Just Another Secret.

Chapter 5

Kahlil

Hands down. Best summer ever.

Keisha brought me home late at night and it scared Mom senseless. She thought I was a burglar. And she called Dad to give her advice. What would Dad do on a phone if there was a real intruder?

"How did you get here!" She asks me.

As I was about to speak I stop myself.

"One moment." I pick up my phone and dial my girlfriend.

"Are you home?" I ask her.

"Like a block away. Why?"

"Does no one include my parents?"

"You can definitely tell your parents. No one, meant people at school."

"Alright. Have a good night okay?"

"You too." She hangs up.

Mom is glaring at me for ignoring her.

"Mom. This was the cabin my first night." I show her a picture of the caved in structure.

She gasps.

"Yep and I found out the hard way that there's no service. I was so grateful that Earlier in the day I didn't know how to use a gas stove and followed the smell of food to the to the cabin across the lake."

"That cabin belongs to Ray, Kahlil." Dad says from the phone. "Did you meet him? How is he? It's been a long time—"

"Dad I met a girl. She goes to my school. But her name is Keisha-Rae and she told me it was her grandfather's cabin. He passed quite some time ago."

"You stayed with this Keisha?" Mom begins to interrogate me.

"Yes I did. She was very dismissive in the beginning and held me accountable for everything. She did bring me home. And Mom I am so sorry. I don't know what I need to do for you to believe me or trust me—"

"You stayed with this girl all summer?"

"Mom, why do you sound like I did something wrong?"

"You lived in a cabin with a girl for two months."

I get what she's hinting at.

I call Keisha again, I put it on speaker. "Are you crazy, do you know what time it is? I shouldn't even be surprised didn't I tell you I value sleep?" She scolds me.

"Keisha... you wanna tell my parents what happened this summer?"

"Oh I'm on speaker?"

"Yes."

"Hey Mr and Mrs. Hayes. I'm Keisha—"

"Wait Keisha is your grandad Ray?" I ask.

"I never told you that."

"Yeah my dad did, anyways continue."

"I'm Keisha. I am Kahlil's girlfriend—"

"What?" My parents are surprised.

I can hear the accusation in her voice. "Kahlil did you or did you not call me a few minutes ago to ask me if you can tell your parents that we are together?"

"Please get to the point."

And I've ticked her off..."Okay your son is an idiot. He didn't know what a gas stove was. He rowed across the lake disrupting my peace and begged me for food. The next night he came back and convince me to join him with a campfire. I knew who he was. I know what people label him as. But he opened up to me and I met a different side. He is weak that's for sure. He makes mistakes that's a fact. But he never wants to disappoint people even if his own comfort is at stake.