“Hey girls, would you like something to eat?” the intruder asked her voice cheerful and silvery. The friends looked up to see who had interrupted the silence in the room. 

“Yes please.”

“No thank you, Mrs. Manoban.”

Rosie and Jisoo answered their voices overlapping one another’s.

“Maybe some cookies or something, mom,” Lisa suggested with a shrug. She herself felt a little famished but not enough for a full meal.

“Alright then,” Lisa’s mother smiled at the three. “Study hard.”

With that she left closing the door behind her, just like it had been prior to her entrance.

“Ugh, can we take a break?” Rosie groaned letting herself fall on her back on Lisa’s bed.

“We literally started like 10 minutes ago,” Jisoo reasoned not sure why the girl was complaining.

“Well it felt like 10 years.”

 “The sooner you finish your homework, the sooner you get to have fun,” Lisa told her in a matter-of-fact tone.

“Or,” Rosie started, lifting herself up with the support of her elbows and looking directly at Lisa who was sitting on the floor next to Jisoo. “I could not do it at all and have fun anyway.”

“Don’t complain when you fail then.” Lisa quipped giving her focus back to the textbook in front of her.

Rosie’s elbows faltered and she laid back down again, not bothering to reply for she did not have one.

“Did you guys hear about the get-together tomorrow?” Jisoo inquired changing the topic of conversation.

“Yeah it happens every year.” Rosie responded, this time immediately sitting up. “Do you guys wanna go? Cause I’m going.”

“I’m not sure if I should.” Jisoo said resting her chin on the top of her grey mechanical pencil.

“You should, it’ll be fun.”

Jisoo replied with a small hum before saying, “What the hell, why not?”

“Yay,” Rosie rejoiced with the least amount of excitement you could imagine. “What about you Lisa?”

“Obviously not,” Jisoo rolled her eyes.

“She’s ‘studying’ or has ‘better things to do’” she said quoting one of the many excuses Lisa had used on the two before.

“You’re right actually.” Lisa said nodding her head in approval.

“I’m actually sad to be correct for once.” Jisoo remarked a small smile forming on her lips.

“Come on, Lisa. Live a little,” Rosie said in hopes of changing the girl’s mind. “You haven’t even been to one party. This is your last year of high school and the craziest thing you’ve done is dye your hair.”

“She’s got a point, you know. What’s one small get together gunna do anyway?” Jisoo agreed and joined Rosie in persuading Lisa.

Just as Jisoo had said her last sentence Lisa’s mom had once again intruded the room. One hand on the doorknob while the other balanced a large plate of a classic after school snack – chocolate chip cookies. The girls had turned their heads to look at her as she stepped in to hand the plate down to Lisa.

“Here are the cookies you wanted,”

“Thanks mom,” Lisa smiled carefully gripping the plate and placing it on the rug, in between Jisoo and herself.

Rosie swiftly found her way from the bed to the ground and helped herself to a cookie. She took a bite and closed her eyes in complete bliss as Lisa’s mom spoke.

“What was this get together you girls were talking about? Couldn’t help but overhear.”

“It’s like a bunch of kids from our grade hanging out. The seniors do it every year at someone’s house.” Rosie explained her voice muffled due to the sweet in . However, Mrs. Manoban had somehow understood her.

“Oh that sounds like fun. Are you all going? When is it?”

“Tomorrow and Rosie and I are going. Not sure about Lisa though,” Jisoo answered politely smiling at the woman then averting her gaze to Lisa.

“You should go, Lisa.”

She looked up incredulously at her mother upon hearing her words.

“Yeah Lisa, you should go.” Rosie repeated eyeing her mockingly.

 “Wait really?” she asked, clearly surprised by the unexpected encouragement to attend the event.

“Yes. You can’t always be studying now, can you? It’s nice to socialize once in a while.”

“See? Even your mom wants you to go.” Jisoo said nudging Lisa's shoulder lightly with her blue ball-point pen.

“So what do you say?” Rosie asked expectantly.

“There’s no point in saying no now.” Lisa answered much to her friends’ content as well as her mother’s.

***

“So like what should I wear?” Lisa asked into her cellphone. She had the device placed between her right ear and shoulder while her hands were occupied, holding up two hangers – both wearing different articles of clothing.

“You’re still not ready?” came Jisoo’s reply from the line.

“I’m almost ready, I have my makeup done and everything. I just don’t know what to put on.”

 “Just put on something casual. Rosie said it’s nothing too fancy,”

Lisa let out a breath of air. That still didn’t help her make a decision but she uttered a small thanks to her friend anyway.

“We’ll be over in ten minutes. You better have an outfit picked out by then,” Jisoo informed her in a demanding tone.  

“Don’t worry I will. See you in ten,” Lisa said hooking the two hangers on her left index finger and using her now free hand to hang up the phone. She lightly tossed her phone onto her bed. Her head then faced the mirror fixed on her open closet door.

Her right hand wrapped around the hook of the hanger and brought it up just above her collarbone. She tilted her head fully examining the reflection in front of her, trying to imagine if the outfit would look alright. She proceeded to do the same with the other hanger.

Lisa let out a small sigh of frustration. She was still unsure, both outfits looked appealing in her eyes. She needed someone else’s opinion.

“Leslie!” Lisa called out and quietly stood there waiting for a response. She opened to give another call, but two tiny hands wrapping around the doorframe of her slightly ajar bedroom door stopped her. Next, a small head of brown hair peered through, her face carrying a cute smile.

“Yes Lisa?” she asked carefully, not moving from her position.

“What are you doing? Come here,” Lisa ordered, her tone soft and playful, gesturing with her hands for the younger to come over. She obliged and nimbly ran in, her feet creating faint thuds as she did. She stopped in front of Lisa and looked up at her with wide, curious eyes.

“Which one looks better? This one...” Lisa asked trailing off, taking the first outfit and putting it up to her body just as she had done in front of the mirror before. She stayed still a few seconds before switching and doing the same for the remaining outfit. “Or this one?”

Leslie tapped her finger on her chin thinking before coming to a similar conclusion to Lisa’s.

“I like them both.”

Lisa slumped her shoulders in defeat at the response. Why are my fashion choices so good? she thought sarcastically.

“Seriously? You don’t like any of the two a little better?” she asked Leslie, pushing the girl a little harder to make a decision.

“Where are you going?” Leslie questioned innocently.

“Just out to hang with some friends.”

“Do you wanna impress a boy?” the younger asked teasingly, giggling at herself.

“No,” Lisa replied her voice flat and emotionless. Why did everyone assume everything she did was for a boy?

“I just want to look nice.”

“But you always look nice.” Leslie told her.

Lisa cracked a toothy smile. 

“Come here,” she said embracing the little girl in a warm hug. The two broke apart a few seconds later, smiles playing on both their lips.

“Well I’m going to change now so you should leave.”

“Okay,” Leslie simply stated running out just as fast as she had come in earlier, shutting the door behind her.

Lisa decided to screw it and picked a random outfit to change into. It consisted of denim shorts, a simple white t-shirt and a black cardigan.

Her doorbell rang just as she’d finished changing. Assuming it was her friends, she quickly grabbed her phone from the bed and her purse from her office chair by her study table. Opening her room door and shutting off the lights, she darted downstairs only to find her father had gotten to the door first.

“Hi, Mr. Manoban. We’re here to pick up Lisa,” Jisoo greeted the man.

“Oh really? What for?” he asked raising his eyebrows.

“Just a small get-together at a friend’s house, dad,” Lisa answered for them walking up beside her dad.

“Don’t worry dear, I let her go. She’ll be back by 10:30. She promised,” her mother explained, stepping out of the living room, in attempt to assure the man.

“10:30?” he asked furrowing his eyebrows. He didn’t seem to think it was a reasonable time. “Isn’t that a little late?”

“She’ll be fine, she has her friends. She’s almost 18, she can’t spend all her weekends cooped up, honey.”

The older man let his wife’s words resonate for a few instants before giving in.

“Alright, have fun. But you better be here by 10:30 and not a second late.” He threatened jokingly. Lisa grinned and hugged her dad. They exchanged quick ‘I love you’s before Lisa stepped out onto the porch with her friends.

“Your dad scares me sometimes.” Rosie said shuddering a little recalling the events that just occurred. She walked down the front steps and then toward her old Honda Civic parked in the driveway. The other two followed behind at a slower pace. 

“He’s not that scary.” Lisa disagreed, opening the door to the backseat.

The friends settled in the car, buckling their seatbelts as Jisoo added, “I think he’s nice.”

Rosie pushed the key into ignition and started the car. She put the car in reverse and carefully backed out of the driveway.

Once on the road they engaged in light conversation to kill time while getting to their destination.

It was twenty minutes in to the car ride when Lisa rested her head on the clear glass window that she noticed they were heading out of town. The autumn’s greenish, yellowy orange grass gradually lessening and completely dis