Veronica hadn't thought anything through after leaving Joana. Her head was already starting to hurt. Too many thoughts, too many people, too many possibilities. Just like the rest, she wanted the night to end too.
"Good evening." She said to the man behind the counter at the bar.
"Hello," He replied with a beaming smile. "What can I get you?"
"Nothing. I just want to ask something."
The bartender kept quiet to hear what she had to say.
"The drinks, where are they stored?" She regretted her words almost immediately. The man raised a brow.
"Are you the police or something?"
"No no. Uhm, I just want to know, have they been opened before, or are they still sealed until it gets here from your store."
"Of course! We can't just open everything down because there are many customers. What if they don't order as much as we thought they would. Do you want to make me pay with my salary? (1)"
Veronica curled her lower lip in frustration. Just as she had thought, their killer couldn't poison anyone tonight. Unless.
"The cups," Veronica said looking at the set of red cups arranged at the side. "Why aren't they turned upside down?"
"Does it matter?"
"This is like the opposite of your job ethics. It's not proper... And somehow everybody here failed to notice it."
"That's just it, people fail to notice a lot when it comes to free things."
Veronica was shocked.
"So you mean nobody paid for all of this?"
"Well all of this was already paid for, but not by all these brats."
"Wow, do you know who?"
"No, and it doesn't matter to me anyway... You know the only reason I'm talking to you is that you look familiar."
'What! I have never seen you in my life!"
"So you're saying you haven't been here before."
"I haven't." She snapped back.
"Oh well, must be one of those faces I guess. Anything else?"
Veronica's mind shifted back to the cups.
"Can I see one of those cups for a sec?"
The bartender sighed then rolled one over to her. Veronica picked it up and looked inside. It was empty and dry. She dropped it down slowly to gather her thoughts together. Maybe Godfrey was poisoned at the bar two years ago from his cup, but no one was poisoned tonight.
"Thank you," Veronica said then walked away.
* * *
"Ladies, shall we?" Bright turned to face June and Margret with a grin on his face. June stood by the closed door, waiting to jump out any moment things went bad. Margret walked up to him and pushed him to the bed. He fell without taking the grin off.
"Oh, I like where this is going."
Margret soon got on top of him, doing her best to play along and not show how scared she was.
"So, how were you able to pull this party off?"
Bright raised his head and look at June.
"Isn't she joining us?"
Margret forced a smile.
"You want the full package, you have to answer our questions first."
"Well at least leave the door, you're creeping me out," Bright said and Margret agreed from the look on her face, forcing June to move closer to the bed.
"So how were you able to pull all these off?"
"Well," Bright sighed. "I didn't do all these by myself. There was this guy, a man actually, who goes by the name Kas."
Margret's expression brightened as she stared down his face. Finally, they were getting somewhere.
"What-how did he-" She paused to gather her words together. "What did he look like? How did you two meet?"
"We didn't meet though. It was all through Facebook... My birthday was coming up and I was fucking broke. I had no money and my parents didn't either and suddenly Kas chatted me up."
"He told me he'd support the party if I planned everything his way. So he threw this party. The setting, the music, the drinks, everything."
"Wow!" June said. "But if you never really met Kas, how do you know if he's a man or not?"
"I don't know and I don't care. Kas never really asked for anything in return and I'm grateful for that."
Margret scoffed. Kas didn't need anything in return. He used Bright's birthday as an opportunity to orchestrate the whole night to favor himself. Lord knows what plan he has for Grace.
"Come on, let's go." She said and got off Bright's lap while June hurried towards the door.
"What! So no blow job?" He asked in disappointment.
"Shut the fuck up!" She snapped back. "Open the door, let's get outta here." She said to June who was jacking the door handle repeatedly.
"It's not working," June said. "It's locked."
"What! How?" Bright said. He was now on his feet ready to leave.
"I don't know," June said again.
"Let's call the others," Margret said before dialing Veronica and Grace. Only Veronica picked.
"Hello."
"Veronica, what the fuck? the door is locked." Margret replied.
"What? What about Grace?"
"I don't know, she didn't pick."
"Hold on, I am on my way. I think our killer is about to strike. All of these was just to get us separated and--"
"Veronica, you are breaking up. Hello? What about Joana? Hello?"
Margret said five more before the line finally went dead.
* * *
"So you're saying all those times we were friends you didn't know that I couldn't swim?" Raymond asked.
"How could I have known? This is like the first time we are together beside a pool." Grace replied.
No one was at the pool but them. They both sat at the edge of the pool, both their feet inside the water catching up with old times. To Grace, the Raymond beside her was exactly like the one she remembered, sweet and funny, a true friend. At that moment she realized that the Raymond she knew was still hidden beneath the facade of all the peer pressure. At that moment she wished she could take it all back.
She was beginning to feel drowsy. Whatever drug or poison their killer had used was already starting to set in. Yet she still wondered why Raymond wasn't affected. They both drank from the same bottle, didn't they? Why wasn't he feeling sleepy? Or everyone else at the party for that matter.
Raymond stared deep down into the water before he finally spoke.
"I'm sorry Grace. Not a day goes by that I don't regret what I did- what I said. I wish I could take it all back."
"It's okay," Grace murmured.
"No it's not okay, I know you hate me."
"I don't hate you."
"You don't have to pretend--"
"I don't hate you," Grace said more firmly, looking into his eyes. They both stared for a lingering moment until they finally leaned in for a kiss. Unfortunately, Grace's head dosed off to his shoulder.
*Oh my God are you sleeping?" He said, turning her cheek to confirm. Grace mumbled some things with her mouth then placed her hands on his shoulder before resting her cheeks back on it again.
"Oh, you are sleeping for sure... Okay, up we go then." He removed her hands slowly and placed her head on the tile gently before he stepped out of the pool. Now standing, he pulled out Grace's legs and then reached for her arm to pull her up.
"Come on, get up. Let's go... Oh, your friend Veronica is here." Raymond stood up straight. "Grace is already asleep."
"It's Cassandra."
"What?" That was the only word he could say before he was pushed into the pool. He shouted and cried as he started struggling and drowning and there was no one to help except Cassandra who stood and watched till there was no more struggle and his body started floating on the surface of the water.
* * *
"Hello!" June yelled banging at the door. "Is anybody there?" Let us out."
Margret had gotten tired of yelling. She sat down on the floor by the wall, clutching her knees tightly. Bright was pacing all over the room and cursing along the way.
"June it's been over 10 minutes now. No one is coming." Margret said. It didn't stop June who kept on banging.
Just then, they heard Veronica's voice.
"Guys, I'm here."
"Took you long enough," Margret said, springing up to her feet.
"Hold on, where is the key?"
"I don't know, there was no key when we came in, we should be asking you," June said.
"It's not with me either... Uhm, the receptionist must have a spare... I'll be right back."
Immediately, they heard her runoff.
"I swear I hate you girls, for this," Bright blurted, still cursing.
Margret shrugged. About five minutes later, Veronica was back with the receptionist after convincing him there was an emergency. Immediately they heard the door open, Bright swung the door open and marched right out.
"Happy birthday Brighty darling," Margret yelled to him and chuckled. Bright raised his middle finger in the air and went off, amusing the three girls into laughter.
"Is that all?" The receptionist asked impatiently.
"Oh shit, Grace," Veronica said and they all ran out of the building.
"Where do you think she is?" June asked.
Suddenly they noticed everyone else gathered towards the pool area.
"What's going on over there?" June asked again.
They all assumed the worst immediately. What if Veronica was wrong? What if Grace was really poisoned and she was now dead?
They quickly edged their way to the crowd only to find Grace standing over the pool, already lost in her thoughts. Joana was standing close to her, consoling herself in the arms of John.
"Oh my God Grace!" June yelled as they ran towards them.
"I'm so sorry," Veronica said to Grace. "I'm sorry we couldn't."
While everybody stood and watched, the manager immediately called the police. This was before Veronica came down with Margret or June.
"Oh my God, she fucking killed him!" A student blurted from the crowd and with that, murmured voices began to stir up. The noise from the crowd and the loud wailing of the sirens fast approaching only played one word in her head.
Murderer!