|Lies and Cover-Ups|

--Honey Lou's Point of View--

 My imagination traveled back to the Victorian period as I read a book about a royal, thriving to survive in a world where everyone believes her to be dead.

And then, Sora came crashing into my front yard, trespassing into my property with the gate being thrown down by a lawn mower...

"She's freaking out, I wonder why that is."

The door burst open from down below as I glimpsed outside before meeting with my dear friend. "What is this now?" it was impossible to get an answer from her at the moment.

She was gulping down a huge gallon of water from the dehydration since summer was right around the corner. "Why don't you take a seat for now?"

I shook my head whilst embracing the book I was reading, suggesting that Sora should take her time and that I did not plan on rushing her whatsoever.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

 We were both sitting on my custom-made bean bags, facing one another with seemingly obvious smiles on our faces before I broke contact and looked out far below the 2nd floor.

Yet another unwelcome and unplanned sleepover happened at my place.

"With the house gate still knocked out on the ground like someone had bulldozed the big thing." repeating my complaint about the mayhem that Sora Young, my dearest friend, single-handedly caused today.

"I will compensate for that!" she muttered so loudly.

 The rest of the girls shyly redirected the conversation to what originally brought them all here, in the first place... "As I was telling you~"

They were listening in our conversation though certainly aren't supposed to be, but yes...

"I say we go over there and gate crash the party!"

Yua rashly advocated since we never received an invite.

'And it only means one thing as clear as daylight.' we are not going despite the urge from these experienced bad girls.

"Why did she not invite us anyway?"

Sihyeon was pretending to be dumbfounded and shocked as well by the birthday celebrant who turned out to be filled with hatred towards me...

"I am not concerned about that, however, I need to go over to her house and confront Jihyun regarding the lies she told me before the trip." I replied with a sigh.

"May I ask what lies you have believed that was said to be true from her?" she followed me as I walked out of the house, kicking my gate to give Sora and Yua a sign that they should clean up their mess. "We'll finish the work before leaving."

 "Honey Lou! Where are you headed? I can give you a ride since I'm..." my neighbor, Ms. Lee Haejin, offered us a ride when we came into her sight, stopping in the middle of her offer as Sihyeon stepped forward to tag along with me.

"And who is this beautiful girl?" she cut herself off, asking Sihyeon for a proper introduction. "I am Kim Sihyeon, lady."

Does she normally drop the honorifics..? 'Something doesn't sit right.'

"Uh-huh, are you girls heading to a party?" that question instantly made me suspect the people surrounding me...

"How did you catch that?" I desired to find out what other things I wasn't aware of, things that I mistakenly understood based on the observations I made from all their movements, behaviors, and tones so far. "Your friend has a gift in hand."

 The gift, huh? 'I can't believe she had a gift prepared beforehand...' never really noticed that Sihyeon-eonni brought a gift with her this whole time, nevertheless, we are headed there not to party whatsoever but to gatecrash like what Sora had done to my property.

"We do need a ride, lady, if you would be so kind to give us one."

My friend made me shake my head in disbelief while feeling stressed about the commotion I intended to avoid creating on such a serious day for Cho Jihyun.

'But did she ever consider how serious I was when I asked her and got answers for it?' as far as I know, she hadn't done so.

"So, tell me. Where is this party you are obliged to come to?"

Ms. Haejin walked us to her car, kindly letting me take sit in front of her while Sihyeon-eonni sat at the back. "I don't have an idea as to where she even lives..."

I muttered under my breath before Sihyeon-eonni directed Ms. Haejin to Jihyun's place, or wherever she planned to celebrate her birthday party.

 "Now, what is the plan?" my older friend wondered as she stared at the venue in amazement, Ms. Haejin was also here, still shocked upon finding out that we were headed in the same way.

"Do you know who the celebrant is, Ms. Haejin?" there was something making me feel uneasy between the two of them on each side of mine.

"Let's head inside, it would be easier if we approach her personally and in private." the least thing I would want to have her deal with on a special day is getting hussled by this.

'But I cannot stand another second without hearing an answer.'

 "I don't think that is a good idea, why don't we let the party end first?"

Ms. Haejin tried to make me back out from gatecrashing Jihyun's celebration, however, I have been waiting for people to notice and confirm that everything about her is a lie.

"Everything she had me believing in... It was all far from the truth."

"And what is this here? Who invited the Honey-girl?"

Ji-Eun came out with her hands crossed, showing not a sign of treating us with hospitality, her voice sounded incredibly restrained as the sound of the music from the inside blasted.

"We're not here to cause you any trouble, Ji-Eun."

Ms. Haejin responded to the older girl while I gave her a glance, politely questioning how she knew our friend, am I the only one who is clueless in this scenario?

"You know that girl?" I was blown away after seeing Ms. Haejin nod at the friend of Sihyeon-eonni. "Sihyeon, why don't you and Cath step inside now? I'll handle this."

Ms. Haejin urged the two of us to enter before her.

"I do not understand what is going on." I exclaimed whilst resisting to follow Sihyeon-eonni, it felt as if I was being left in the dark, wondering about what they meant by their words.

"What do they know that I do not?" I faced Sihyeon, catching a glimpse of Ms. Haejin slapping Song Ji Eun.

"Mom!" a female's voice cried, the sound of which came from the window above the door on the porch.

--Author's Point of View--

At that very moment, Honey Lou was stuck without a way out of what was bound to happen in that situation as she figured everything that was hidden from her prior to that day. "Right in front of my eyes..." she whispered.

"What was that?" Sihyeon was aware of the outcome, she thought to herself that if she couldn't give them all a happy ending in this current life of theirs...

"I might just have to sacrifice the happiness of one person to save the rest of ours."

 With Honey Lou being distracted by the commotion going on outside, she didn't quite expect Jihyun to put on hold the party she had been dying to throw before it even started.

"Mom, what gives??" Jihyun came running down the stairs with her heels in her hands, barefoot as she arrived out front.

"This is such a bad timing, Mom! Please, leave."

'That woman... And Cho Jihyun... What exactly does this mean to me?'

Honey was baffled to even make an utterance.

"Sihyeon, may I use the comfort room around here if you know where to find one?" the 16-year-old female spoke in a sort of trembling voice while holding onto her head for support due to the dizziness she was feeling.

 The older female, Honey's friend brought her to the nearest door that no one else was occupying at the moment, but then suddenly, the layout and everything that the room contained wiped off the last bit of her sanity.

"This can't be!" the girl covered up her mouth before anyone could even dare to barge into that room and find her out.

The fact that she had already completed the last piece of the puzzle she had left to herself long ago. "This is the answer."