loud.
“Probably not this many,” Gabriel said, squeezing in closer to me
as another student passed us to get to the back. I wasn’t quite sure, but it
looked like in some seats there were at least four students.
It felt strangely exotic to be so close to the two of them. I
considered them both very good looking and simply being friends with guys who
were so handsome was still amazing to me. When it came to being snuggled
between them, I found it difficult to deal with. The circumstances made it so
we were forced into this but I secretly looked forward to the long bus ride
home and wondered if this would happen every day. I inhaled Kota’s spicy scent
and Gabriel’s musk wood and they mixed together well. Gabriel’s lean hip
pressed against mine. Kota, in an effort to make more room, moved sideways,
putting an arm on the seat over my head. His long fingers hung down over my
shoulder, brushing against the collar of my shirt.
“I’m sorry, guys,” I said. “If it wasn’t for me, maybe you would
be riding with North or in your own cars.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Kota said.
“You worry about me. Isn’t that why you’re here?”
He smiled softly but said nothing.
“We stick together,” Gabriel said. “It’s what we do.” He rubbed a
palm on top of my head, messing up my hair. “You’ve got to get used to that,
Sang. You’re with us now.”
I took in a
deep breath. I’m with them. The only thing I wasn’t totally sure about was what
this was.
P ainful S ecrets
W e spent nearly forty minutes squished together on the bus, as more
students meant more places to stop and a longer wait as students had to
rearrange themselves to get off. When we got to Sunnyvale Court, the bus driver
stopped in front of Kota’s house. “Everyone on this street, I’ll pick you up
here in the morning,” the driver said.
I shuffled out with Kota and Gabriel. My sister, Danielle and her
brother were behind us.
I stood with Kota and Gabriel in the driveway. “I guess I’ve got
to go. If my sister checks in and I’m not there...”
“Can you get back out?” Gabriel asked.
I glanced at my sister, who was talking to Danielle. “We’ll have
to see how this goes. I might have to negotiate.”
“What does that mean?” Kota asked. He pushed his glasses up his
nose. “You still haven’t told me.”
“It’s too hard to explain right now.”
Gabriel held out his forefinger with his thumb up like his hand
was a gun. He jerked it, taking a shot at me. “Call us,” he said. “Or run back
over if you can.”
I nodded. I started up the road toward the house. Marie soon
followed me.
I walked alongside my sister. It felt strange to be standing next
to her after spending the whole day with the guys. She looked strangely
uncomfortable. I wondered how her first day was. I assumed she didn’t talk to
the principal at every turn.
“So, that was Danielle, wasn’t it?” I asked her.
She scrutinized me, frowning. “How would you know?”
“The guys mentioned her and her brother,” I said.
Her lips screwed up on her face. “Yeah, well, she told me about
those boys ,” she emphasized as if to suggest they were toddlers rather
than our own age.
“What did Danielle have to say?”
Marie shrugged. “I wouldn’t hang out with them. They’re snobs from
some private school.”
“They’re not snobby,” I said. “They’re nice.”
“They don’t talk to anyone but themselves.”
“They talk to me.”
“Yeah, well, you’re weird so go figure.”
I let out a breath. There wasn’t a point to talking with her. When
she set her mind to how a person was, she pretty much kept that opinion. Still,
I wondered how she managed to make friends as she seemed so negative. We were
never really close but sometimes I wondered what it would have been like if we
tried to get along. It wasn’t that I was mean to her. We didn’t really have a
lot in common and with our parents being the way they
“Probably not this many,” Gabriel said, squeezing in closer to me
as another student passed us to get to the back. I wasn’t quite sure, but it
looked like in some seats there were at least four students.
It felt strangely exotic to be so close to the two of them. I
considered them both very good looking and simply being friends with guys who
were so handsome was still amazing to me. When it came to being snuggled
between them, I found it difficult to deal with. The circumstances made it so
we were forced into this but I secretly looked forward to the long bus ride
home and wondered if this would happen every day. I inhaled Kota’s spicy scent
and Gabriel’s musk wood and they mixed together well. Gabriel’s lean hip
pressed against mine. Kota, in an effort to make more room, moved sideways,
putting an arm on the seat over my head. His long fingers hung down over my
shoulder, brushing against the collar of my shirt.
“I’m sorry, guys,” I said. “If it wasn’t for me, maybe you would
be riding with North or in your own cars.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Kota said.
“You worry about me. Isn’t that why you’re here?”
He smiled softly but said nothing.
“We stick together,” Gabriel said. “It’s what we do.” He rubbed a
palm on top of my head, messing up my hair. “You’ve got to get used to that,
Sang. You’re with us now.”
I took in a
deep breath. I’m with them. The only thing I wasn’t totally sure about was what
this was.
P ainful S ecrets
W e spent nearly forty minutes squished together on the bus, as more
students meant more places to stop and a longer wait as students had to
rearrange themselves to get off. When we got to Sunnyvale Court, the bus driver
stopped in front of Kota’s house. “Everyone on this street, I’ll pick you up
here in the morning,” the driver said.
I shuffled out with Kota and Gabriel. My sister, Danielle and her
brother were behind us.
I stood with Kota and Gabriel in the driveway. “I guess I’ve got
to go. If my sister checks in and I’m not there...”
“Can you get back out?” Gabriel asked.
I glanced at my sister, who was talking to Danielle. “We’ll have
to see how this goes. I might have to negotiate.”
“What does that mean?” Kota asked. He pushed his glasses up his
nose. “You still haven’t told me.”
“It’s too hard to explain right now.”
Gabriel held out his forefinger with his thumb up like his hand
was a gun. He jerked it, taking a shot at me. “Call us,” he said. “Or run back
over if you can.”
I nodded. I started up the road toward the house. Marie soon
followed me.
I walked alongside my sister. It felt strange to be standing next
to her after spending the whole day with the guys. She looked strangely
uncomfortable. I wondered how her first day was. I assumed she didn’t talk to
the principal at every turn.
“So, that was Danielle, wasn’t it?” I asked her.
She scrutinized me, frowning. “How would you know?”
“The guys mentioned her and her brother,” I said.
Her lips screwed up on her face. “Yeah, well, she told me about
those boys ,” she emphasized as if to suggest they were toddlers rather
than our own age.
“What did Danielle have to say?”
Marie shrugged. “I wouldn’t hang out with them. They’re snobs from
some private school.”
“They’re not snobby,” I said. “They’re nice.”
“They don’t talk to anyone but themselves.”
“They talk to me.”
“Yeah, well, you’re weird so go figure.”
I let out a breath. There wasn’t a point to talking with her. When
she set her mind to how a person was, she pretty much kept that opinion. Still,
I wondered how she managed to make friends as she seemed so negative. We were
never really close but sometimes I wondered what it would have been like if we
tried to get along. It wasn’t that I was mean to her. We didn’t really have a
lot in common and with our parents being the way they
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