"Big sis, Anais, you know that we live in troubled times where everyone has to protect their interests, yeah? However, we should still have upright morals and not create conflicts when things can be handled peacefully.
You agree with me, right?"
I paused to gauze their reactions, but the two looked at me in puzzlement, not knowing what I was talking about.
"Yes, little brother. We should not hurt others without any justifications."
"Hmm, Alice is correct. But we should never compromise when they are going to hurt our family."
The two girls nodded in understanding, encouraging me to continue. But it was still difficult to come clean, and I started fumbling with words, making excuses to gather my courage.
"Yeah, so… there are times when I will have to make arbitrary decisions that you might not like. And… uhh... Yeah, Lucy is now married to someone."
Finally, like ripping a band-aid from an injury, I confessed the truth.