Starting Over: rewrite

Old Friends

Here's a little taste of the rewrite for Secret's and Lies. I hope you all are ready to take this journey again with me but just with a different ending.

My life has been treated more like a business deal than anything else. My father would rather jet set around the world with his model of the minute than attend any of our school functions that he didn't deem worthy enough. He blamed my brother and I for taking away the life of our mother and never lets us forget it. As well as how we don't meet his expectations. My brother and I desperately just want his love and approval but we know we'll never get it. No matter what we do we will never amount to the greatness that is Bart Bass.

School's starting back up again and that means another year to suffer through high school with some of the fakest people that I call friends. We're friends with each other because our parents deemed it a good business move. If powerful families children were friendly with each other it meant they were in the good graces of the elite. And the elite always finds ways to exclude those deemed not worthy. One of my best friends Blair believes this wholeheartedly. She will not even look at someone or think of someone who is beneath her. Her parents have her believing that she is, in fact, royalty even if she doesn't have a drop of royal blood in her.

Blair's mom always loves to throw a party for any occasion. Bringing all of the Upper East Side under one roof to discuss all things luxury. This is the time for parents to brag about the brilliance of their mediocre kids who will get into the top schools based on their last name. It is also where parents deny any negative perspective their family may be facing.

__________________________________
At these functions, people like to point out that Bart isn't here and where is he. Chuck and I have grown accustomed to switching between business trips to foreign affairs. All of which is true especially when they involve young models that are barely legal enough for him to sleep with. Chuck has found that drugs and alcohol drown out his loneliness while I seek comfort in a good book. Blair says I spend too much reading but if I get to escape the drama of my world and dive into those of Jane Austen and Shakespeare.

"Nathaniel, any interest in some fresh air?" Chuck is always looking for a reason to get high and he doesn't care where or when. Nate looks to Blair almost for permission.

"When I get back?"

"If he gets back." Blair is dragging her boyfriend away to do God knows what with him. She's determined I give her that. Wanting to fool around with her boyfriend with her house filled with some of her mom's most important guests. Now if Bart actually had a family home for all of us to live under I would pull the same thing, but Bart is more comfortable with keeping Chuck and me at a distance.

"Ella, you have to tell us when you're walking in Fashion Week." Kati can't stop gushing over my blossoming modeling career.

"Of course, I need you two in the audience cheering me on."

"Our friend is becoming a supermodel." Is beams with pride.

"Which means ladies, I will be sleeping with more models." Chuck raises his glass to me and I ignore him as I sip on my champagne.

"Oh, my God! You'll never believe what's on Gossip Girl. Someone saw Serena getting off the train at Grand Central." Is shows me the post and I try to process what this means. Serena used to be Blair and my best friend. We were the perfect trio. Always doing something together. Neither one never is seen without the other, but she left us without even a goodbye or a reason for her departure. She refused to answer our calls and text, and for a year, we got used to not having her around.

"Good, things were getting a little dull around here." It didn't take long from talking about Serena being back to seeing her blond locks from across the room. I excuse myself and down the last of my drink before coming up to her and her mother Lily.