throat in a gagging pantomime; and Rob punches Josh in the arm.

  “But I don’t buy flowers for Chloe every week. I mean, what guy would do that?”

  “I don’t know, Rob. Apparently, he does.”

  “Maybe he does it out of guilt,” Josh offers. “Especially if he’s cheatin’ on her all the time.”

  Rob shakes his head. “It just doesn’t make sense to me.” He rubs his chin. “Guys buy flowers on special occasions or to apologize, but this weekly ritual isn’t normal.”

  Chloe looks at me. “Don’t pay any attention to his line of questioning.” She touches Rob’s arm gently. “He’s always looking for fallacies in every argument because he’s practicing to be a lawyer someday.”

  “Well, Rob, this is one case that doesn’t need to be solved. As far as I’m concerned…” I clap my hands together. “It’s case closed.”

  “Hey, it’s up to you, Callie. I would just want to know the truth rather than make any false assumptions about someone.” Then he and Chloe meander toward the woods that lead to Rob’s house for a little kissy face, but I dismiss his parting words. After all, I know enough about men to understand how they act. I can thank my father, Mike, and Ryan for “explaining” it all to me.

  I remain in the driveway with Josh, and I’m about to thank him for a great night when he gets a devilish grin on his face. “Watch this.” He opens the driver’s side door and shines the brights into the woods. Chloe and Rob separate quickly and then yelp back at him before they disappear deeper into the woods.

  Josh doubles over with laughter, and I just shake my head. “You two will never change.”

  “Hell, I hope not.” Josh pulls out a buzzing cell phone from his back pocket, and he looks annoyed as he scrolls through his texts. “Seriously?”

  “Everything okay?”

  He shakes his head. “Apparently, Caitlyn posted a picture of us at the restaurant…”

  “And Courtney saw it?”

  “Yep.” He steps forward and finds my ear. “And if you really want to add fuel to the fire,” he begins before his lips land on my cheek, “tell Courtney I gave you a goodnight kiss.”