Twisted Heart: A Crushed Love Novel

Twisted Heart (Part 5 - Tearless Lies)

I have to start another story because of my ANNOYING FRIEND who wants to write another one. that's you, sravani. You suck. Anyway, we will release soon. She will be the main writer for it, but I will be realized on this account. Most of the credit will go to her, so please comment on her. Once we upload it, of course.

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Alex

"Why are we dealing, Alex?"

She'd finally snapped and asked. I could tell she'd been going through a morale dilemma in her mind for the last hour or so. She knew that if it were serious, I would tell her. But at the same time, this was too big to get unnoticed. The very evidence of my words was proven in the next moment, as everyone else shut up looked at me. They must have been waiting for this, though they were all too scared to ask me. Apart from Scarlett, they're all terrified of me. Scarlett is way too open and trusting to be frightened. I doubt she'd scared of anything in this world.

I looked at her, mentally sighing. I knew she would ask, so I'd prepared a lie. Lying to people, to seniors, to parents came so easily to me. But it was hard with Scarlett.

"It will raise our profile in the streets. The other gangs will stop bothering us. You remember what happened to Mike."

Fear flashed through her eyes. She was really way too easy to read. Even though she thought of herself as a hard, cold, tough felon, but in reality it's the completely opposite. She has no idea what the streets are really like. I've been guarding her from the outside world for so long. If she had any clue about what the cold, dark universe was really like, she would break down. She has no idea what happens to the girls her age who dare to walk through these streets. She has no idea about the stabbings, the killings. Sure, she's seen us beat some guys up, but that was all for the show. If she saw the bad things we did, the truly awful things, she would leave. I wouldn't be able to see her any more.

Even though she flinched, I could tell she didn't believe me. I couldn't blame her, to be honest. It was a bad excuse, but I wasn't surprised the dumb gangsters did believe me. They all nodded, the guys going back to their endless discussion about their motorcycles, and the two girlfriends, dressed up in clothes so tight they bulged, a surprising feat for Size 0s, went back to picking at their nose rings.

I sighed again, out loud this time so Scarlett could see my action and calculate it. She knew I only sighed when I was really annoyed.

"Red, can I talk to you?"

Her eyes widened, and frowning slightly. She knew I only called her Red when I was being serious, and so she followed me into the abandoned warehouse without further comments.

"Scarlett, I was planning on lying, but I couldn't do that to you. We're too close."

She was really shocked now. I barely ever mentioned the fact that we are close; even she's probably the only one I can trust on this world.

"The real reason I'm dealing is because -"

A dramatic pause.

"- I can't stand it any more."

"Stand what?" Her words are hushed and worried, and her eyes are sympathetic and sad.

"I've never told anybody this, but...I think I'm in love with Isabella."

Her whole face is suddenly sharp and pained. I kid myself for a few seconds, and tell myself that she's jealous. But I know the truth.

She reflexively reacts like that anytime anyone mentions Isabella. That's mainly why I chose Isabella as my excuse. She would be so clouded with pain and disbelief, that she would forget to poke holes in the shadier parts of my story, like why I was dealing with "the pain of being away from Isabella" before, or why I was telling her now. Normally my lies are a-hundred-percent researched, and are much more likely, but Scarlett just knows me too well, so I had to risk it.