Bonded (Camren)

•chapter 1•

"Hey, Ally, how was your summer break?" I asked eagerly as we pulled apart. We talked for a few minutes, exchanging stories and laughter until two other girls approached us.

"Dinah! Mani!" Both Ally and I hugged the girls that had just arrived, and I felt a sense of completion. Maybe this year wouldn't be so bad. Maybe this year I would find myself ready to share my secret.

The four of us continued to talk happily in the hallway, surrounded by countless other students who were all doing the exact same thing. In a way, high school was a place where you could completely blend in like a chameleon. But at other times, you could feel like a total outsider, and feel like you stand out from everyone else. I had definitely experienced both of these, and I knew which one I preferred. Standing out from other people meant that there was more focus and attention on you. More chance for people to find out your secrets. That was a risk I couldn't take at the moment.

"Mila?" Dinah prodded my arm sharply, seeing that I was lost in a daydream. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," I nodded truthfully, picking up my notebook from the locker in front of me and turning to face my best friend. Dinah and I had always been closer than the others. Of course, I loved Ally and Normani but Dinah and I had been best friends ever since we were in elementary school. We had met the others in middle school and instantly clicked, but it was hard to replicate the friendship that I had with Dinah.

"How was your summer? I can't believe you were gone for such a long time," she exclaimed, taking my arm and beckoning to the other two girls to walk with us.

"Neither can I," I admitted with a slight frown. "It was fun, but I missed you guys."

"We missed you, too," Normani smiled.

I stopped in the middle of the hallway to ask them which class they had first.

"English Literature," Ally responded, and Dinah nodded.

"I have Geography," Normani said, her face falling as she realized that she wouldn't be with us, since I had English Literature as well.

Hugging her softly, I reassured the older girl that we would meet up with her after class and then carried on down the hallway with Dinah and Ally.

We entered the classroom together and I observed all the other students. Most of them were chatting quietly but some were hastily flipping pages of books under their desks.

"Looks like some people didn't read their books over the summer," Dinah smirked, and I looked up at her.

"Oh, and you did?" I teased, knowing that she probably hadn't read the book that was assigned to us.

She laughed before taking a seat in the second to back row. "Of course I didn't. But I looked up the plot online." The last sentence was slightly hushed because the teacher had swiftly entered the classroom.

Ally sat down at the desk next to Dinah's, and I was left with very limited options of where to sit.

"Camila, can you hurry up and take a seat please?" The blonde haired teacher, Miss Grayson, instructed gently. She was nice, and a good teacher, so I hastened to do as she asked.

Finding a seat nearer to the front of the class, I got out my book and stared up at the clock. There were still fifty minutes to go.

I tapped my pencil against my desk and tried to focus on the words that were spilling from the teacher's mouth. English Literature was one of my favorite classes and usually I could concentrate easily, but today something was off. The room was warm and I found my mind drifting to think about other things while I rested my head in my hands.