“It’s time for school!” yelled Lisa’s mom.
When Lisa heard the screech of her mother’s voice echoing down the never-ending marble hallway, she jumped out of bed, entering another day of chaos and unhappiness. All ready for school, Lisa rushed downstairs, only to find her parents fighting once again. These morning arguments became a daily routine in her family’s life that Lisa no longer tried to prevent them from happening. She had finally accepted the fact that her parents were never going to get along.
A few streets down from her luxurious house lived one of Lisa’s classmates, Anna. However, these two young girls lived very different lives. Lisa’s morning consisted of the roaring sounds of her parents shouting at each other, while Anna’s went a bit smoother.
As both girls walked into the school that day, they accidently knocked into each other falling to the ground. Lisa and Anna barely knew each other, and had never spoken to each other except one or two times in class. As they helped each other up, they sparked up a conversation that lasted the whole school day.
“I’m so surprised that we haven’t talked before!” stated Lisa in confusion.
“Yeah I know! But I’m so glad we’re friends now.” Replied Anna.
The girls continued to talk everyday and eventually became the best of friends.
As the days went by, the girls only got closer. One Tuesday after school, Lisa invited Anna over to her house to hang out. Lisa thought it would be the perfect day to bring a friend over, considering her father was on a business trip, meaning Anna wouldn’t witness the arguments. When Anna pulled into the driveway of Lisa’s house, her eyes widened in awe. The marble columns that surrounded her house, the 6-feet tall fountains, and the intimidating oversized door all put Anna into a daze. If only she knew what went on behind those doors. The girls hung out for a couple hours, and all Anna could think about was the extravagance of Lisa’s house. 
“Hey Anna!” exclaimed Lisa when she saw her the next day.
“Oh… hi Lisa,” said Anna with a melancholy voice.
The rest of the week, Lisa noticed Anna acting differently around her. However, she didn’t think much it and asked her to hang out after school. Anna agreed to this, but made an excuse to not invite her over her house this time.
“Uh… I can’t have you over today,” stated Anna.
“My parents aren’t going to be home.”
This became a repetitive excuse, and Lisa started to get suspicious. She knew Anna was hiding something, so one day, she decided to follow her home after school. When Lisa saw Anna turn into a very run-down neighborhood, she started to get an idea of what she was hiding. Lisa was still in shock that Anna would lie to her and keep her life a secret, so she continued to follow Anna to find out more about her hidden life. The following day at school, Lisa confronted Anna about what she saw.
“I saw what you were hiding from me,” stated Lisa.
“I saw where you live, and you should have told me instead of lying to me,” said Lisa with an unhappy voice.
She told her she felt betrayed, after all the things she told Anna about herself. Anna was speechless, but she realized that if Lisa was really her true friend, she would not judge her or think differently of her just because of their differences in social statuses. After coming to this realization, Anna invited Lisa over, revealing the big secret she had kept hidden all this time.
As the two of them stood outside Anna’s house, Lisa could see what Anna was trying to hide. Her house was the size of the bathroom in her mansion, and the appearance was a disaster as well. However, what she didn’t see was the happiness and joy that filled the house. A few moments later, Anna invited Lisa in, still slightly embarrassed about everything. When Lisa walked in, the first thing she witnessed was the welcoming warm smile on Anna’s mother’s face. Lisa had never felt so wanted. She was used to coming home to a silent house, with her mom passing by without exchanging a single word. The girls lived opposite lives, where Lisa’s mornings started with a fight, while Anna’s day started with a lovely family breakfast, where her whole family gathered around the table, enjoying their meals, while exchanging smiles and laughter. The look on Lisa’s face showed slight jealously, but mostly happiness. At this moment, Lisa could not understand what Anna was hiding after all.
“This is the greatest place to be,” said Lisa.
She was not used to someone caring about how her day was, or offering to make snacks for her after school. The love and care that filled the air of Anna’s household made Lisa speechless.
“If I could trade my life for yours to come home everyday to this kind of cheerfulness, I would not hesitate for even a second,” cried Lisa.
This was the moment Anna realized that money was not the key to happiness. All that really mattered was what was inside. Although Lisa’s house seemed glorious from the exterior, the inside environment was almost worse than the look of Anna’s house from the outside.
“No matter how small your house is, I would trade the world to have the loving relationship your family shares,” said Lisa with tears filling her eyes.
The girls felt so much better with each other after letting all the secrets go. They knew they could be completely honest with each other now, because no matter what their differences were, that was not going to change their friendship. The embarrassment of her life vanished immediately, and she knew this realization would not have occurred without her friend Lisa. After all, Lisa and Anna finally learned that what really makes a person who they really are is what’s inside of them, rather than outside appearances.