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"Everyone knows you can’t choose your family, but you can choose your friends."
Gossip Girl
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Metisha

On a rainy night in the month of May, Jules' father, Lee Kim-hyun, finally kicked the bucket, thereby saying adios to the world and it's inhabitants.

Surprisingly, considering the fact that she loved her husband than life itself, Jules mother, Sun-hee, is handling her husband's death pretty well or as well as she wants us to believe. Jules on the other hand, is completely devastated even though they were nowhere near close when he was alive.

I don't know where the strange thought comes from but Jules' reaction to her father's death got me thinking:

Would I react this way were something to happen to Paige, my stranger of a mother?

Would I even be able to make myself shed a tear for her?

I obey the rational part of me that tells me to stop having those extremely bad thoughts and try to put them as far away from my head as possible.

Suddenly feeling thirsty, I walk into the kitchen of Jules' parents' house which is where we've been staying since his burial a few days ago, but stop dead in my tracks as I see Jules' mother, standing some feet away, blankly staring out through the kitchen window.

For a second, I debate silently leaving the kitchen without drawing her attention since she seems so lost in her world.

Why?

Oh! Didn't I mention that Jules' mother, without mincing words, hates my guts?

I guess I didn't.

Well, ever since her husband and I had a verbal battle, she has looked at me with eyes that seems to scream: "ONE DAY MY DAUGHTER WILL REALIZE THAT BEING FRIENDS WITH YOU IS THE WORST DECISION SHE'S EVER MADE."

It's not like I care or seek her approval of my friendship with Jules. But for the sake of the love and respect I have for her daughter, I try to be as distant as possible from her so as to avoid her saying something that would lead to me disrepecting or insulting her.

And so far, I've been successful.

Till now, at least.

But it's not too late. If I could make my escape before she becomes aware of my presence, then we wouldn't have to talk to each other. And since we wouldn't have to talk to each other, there would be no room for provoking words from her which could lead to insulting words from me.

But just as I'm about to leave the kitchen, she speaks.

"He was a good man."

I look to my sides, unsure for a second if she was actually speaking to me.

Seeing no other person apart from me and her, I veer back to look at her only to see she's turned towards me and her gaze is now fully rested on me.

"He might have had his demons but my husband, Lee Kim-hyun was a good man."

I don't know if she is trying to convince me or herself of that fact but since the bad blood between me and her husband was no secret, something tells me it's the former.

"Mrs. Lee," I begin calmly, "I know Mr. Lee is no more," She winces at this. "And I am awfully sorry for your loss. But that still doesn't change the truth which is that no good man treats his daughter the way Mr. Lee treated Jules."

Probably shocked by my utterance, Mrs. Lee takes a step back and regards me in silence for minutes unending. And when she finally speaks, there is fire in her eyes. "Even at his death, you still won't respect him." I open my mouth to say something but she holds up a single finger to stop me. "I've always known you were bad for my daughter. The Jules I know would never have talked back at her father. But you..." she trails off and blinks as if to stop herself from shedding tears.

Even with all the things she said, I would have hugged her but I know she would only rebuff me. We are not close enough for that. So, leaving her alone in her ocean of sadness, I start to make my way out of the kitchen.

"Tell Jules to get ready for Mass," her voice comes from behind me and I hear none of that grief that had earlier laced her words.

Saying nothing, I exit the kitchen. On getting to the large, white-themed (like every other part of the house) corridor, I come across the butler briskly making his way up the stairs.

"Good morning, Mr. Butler."

He stops walking and looks down. To my surprise, he turns back and walks down the stairs. At the last step, he stops and, surprising me once more, slightly bows.

Then he straightens and folds his hands behind his back before speaking with a beautiful Spanish accent, "Good morning, Miss Metisha. Sleep well?"

"Yes, I did. Thank you." I respond, my voice low with embarrassment that he knew my name but I can't, for the life of me, pull out his from any part of my overcrowded brain. "Any idea where Jules is?"

"I'm sorry but no ma'am."

"Oh stop it, Mr. Butler. Just call me Metisha," I say with a quick wink and to my amusement, the old man's cheeks turn a faint but noticeable tinge of red.

"Flirting with poor Uncle Mark hmm?"

I whip around to see Jules behind me, dressed in a black, knee length gown and looking considerably better than she did yesterday.

I roll my eyes at her words. "Good morning to you too. And I was looking for you."

"Forgot the way to her room?" Margot asks, making appearance beside Jules, also wearing a dress, the colour of a starless night sky.

"Okay. You got me. But, point of correction, I wasn't flirting with him. I was only making conversation. Right, Mr. Butler?"

The butler's lips curls into a small smile.

"So why were you looking for me?" Jules asks.

"Your mom said.. wait," I take in their outfits once again. "Why am I the only one not dressed for church yet?"

"Because you're pagan?" Margot supplies, batting her eyelashes innocently. I give her the stinkeye and was about to retaliate but Jules speaks before I could.

"You've got only five minutes to dress if you're interested in going," Jules states simply.

Not wanting to be that friend who adds to her bereaved friend's worries simply by being stubborn, I race to my room to get dressed in five minutes.

But eventually end up spending fifteen minutes due to not being able to find an outfit suitable for church.

Margot saves the day by lending me a ridiculously pink organza gown I had no choice but to wear.

I really need to start investing in more decent dresses in case of events like this.

******
Since, according to Jules, her mother is an important member of the church, we have no choice but to sit on the very first pew. And being that close to the altar made me feel somewhat squirmy.

There's just something about those endlessly high walls and unearthly decors that always gives me an eerie feeling: one of the reasons I hardly ever go to church.

The second reason is the..

Come all ye faithful
Joyful and triumphant

Choir!

I swear those people give me the jitters. They make me feel like I'm  in heaven and about to get judged for everything I've ever done and let me tell you, I've done some pretty bad stuff.

At last, peace falls upon my soul when the choir finally shut the the fu... er.. end their rendition.

After enduring some more minutes of torture, I finally decide I've had enough. I love Jules and would have loved to stay till the end of the service but this whole heavenly stuff just doesn't agree with me.

I start to rise but Margot roughly pulls me by the hand, making my butt hit the pew hard. I give her a dirty look and, like a child who's just been denied a box of chocolates, fold my arms across my chest. The elderly woman seated beside me glares at me and I glare right back. She shakes her head in a way I find annoying and self-righteous before looking straight ahead. And immediately she does, I see her expression change from mild anger to that of.. awe?

Curious to see the reason behind the sudden change of expression, I return my attention to the chancel.

And that is when I see him.

Regally holding the edge of his immaculate soutane with steps as royal as a king's and as reverent as a saint's, he slowly climbs the few steps that leads to the pulpit.

For a few seconds, he only stands by the pulpit and observes the congregation. His eyes seem to fixate on my pew and rests there for a few seconds. A quick flicker of what I would call the combination of a smile and amusement passes across his features, making him look even more beautiful. Then, in a blink of an eye, the expression is gone like as if I had imagined it in the first place.

As he delivers a very beautiful sermon (if I do say so myself), I can't help but notice the way he gives a brief smile whenever he as much as looks at my pew. This makes me start to feel self-conscious, that is until I look to my right and see Jules return that soft smile with one of her own.

Then realisation hits me and my eyes go wide.

Jules and the priest have been exchanging secretive smiles for the past ten minutes!

It takes everything in me not to open my mouth and start questioning Jules right there and then.

Then something else occurs to me: Jules never told me about the priest.

Does she know she's playing a very dangerous game?

And the ridiculously handsome priest, I don't even think he knows he's doing it but every time his violet eyes comes in contact with Jules', he smiles.

As I watch this strangely innocent secret exchange between the priest and my best friend, an emotion I never thought myself capable of feeling surges through me..

Jealousy

I am jealous of Jules.

Yet another secret smile passes between them and this is when an horrific but true thought occurs to me:

At this very moment, I hate Jules as much as I want the priest to look at me and only me...

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Jules, the priest and Metisha!!!😱😱😱

I am so eager to know what happens next. And I am sure you cupcakes are too😍

Promise the next update will come up soon.

Thanks cupcakes 😘