Disclaimer: Unfortunately I still own nothing.

Chapter 3: Of Secret Identities

Sneaking out of Spencer was always so much easier than sneaking back in; they were always more vigilant when in came to people coming into the school. I'd parked my car in town and was walking the two miles that separated it from the school. I knew I looked crazy, but I couldn't help looking over my shoulder now and again, expecting to see Reid or Tyler pop out of nowhere. Not that I thought they didn't have anything better to do, but I always thought that previous behavior was the best predictor for future behavior and they'd done it twice already…

I frowned as I kept walking. Why the sudden interest? Before this afternoon, I couldn't remember a time when I'd exchanged more than two words with either the sons or their girlfriends. Even then it was usually some comment on the weather or to borrow a pencil. No bonding of any kind had ever happened. We didn't have any friends in common as far as I knew. We'd been in a few of the same classes last year, which wasn't much of a coincidence with about a hundred students per grade, aside from that, however, I'd barely even breathed the same air as them.

Why? Why now?

Needless to say, I didn't buy the reasons they'd given me.

I took a deep breath, trying to release my pent up frustration, as I made my way to the main door. I poked my head in first and quickly scanned the area. I managed not to get decapitated by the door, which was not an easy task with ancient massive oak doors and a lot of shopping bags. Having made sure no one would catch me, I ran to my dorm room, lugging along all my stuff. I probably would have done better to leave them in the car for later.

In the safety of my room, I threw my stuff on the bed and pulled out my zen mp3. I'd already skipped most of the afternoon classes and didn't see why missing two more would make a difference.

I tried to think. What could their secret be? What could I know that would make them so nervous?

This was one mystery I could not let go off.

---------------------------------------------------

Sitting with Julie at our usual table at Nicky's, I decided to give up.

Two weeks had already gone by and I wasn't much further along in my investigation. I'd managed to avoid anymore unwanted encounters with Reid and Tyler, but I hadn't even made a dent in their mystery. Opting to observe them from afar, there wasn't much I'd seen that I hadn't known before: part of the school's winning swim team, childhood friends, rich, beautiful, the list went on. They each had their own insanely large, there was no other word for it, band of worshipers. They were the elite of the school in just about everything, only one person was more "privileged" than them and that was Kate. But, then again, she was dating Pogue.

I'd tried looking up some of their family history in the library, sure to find something; one of Caleb's ancestors had founded the school after all. What little I found there was disappointing. The only things of some interest were the rumors of witchcraft that had surrounded their families during the Salem witch trials. But then again, it would have been stranger if their families hadn't been accused of anything.

Maybe I'd been a little paranoid about the whole thing.

"Well that's unlucky," Julie commented looking over my shoulder as she played with the straw of her coke.

"What is?" I asked.

"That's girl's skirt just flew up," she answered looking away. She smirked, "no underwear."

My eyebrows shot up. As I turned to see the person whose misfortune it was, something caught my eye. Three of the sons of Ipswich were gathered around a pool table and the one with long hair, Pogue Parry, was collecting a pile of bills much to the displeasure of Reid and Tyler. It looked like they'd been betting on what the girl's underwear would look like.

Had one of them somehow managed to flip the girl's skirt?

New commotion drew my attention once more to the elite group. Caleb had joined them and seemed to be in a heated argument with Reid. The others were rolling their eyes at the familiar scene.

Not that I was for flipping girl's skirts and checking out their underwear, but why was Mr. Danvers so angry? Boys will be boys and all that jazz.

That's when a thought occurred to me. Could this be their secret? I tried to recall how they interacted, familiar gestures, habits. They were close, everybody knew that, but what was it that kept them so close? Reid and Tyler I could understand, but the other two...

No. It was too outrageous.

What about Kate and Sarah?. An Ellie-Marco thing maybe?

"Where are you going?" Julie asked as I suddenly got up.

"Just going to check something," I answered vaguely, waving a hand in her direction.

I walked up to Tyler and drew him aside.

"I take it you're done hiding from us," he stated, leaning back against one of the pool tables in the back of the bar. A smile tugged at his lips. He was teasing me.

I gave him a deadpan look. "Funny."

His grin widened. I was perpetually amusing to him.

"So…is there a particular reason you're here or do you just like being around me?" he asked spreading his arms in a gesture that belied the words. Reid was a bad influence on this boy.

Normally I would have walked away, but I wanted to put my theory to the test. Asking straight out was out of the question in this crowded bar. "You and the other are pretty close huh?" I hedged as I moved next to him.

"Yeah." He stretched out the word, looking puzzled.

"How close?" I continued my questioning.

"Does this conversation have a point?" he asked instead of answering, looking at me strangely.

I cocked my head to the side, letting my gaze settle on his shoulder, unable to meet his disturbingly blue eyes for too long. "Humor me."

"Close. Closer than brothers." He paused, looking for inspiration. "It's hard to explain."

"Would it be about right to say that you guys have a 'bond' ur...out of the norm?" I asked looking up to gauge his reaction.

For the first time he looked alarmed. "What do you mean?"

"Tyler, I know you guys aren't what you seem..to be." He jumped away from the table, tensing.

"Don't worry, I won't say anything." I continued as if he hadn't reacted and began walking away before he could deny it.

Who would have believed it?

The sons of Ipswich were gay.

A/N: This isn't betaed yet, I need to find out whether or not the person who'd volunteered to do it, is still willing...since it's been...months...

Secondly the Ellie-Marco thing, you have to have watched Degrassi to get it. They were friends, Marco was gay and asked Ellie to pretend to be his girlfriend so people wouldn't know.

Review please!