Hannah is concerned as she gets out of the car and watches her sister, who walks savagely toward the boy standing by the fence. A cynical smile adorns her face as she throws her orange hair over her shoulder, then crosses her arms over her chest.
The boy pulls down his eyebrows.
— Are you speechless? — Danielle makes gum balloons, clearly having a great time. — So what? Finish what you were supposed to do seven years ago and kill me now?
The redhead turns her face toward her twin and beckons her with her hand.
— What are you doing? — whispers under his breath, Hannah, obediently walking towards her.
The boy clenches his teeth and unexpectedly grabs Danielle by the collar of her blouse. He looks as if seeing her has robbed him of all reason. The frenzy in his eyes is a warning that he intends to do stupid things now that she has put her head on a platter for him.
— Kill me, please, if you want to ruin the rest of your life. Maybe last time the murder didn't look intentional, but now you will undoubtedly rot in prison. Do you want to lose your only chance for freedom? Remember that in the papers, you are already a convict.
Johnny closes his eyelids and tries to control his nerves. He lets her go, and she crinkles her eyebrows and smoother her blouse.
— Why did you appear before me so suddenly? — she asks in a cool voice. — What are you planning?
— I want to explain to you that seven years ago you made a mistake. — The boy looks at both twins. — I have a grudge against you not because you wanted to run me down with a truck, but because you defended an otter who, with the label of virtue, cheated on you right and left.
The brunet clenches his fists, restraining himself from attacking. He has an overwhelming urge to wipe that arrogant smile off her face.
— Go away from here before I think about it. I hate you so much that I am able to sacrifice myself just to remove a rotter like you from the face of the earth.
The girl laughs out loud.
— Do you think you can harm me so easily? You didn't even succeed seven years ago. I came here to warn you. Now it's you who should keep your eyes open. I've been playing with people a lot lately. It makes me happy to see a suffering person on his knees begging me for mercy.
— You are abnormal. — Johnny looks at her with a gaze with which he suggests that she should get treatment.
— Me — the girl puts her hand to her chest. — I know perfectly well that I am a crazy bitch. Many people tell me that, but please keep in mind that you also have something with your cleavage, since you killed an innocent girl. This is not the way to get revenge. Be more creative.
The boy squints his eyes.
— Don't think to yourself that I will leave you alone after you caused Solar's death and ruined my life.
— You ruined your life yourself — he interjects. — There are many ways to take revenge, and you just decided to go for the easy way.
Hannah is horrified by her train of thought. Does she really think that killing someone is the easiest way to get revenge?
— In prison, I saw through it and realized that I didn't want to get my hands dirty with blood, so I'll find another way for you to get down on your knees before me and start begging for forgiveness.
Danielle gleefully claps her hands, arranging to taunt him.
— I love dangerous games, so I'm waiting for you to make your move, my friend. Well, unless it's me who unexpectedly attacks you first. Keep your eyes around your head. No one knows the date or the time. — She puts her fingers to her lips and sends him a kiss. He grabs Hannah's hand and leads her back to the car.
— What are you doing? This man seven years ago tried to kill you. — Hannah realizes that her sister is about to bring many new problems on herself. — Is that why you came back to New York? Just now, when he went free?
— He will regret that the thought of killing me ever went through his head.
The brunette is concerned, fearing that Danielle will deliberately drag her into his plan, just as she did seven years ago.
*
Hannah has never been so afraid as she is at this moment. As soon as her sister gets out of the car, the girl hurriedly reaches from the back seat for her phone. She sees a mass of missed calls on it and already knows what kind of hell awaits her as soon as she calls Joseph back.
Her hands tremble as she puts the cell phone to her ear and, with terrified eyes, looks at the suspicious types who are standing in front of the building where her sister entered moments earlier. The brunette gets the impression that their gaze is directed directly at her.
Her heart rises to her throat.
— Joseph — she says in a shaky voice, swallowing her saliva harder. — I'm sorry. I'll explain everything to you.
— Where are you? — He asks softly, and Hannah already knows that in a moment she will explode. — Where the hell are you! I'm going out of my mind!
The girl closes her eyelids.
— My sister appeared in front of the company. She forcefully took me with her. I couldn't even pick up the phone. I'm sorry.
— And you just let her do that?
— She is mentally unbalanced, Joseph. She took me to some dangerous spelunking place. She left me alone in the car. I'm scared.
— Check your phone for the location. I'll come and pick you up.
Hannah hurriedly enters the app and checks the street she is on.
— Just hurry, I beg — she says as she gives him the address. She hides the phone in her purse and bites her nails when she realizes that the suspicious men are not taking their eyes off her. They say something to each other and sometimes laugh out loud, and it looks as if they have wicked intentions toward her.
A light goes on in her head as a warning when the men walk toward her. If only Danielle hadn't taken her keys with her, she probably would have driven away in the car, not caring what her cruel sister will do, but in this case, she has no choice but to simply get out. She doesn't intend to wait for them to approach her and want to do her harm, so she runs ahead, hoping that any moment her knight will appear.
Is this what Danielle meant when she said she wanted to make a strong and independent woman? Is that why she brought her to this place and left her in the car, when she knows how dangerous this neighborhood is?
Hannah looks over her shoulder to make sure the men aren't following her. She leans with her back against a nearby tree, trying to even out her breathing.
She opens her purse to pull out her ringing cell phone, but her eyes find a car that stops at the curb of the sidewalk. Danielle opens the window and smacks at her sister with apparent displeasure.
— Didn't I tell you to stay in the car?
— Give me a break! — Hannah can't stand it and raises her voice at her twin. The redhead gets out of the car, slamming the door. — What do you want from me? You chose this life for yourself, so continue to play with people who threaten you, and give me a holy peace of mind!
Danielle grabs her chin and painfully squeezes it with her fingers.
— No, because I need you.
— I don't recognize you as a sister. So what if we look alike? We are strangers to each other. We grew up in two entirely different families. I don't want anything to do with you, and I regret that I wanted to meet you. This was the biggest mistake of my life.
She pushes her twin in anger. Hannah feels frazzled for a brief moment as her back hits a tree trunk. She slides to the ground and rests her hands on the sand.
— The same blood flows in us! You're my sister, so don't try to disown me! — yells Danielle, breathing hard. — I'm sick of everyone pulling away from me! I'm going to destroy this perfect life for you, and I'll do anything to make you stay with me!
Hannah lifts her face and looks at her twin with sympathetic eyes.
— You are sick, Danielle. You also need treatment.
— Just because you have a mental disorder doesn't mean that everyone around you also has one. I just try to get back the people who are mine. You and Jin are essential to me. I only have you guys.
— It's because of loneliness, Danielle. You're like this because you don't have anyone by your side who sincerely loves you.
The redhead points a finger at her.
— It's your fault! Why is it that you were adopted by a good family, while I ended up with a childish mother!!!? Why couldn't it have been the other way around!
Her eyes are filled with madness, yet you can see that she is in pain.
— You only drive people away from you with such behavior. Everyone around you hates you.
The girl combed her red hair and closed her eyes, from under which tears flow.
— No. I am strong. At least I can handle myself in life without anyone's help, and you what? You were raised to be a princess that everyone around you defends. This is ridiculous. Why do guys prefer these clumsy, crying girls? Because they can protect them? To play their knights?
— They just stay away from monsters like you are.
And that sentence is enough to hit Danielle with redoubled force. After all, her sister said the same words as Jin.
— A monster? I have feelings too, and I can't stand that you sound the same! — Danielle grabs her twin by the hair and jerks her aggressively, not realizing that she is causing her harm. — Why should you be the one to have everything! Why should you be happy and live peacefully while my life sucks?
Hannah hits her elbow against a protruding root, and the pain is so excruciating that she clamps her lips together to keep from crying.
— Don't think to yourself that I won't report this to the police — she says quietly as Danielle lets her go and takes three steps back.
— Do you want to report it to the police? Great, but remember that the whole past will come to light and you and Jin will also pay a fine for participating in this plan. Want to spill the black stain on a clean sheet? Spontaneously ruin your perfect life?
The brunette lowers her head. She realizes that her sister is right. After all, she and Jin also participated in Danielle's plan. As if that weren't enough, involved in the entire affair is Jin's uncle. Instantly, everything can go awry, and digging up dirt from the past is no doubt capable of ruining their lives.
— Now I have to cool down so that I don't do you worse harm, but be aware that you won't free yourself from me.
Danielle gets into the car and drives away with a squeal of tires. Her sister grabs a tree and rises to her feet, guessing that she looks like seven woes.
— That's my car, thief — she whispers.
The neighborhood looks deserted, as occasionally people pass by who are not even interested in its condition. Someone even has the nerve to say that the girl looks like a victim of fate.
Hannah stands with her head lowered as the car stops at the curb. She lifts her face and with weeping eyes looks at the boy, who walks towards her with a quick step. He grabs her shoulders and carefully measures her figure.
— Why do you look like this? How could you let it get you into such a state! — he shouts at her in a worried voice, and when she can't stand it and starts crying, he embraces her so tightly that Hannah can't catch her breath. — I swear I will kill her at the earliest opportunity.
— Joseph, you can't report this as an assault — she says in a low voice, snuggled into his chest. — I have a connected past with her. I may suffer from this. I just want to go home, please.
The boy lifts his face to the sky and clenches his teeth to hold back the anger rising in him. He vows to himself that whenever he meets Danielle, he will teach her such a lesson that the latter will regret that she had the audacity to put her hands on Hannah.
He won't let her go. He will be the one to turn her life into hell if this psychopath ever gets close to his girlfriend again.
*
Joseph lies on the bed and rests his elbow on the pillow, his hand stroking Hannah's cheek. The girl is asleep, not even feeling that he is touching her.
The boy lifts his face as Jin peeks into the room, who beckons him in with a nod. Carefully, so as not to wake her, he gets off the bed and quietly closes the bedroom door.
They both sit down on the couch.
— What are you going to do about it?
— Hannah asked me not to report it to the police. I know I can harm you by doing so. — Jin nods his head. — For the moment, I feel like killing this psycho bitch, so I don't know how I will react when I meet her. It's better if she doesn't show her face to me.
— Danielle can be unpredictable, so try to keep an eye on Hannah. I'll take care of that, too. I'm sure she will try to destroy her life. That's the impression I got from my last conversation with her.
Someone types in a code, then opens the front door. Joseph has a bad feeling that it's Hannah's mother who chose the wrong time to visit, but fortunately, it's just Tom and Bella accompanying him. Bella makes such a noise at the entrance that Joseph throws a pillow at her to keep her quiet.
— Hannah is asleep, so keep your mouths shut — he says warning, fulminating them with his eyes. — I'm going to have to change the code because I don't like everyone entering her apartment as if it were their own.
Bella, who has returned to her natural brown hair color, makes an offended face.
— Why is she sleeping at this hour? What have you done to her?
— No one can irritate me more than this ninny — mutters Joseph under his breath, feeling like throwing her out the door. — If you come to visit, then behave culturally, for God's sake.
— What are you so touchy today? Did a fly bite you on the buttock? — Tom squeezes in between his friends, putting his arm around them. — Why are you both so serious?
— Danielle threatened Hannah. She attacked her today.
— What did that crazy bitch do? — Bella rushes into the bedroom, and Joseph jumps off the couch, feeling like dragging her out of there by her hair.
— After all, I told you that Hannah was resting, so where did you go, idiot!
Tom no longer reacts to this. He is used to Joseph chastising his girlfriend every time. He always finds a reason.
Hannah opens her sleepy eyes, half-consciously looking at her friend. She sees that Joseph, standing behind her, raises his hands and clenches his teeth, as if strenuously restraining himself from murdering her.
— Why didn't you wake me up? — turns to the boy, raising himself to a sitting position.
— Because I wanted you to rest, but that which, as usual, does everything her way. — Bella turns to him with an offended face. — And what are you looking at? Everyone already knows that you do something first and only then think.
— Why do you always insult me?
— Because I don't like you. You tease me.
— Here you go again. — Hannah gets off the bed and puts on pink "Hello Kitty" slippers, at which Joseph automatically frowns. Occasionally, he feels like throwing all her stuff out the window with that damned cat.
The brunette is about to leave the bedroom, but he stops her.
— Are you going to go out to them in your pajamas? No way.
He throws Bella out of the room and closes the door in front of her, and Hannah starts laughing as he helps her take off her pajama top.
— What are you doing? — She says in an amused voice.
— You're battered, so I'm helping you change.
Bella crinkles her eyebrows and looks at the boys sitting in the living room.
— What's wrong with them? Why are they doing this in front of us? — She sits down on the couch, gasping when she hears her friend's laughter.
— And it is this joy that Danielle wants to take away from Hannah. I'm sure she won't let go until she destroys her life, so we should all keep an eye on our friend — Jin speaks, looking downcast. — I think she will try to ruin our relationship. I am 100 percent sure that she will start with Joseph. Danielle can be devious, so you won't even realize when she starts acting secretly.