"So the obvious one would be his ex-girlfriend, Amalia Hadid. They were the most toxic couple I'd ever seen. I don't think they ever said one nice thing about one another, in private or in person. She cheated on him a few months before he died and they broke up because of that. It was a messy parting and he said a lot of dumb fucking shit about her when they finished. She was pissed and almost failed her exams because of it and the last thing I heard, her dad went around to Deshawn's house and told him to pack it in. He threatened Deshawn and at the time we thought it was the funniest fucking thing but I'm not sure anymore. Anyway, that's Amalia."
Taron took his other hand and enclosed it over mine that rested on his chest. His fingers were long and bony, trapping me in place.
"Then there's Marco Arandi
I stumbled around the home, avoiding friends and plunging into the unknown. I'd heard of these stories before. I knew about Amalia and Deshawn's relationship and how they'd walk into a party hand in hand but leave while screaming at each other. I saw Marco and Deshawn's friendship, two guys you either wanted to be or know. Then it all stopped and Deshawn died. I retreated to the foyer and wondered if they'd even turned up. If this party was for Deshawn, would they have risked it? Did their hate run that deep or was it a silly misunderstanding washed away by the seriousness of his death? If Deshawn hadn't have died, would they have made up? There were still so many people and I struggled to see above it all as my tiredness caught up with me. E
She blew out yet another sigh and stared at me. It was like something had finally clicked in her mind and her eyes hardened. It looked like she'd finally seen me for who I was."Reniella, you're lovely, honestly," she bit out. "I'm not sure if you've been told this before but you just have this vibe around you. You've got these eyes and this little smile that makes people feel like they should confess their entire life story to you. But I can't risk spilling any more secrets than necessary, I hope you understand."She brushed me off and turned to her friends.Without kicking up a fuss, I put the can back onto the kitchen island and stalk off. My eyes were heavy and I didn't feel like investigating anymore. I couldn't go upstairs to any of the rooms
"Reniella De Vega?" He sneered, looking down his long nose at me. The dark circles under his eyes were prominent and I was glad he had lost sleep over Ross's adventures. "Jesus, you two. Stand apart for Christ's sake, you look like lovers or something." The bitterness in his voice, I assumed, was directed towards me. It was probably because I was poor, far from perfect for his little boy. If I thought Zobel boys were all the same, their parents were even worse. Mr. Rivera had always been a grumpy bastard. "Get inside now. You better be quiet, I'm warning you. If you wake your mother up, I swear to God, Ross. You hear me, boy? We'll talk about this later." The big man hissed through clenched teeth. He placed a strong hand onto Ross's shoulder and with a swift push, he rushed his son into their home.
"I knew for a fact that Amalia and Marco had slept with each other because he was just as nervous as she was. He knew all the little secrets before I'd even said them aloud. While Amalia became quiet upon the release of her personal details, Marco was much the opposite. He came up to me, threatened me, pushed me. The Marco I saw that day was not my best friend. He was something else. Some white knight complex had taken over him, just another white boy trying to show off his new plaything. If he thought I'd do that to Amalia, he couldn't have known me all that well. I was just-" He cut himself off and lunged towards me before I could react. His hands found my cheeks where he cupped them roughly and my face was trapped in his grasp. His icy touch knocked the breath from my lungs and it felt as though I'd been knocked over by a car. My vision glazed over and all I could se
I gasped back to reality, plummeting from the dream world and returning to my body. Within my hysteria, I fell off the bed and landed in a pile on the floor where Deshawn once rested. Where was he? What was that?"Now you know why I hate Marco," Deshawn admitted. I saw that he was sitting on the edge of my bed, a longing look plastered to his face as he looked down on me but I knew he was thinking about his ex-best friend.Both of my wrists each had the name, Reniella De Vega written on it. Perfectly centered and readable, not dreaming."I need to talk to him then," I stated. Marco had an obvious dislike towards Deshawn, a dislike I needed to explore. 
"Now?" I asked quietly. My throat felt scratchy."Why not?""Because I know Ross, I've known him forever. It's weird."He shrugged.I stared at Deshawn for longer. The Zobel College uniform that he wore looked just as perfect now as when I first saw him. Freshly washed and perfectly pressed. He was the poster boy for Zobel College.I reluctantly rose from my huddle of blankets on the bed and to the wardrobe where I changed into my outfit of the day.Then, I grabbed my phone and left the house, making my way to the bus stop. I'd given the keys to Ross's brother's car back t
"Seriously, Ross? Weed? It's like 11 am," I asked incredulously. He chuckled before blowing the smoke out once again, attempting to make shapes with his mouth. "I'm only using up the last ones in the tray, don't worry about it, Bambi." "You're a mess." "I can quit," he snapped. "If I wanted to, I could stop it all. I just don't feel like it." I rolled my eyes and turned the newspaper page while smoke swirled in the air and mingled with the sweet sun glow. "I didn't say that," I mumbled.
I stared at myself in the mirror. The sparkling purple fabric of Ross's sister's dress clung to my upper body before cascading beautifully right down to my feet. It fit nicely, maybe not as flattering on my chest area as I'd hoped but it was all I had to work with. I'd curled my dark brown hair so that it fell behind my shoulders appropriately and my makeup was light and magic. I felt like an imposter. Like some rich boy's housewife to be. My heart clasped shut and it temporarily stopped beating as Deshawn appeared behind me. Even with my heels, he was taller. The ghost inspected me with an unreadable expression. "What?" I turned around to him in question. "Nothing." He shrugged. "