A String of Secrets

Chapter 2

It was close to nine o'clock at night when I got home from the library.

I spent way more time studying than I had anticipated, trying to figure out a way to convince Rize to let me do this project by myself in-between completing other assignments for class.

When I made it back to the apartment, I found Dana sprawled on the couch and taking notes for one of her classes. Her light blonde hair was pinned out of the way of her hazel eyes, but there were a few strands framing her round head.

"I was just about to get up and go get you," she said as I shut the front door. "I know the library is open twenty-four seven, but that doesn't mean you actually have to live there, Mari."

"Sorry, I had a lot to do." I took off my shoes and walked over to the kitchen and opened the fridge, smiling brightly when my eyes rested on a large container of shrimp stir fry. "That for me?"

"I figured I'd get you some since you weren't going to be back before the place closed. Payback for buying all of us pizza when we were drunk last month."

"You're the best. Thanks. How's your studying going?" I asked as I grabbed the container and popped it in the microwave to heat it up. The smell of the food had my mouth watering.

Dana rolled her eyes. "Things are a bit rushed because somehow, someway, the professor is a little behind schedule. You?"

"I'm figuring out what to do for the creative project for CI4."

"Didn't you say you were going to do a presentation? You said that you wanted to do something you don't have to spend so much time on."

"Yeah, but I've been going back and forth with a few ideas." I wasn't ready to admit to her that I desperately wanted to go after Alex's killer, not especially when she herself was also trying to process that he was gone. "I was thinking about something hands-on though, but it requires a partner."

She scoffed. "And we all know that you hate partner work."

"Exactly. Manson offered to be my partner, but I said no." The conversation that we had in the library floated up in my memory, and I stifled a laugh as I pulled my food from the microwave and sat down beside her.

Dana looked up from her work and blinked in shock. "Are you serious?"

"That's what I said. He was convinced that I was going to change my mind."

"Well, are you?"

Now it was my turn to blink in shock. "Why would I?"

"I mean, once you make a decision, you don't go back on it."

"No way. I'm going to see if my professor can let this slide just once."

"I hope it works out. By the way," she rolled her eyes and her mood turned sour. "Christian stopped by earlier looking for you."

I forced myself to swallow my food correctly so I wouldn't choke, then exclaimed, "What?!"

"Yeah. Said he wanted to check on you and see how you were feeling with the recent news. I told him that you weren't here and to never show up again so neither of us wouldn't have to see his face."

Dana hated Christian, my ex-boyfriend, with a passion. She never held back her glare whenever he walked by, and she always kept him away from me whenever we were together and he felt the need to come and talk.

I was never in a mood to talk to him. Not since I found out that he was cheating when we dated.

When he boldly kissed another woman in front of everyone at a loud and crowded frat party (a party I originally said I wasn't going to but ended up changing my mind) and threw our six-month relationship down the drain, I thought I would collapse. Once he finally stopped kissing her, he saw that I was there and he looked guilty.