Page 111 of The Pinkie Pact

"She also said she was incredibly sorry for not telling me sooner. She was just terrified that I'd be mad."

"Are you mad?" Kieran asked her.

Kara glanced away from us to stare out the window. "Yes and no. I guess it all depends on what she's going to do about it."

"That makes sense," Kieran said.

Looking back at her brother, Kara said, "I guess I understand why she did it. It's so damn sad that some people have to hide their sexuality. Not everyone has amazing parents like we have."

I stole a glance at Kieran and saw his face drain of color at that remark, making me want to reach out to him.

Not even noticing, Kara continued, "But she should have fucking told me from the beginning. And that's what pisses me off the most, being lied to like that. We could have figured it out together."

She shook her head and grabbed the bottle of wine, drinking directly from it instead of bothering to pour herself another glass.

"You're absolutely right," I said, completely agreeing with her.

We stood in silence for a bit, and Kara began to text her back. "I'm going to see if she can talk tomorrow morning. No sense waiting in agony, right?"

"Right," Kieran agreed.

Engrossed in her phone, I went back to the kitchen to open a new bottle of wine and get myself a bowl of the delicious mac and cheese. It seemed like the moment of crisis was over, and now we were just going to have to wait and see how their conversation went the next day. I had a feeling, though, that Kara had already forgiven Gen.

Man, she was quick with forgiveness, making me wonder if I was just some kind of stubborn asshole. But Ihadforgiven Kieran. At least my mind had forgiven him. It was my heart that hadn't forgotten, and I was curious to see if Kara would so easily move on.

Whispered Words

Sky

Poor Kieran ended up sleeping over because Kara insisted he'd had too much to drink. He really hadn't, and he could have taken a cab or Uber home. But as the night went on and the wine flowed down Kara's throat, she became more and more irrational, worrying about her future with Gen, alternating between angry and anxious.

Maybe wine hadn't been such a good idea. It was a depressant after all.

Kieran may not have intended to stay at our place all night, but I was glad of his company because a brokenhearted Kara was a whole lot to handle. I noticed Kieran in the kitchen slyly hiding the wine at a certain point.

And I finally found out what happened last year that had derailed Kara. Of course, it had been another breakup, but that time, it had been because of a guy.

Kieran, Kara, and I had gathered blankets and pillows on the floor because Kara had wanted to make a fort like they'd done when they were kids. It was actually kind of fun. My brothers had done it all the time when we were younger, but I was never allowed in.

We draped a couple of sheets over Kara's bed and some chairs, even moving the couch over and stripping it of cushions. I wondered what the people below us thought of all our noise. But there was no stopping drunk Kara as Kieran and I both humored her.

As we settled onto all the cushions, chips and brownies in the middle, Kara began to talk about how glad she was to have us with her this time through her heartache, admitting that she was in a much better place because of us. And between Kieran and her, the entire story came out about how she'd taken too much of her roommate's Percocet last year in an effort to relieve her pain. Kieran had found her, thank God.

She'd had her stomach pumped and stayed in the hospital overnight, her parents rushing to be by her side. Somehow, they'd managed to keep it out of the press, probably because of those ever-present "connections." And she'd had some intensive therapy afterward. She explained she wasn't trying to kill herself, just get rid of the heartbreak.

Wow, I really felt terrible for her, and her story hit me hard.

In our little fort, I couldn't help feeling a closeness to both Kara and Kieran, experiencing so many emotions together. Maybe it was the large amount of wine in me, maybe it was the coziness of the situation, but when Kara asked what happened to me sophomore year, for the first time, I felt like I could actually talk about it.

"I mean, only if you want to tell us," Kara said.

I hadn't told anyone about it except my therapist... not my mom, not my best friend from high school even. But the moment felt right, especially because Kara had just confided in me.

The only thing was I didn't know if Kieran wanted to hear my story. It might make him think less of me. I knew itshouldn't. If he was anything like the person I thought he was, it shouldn't. But I guessed I would find out.

Glancing at him, I asked him if he wanted to know or if he needed a trip down the hall to the vending machine.

He swallowed and said, "I'd like to know. But only if you're comfortable telling me. I can leave if you'd prefer."

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