Game of Fates

Chapter III

It was about five thirty in the evening when someone rang the doorbell. I had only begun to stand up from where I was in the sitting room when someone, Pip to be exact, answered the door. It was Ava coming in, straight from the airport.

"Heya!" yelled Pip. "Welcome back, Ava! How was it?"

"Thanks, Pip! Ah, I've been to Britain plenny of times before," said Ava. "T'was rainy, as usual. I would've brought souvenirs like I did last time, but I had to come home early." It was practically tradition for Ava to always come home with stuff from the UK; after all, everyone knows selfies aren't enough. "I brought home fresh fish and chips for everyone to snack on instead," she continued, chuckling. Soon, most of the girls had headed down and settled close to the entrance.

"Well, we're not really in the mood for that today," sighed Kiara, slipping her hands into the pockets of her coat. "Do you have an app on your phone named 'FATE'?"

"Lemme check," replied Ava. "Is Juliet here? I wanted to talk to her about a few things-"

"She's dead," Katie interrupted. "Already dead, mou shindeiru, patay na." The way she had crossed her arms and tilted her head down showed me everything. She was gritting her teeth ever so subtly, and I'd imagine she was on the verge of shedding tears. Still, she wanted to put up a facade. I've never realized why.

"Huh?" gasped Ava. "Wait, what the heck? Are you serious? You can't joke about that kinda stuff!"

"Yes, we are," replied Kiara. "Open FATE right now, if you have it. Did Juliet send an email?"

"Sh-She did," said Ava. "Hold on a second. I'll go read it first."

"Yeah, that's a wise move," Katie commented. "Some of us were told things like, 'Please keep this email a secret'. Not that I'd try obeying every single thing Juliet's saying in these emails, though, if I received one."

"I guess Katie herself's the one with the email saying 'Please keep this a secret'," Lillian chattered. I thought the same.

Katie blushed. "N-No, it was something Brett got," she defended. You wouldn't have to think twice to realize she was lying. But considering the stuff Lillian and I got, I'd bet that Juliet customized those requests at the end so that it would have to do with the ones dearest to us. So if Lillian's was about our friend group, chances were that Katie's had something to do with Brett Simmons, her smart, athletic, and fun-to-be-around boyfriend.

Ava fixed her hair. "Well, she just said stuff about being guilty... She never did anything wrong to me, though, so I don't really get what she's saying. And she wants me to 'continue what she started', too? If this is Juliet we're talking about, then... That's gonna take an eternity, especially now that she isn't here anymore! How'd this happen, anyway? Did anyone call the police?"

"We tried everything to get help! There's no signal, though," said Lillian. "We tried going outside, calling and texting other people... It's all no use. The only texting we can do is on FATE."

"And about how it happened? None of us got a clue, either," I added while stretching my arms a bit. "Maybe some of the guys might have some clue. It's not just us that got caught up in this thing, right?"

"Definitely not," Katie agreed. "I've seen Brett and David's messages." Typical Katie, that was. I wondered if she's helping some of the guys with whatever was written on their email.

"What were they?" Lillian asked as she was finger-combing her long, platinum-blonde hair.

Katie sniffed. "Stuff about-"

"Isn't it better if we leave that for the dinner table?" Amy suggested. "That way the guys can join in, too."

"I second the motion," I said.

"I third the motion!" shouted Pip.

"Pip, that's not how it works..." mumbled Amy, pushing her lips toward her right cheek.

"Yeah, I know. But what am I supposed to say, 'I second the motion' when I'm clearly the third to agree with it?" responded Pip, stretching out her palm while shrugging her shoulder as if she were serving something as a waitress.

"I suppose you have a point..." replied Amy.

"What time is it?" asked Ava, who then started leaning on one of the couches. "I'll go organize my stuff in my room for a moment. Can someone call me when it's dinner? Thanks."

"It's almost six," said Kiara, staring at her wrist. "You still have plenty of time."

"I'll help you unload," I said. "Come on, Ava. Let's go," I continued. We headed back upstairs into our room.