"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.

"Just talk to her! Are you sure you want your daughter to leave like this? You two haven't talked to each other properly for months!" Amy was whisper shouting to her husband. Scarlett waited on the stairs for a while, wanting to hear her father's response. 

All she got was silence.

She continued down the stairs and made her presence noticed by calling out to her mother. Amy started asking her if she had all the things she required, but Scarlett wasn't really paying attention. Her eyes were fixed on her father, staring coldly at him. He only stared at her, his face expressionless. Scarlett sensed there was something he wanted to say as he hesitated for a second under her intense gaze.

It was only when her mother smothered her with a hug did she break eye contact and hugged her back. She had already called a cab and her phone notified her that it had arrived. Her mother walked her to the gate to give her a proper goodbye.

Amy bit her lip and looked at her husband and then to her daughter, silently urging her to say something to him. Scarlett got the signal alright, but kissed her mother on the cheek instead. She made eye contact with her father one last time, almost challenging him to say something. 

He broke eye contact and turned on the TV, shutting her off emotionally. Satisfied, yet feeling a little sad, Scarlett said one last goodbye to her mom before sitting in the cab and driving away. She didn't even notice when the car pulled in front of Emma's house.

"Oh good, you're here! Wait, am I late again?" Emma's head snapped to her watch to confirm her suspicion. "Oh thank God, I thought it was nine already! You know how I can't keep track of time..."

"Ahan."

"You're here early. Everything okay?"

"Yeah, I just wanted to be here early to constantly pester you about the time. You know, make sure you don't get lost in your closet trying to find the perfect outfit for the airport." Scarlett smirked at her.

"My outfit obsession isn't that bad..."

"Oh please Ems, let's not go down that road okay?" Scarlett said while putting out both her hands to stop her.

"Hmm, fine. I'll spare you this time."

"So, did your parents already leave for their cruise?"

"Yep, they wanted to be smack dab in the middle of the ocean on Christmas," Emma said with a shudder, remembering her sea-sickness. "Enough about them. How excited are you for this trip?!" Emma suddenly shouted at Scarlett, startling her.

"Very much! But I'd like my ears to be intact in order for me to enjoy it. So I'd appreciate it from the bottom of my heart if you didn't do that to me again," Scarlett replied while giving her a look.

"Sorry!" Emma said while laughing. "Now help me decide my outfit. No comments!" Emma hushed her as soon as she saw her friend opened her mouth to say something witty.

"Sure, whatever you say..." Scarlett sang back to her friend.

Forty minutes later, Scarlett was shouting at Emma to hurry up before the boys got super annoyed because they got late because of Emma. Again. Finally, they were out of her house and on their way to Eric's, their last stop before going to the airport.

To get to Eric's on time and to avoid the wrath of the boys, Emma maneuvered the car through the streets like a mad person on the loose. Almost killing them. Twice. But her methods did pay off as they rang the bell to Eric's apartment just in the nick of time.

"Look who's here," Carter checked his watch and then continued, "a few seconds early." He smirked.

"Congratulations! Never thought I'd live to see the day," Anthony said as he walked up to the pair.

Emma could only glare at them because deep down she knew she deserved it.

"Oh, Mr. Tyler! You're here too, how are you?" Scarlett said as she noticed Eric's father exit his room. He acknowledged Emma and Scarlett and as he was making small talk, he looked at Anthony.

"Why don't you guys go to Eric's room? He's still packing. That boy, I swear..." Tyler said while shaking his head. As they all walked away, he called out to Anthony.

"Anthony, may I have a word, please?"

"Sure Mr. Tyler, what's up?

"You know how Eric's been so disturbed lately. Ever since-"

"I know. You don't need to say it." Anthony's cut him off as expression suddenly grew hard.

Tyler paused for a moment and nodded. "I think this trip was a really good idea. Although he can be a little reckless sometimes. Can you promise me to take care of him?"

"Of course, you didn't need to say it. I am his best friend after all." Anthony smiled at him, his face relaxing just a bit.

"I'm sure you're also aware of his... medications, right?" Tyler looked at him. "I don't think anyone else knows and I'd like to keep it that way."

"Don't worry. I'll also make sure he takes them on time. He tends to acts out a bit otherwise..." Anthony said, his eyes somber.

"Thank you, I really appreciate it."

"No problem. I better go and help Eric before he loses his mind over packing."

Anthony's heart really went out for Eric's parents. He was their only child, one could even call him a miracle baby. They couldn't conceive for years. The best doctors in the country had given up and when all hope was lost, it was announced that the multi-millionaire business tycoon was finally going to be a father. The tabloids had gone into a frenzy that day, according to his parents. From the moment Eric took his first breath, his parents had cared for him profoundly. To the point where he sometimes got annoyed.

And now, ever since that day... Eric had gotten very distant. He wasn't paying attention to anything or anyone let alone himself. Because of this, his parents constantly worried about him, always under extreme stress. If only that day didn't exist. 

Anthony was with Eric when it had all happened. His thoughts suddenly turned dark. He reminded himself why he was going on this trip and forced himself to shake away his gloomy thoughts. After regaining his composure, he entered Eric's room.

Right away, he noticed Emma standing in front of the huge window and taking a selfie. A smile crept along his face, he tried to hide it but failed miserably.

"Hey, everything okay?" Carter said, demanding Anthony's attention. "You look tense."

"Yeah, it's nothing."

Scarlett and Eric's mother, Rachel, were busy talking, while also helping Eric pack. Eric had an extremely bored expression on his face and looked just about to be done with the conversation he was being forced to listen to. Anthony and Carter stifled a laugh and gave him a thumbs up. Eric only glared and motioned them to come save him.

"Eric do you have any sense of how to pack? How old are you, two?"

"Son, you have to leave in twenty minutes and we're still packing. I'm almost disappointed in you." Rachel said while shaking her head disapprovingly at her son. "Anyway, Scarlett dear, you were telling me about your coat. I think you made an excellent decision in buying it in Navy Blue! That color goes with everything"

They heard Eric groan but ignored him. Scarlett managed to smirk at him while his mother turned away to get more things.

"Don't enjoy torturing me too much."

"Why, you don't like my Blue coat?" Scarlett smiled at him innocently. "Do you need more details? I don't think there are any left though..."

"Carter! Anthony! You better get here before I make this trip a living nightmare for you guys!" Eric shouted at his friends. The background noise that accompanied this sentence was not very pleasant for him. It was Scarlett and Emma laughing.

"Eric dear, don't say such things!" Eric's mother said to him while carrying his final items. He quickly took the things from his mother's hand and shoved them inside his hand carry.

"I think, we're done with the packing." He said while closing. The sound of the zipper making his decision final. "Weren't we running a little late?" He asked his friends.

Tyler came in just then and asked the group of their final schedule.

"Well, the flight is at 1:20 am. If we leave now then we'll reach the airport at 11. I think that works." Carter replied to him.

"It gives us plenty of room to get something to eat too." Anthony chimed in.

"Of course we'll be getting food. How will Emma's airport journey be complete without it?" Eric said while looking at her.

"Oh, you're so funny." Emma faked a smile at him which looked like a grimace, more or less.

"Let it go Em," Scarlett said while patting her back.

"How are you guys friends?" Rachel said with an amused expression on her face.

"Time to leave kids, the driver's here," Tyler announced as he got off the phone.

Eric went up to both his parents and hugged them at the same time. "I'll see you in 2 weeks!" He along with the others carried their luggage and made their way down the building where the car awaited them.