The room was filled with an uncomfortable silence, and you wished the floor would swallow you whole. You don't feel a sense of belonging, so you clenched your teeth and attempted to breathe normally to keep your heart from racing.

"Yeah, if you guys don't like veggie, there's a pepperoni at the bottom." Alex broke the silence as he pointed at the pizza boxes. "There's a sausage under, and a pineapple, too."

"Or board games," Alex suggested again. You quietly placed the box of Twister down beside you as you hugged your legs, breathing heavily. Alex noticed the Twister beside you. "Ooh, yes, Twister!"

The others glanced at him as he pointed at the slender box. "Remember that we would always...?"

"We're not 12 anymore," Gert spoke up.

"Not even me." Molly scrunched her face as she moved towards you to sit beside you.

Alex nodded. "Good point. Okay, how about suggestions, then, just anything you guys..." He sat down on a chair until Molly spoke up. "What are you doing?" She scolded. "That was her chair."

You grabbed Molly's hand and held it tight, giving her a look. Nico shook her head. "Sit wherever you want." She stated. "She's gone." Alex gave her a sympathetic stare.

Another awkward silence filled the air until Chase spoke up. "This is too weird." He sighed. Karolina nodded. "Maybe we just don't work without her."

Chase stood up with a slight scoff. "Yeah. I'm outta here.

Alex stood up as well. "No, come on, guys!" He stopped Chase from leaving the guesthouse. "Listen, we can't blame Amy for the fact that we don't hang out anymore."

Chase shrugged. "Fine. I blame you." He scowled at Alex. "You didn't come to the funeral!"

"Everyone grieves in their own way." Karolina defended.

"At funerals with their friends." Chase retorted.

You decided to keep your mouth shut to not add more tension to the argument. Besides, there's nothing to say if you weren't part of their past.

"Right, (Y/n)?" Chase glanced at you, bringing you to the argument. Alex slightly widened his eyes, finally learning what's your name.

'Well, there goes that keeping myself away from them.'

Gert didn't let you answer, though, since she spoke up. "Yeah, who would ever do that, not show up when a friend is expecting them?" She was looking directly at Chase.

Chase looked at her shortly, realizing what she meant. "I'm just saying, Wilder not showing up was the first crack in the wall."

"That wall was always coming down," Karolina responded. "We were friends because our parents were friends. We were just kids. We were always gonna grow apart."

"Plus, it's kind of hard to stay friends with someone when all they care about is being the perfect church girl," Gert complained, directly hinting at her statement towards Karolina.

"Better than the insufferable social justice warrior."

"Or a dumb jock," Alex added, looking at Chase.

"Yeah, or Molly." Chase glanced at Molly, who gave him a look of incredulity while you raised your eyebrow, giving him a warning stare. "I've got nothing against you. You're really nice."

"What about me?" Nico asked.

Alex shook his head. "Nico..."

"Whatever I am now, it's not Amy." Nico bit her inner cheek as she took a moment to breathe. "Sorry to let you all down." She glanced at you. "And I know (Y/n) can't replace Amy."

You looked down while Alex sighed. "No, come on. Nobody's thinking that."

"Great party, Alex." Chase scoffed as he sat back down. "Thanks for all the pizza and sadness."

"Perfect combo..." You mumbled that only Molly could hear.

"Yeah, for once, I agree with Chase," Gert stated. "What are we doing here? We'd all moved on." She told her former friends. "We were doing fine."

"No, none of us is fine," Karolina replied. "And I, for one, am sick for pretending that I am." She stood up and crossed her arms. "We need to sit together and talk this through."

Alex nodded while the others were quiet, agreeing in silence. Karolina looked down at you and gave you a friendly smile. "Sorry for all of this..." She hesitated for a bit. "(Y/n), was it?" You nodded. "If you're feeling uncomfortable, you don't have to stay—"

"No!" Molly exclaimed. "I want my best friend beside me." She told Karolina with a smile as she hooked her arm around yours. Karolina shrugged. "Okay, sure."

Chase huffed. "Fine. Then I'm gonna need some alcohol." He stood up headed to the exit.

Alex furrowed his eyebrows. "What? Hey..." He followed Chase out of the guesthouse. You watched as Nico followed Alex. "Where are you going?" Alex asked Chase.

"As I recall, your dad keeps a bottle of Pappy Van Winkle's in his study. I've been sipping on it since I was 13."

"Yeah, but they're in there now, having their meeting!"

Molly nudged you, turning your attention to her and breaking your stare from Alex and Nico. "You gonna sip some alcohol? She asked excitingly. You gave her a smirk and rolled your eyes. "No, I'm not because I know you're going to sneak your way to take my drink all for yourself."

"How about you, (Y/n)?" Gert asked, slightly massaging her head with her fingers. "What are you doing here?"

You glanced at Molly before looking at Gert. "Tina and Robert brought me here with them." You explained. Gert slowly nodded. "You don't call them Mom or Dad?"

You shook your head, so Gert nodded in understanding. "I guess you're their baby girl now, huh?"

"Hey, Alex!" You and the others heard Chase yell. "You can take the stick out of your ass now. They're gone."

Karolina got up and walked over to Geoffrey's office with Chase. Molly dragged you out of the guesthouse and followed Gert out as well. You walked by Nico and Alex, feeling Nico move away while Alex stayed for a time before joining you and his friends inside.

Once everyone was inside, Alex closed the door. "Don't touch anything, okay?"

"Too late!" Chase smiled when he started looking around for any liquors.

"Dad says there's no reason to be in here when he's not."

Nico approached a chair, and you were just behind her, spotting the same object she found. "Why is my mom's purse here?" She asked as she grabbed Tina's purse. "Where are they?" You asked.

"I don't know, and I don't care," Chase answered. He looked around and shrugged. "All right, he must've moved the good stuff." He took the random alcohol nearby. "This will do."

Molly sat on a chair nearby Chase. "Bourbon on the rocks, shaken, not stirred." Chase chuckled as he looked at the young girl. "I don't think so." And his answer brought a frown to Molly's face.

Your fingers lightly touched the bookshelves as you peered around. You pressed your palm against a cabinet after noticing it. You quietly knocked on the wooden doors, leaning your head. 'Heavy...'

Suddenly, Alex unexpectedly unlocked the door you were just checking on. As the heavy doors opened, you took a step back, revealing a sliding bookcase that revealed a secret entrance. "Holy shit, what just happened?" Chase questioned, witnessing what happened along with the others.

"You mean other than a secret passageway opening?" Alex asked.

Nico turned to look at Alex. "Where does it go?"

"Bomb shelter?" Gert suggested.

"No, a kick-ass wine cellar, definitely." Chase grinned, glancing at Gert, and approached the entrance.

You frowned at him. "What is it with you and alcohol, Stein?" Chase looked at you, quite surprised you even spoke to him.

"In the past, when religions were being persecuted, sometimes believers would build secret temples to worship," Karolina explained as she and her friends slowly approached the hidden entrance.

"Yeah, but this is Brentwood, not Bethlehem." Gert corrected.

Alex stepped in front, just inches away from you. "This is some Narnia shit."

"There's only one way to find out," Molly told the others. You glared at her in protest while Alex nodded. "Let's do it." You watched as Molly eagerly entered the hidden entrance with the others, but you pulled her back. "Are you serious about this? What if there's something dangerous in there?"

"Something dangerous in the Wilder Mansion?" Molly smiled until she thought for a moment. "Maybe, but... this will be fun! I promise. Just stay close to me, and you'll be fine." Molly pulled you along with her inside, and you gave up. "If something bad happens, don't say I didn't warn you."