Julian backed further into the wall as he started to deliberate his options. There were three girls in front of him, a medium sized Lola, a tall and skinny girl and a slightly chubby, short girl next to her.

If he really wanted to, he could take on all of them. He doubted they'd be able to overpower him, the only thing he had to worry about was screaming.

Girl's screams could reach decibels that could deafen people. He had to figure a way out of this, he had to reach the window and jump out.

"What is this? Some kind of nerd ambush?" He asked Lola angrily and almost winced when he saw her face flash with hurt. He appreciated her help immensely but he didn't ask for this and he couldn't help but feel like these girls were about to ruin his plans of running away. 

"You look kind of haggard," the chubby girl said. She placed her food on the table and then sat down on the bed. "Have some kimbap, it's really good."

Julian stared at her incredulously. What the hell were these girls up to? Was that poisoned? He peered at the rice rolls filled with stuffing, all wrapped up in seaweed. God that looked good.

"Yeah, have some murukku as well. Just don't break your teeth on it," the skinny girl added but her tone was much more threatening than the other girl.

"Julian, just relax. We aren't going to turn you in. Nalini and Hanna want to help as well," Lola said.

"Lola, no one can help me," Julian slouched against the wall and then he slid to the floor. Feeling defeated and hungry again he took a piece of kimbap and stuffed it in his mouth. The taste definitely didn't disappoint and if he was going to get arrested anytime soon at least his stomach would be full of this delicious stuff.

"I never thought you'd be such a drama queen," The skinny girl spoke up again, her tone biting and this time Julian took a closer look at her. He vaguely knew her as the girl Eva was hell bent on competing with. He remembered hearing her name over and over again at parties where Eva would get drunk and go on a rant about how annoying she was. 

"You're Nalini, right?" He asked.

"Bingo. Now tell us everything, from before you were charged till you were convicted and how you managed to escape from the van." She crossed her legs and leaned against Lola's shoulder as the three girls sat on the bed, facing him.

"Why do I need to tell you anything?" Julian scoffed. He stood up and walked over to the window. "Look girls, it's been nice meeting you but I'm going to have to take my leave."

"My parents are on the porch having drinks and I have the phone in my hands. One call and you're done," Lola warned in a shaky voice. Blackmailing wasn't exactly her forte. 

Julian sighed loudly and then backed away from the closed windows before he sunk to the floor. How the hell did he end up trapped by three teenage girls who wouldn't have dared cross him in the hallways just a few months ago? 

"We just want to help," The chubby girl said. "I'm Hanna by the way." Her eyes were earnest, years of mixing with all kinds of people made it easy for Julian to tell the fake people from the real ones. This girl wore no judgement on her face, she wasn't even afraid of him being a so called killer. 

Something about her calm demeanor made him deflate like a balloon. 

"Okay, fine. If I tell you everything will you talk to Damien tomorrow?" He looked at Lola and she nodded slightly before taking a loud bite of murukku. She offered him some and he took a few pieces. His brain rattled as he bit into a piece, not expecting it to be so hard.

Julian then proceeded to tell the girls about how he was arrested about a month after the investigation for Fiona had started. Jason's murder occurred a few weeks before her's and the investigation was already ongoing. 

Julian never thought much about it, he hated Fiona, didn't know Jason and had his own problems to deal with. He was only called in once for questioning and he told the cops all he knew which was short of nothing but they did ask about his whereabouts on the nights the victims were murdered. 

"I usually take a smoke at the park in West Point. It's empty at night and I have the world to myself," He told the girls who were hugging their knees, looking like he was telling them a bedtime story. "Since I go there alone I didn't have an alibi. The police arrested me about a month later and my mother had to pay through her nose for a crappy lawyer who lost my case." 

"I was sentenced to juvy and was on the way to the next county when the van crashed - don't ask me how - and the armed guards with me were severely injured. I got by with only a few scratches and a minor headache so I did what any sane person would do, I escaped."

"But doesn't escaping make you look more guilty? Why didn't you file for appeal?" Nalini asked. 

"Like I said I can't go to prison or juvy or whatever. I'd be killed," Julian ignored the girl's skeptical looks before continuing. "My mother spent all of her savings on the first case, we didn't have enough money to file an appeal and drag it on further."

"That's terrible," Hanna said. 

"Okay, maybe and that's a big maybe that you were framed. So who do you think did it then?" Nalini asked. He could tell she was the hard as nails type in the group. Lola and Hanna were already staring at him with pitiful eyes but not this girl. She looked like she wanted to put him on the stand again.

"I don't know nor care who did it. I just know that I didn't."

"Wait! Wait!" Hanna jumped up excitedly, catching everyone's attention. "You said you were by the park at West Point smoking right? My uncle Kim's convenience store is located just by the corner."

"I buy my cigarettes there all the time," Julian leaned back looking surprised. 

"Uncle Kim is extremely paranoid because he got robbed once. He has camera's all over the shop, even outside," Hanna sat on the floor, facing Julian and soon the others joined her. They were all sitting in a tight knit circle looking like they were about to perform a ritual. 

"Does he have a camera facing the park?" Lola asked hopefully. 

"Like I said he has a lot of cameras. There's a chance he might," Hanna said excitedly. 

Julian's eyes widened as he realized these girls were actually getting somewhere. If there really was a recording of the park bench with him on it then his name would be cleared and he would be free. A surge of hope flooded his veins but then he remembered his lawyer telling them they couldn't find any evidence to prove he was at the park. 

Wouldn't his lawyer have known about this? Or the police?

"We'll go tomorrow to check it out," Hanna said and Lola nodded in agreement.

Julian stared at the three of them blankly. He wasn't the type to feel emotional. In fact he'd tried to bury his emotions ever since his parent's divorce, ever since he found out his mother's secret that tore their family apart. 

But right now he hated to admit that these random girls wanting to help him made him feel some kind of way. He knew he'd never been nice to any of them in the past, except Lola when they were kids but that was it. 

"You girls are willing to help me do that?" He nearly choked on his words. 

"We're just going to the K-mart. It's not like we're jumping over a wall for you or stepping in poo," Nalini grumbled. She definitely wasn't a fan of his. 

"Why?" The words escaped his mouth without thinking. 

"Because we're childhood friends," Lola smiled and it made him feel all warm and fuzzy inside. 

"Yeah, don't you remember? You used to call me coconut hair," Nalini crossed her arms over her chest. "And he used to call you Rolie Polie, Hanna."

Julian paled as he suddenly remembered playing with these girls in the local playground when they were kids. "That was years ago. I was young and dumb and apparently racist." He ran a hand through his hair looking guilty. 

"He called you yellow fever, Lola. Don't you remember?" Nalini stood up and paced the room. Julian came to the conclusion that she was definitely the villain in the group. 

Hanna and Lola shifted uncomfortably after hearing their long lost nicknames. 

"Hey, you girls used to call me a fat whale, okay?" Julian put his hands up in defense. "Can we just call it even?"

"Oh, no we can't," Nalini leaned down and smiled at him evilly. "Because we're not the ones running from the police."

"Nalini! Don't you think you're being a bit cruel?" Lola frowned. 

"Excuse me? This guy and his friends burnt my hair when we were in middle school as a prank. It's been frizzy ever since." Nalini countered angrily. She twirled a strand of hair in her hand as if to prove a point. 

"You're hair has always been frizzy," Hanna said and Nalini narrowed her eyes looking ready to kill. 

"Okay, fine. What are you getting at? Do you want something?" Julian said tiredly. 

"I thought you'd never ask," Nalini smiled in satisfaction and then she sat down again. "In exchange for our help and Lola's lodging I want you to introduce me to Damien." 

"Damien? You like Damien Reed?" Julian wanted to laugh at her terms. He wasn't expecting something so simple. "Yeah, sure I can do that. Lola's supposed to talk to him anyway." 

"Anything else?" He asked sarcastically and to his dismay Nalini answered.

"Well since this is a sleepover and you are kind of repenting your bullying ways I think tonight would be a great start," She shrugged and both Hanna and Lola smiled knowingly. 

It was a sight that frightened him immensely. 

After a few minutes he found himself by the foot of their bed, taking turns to paint each girls toe nails. 

"You smudged my big toe," Nalini complained while he was busy trying to finish Lola's. 

"Well I'm not exactly an expert," He shot back, trying his best not to smudge Lola's toenails as well.

Julian had been through a lot of low points in his life; losing his first fist fight, catching Natalie with another guy and then cheating on her for revenge, getting charged for two murders he didn't commit. But right now had to be an all time new low.

He'd never even painted his mother's toe nails and now here he was pampering these girls in Lola's room. He was completely at their mercy.

Hanna peeled a sheet mask it's packet and handed it to Lola who was already wearing one. 

"Here, so you don't feel left out." 

Julian wanted to protest but sadly he was in no position to. They had promised to help him out and this current plan was miles better than his own of running away. So he reluctantly let Lola place the cool and soothing face mask on him. 

He nearly closed his eyes, feeling extremely relaxed as she smoothed down the sheet on his cheeks while he finished her last toe nail. Her feet wiggled in his hold and he never realized how cute they were. He didn't realize he was holding on to her foot until he caught all three girls staring at him. 

"Umm, you're done," He mumbled and then released her. He caught her blushing through her sheet mask and ignored the way his heart skipped a beat. 

"Girls! It's time for bed. Do you want hot chocolate?" Lola's mother chimed from behind the door and Julian froze. The girls pushed him under the bed and quickly took the drinks from her. 

Once she was gone, they gave some to Julian and he felt like he was in heaven with the soothing face mask and the yummy hot chocolate and the soft sheets under him.

The girls squeezed on Lola's bed while he slept on the same mattress as last night.

Julian had been miserable throughout most of his high school life, despite his popularity, despite having girls fawn all over him all the time. They were great distractions and he used to think the cigarettes, the drugs and the sex helped him cope.

But now as he stared at Lola, Nalini and Hanna all huddled up on Lola's bed like sardines just to give him space, he realized that even though he was technically homeless, a fugitive and a guy who had just given three girls a mini spa, his heart had never felt so full.