I couldn’t help myself. Riley never told me any secrets. We’ve been best friends for years, yet she remains so secretive. I had to get a better glimpse into her life.

She would be home from work in 10 minutes. I knew her schedule, memorized it after a week. She arrived at her house at 3:40 every day. I would have to be fast.

I searched for the diary. I found it once when I stayed the night at her place, but she grabbed it before I could look inside. Ever since, she’s had it hidden.

I looked under her bed and there it was. I scampered to grab it and flipped through the pages. There weren’t as many entries as I expected, but I came across the most recent one. My eyes widened with shock.

“What would Riley do if she knew I was in love with her?”

She was…in love with me?

I unlocked the door to my house. Well, I tried to. It was, to my surprise, already unlocked. I assumed that meant Lily was here. She comes over all the time. Not that I can complain, I love her company.

I threw my bag down at the end of the hallway and trotted up the staircase. I pushed my door open and saw Lily cross-cross on my floor reading a book. A book with a blue cover with my name on it. My diary!

“Lily!” I shouted with shock. She slammed the book shut and whipped it behind her back. My face reddened and my lungs were suddenly empty. She can’t know my secret.

“Riley, it’s okay,” she consoled. She approached me and reached a hand out to cup my face. I stumbled backward and my head bumped the wall behind me. She cradled my head.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t want you to find out this way,” I panicked. This would be the end of our friendship, I just knew it.

She gently pulled my head in closer to her own and our lips met. Then I realized what was happening—she was in love with me as well. Maybe I shouldn’t have kept my secret from her. If I hadn’t, I would’ve learned that her secret was the same as mine.