ISAIAH

Concentrating in church after what I discovered about Kennedy yesterday proves difficult. Seeing her in that Rolls-Royce and finding out who she really is shook me to my core. She transformed from a simple girl who pinned her hair up with pencils and likes cookies and cream ice-cream to the richest heiress in New York. I knew that there were things she was hiding but this, I definitely didn't expect it to be this. She looked beautiful, there was no doubt about that but she was a completely different Kennedy from the one I associate with on a daily basis.

Besides the obvious questions, like why she was hiding who she really is, is why would the daughter of one the richest families in the world be studying in a school like Pine View. It's obvious they hadn't cut her off otherwise she wouldn't have been dining with them last night so why Pine View and not a fancy private school. Also, why is she working at Frosty dream? It's not like she needs the money. She already has plenty of that.

The thing that stumps me the most is that she doesn't act like she has enough wealth to end world hunger. She's so humble and down to earth, one wouldn't even suspect she comes from money let alone old ancient money. Sure there have been instances where her real self slipped out but we always laughed it off. Like her fancy packed lunches and how she was able to afford getting us all tickets to the zoo without batting an eye.

It's all so confusing and I'll make sure to ask all my questions when I see her later. She texted me earlier asking me to drop by her house so we can talk. Frosty Dream is closed for the weekend so neither of us are working. If we were, I probably wouldn't have found out that Kennedy is lowkey a princess.

The church service ends and I've barely heard a word that was preached because of the anticipation of what's coming. Mom being who she is, is stopped a few times by fellow congregants so I pick Cairo up and ask for the car keys from Parker so we can wait for them outside. My little monster is acting fussy when we get to the car so I give him a juice box and strap him into his car seat which calms him immediately.

Fortunately we don't have to wait long for mom and Parker which saves me a lot of overthinking. The sooner we leave, the better so I can have my questions answered.

"You okay baby, you've been distracted all morning." Mom asks turning to look at me from her position in the front seat.

I'm not surprised she's noticed because I have not been myself since yesterday. I can't tell her what's going on because I barely have answers myself so I go for the next best thing.

"Yes mom, I'm okay, the semester is picking up with midterms around the corner so I have a lot on my mind." I express.

I haven't lied but it's not the full truth either.

"You'll ace them as always but if it gets too much you can always take a break from work to concentrate on school." She advises.

I definitely won't do that, I've been managing school, work and basketball perfectly and that ain't gonna change.

I nod and smile back. "Yes mama."

The drive back into the city is short and before I realize it we are in Manhattan.

"Parker can you drop me off at 91st and Fifth." I request him.

"Sure, are you meeting a friend there?" He asks.

"Something like that." I mumble not knowing how to answer that question.

Kennedy is my friend or at least I hope she is and wasn't pretending to be one from the day that we met. There's a lot of uncertainty in our relationship that I'm hoping to clear up before the day ends.

"Is it a girl?" Mom asks with a hopeful smile.

She would love it if I were dating but unfortunately that's not the case. The girl I like, I can't date and now I'm not even sure if anything between us was ever real.

"Yes but it's not like that. We're just friends." I reply before the negative thoughts can fester.

"Parker and I were just friends once." She grins looking at him with love filled eyes.

I hope I can find that one day. Being in love with that one special person seems great but what if the person I thought was special is nothing but a facade.

"Mom ... "

"Okay fine, I'll drop it but if it ever becomes more than just friends, I'd like to meet this girl." She requests me.

Any other time, I would have had a problem with Kennedy meeting my family but at the moment everything is too unstable between us for me to be making such guarantees.

"I'll keep that in mind." I answer.

She smiles and turns her attention forward once again.

Parker drops me off a block away from Kennedy's house because I don't want them knowing where I'm going. They can't know anything about her yet until I'm aware of all the facts myself.

"Thank you Parker." I appreciate him unlocking my door.

"See you later kid, have a great time." He replies.

"I'll try. Bye mom."

"Bye darling. Do you have enough money? Maybe I can give you some." She asks and starts digging into her purse.

"Mama, I'm okay. I'll see you guys at home." I stop her before she goes too far.

She sighs and turns to me. "Okay then, bye."

"Have a good day, see you later squirt." I say ruffling Cairo's braids.

He pushes my hand away and sticks his tongue out at me before going back to his game. I laugh at this and exit the car standing by the curb until they drive away. I take a deep breath and head up the block towards my destination.

It's not that hard finding the Foster Manor as it's one of the most famous historic buildings in New York. It should be a museum at this point from how old it is but surprisingly enough the family still lives there. It's intimidating presence overwhelms me before I even get to the gate.

I know that I can be classified as a rich kid now but what my mom and Parker have holds no candle to what the Fosters own. I'm still getting used to living the privileged life yet Kennedy was born into the top one percent.

I take a moment to gather my wits before I press the intercom. It buzzes loudly before a voice responds a moment later.

"Yes?" A deep male tone asks.

That's definitely not Kennedy but it would be weird if she answered in a house full of staff. She probably has someone for that.

"I'm Isaiah, here for Kennedy." I reply my tone filled with apprehension.

"Ah yes, come right in." He invites as if he had been expecting me.

He probably has been since Kennedy was the one who invited me over. The side gate buzzes open a moment later and I let myself in only for it to lock itself up immediately I'm inside the vast compound.

The walk up to the house is filled with trepidation and I barely concentrate on my surrounding.

The door opens before I even get to it revealing Kennedy. She looks normal to me, like the girl I go to school with and share ice-cream joke's with at work not the heiress I met yesterday. She is smiling at me though I can see that she is a bit wary. Looks like I'm not the only one who's been driving themselves mad with the idea of the conversation that's awaiting us.

I finally get to her and I have no idea how to act. I usually hug her but it feels wrong to do that right now.

"Berry."

"Isaiah."

Silence. Neither of us say anything and we just stand there looking at each other. Smiling up at me is the same girl I like but something about her is different in a way I can't pinpoint. Or I can starting with the century old mansion we are standing in.

"This is awkward." She chuckles nervously.

"Tell me about it."

"Please come in." She invites stepping aside to let me in.

The house is even more grand on the inside but with a modern touch as compared to its exterior.

A middle aged man in a suit and white gloves approaches us.

"Welcome to the Foster residence, may I please take your coat?" He asks and I just stand there gawking at him.

I recognize his voice from the intercom when he buzzed me in.

"This is Glynn, our Butler. You can give him your coat." Kennedy introduces.

I take off my pea coat and hand it to him leaving me in just my suit jacket.

"Nice to meet you sir. Would you like a cup of tea?" Glynn asks my coat draped over his arm.

"Is he serious? Why is he talking like that?" I whisper to Kennedy as if he's not standing right infront of us.

"Yes he's serious and it's just how he is." She giggles amused by our interaction.

I turn my attention back to the kind man. "No thank you, I'm okay."

"Thank you Glynn, I'll call you when I need you." Kennedy dismisses him with a laugh.

Glynn doesn't need to be told twice as he disappears the same way he arrived. I don't know why but as soon as he's gone, I'm able to breath better.

"So that is the famous butler who packs your lunches?" I ask Kennedy.

"Yes, isn't he great." She answers with a smile.

"He's real." I mumble still trying to come to terms with the fact that butlers actually exist.

"Yes." She nods. "But let's not talk about that here, we'll be much more comfortable in the parlor."

"Parlor?"

"Living room." She expounds and I hum in realization.

So the fancy word for the living room is a parlor. Nice to know.

"Right this way please. I promise I won't bite. My parents aren't home so we can talk freely." She expresses.

I follow her past the foyer, grand staircase and into the living room or as she likes to call it, the parlor.

"Please sit." She invites showing me to a seat.

I unbutton my coat and sit down while she settles herself next to me.

"I know you have a lot of questions..."She begins and I turn so we're facing each other our knees almost brushing.

"I definitely do."

"Ask away and I will answer as honestly as I can. There's no point in hiding it anymore." She invites allowing me to satisfy my curiosity once and for all.

I look at her wondering where to start. It's not like she lied to me, I just didn't know about this side of her, not that I would have been able to suspect something as big as this.

"Isaiah..." She calls out prompting me.

"Yeah umh.. Where do I start?"

"Anywhere you want to."

"Okay... Why are you at Pine View and not some fancy private school here in Manhattan?" I start.

"Good place to start. I was actually, till my junior year at Oakland Preparatory but after I got arrested over the summer my parents thought it would be a fitting punishment to send me to a public school and that's how I ended up at Pine View." She explains.

"A bit drastic don't you think?"

"Yes but I had it coming. I've been acting out more and more since I was fifteen and they couldn't take it anymore. I was tarnishing the Foster name so it was either that or military school." She laughs.

"Uh okay then, you don't seem so upset about your fall from grace."

"Oh believe me, I was at the beginning but then I realized that there is nothing I can do about it so I had to accept my new fate. Pine View isn't so bad once I got used to it and I've made some pretty great friends there." She answers looking at me with a smile.

"So all those times we teased you about you being a wealthy heiress?"

"It wasn't really a joke."

"So you really are rich rich?" I question looking around as if its not blatantly obvious.

"I tried to tell you."

It's true, she did try to tell us a few times but we never believed her and always laughed it off as a joke. I get up and start strolling around the vast living room admiring how fancy everything is.

"Wow. Wesley will have field day with this." I grin looking at an old portrait of some guy who looks lived five hundred years ago.

"Yeah, no he won't..." Kennedy says getting up as well and approaching me.

The look in her eyes let's me know where this conversation is headed. "You want me to keep it a secret from our friends."

She nods and looks down as if she's ashamed before looking back up to meet my eyes. "If it's not too much to ask then yes. I am not ready for anyone to find out who I really am. I wasn't ready for you to find out yet I'm closest to you."

The fact that she's admitted that I am her closest friend makes me smile even though its not the right time for it.

"Why?"

"Because people always treat me differently when they find out who I really am." She confesses sadly.

I can see why she would think that but our friends aren't like that, nor am I. Now that I know the truth, she's still the same Kennedy to me only I'm more aware of her true self now.

"They won't, you'll still be the same Kennedy to us." I reassure her.

"No I won't because I can see that you already see me differently." She counters looking at me.

"Berry ..." I start to defend myself but she cuts me off.

"Not in a bad way, you're not judging me or anything but you will never see me the same again. No matter how much you try to, you will always see Kennedy the heiress and not just Berry. Am I wrong?" She challenges.

"Yes."

"Really?" She insists.

I sigh and take a seat on the arm or the chair behind me so that we're now on the same eye level. I think about her words and if I am being honest with myself then she is right.

"You will always be Berry to me but you're right, now that I've seen this part of your life, I can't unsee it." I admit.

"And I didn't want that. You already know so I can't change that but please let's keep this between us for now until I'm ready to tell everyone else. Please Isaiah." She begs.

I can see that this means a lot to her and because it's not my secret to tell, I can't betray her. And besides its not like she's a different person. Talking to her has made me realize that she's the same Kennedy I've known all these weeks just richer than I thought.

"Your secret is safe with me." I assure her.

Her face lights up in relief and she smiles launching herself at me.

"Thank you." She says hugging me.

I wrap my arms around her and hug her back. "You're welcome."

"Now are you hungry?" She asks pulling away.

I nod and smile. "I could eat."

"The kitchen is this way." She declares taking my hand and leading the way.

It's a typical kitchen with modern appliances so I feel more at ease in here than I did in the parlor since its a similar setting to the one at home.

"What do you want? I'll ask Glynn to make us something." She asks showing me to a stool.

"You don't know how to cook?" I inquire.

"I've never cooked a day in my life." She replies.

"I am not even surprised. It makes sense seeing as you have staff to wait on you hand and foot." I tease.

"I blame it on my lineage but seriously ask for anything and I'm sure Glynn will be more than happy to whip it up for you." She says.

I get up and approach her. "Sounds tempting but that would be too awkward for me. If you're okay with it, I'll make us something to eat." I suggest taking off my jacket.

I toss it on top of one of the stools and roll up my sleeves.

"You can cook?" She asks shocked.

"What? Just because I'm a guy means I can't cook?"

"Typically yes."

"You and I had completely different upbringings Berry. I can cook, so what do you want to eat?" I ask her.

"I'm down for anything, you pick." She answers opening the fridge for me.

It's fully stocked so I take a moment to decide and finally settle on chicken stir-fry since its fast and easy to make.

I get all the ingredients I need from the fridge and ask Kennedy to hunt for a cooking pan. It takes her a moment but she finally finds one large enough.

"Here." She says handing me an apron. I look at her questioningly. "So you don't soil your clothes."

"Thanks, get one for yourself as well because you are helping me." I declare.

"Oh no, I'd rather sit and watch."

"Oh yes, you are helping."

The look on my face leaves no room for her to argue with me so she puts on an apron and I give her a knife and a bell pepper to chop up after taking the seeds out for her. She is slow but it's a learning process so I don't mind. It's also fun to watch her bite her lip in concentration.

If someone had told me twenty four hours ago that I would be cooking with Kennedy in her million dollar kitchen, surrounded by century old wealth, I would have laughed in their face yet here we are.

"Can I ask you something?" I prompt as I chop the onions.

"Of course."

"It's obvious that you're not lacking for money so why are you working at Frosty Dream?" I ask her.

She stops cutting up the bell pepper in bigger pieces than are required and looks up to face me.

"It's true that I don't need the money but I need the experience. I've lived a sheltered life ever since I was born and I want to change that. Being sent to Pine View was the wake up call I needed to set my life straight and that means gaining some real life experience. I also want to be independent from my parents some day and that requires money if they decide to cut me off." She explains.

"They would do that?"

"They sent me to Pine View, what do you think?" She retorts.

I see sense in what she's saying.

"Well I'm glad that you work at Frosty Dream and came to Pine View no matter the circumstances that led you there." I confess.

"Thanks, it's grown on me too." She smiles and goes back to chopping.

"This is so hard." She laments when she's done and I give her another one.

"Cut yourself some slack, it's your first day trying to cook. You're doing great so far." I encourage.

"I know but it is hard. How about this, I marry you and you cook for me forever." She suggests with a winning grin.

"Is that your way of a proposal?" I laugh knowing that she's only joking.

"Maybe." She replies looking at me with a sly smile.

I decide to play along. "I want a diamond ring"

"If I get you one will you marry me?" She challenges.

"Yes."

"Okay."

We burst out laughing before carrying on small talk as we cook. She doesn't do much but I don't mind as I make the whole meal with her chatter keeping me company. I glance at her every once in a while and catch her looking at me in wonder. She's the amazing one seeing as she's loaded yet she's so kind and down to earth. I've experienced first hand how money changes people and I am glad that Kennedy is not like that .

I consider telling her that I am not exactly lacking for money either as my mother is a Senator. It doesn't seem like she's aware of that fact but I hold myself back. I don't know why, it's not like I don't trust her, quite the opposite actually but still I don't tell her. Maybe one day I will but for now I withhold that information.

After I'm done cooking we serve ourselves generous helpings and she decides that we should eat in her room.

Her bedroom unlike the rest of the house is a bit messy but I like that because it shows how real Kennedy is. In her room she's allowed to be who she wants to be but outside her safe space she has to be on her best behavior.

"Sorry for the mess, I tried cleaning up but gave up halfway." She apologizes.

"It's okay, I don't mind." I reply as I make myself comfortable on the floor leaning against her bed.

Kennedy settles next to me after grabbing us bottled water and juice from her mini fridge.

"Thank you for being so cool with this." She says as we eat.

"You are awesome Kennedy, heiress or not I'm glad to be your friend." I confess.

She blushes and does that thing where she hides her face with her hair. I laugh and let her be instead of pointing it out and making her feel even more embarrassed.

"You're a really good cook. I'm definitely getting you that diamond ring." She declares.

"I'll be waiting."

After we're done eating, we talk some more and I get to know her better. She shows me her balcony and all the pieces she's worked on over the years. She's gotten better, as seen by the progress of her work.

We spend the afternoon watching a movie on the TV in her room before she walks me to the bus stop at the end of the day.

"Thank you for coming today, I had a great time." She tells me.

"Thanks for having me and trusting me with this side of your life." I answer.

"I should be the one saying thank you. You've been so understanding and I appreciate the fact that you're willing to keep it a secret from our friends until I am ready to tell them." She appreciates.

"At your own pace. See you tomorrow Berry."

"Bye Isaiah."

I hug her goodbye and kiss her forehead before I board the bus. She doesn't leave until the bus disappears out of sight and that makes me smile. I now know more about Kennedy and even though she's right that I see her differently, she will always be Berry to me.