Page 70 of The Secret We Keep
“I want to apologise for earlier. I shouldn’t have reacted the way I did.” My eyes fall to my hands nervously binding together. “My notebook is private. That’s all.”
Sarah stands and throws her arms around me, catching me off guard. “No, I’m sorry. As well as being told I talk too much, I also have a knack for not knowing when I’ve gone too far.” She steps back, looking at me head on. “But you should know, what I read… it isn’tbad.” There’s emphasis on the word. “It’s actually really good.” She’s beaming at me now.
“Well, that’s good to know,” I offer with hesitation. “Regardless, no one will be reading that again. Ever.”
She balks. “Seriously?” I don’t move. “Morgan, you should consider it. I have this friend, Hugo, he’s in London at the minute finishing his final year in journalism…” She trails off waving her hands dismissively in front of her. “His dad is this big shot editor for a publication house in New York. I think you should send him your work.” Sarah bobs up and down on the tips of her toes, rummaging through the work on her desk for a pen. She swipes a business card and flips it over, before scribbling something on the back and handing it to me.
“I can’t tell if you’re mocking me or if you’re trying to be serious?” I look down and see an email address.
She gasps. “Mock you? I’m deadly serious.”
Confusion wreaks havoc in my head. “Okay.” Short of laughing in her face, I realise that Sarah and I are probably never going to be friends. New York? Send him mywork?“What I write isn’t work, Sarah. It’s…” Shit. I don’t know what it is. A diary? Annotations of my crappy day-to-day life?
“It’s poetry, Morgan.”
I smile nervously. “No, it’s not.”
She goes to speak, but I’m saved when my phone rings. Shoving the card in the front pocket of my bag and pulling out my phone, I answer. “Hello?”
“I’m outside.”
The sound of Holly’s voice has me smiling. “Give me a second.” I look at Sarah, covering the end of the phone with my hand. “I’m sorry. I have to go.”
Shaking her head, she crosses her arms, glaring at me with her lips slightly parted. “Right. Guess I’ll leave it then.” Showing me her back, she sits back down at her desk, leaning back in her chair.
I’m left standing behind her with the biggest feeling of uncertainty. I’m the one who’s upset. So why does it feel like I just upset her?
Picking up my feet, I make my way downstairs. “You still there?” I ask Holly. I pass a few of my work colleagues who I’m still yet to learn their names. This office is so big.
“I’m here. Who was that?”
“Sarah. My boss’ daughter.”
“She sounded pissed off.”
“You heard that?”
“A little.”
I push open the door, looking for her. “Where are you?”
“Look to your right.”
My head swings, and I see her waving. “How are you back here so soon? Didn’t think you were back until tomorrow?” I start walking towards her.
“Yeah, well, I couldn’t handle my aunt any longer. Plus, my best friend said she’d call every day but never did.”
“I told you I forgot.”
Holly rolls her eyes dramatically. “Don’t sweat it.” She reaches out and pulls me into a hug when I reach her. “Missed you,” she tells me.
I squeeze her a little harder. “Missed you, too.”
“Let me see it then.”
I pull back and wonder what the hell she’s talking about.
“Your new phone,” she says playfully, looking down at my hands.
