The Swiss Murder | Completed

2. The Preparation

"Honey, I'd really wish you would have spent Christmas with us, I'm going to miss you," Scarlett's mother, Amy, said to her while helping her pack her toiletries.

"Mom please, we talked about it already. Don't make me feel guilty. I need this trip." Scarlett stopped packing and looked at her, her mouth pursed.

She came around the bed and hugged her mother from the side, resting her chin on her shoulder. "And I'm going to miss you too! Tell you what, I'm going to get you so many Switzerland themed fridge magnets, that you're going to need a new fridge!" Scarlett said, knowing how crazy her mother was about magnets.

Scarlett and her mother shared a quiet laugh. "Well, I'm going to hold you to it. So you better buy them or else there will be consequences," her mother said with a mock glare.

"Oh yeah, what are you going to do?" Scarlett challenged her mother.

"Oh, I don't know..." Her mother replied while starting to tickle her. Scarlett was insanely ticklish. She always said she could die from being tickled because of laughing too hard and not being able to breathe. Nobody knew if she was joking or not.

A pure look of horror crossed Scarlett's face before she burst into laughter. "OKAY LADY STOP!" She somehow managed to wheeze out between her laughing. She wiped away the tears and sat upright.

"Jeez Scar, I only tickled you for a mere 5 seconds!"

"Felt like ages to me," Scarlett said while trying to regain her breath back. She loved her mother dearly. "Okay, you've had your fun. Let's finish packing, I have to leave for Emma's house in 2 hours."

Within minutes Scarlett's packing was all wrapped up, quite literally. Sighing, she sat on her bed and closed her eyes, relaxing for a bit before her big trip. 

Her eyes swept across the room, making sure everything was clean and clutter-free before she left. She hated to leave her room untidy, especially when she stayed with her parents. Scarlett's mother had insisted on her staying for a couple of days before leaving for Switzerland.

Her childhood room was pretty standard, nothing too over the top. Growing up in middle class, she had everything she needed. But not necessarily everything she desired. Both of her parents worked, her mother even more so.

Amy had always dreamt of sending Scarlett to the best university possible, so all her wages ended up in a savings account for her daughter's tuition. Hence, Scarlett ended up going to an elite university for masters and this is how she met Emma. They shared a class together and the two became fast friends within a week. From there, Emma had introduced her to Eric and Anthony as the trio were already friends since childhood.

Even though Eric and Anthony didn't go to their university, Emma acted as a bridge between their friendship. Soon after, Carter joined the group after he and Scarlett had paired up for their thesis together. By graduation, the group of five was extremely close and the rest is history.

Scarlett checked the time before leisurely stretching and got up from the bed. Time to get ready, She thought, feeling the excitement of the trip building up in her again. She made quick work of her makeup and put on her most comfortable outfit for the long journey ahead.

She wrapped her Red hair in a high pony-tail and made her way to the mirror making sure she looked presentable. It was actually because of her hair that her parents had named her Scarlett. After adjusting her hair, she looked in the mirror one last time. The reflection that stared back at her was excited, but there was also an underlying nervousness there.

After making sure she wasn't leaving anything behind, she picked up her shoulder bad and exited the room. As she made her way downstairs, she could hear her parents arguing and doing a very bad job of hiding it.