A Dark Secret

Chapter 2 | Fast as the lightening but sweet as candy.

Hello everyone! I am still trying to learn how everything works on Dreame... Also please make sure to leave a like and a comment. I would love to see what your reactions are towards the story!

As soon as Marina finished getting ready,  she walked downstairs towards where Valerie was waiting for her. 

"No, I will be in Los Angeles by tomorrow." Marina heard Valerie say and Marina assumed that she was speaking to the mysterious guy she had never met before. Noah was his name.

When Valerie saw Marina walking in, she gave her a small smile and hang up. Marina couldn't understand how she wasn't scared. She had never met Noah before. What if it was an old man? 

"Finally, you are ready." She said and Marina just nodded. She sat down on a chair that was behind the dining table. Marina poured some milk in a bowl and put some cereal in it to have for breakfast.

"What are we doing today?" She asked Valerie. It wasn't like they could do a lot here in Mooresville. It was just a quiet and small town. Nothing really happened here. 

"I wanted to go shopping but I rather want to go to our favourite place. Spend some time there and then return to our families because we are leaving tomorrow in the early morning." Valerie said and Marina nodded as she agreed with what Valerie said.

Their favourite place was a small river just in the centre of the forest. They would always be there after school or whenever they had tough times at home or they would even be there to just chill down. It was just always Marina and Valerie there. No one has ever found out that they had a place there or would go there. 

It was their sacred place. 

”What are you thinking about?” Valerie asked and Marina just shook her head. She didn't want to bother anyone and especially not her. Valerie sighed and Marina could see that she was annoyed.

Maybe she held too much back from Valerie. Maybe that was causing a barrier in their friendship and that was the last thing Marina wanted. She never wanted to lose Valerie. 

"Just how everything used to be you know. We were almost everyday there. Doing anything." Marina said and Valerie nodded as she smiled. 

"It was our place." She said. Marina smiled softly as she thought again back to the times where everyone was happy. She wished that she could go back...

"No one could take that away from us."  Valerie then added. Marina nodded as she took eat some of her cereal. No one could. 

“I’m gonna wait outside for you.” Valerie said as she looked at Marina. Marina nodded her head as she saw Valerie leaving. She quickly finished eating her cereals and put her jacket on. Valerie was waiting for her outside. Marina Looked at herself in the mirror before she left.

"Don't forget to smile." Marina said to herself softly, she gave herself a small smile, even though she knew it was fake. It didn't mean anything than her pretending to be happy.

When Marina walked outside, she quickly looked down. The bright sky light was almost too strong for her eyes. She didn't leave her room for days and she thought that it had an impact on her. Anxiety was overflowing her but she knew that she would have regretted it if she didn't walk around one last time here in town. 

Marina wasn't planning to return anytime soon, not even for Christmas. She loved her father and brother. She would probably invite them over back in Los Angeles but coming here would bring up too many memories. Memories of her mother’s and she couldn't bare that. 

Marina felt awful because it felt like she was excluding her mother out of her life. It felt like she was being selfish even though that wasn't her intention. She just wanted to feel whole again. She wanted the pain to disappear. 

Marina felt Valerie grabbing her hand which made her come out of her thoughts and enter the reality again, something she always tried to escape. Marina should stop thinking so much. It made her forget to live… It made her forget how to live… 

"I hope no one actually discovered our place." Valerie said and Marina laughed softly as she saw the terrified expression on Valerie’s face. 

"I don't think anyone wants to come in the middle of the forest." Marina said and Valerie  just rolled her eyes.

The forest that was their sacred place wasn't placed in the Dark forest. It wasn't far off it but they kind of stayed safe for all these years. That was one of the things why they thought that no one would actually come here and disturb them. It was an escape from everyone they were always trying to avoid. 

The forest did gave both Valerie and Marina chills. Sometimes they would hear whispers or screams. The legend said that it was haunted and just to stay safe no one dared to enter. Anyone who did never came out alive. So no one tried it because of the fear to die. 

Marina and Valerie walked towards the forest which wasn't far from Marina’s house. It was at least a five minute walk. Marina saw some people looking at her and she looked away from them. She didn't wanted to look at them. She knew that everyone felt sorry for her but she didn't want to hear it. Anything they would say wouldn't make anything better for her. 

It would just make Marina more upset. Their words wouldn't mean anything. Some of the people that even approached her didn’t even knew her mother that well… 

"I am so excited." Valerie squealed out of excitement. Marina chuckled softly. As they entered the forest, Marina felt the same happiness she would feel every time Valerie and her would be here. 

The forest still seemed the same. It was the beginning of a school year so autumn was again close and summer was close to an end. Marina could see it from the trees. The leaves of the tree were slowly turning orange and brown. Some of its leaves were already on the ground. The flowers were slowly dying again and it was harder to see any animal out. 

"It is still as beautiful as it used to be." Valerie said as she was looking around. Marina smiled. She was right. The forest was still as beautiful as it used to be. 

"We are close." Marina said as she heard water streaming. Valerie looked at Marina with a look. Marina knew exactly what she was going to do so she ran as fast as she could so she would reach there first. 

"That's not fair!" Marina heard Valerie shout from behind her. They always used to do this whenever they would come and visit here. Marina just laughed when she finally reached. She was out of breath and held her knees trying to breathe normally again.

"Gawd, it looks like you have ran a marathon." Marina heard a British male accent say. She quickly straightened herself up and stared into the blue bright eyes of a guy in front of her. She gasped softly out of shock. She had never seen him before. 

"I-I just had a race with my friend." Marina stuttered and he laughed. His hair was raven brown which made his bright eyes stand out even more. He was tall and not to mention, he was really handsome. 

"Who are you?" Marina asked confused and he had a smirk around his lips. 

"Grayson." He said and Marina smiled softly as he introduced himself. .

"I am Marina." She said and he just looked at her as if he was enchanted by her. 

"Marina, you are-" She heard Valerie say and Marina quickly turned herself around to face. A confused Valerie was looking at Marina who looked like she was caught having s*x with someone.

"With who were you talking?" Valerie asked. She could clearly hear that Marina was talking and she didn’t believe that Marina was talking to herself. 

"Euhm... Gray-" Marina said when she turned herself around to introduce Grayson,  she stopped mid way in her sentence. He wasn't standing there anymore. It was as if he disappeared into thin air. Confused, Marina remained staring at the position where he was standing.

Where did he go to and how was it possible to do it so fast?