The afternoon sun filtered through the leaves of an old banyan tree, casting dancing shadows across the green grass of the city park. In the heart of this little paradise, six figures lounged on a large picnic mat, surrounded by an impressive spread of snacks, drinks, and the easy comfort of long friendship.
Lilian arranged her perfectly styled hair, her posture immaculate as she posed like she was on a magazine cover. "Ah, finally a picnic," she declared, her voice carrying the weight of someone who had been waiting for this moment for weeks. "It's been forever since we all hung out like this. This place is so slay, you guys. So aesthetic. Perfect content material."
Perra was already scrolling through her phone, tilting it at various angles. "Totally agree! We need to take some cute photos while we're here. Naila, can you lift those snacks up a bit so they look more aesthetic in the frame?"
From her curled position on the mat, Naila barely stirred. One arm extended weakly toward the snacks without her body moving an inch. "Don't bother lifting them, Perra. I'll just push them a little closer. They'll be in frame anyway. Too lazy to move."
Chima snorted, crossing her arms. "You're hopeless. Literally a koala in human form. Instead of lying around like a corpse, why don't you help Amy with the drinks? Amy, are the drinks ready?"
Amy bounced excitedly, unscrewing a large bottle with dramatic flair. "Of course! I made special infused water. It's a mix of lemon, strawberry, and... a little Amy secret touch!" She giggled, clearly proud of herself.
Aslyn, who had been stretching nearby, immediately sat up straight. Her athletic instincts kicked in. "Uh oh. 'Amy's secret touch'? You serious, Amy? Another one of your 'undible' creations? This one's not going to give us diarrhea, is it?"
Amy pouted dramatically. "Aslyn, you're so mean! This is totally healthy! Here, Chima, you try it first. You're the bravest."
Chima eyed the bottle with deep suspicion. "Ew, no. You drink it first, Amy. You made it."
"Fine then, I'll drink it!" Amy poured herself a glass and downed it with exaggerated enthusiasm. "See? Refreshing! Delicious, right?"
Everyone burst into laughter, the tension dissolving into warmth.
Lilian clapped her hands together, shifting into gossip mode. "Okay, before we get to photos, I need to talk about something. You guys know Sophie from management, right?"
Perra immediately put down her phone, eyes sparkling with interest. "Sophie? The one who always wears those floral print skirts? What about her?"
Lilian leaned in conspiratorially, though there was absolutely no need to whisper. "Apparently, she's been getting close to our senior, Leo. The handsome one. The swim team athlete."
Aslyn perked up with genuine interest. "Leo? The one who trains with me at the pool sometimes? The one with the great posture? They'd actually make a good match, wouldn't they?"
Chima cut in, her voice dripping with skepticism. "Wait, seriously? No way. Sophie's so stuck-up. Remember when I asked her to make copies for me yesterday? She just gave me this nasty side-eye. How could she end up with someone like Leo?"
Naila, still curled up but now with open eyes, added quietly, "Yeah, Sophie is pretty unfriendly. Doesn't seem like a good match for calm Leo."
Amy piped up innocently, "Actually, she was really nice to me when I fell in the cafeteria last week. She helped me clean up my spilled food. Is she really that mean?"
Chima waved dismissively. "That's just her being fake-nice in public. Behind the scenes, she's completely different. Total attention-seeker. She's probably just chasing Leo because he's popular."
Lilian nodded emphatically. "That's exactly what I'm saying! I bet she's just trying to boost her own popularity. Shameful, right?"
Perra sighed dramatically, clutching her chest. "Poor Leo. Getting fooled by Sophie's fake personality. She's so over the top, pretending to be all pure and holy."
Aslyn frowned thoughtfully. "But Leo's not stupid. He's pretty sharp. I don't think he'd be easily fooled."
Chima waved her hand firmly. "Whatever. Point is, Sophie and Leo just don't match. She's fake, she's unfriendly, and she's not even that nice."
The conversation continued, a whirlwind of judgments and assumptions, each of them adding fuel to the gossip fire. They were so absorbed in their discussion that none of them noticed the figure who had stopped directly behind them.
A girl in a floral print skirt stood motionless, holding a water bottle. Her expression was completely unreadable as she listened to every word.
***
The group continued their chatter, oblivious.
Lilian laughed, her voice carrying across the park. "And you know what else? The way she looks at people—"
Suddenly, her eyes caught something in her peripheral vision. A shadow. Her face drained of all color. Her mouth hung open, but no sound came out.
Perra, still scrolling through her phone, looked up. "What's wrong, Lilian? Why'd you stop? Are you checking your reflection again? Come on, let's take photos—"
She turned to follow Lilian's frozen gaze. Her phone nearly slipped from her fingers. Her face flushed a deep crimson.
"Oh... my... god," Perra whispered, her voice barely audible.
Naila frowned. "What's wrong with you two? Did you get electrocuted or some—"
She turned and immediately slumped down, trying to hide her face behind Chima's arm.
Chima pushed her away. "Hey! What are you doing, suddenly ducking like you're dodging bullets—" She turned to look behind her, and the words died in her throat. Her fierce expression softened into one of shock and guilt.
Aslyn looked around at her suddenly frozen friends. "What, are we having a statue contest now?" She turned and promptly covered her mouth with both hands.
Amy, the most oblivious of them all, was still busy pouring her homemade infused water. "Why is everyone so quiet all of a sudden? Did you all have a revelation or something? Drink some of my water, it'll cool you down—"
She looked up and found six pairs of eyes all focused on a single point behind her. Her heart pounding, Amy was the last to turn around.
Dead silence.
Sophie stood there. Her expression was flat, impossible to read. She looked at them one by one, her gaze calm and steady.
"Excuse me," she said.
Her voice was quiet, but it hit the Six Club like a thunderclap on a clear day.
Chima cleared her throat, trying to salvage something. "O-oh, Sophie. Long time no see. Are you... jogging?"
Sophie nodded slowly. "Yeah. I was just about to get a drink. Just finished my run. I didn't mean to interrupt."
Lilian forced a smile so wide it looked painful. "Hi, Sophie! Your workout outfit is so cute! That pink and gray combination is totally on point! So slay!"
Sophie looked at Lilian, her expression unchanging. "Oh, thanks. I thought you were busy talking about people. Turns out you can still notice clothes, huh?"
Lilian's smile froze solid. The others exchanged panicked glances.
Perra stammered, "W-we weren't talking about you, Sophie! We were just... having a little discussion."
"A little discussion?" Sophie's gaze fixed on Perra. "About how I'm unfriendly, fake-pure, and don't fit in with your circle?"
Perra swallowed hard. Chima suddenly became intensely interested in smoothing out the wrinkles in her skirt.
Naila whispered to Chima, barely audible. "Oh no... she heard everything from the beginning."
Amy, with her innocent heart and best intentions, stood up. "Hey, Sophie, please forgive them! They didn't mean any harm! They're probably just misunderstanding things. Here, sit down and have some of my infused water. I promise it'll make you feel better and forget all your problems!"
She handed Sophie a glass with the most sincere smile she could muster.
Sophie looked at the glass, then at Amy. For a fraction of a second, her flat expression flickered with surprise at Amy's unexpected kindness. She took the glass.
Everyone in the Six Club held their breath.
Sophie took a sip. Her face scrunched up momentarily, then returned to its neutral state.
She handed the glass back to Amy. "Thank you, Amy. You're kind. But I think I should go."
She turned to leave, taking two steps before stopping.
"Oh, and for your information," she said, without turning around, her voice flat and even.
Everyone's ears perked up.
"He's the one who's been chasing me. Not the other way around. And about me being unfriendly... maybe I am. But I'd rather be unfriendly than two-faced." She paused. "And your gossip sources are outdated. Next time, get more current information, okay?"
Sophie walked away calmly, leaving the Six Club frozen in place.31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYWr1AzGakD
The silence stretched on for what felt like an eternity.
Chima finally broke it, her voice barely a whisper. "Well... crap."
Lilian buried her face in her hands. "Did you hear that? Leo was the one chasing her. Oh my god, I was so wrong. This is so embarrassing."
Perra was already pulling out her phone, hands trembling. "Okay, okay, let's stop talking about it! We're just digging ourselves deeper. I need to take a selfie, just to clear my head."
Naila was still curled up, her face hidden. "I'm so mortified, Chim. I want to go home, but I'm too lazy to move. This is a real dilemma."
Aslyn shook her head slowly. "This is our fault though. We didn't know anything, but we already judged her completely."
Amy, ever the innocent one, grinned. "See! This is why you shouldn't gossip! I make weird food and drinks all the time, but I never gossip about anyone. Hehe."
Everyone turned to stare at Amy with expressions that clearly said, "Please stop talking, Amy." She just grinned back, unbothered.
Chima took a deep breath and stood up abruptly. "Okay. I'm going to fix this. I'm going to apologize to Sophie. And if I hear anyone talking about her, I'll defend her. But... maybe I should wait a few days. Until the embarrassment fades a little."
Lilian nodded eagerly. "Agreed! Total rebranding! We go from 'Six Club' the gossipers to 'Six Club' the..."
"The lazy gossips?" Naila offered weakly.
"No! The supportive ones!"
Perra raised her phone with puppy dog eyes. "But... before we become supportive, can we at least take a group selfie to de-stress? Please? Group selfie?"
Aslyn sighed. "Fine, hurry up! Let's just do it to bury our shame."
They all huddled together. Perra adjusted the angle carefully.
"Ready... one... two... three... Six!"
Everyone shouted half-heartedly, their voices tinged with lingering shame: "SIX CLUB!"
The camera clicked. They all crowded around to see the result.
Naila groaned. "Oh no, we all look so stiff. Like statues. Our shame is written all over our faces."
Amy laughed. "That's because we just got busted! Let it be a reminder!"
Chima sighed, but the corner of her lips twitched upward. "Alright. At least we learned something today. And the lesson is..."
Lilian cut in, her voice dripping with fake wisdom, "Never gossip in public. Especially not in parks. Because the person you're gossiping about might just be jogging right behind you."31Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmJF1wyysfK
and then Add to home screen.