nepenthe
(n.) something that can make you forget grief or suffering
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Kiara's POV:

The girls had left my house a bit over an hour ago, and I was cleaning up the kitchen when I heard the front door unlock, swinging open to reveal my father. I was a bit surprised to see him so soon since he had mentioned that he would be away for a few days.

"Hey, Dad. You're back early," I stated with a hint of curiosity. He greeted me back lazily, all while ignoring my statement.

He loosened his uniform tie, ran a hand through his already disheveled brown hair, and slumped onto the couch with an exasperated sigh.

Though I expected him to say something, he remained silent, creating an awkward and tense atmosphere. Wanting to break the deafening silence, I decided to initiate a conversation.

"So... how was your day at work?" I asked but received only silence in response. Shifting on my feet in awkwardness, I continued, "My day was pretty good; a few of my—"

"Kiara," my dad interrupted with a stern tone. I immediately closed my mouth, recognizing the tone of his phone. The tone in his voice was one I recognized.

Whenever he used it with me or anyone for that matter, he meant business. He glanced at me, waiting for a reaction, but I stayed quiet, silently urging him to continue with whatever he wanted to tell me.

He looked back towards his phone and sighed."Remember the conversation we had in the principal's office, after your interrogation?" he asked, and I nodded, recalling the time I got frustrated with him for thinking I had anything to do with Violet's death.

"Alright. Do you remember me explicitly telling you not to get involved?" he added with a more frustrated tone.

He didn't need to specify what he was hinting at. I already understood that he knew about the investigation.

What I didn't know was how he found out. Only a few select people were aware of it—me, Eden, Layla, and Imani. These were people I trusted, or at least thought I did.

I had only just met Eden so my trust for her couldn't compare to the one I had for Imani & Layla.

But I was smart enough to know that it couldn't have been Eden because throwing me under the bus would get her in trouble as well because she was the one who helped me and came up with the idea in the first place.

Meaning it could only be Layla & Imani. But they were my day ones and I refused to believe that they'd do that to me.

Dismissing my silly thoughts I came back to reality. There was no way that they'd do that to me.

Right..?

"How did you even find out about that?" I asked, crossing my arms in defiance. "Why are you turning this on me? It doesn't matter who told me; the problem is that you went against my word despite my warning," he retorted.

"Kiara, you do not realize how serious this is. This isn't just another one of those mystery cases that you buy on Amazon. This is real life," he emphasized, his tone rising.

"These are real people's lives being taken away from them," he continued, almost pleading for my understanding. Still, I stayed silent.

"Look, we have this under control. The last thing we need is anyone on the outside solving it for us. I just need you to trust us and drop your so-called investigation," he pleaded again.

"Yeah, fine. I guess you're right," I conceded, finishing putting away the dishes and heading up to my room. As I got ready for the night and slid into bed, I couldn't shake the determination to continue the investigation.

"Yeah, there's no way I'm giving up on this," I thought to myself before drifting off to sleep.

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Two days later...

Eden's POV:

It was 5 pm after school, and I eagerly awaited Ivy's arrival for our "study session," a mere disguise for my true intention of interrogating her. She was late, as usual, it irritated me given the gravity of our situation. Sipping my now cold and bitter coffee, I tapped my fingernails impatiently against the wooden table, growing increasingly frustrated with each passing moment.

Finally, the faint sound of heels clicking in the distance heralded Ivy's arrival. She approached with an air of weariness, clearly hoping to expedite our meeting.

I was equally eager to get answers, and I wasn't planning on relenting until she provided them. Ivy dropped her biology books next to the chair and took the opportunity to lay out her notebooks and workbooks on the table.

Noticing my unusual silence, she glanced up with a perplexed look. Seizing the moment, I took a deep breath and said, "Before we start our session, I need to ask you something."

Mid-motion, as she was about to place her pencil case on the table, she paused, raising a perfectly trimmed eyebrow in curiosity.

"There's no easy way to approach this situation, but I need to ask you a few questions about Violet," I continued. As the weight of my question is, Ivy abruptly stood up, anger etched on her face.

"I'm not doing this with you right now. I'm just gonna go," she declared, hastily shoving her books back into her bag.

Desperate for answers, I pleaded, "Wait! I just need a few answers to help find out who—" She cut me off sharply, stating, "I already got interrogated by a police officer, and you're the last person I need to answer to."

Her raised voice drew unwanted attention and she noticed this. She lowered it, adding in a quieter tone, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I don't have time for any of this."

Frustrated by her resistance, I resorted to my last option and grabbed her wrist. She looked down at my hand gripping her wrist tightly and shot me a disgusted look, demanding, "Let go of me." Loosening my grip slightly, but not enough to let her escape, I reminded her, "If I remember correctly, you have to repay me a favor after I covered for you."

Blackmail was stupid I know. I had already laid out all my playing cards but the only one I hadn't played was the one up my sleeve which was blackmail. Frankly, I had nothing to lose and if there was any moment for her to repay me the favour it would be now.

Her disbelief was palpable as she retorted, "Are you trying to blackmail me right now?!" I acknowledged that blackmail was never a good option but pressed on, "If it's what I have to do to get what I want, then so be it."

With a mocking tilt of my head, she sighed in frustration and reluctantly agreed, "Fine, I'll give you your answers. But now I'm not in the right...mindset. We'll meet up again this Friday for our study session, and you'll get your stupid answers then."

"Fine by me," I replied with a mocking grin as she huffed, turned on her heel, and exited the library. Slumping back in my chair, I reassured myself, "At least this wasn't a complete waste of my time."

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