Selfishly Possessive

Chapter One

            A tall, black rimmed mirror rests against one wall. Pictures are stuffed in the frame. I walk over and my eye catches one in particular. I yank it from the frame without emotion and rip it in half. I stuff one half back into the frame of the mirror and crumple the other half before tossing it in my trash bin.

            Pounding footsteps on the stairs startle me and I don't even have time to fully turn around before Parker's arms are around me. "You don't know how much I've missed you, Cara!" Parker exclaims as she pulls away. She holds me at arm length as she examines me with a frown. Finally, she smiles. "You look... hot! What happened this summer?"

            I laugh and reach up to pull on a strand of her light brown hair. "I can ask you the same thing. You cut all your hair off! And where are your glasses?"

            Park rolls her eyes. "Do not ask about the glasses. I'd just like to forget that I ever wore those monstrosities. And yeah, I felt like the long hair could take a break, so I cut it shoulder length."

            "It's cute." I tell her, but her hair is honestly the last thing I care about. What I really want to do is ask about her older brother.

            "Thanks! Enough about me, though. What about you?" She sits at the chair next to my desk. I sit on the edge of the bed that faces her.

            "What do you mean? What about me?" I ask. My mind is still preoccupied with wondering about her brother. I could care less about discussing my "gorgeous" tan and the new hi-lights I got in my hair.

            Parker sighs, gesturing to me, "That! What happened this summer?"

            I shrug, picking at a chipped nail and refusing to look at her. "Nothing. Just some hi-lights and a crapload of tanning."

            "No, not that. That's obvious." Parker states. I raise my eyebrows in question. What else can she be talking about? "I'm talking about your makeup! Since when do you wear so much? And since when do you dress in something other than sweatpants?"

            "The time for looking like a sloth--" she grimaces at the use of the word, sloth, "--is over, Park." I smile at her, happy to share with her my adventures of the summer. "Carolina and her group of friends came to the lake for the whole summer too. We became pretty close. I guess they rubbed off on me."

            Park frowns, straightening up in the chair as she lets Carolina's name settle in. "Carolina? I don't know, Cara. They're kind of... mean, don't you think? I mean, the only thing Carolina's always cared about is herself."

            Her words irritate me because Carolina and her friends, Penelope and Alesha, are my friends now, but I refrain from getting angry because I used to think the same exact thing about them before I really knew them myself. I can't really blame her for still thinking that way. "She was different this summer."

            I can tell Parker doesn't really believe me, but she just shrugs. "I guess so." She picks at her frayed jeans, avoiding contact with me now.

            "Griffyn?" I finally ask. I couldn't wait any longer. He's been on my mind this whole time and I know i won't be able to concentrate until I see him.

            She shakes her head, "He's not here. Do you want me to text him to let him know you're back?"

            "He doesn't know I'm back?"

            Park shakes her head again. "No, he's over at Wes' house. The only reason I knew you were here was because I saw your call pull up as I was walking Dixie."