Well, there is one person Kelsey can’t wait to see leave, Alex the Douche. He’s hated her and given her a hard time since she first got there. Giving her shit for giving up Brandy, telling her she’s selfish.
I don’t know what Alex’s deal is, but what the hell did he expect her to do?
During her senior year, Kelsey practically kept to herself. She mentions a few friends, Lizzy and Brit, but that’s all. They are in the music program with her, but she doesn’t talk about them like she did Ryan, Christian, Zach or Kate.
After I finish the last one, I grab my notepad. These are the things I’m going to look up as soon as I have my iPad back: Kelsey Fry, Baxter, Brandy, and Brandon Lange. It isn’t much, but hopefully one of those searches will lead me to more information about who Kelsey and Brandy really are. Or, at least why Mom and Dad have the pink box.
Pounding at the front door nearly makes me jump from the bed, my heart racing. I shove the envelope box under my bed and hurry downstairs. Who the hell is here?
I glance out the window and blow out a sigh of relief and open the door.
“Happy Birthday!” Peyton holds up a bag.
“Why aren’t you in school?”
She gives me a strange look. “You aren’t the only one who was suspended for three days.” Peyton comes in without me inviting her, which isn’t really a surprise. When Mom and Dad aren’t mad, she usually lives here.
“I’m grounded. I’m not supposed to even talk to you.”
“They’re still mad about competition, huh?” She waltzes into the kitchen and I follow.
“More livid about me leaving. They were waiting on my bed when I got home.”
“Shit!” She plops the bag down on the counter. “That’s why your mom answered my text that I shouldn’t call or come over until the next century.”
My eyes blink open. “She said that?”
Peyton shrugged. “Not exactly. Just that it was best if we didn’t spend any time together this year.”
“That isn’t exactly the next century. We have a decade to get through before that.” I laugh.
“I came over yesterday, but then I saw your dad, so I thought I’d better go home.”
“He got the flu.”
Her eyes widen. “He isn’t here now, is he?” she whispers.
“No. Everybody’s gone until school is out.”
“Great!” She pulls a quart of Gold Medal Ribbon from the bag. “Get spoons and we’ll watch TV or something.”
“No TV. No Computers. Nothing,” I tell her and then explain how everything has been taken away, and my full punishment.
“You’ve been cleaning since Friday?” she cries as if horrified. I doubt Peyton has ever had to clean a thing in her life. Her family employs like four servants.
“It wasn’t so bad, and I’m done.”
“So, what have you been doing?” She sinks a spoon into the ice cream.
I bite my upper lip. Do I tell her? Peyton does know how to keep a secret. “I’ll tell ya in a sec. Gotta toss towels in the dryer.” I won’t have anything to bring up from the basement if I leave the towels in the washer.
Peyton is sitting on the counter eating ice cream when I come back up. The key is in my pocket and I hope I get a chance to return it before everybody gets home. “Come on, I’ll show you.”
I grab another spoon and some paper towels as Peyton gets the ice cream. She follows me up to my room, and I get out the letters. “I found these in the attic.”
“What are they?”
“Letters.” Then I tell her about the first ones, the ones I didn’t bring down. “There are a bunch more up there, but I’m being careful to only take some at a time. I hope I can figure out who Kelsey is eventually.”
“A mystery!” Peyton grins. “What fun!”
“It is!” I’ve become so involved in this Kelsey’s life that I have to know more.
“Can I read them?”
“Sure!” I take the ice cream and settle back against my headboard as she starts reading. “Keep them in order. They have to go back the same way they came out.”
Peyton makes a few comments between eating ice cream and reading. Then her eyes go wide. “Christian plays the sax.”
“So.”
“What if it’s Christian Sucato? Wouldn’t that be so cool?”
I just laugh at her. The chances of Kelsey’s Christian and the Christian who Peyton and I have been crushing on being the same guy are slim to none, but leave it to my friend to make that leap. She’s probably already decided they are the same person.
Peyton sighs as she puts the last letter into the envelope. “There are more upstairs.”
“Dozens.”
“Well, let’s go get them.”
I glance at the clock and sit up. “Shit! Mom is going to be home with my brother and sister in half an hour.”
Peyton jumps from the bed. “Crap. I’ve got to get out of here.”
We shove the letters back in the envelope box and hurry to the kitchen to get rid of the evidence of ice cream and a visitor.
“I’ll be back tomorrow to read more.”
“No!” I yell at her as she’s headed for the door. “There’s only a half day of school and I think Mom took the day off.”
“Crap. Well, let me know when you are home alone again. I need to read more.”
“I’ll bring them to school next week, if I can’t see you before.”
“Perfect.”
I have just enough time to return the read letters to the box, get another stack and return the key before Mom gets home. She’s waiting in the kitchen when I come up from the basement and I’m so glad I did the laundry because I have the basket full of freshly laundered and folded towels and washrags, and only have a little bit of guilt about how sneaky I’m being.
Okay, a lot
