New Danger

A warm light directed on my face awaken me. A light golden sunrise greeted me when I opened my eyes. I realized that I might haven't returned to my room and slept on the cottage by the beach. My head was terribly aching but I forced myself to sit and watched the sun rise.

I saw people walking by also enjoying this magnificent scenery. My mind was twirling around but I tried to walk back to my room, this time the right one.

People were smiling and sneering at me as they passed me by so I ran. What? Did I look hideous?

When I found my correct room slash mini-house, it dawned on me that I lost my key somewhere. I decided to use the balcony entrance again since I didn't have a choice. While walking around, I bumped into Gregory. He was dressed in his running attire. I gathered all my remaining strength and confidence to act as if nothing happened last night. Image of him and Alina naked together with me joining them doubled my current migraine.

I decided to ignore him until he spoke in his most shy voice. I never had the chance to look at his expression. "You…. left your key…..ummm…. last night."

He held out his hand containing my key with coconut tree key chain attached and my room number. I immediately snatched it out of his hand and walked away.

"Wait!" he called out. "Your dress is…inside out."

F*ckkitty! I was such a walking disaster. "Argh!" I might have interjected loudly. I stomped back to my room. People might have thought wrongfully when they saw me.

I turned to Gregory and shouted, "You better stay away from me from now on, Gregory!" and I slammed door upon entering.

"Oh my God, Artemis! Disaster must be your middle name!" Charlie was roaring in laughter.

We were having our brunch in a café near the infinity pool area overlooking the wide sea below.

They couldn't believe what happened to me that morning.

"I still can't believe Alina slept with Greggy. I mean, they've met for what? Four hours?" Anna cringed behind her sunglasses.

"It happens, Anne! It's called one-night stand, drunk sex, or whatever! It's not illegal, not that I'm defending them. That's why Artemis, you steer clear from that a-hole. Maybe he couldn't get in your pants that's why he moved on to another. You deserve better than him," Charlie argued.

"Hey! Slow down! He's still our friend!" Anna retorted.

"I am no friend of anyone with their dicks hanging on their foreheads. I can't believe I once flirted with him before," Charlie expressing her disgust while munching on matcha bread.

"Whatever! But I still can't believe you almost third wheeled during their se---" Anna couldn't complete her sentence when both of them burst into laughter. Charlie almost choked on her bread and Anna was slapping the table.

"Hey! Like I said, they were already sleeping!" I tried to pacify them but failed.

"Like I said, your energy clashes with Gregory, so you can't be together or else disaster is born," Charlie finally said, explaining everything in Zen.

"Indeed," a fourth voice intervened. We all stopped and turned to find Alina standing behind us. We were all mortified by her presence. "Hi, girls!" she greeted.

Everyone was hesitating to response so I stood to make space for her on the bench. "Hey, Alina! Come, sit with us," I invited feigning ignorance of what had just happened.

"Did she hear us?" Anna whispered with her eyes widening.

"Impossible! We were seated away from the crowd!" Charlie whispered back.

"Heeeeeeyyyy!" the girls greeted with fake enthusiasm.

"Were you talking about…" Alina asked but interrupted by Anna. "Another Gregory. Our other friend whose name is Gregory too. Not the Gregory you met last night and had s---"

Anna was terrible in lying so Charlie cut off. "Yeah, Gregory, our photographer on our last project together."

"So, you are Artemis' model friends? I am happy that Missy here made friends finally in modelling world. She's aloof since the beginning, but not now, I guess?" Alina said in her angelic voice.

"Artemis is naturally friendly so it was easy to be friends with her. Not to mention, she's an excellent one," Charlie added.

"As a model or a friend? I mean, it's been what? Three years since we last saw each other. Right, Missy?" Alina turned to me.

"Both!" Anna butt in. "She's an excellent model and a friend."

"Well, who doesn't enjoy wealthy friends?" Alina asked, insinuating my friends are after my money and privileges.

"Alina!" I stopped her before it got worse.

"Excuse me?" Charlie replied with her jaw clenching.

"Oh, I'm sorry! You must've misunderstood me. What I meant was… we all enjoy a LOT of friends, right? Sorry, I just came home from abroad. My English needs some sharpening," Alina quickly refuted. "But let's not hope what YOU meant to happen."

"Alina, please…stop," I begged.

Anna felt the tension arose so she immediately made up an excuse. "Oh, Charlie, I think we were scheduled for our massage now. I mean, we PAID for it already so we better go. Alina, I'm sorry but we'll leave the both of you here," Anna excused in her calmest tone but I know she was insulted.

"See you later, Missy," Charlie bid ignoring Alina.

"Alina! What was that? That was so embarrassing and insulting! How dare you!" I stood away from her.

"I'm just making sure you're making the right friends. I've been there! I'm just protecting you!" Alina explained.

"No! You're not! They are my friends and invited them here. You could've at least showed them some respect. And guess what? They are much more genuine than you are! You've changed, Alina. What happened to you?"

"Missy, you don't have to throw a fit here! I don't want to happen what had happened to me. My friends only liked me when I had money. It's what happens to us. People go to us when they can benefit from us but we can't expect them that back from them. I learned it the hard way when I lived independently abroad. I don't want people wrap you in their fingers." I hate it when she still treated me like a kid.

"What? You think I'm still a kid? Just to remind you, I separated from our family before you ever did!" I snapped back.

"I know! But you will always be a kid to me. Why do you think I'm here? I'm here to save you from your mum's marriage scheme…" Alina's voice started to soften. "I don't want to happen that to you. If I can save you from your demise, I will gladly do that. I'm you're big sister, remember? It happened to me once and I'll make sure you don't have to. You're young, you still have ambitions, and you have a life. I love you, Missy," she said with her tears running down her face.

I sat with her and remembered how his dad married him off at twenty to a wealthy businessman. She ended up abused by her then-husband and finally divorced him. She then lived independently with the money she got from the divorce.

"So, you'll marry Gregory in my place?" I asked her.

"Your mum will stop running after you if I did."

I rolled my eyes away from her. "Yeah, as if. She's already selling this resort to your Dad 'cause I refused. You know, how much this place meant for me. She will not stop until she gets what she wants."

"I'll talk to Dad to offer the deed of sale to you. He will gladly give it to you as long as I got married to Gregory. He's planning to expand our company to gain the Presidency," Alina negotiated.

"Why would you do this again if it meant sacrificing your happiness? You've done enough for Uncle Roger, Alina."

Alina sighed, looking down. "We have such messed-up, ambitious family, Missy. Nothing is enough for them. Happiness is measured with their bank accounts, and love? Love has no value. Love is never an option to the kind of life we're living."

Alina held me on her arms and patting my head. "I want you to get out of this family when you still can and marrying a man like Gregory will not make that happen. You'll get back the resort in no time."

"Alina, you have to apologize to my friends," I cried like a baby.

"I know. I was too harsh," she replied with a short laugh.

"I am getting strange vibes with Alina," Charlie remarked after Alina talked and apologized to them. We were walking down on the business center while Alina was spoiling Anna while shopping in boutique stores.

"Come on, give her a chance. She's gone through a lot in life," pleading Charlie as I wrapped her from the back.

"Let's get dinner, girls," Alina invited which we happily approved.

We all decided to retire for the night after a full dinner meal. I was walking back to my room when I found Gregory waiting for me at my doorstep.

"I guess, you didn't hear me when I said I want you to stay away from me," speaking to him from a few feet away.

"I'm not gonna leave here until I have talked to you," Gregory insisted.

"Suit yourself."

I walked away from him and went to the beach. I thought I lost him but he was silently following me.

I turned to him. "What do you want?"

"About last night…" he started explaining but I cut him off. "I don't care with what you do with your private life, Gregory. Whoever you sleep with or you do with everything, it's the last thing of my concern."

"At least, let me apologize."

"You don't have to." I said annoyingly. "I have nothing to do with you anymore. You see, Alina will be enough help for the both of us. Marrying her is the same thing with marrying me. To think, Alina is more suited with it. And she'll help me buy back the island."

"What is between Alina and I is nothing more than a…one-time fling. It's you, I needed."

I looked at him, being so desperate, and I hated him more. "And I don't give a fuck. You'll get nothing from me, Gregory."

"Nothing from you, maybe. But from me, definitely," he said in a blinding confidence.

I stared at him like I'm gonna pierce through his rather airy head. "I don't give a damn. Just. Stay. Away. From. Me!"

Before I can get back to my room, the girls kidnapped me to Anna's lair.

"Guess what? Alina invited us to a man-hunting!" Anna excitedly shared.

"What?" Feeling rather ignorant of what's going out.

"It's just basically, going out and find some male species to party with or anything you want to do with them. Don't worry, I just Googled them too," Charlie explained.

"And you consented to this?" I responded.

"I went for free drinks," she said with a hint of mischief.

"And our number requirement is to dress sexily…like bad girls," Anna said while mimicking a stripper on a dance pole.

We went to the club Alina has texted and it was a wild beach party in a private property on the other side of the island. She even sent the boat for us.

I was wearing a swimsuit under a short shorts and a crop top. Anna was wearing one-piece suit under a flowy dress while Charlie went with a two-piece under a jumper shorts. We heard it was a pool party.

When we arrived there, the whole crowd was already hyped electronic music.

"Wait!" Anna halted us as we stepped foot on the shore. "Is this the famous rock star's party? Gray Jansen?"

"What? The Gray Jansen?" Charlie shrieked.

"Who?" I asked them, I had no idea what's going on.

"According to Gray Jansen's IG, he'll be having an island party with location undisclosed. That entrance is the same with the one he posted!" Anne showed her phone with it.

"Gray Jansen is the leading rock/pop star now. Come on, Missy. I'm pretty sure you've heard him!" Charlie tried to hide her disbelief.

What caught my attention was the boat docked not very far. "Wait, that boat looks familiar."

"Goldberg II? I'm guessing your brother's?" Anna guessed.

"Yeah, no doubt. So, Jason is here," I wondered.

"Alina texted that she's waiting on the second-floor balcony," Anna informed.

There were two stages on the wide pool area. On the other stage was a rock band and a deejay on the other. People started to gather in front of the rock band stage when the moderator said that Gray Jansen would perform. I almost got broken eardrums when Anna and Charlie shrieked in high-pitched voices in excitement. Then, they dragged me with them, weaving through the crowd to get as nearest to the stage. Surprisingly, we did.

I heard Gray Jansen before and his music was great. When Gray Jansen appeared on the stage, I almost regretted going with the girls when they got so crazy loud. I should've brought ear plugs.

Wow! Gray Jansen was indeed drop-dead gorgeous with a bad boy vibe.

When he started singing, his presence and voice were like a drug that kept you hyped with energy. Unknowingly, I started to jump with the girls to the beat of the songs. The girls almost killed me when this Gray Jansen blessed us with his attention from upstage. He once rocked a song in front of us for the whole duration. He had to go away before his audience gets jealous. I had to continuously pinch Anna to make sure she wasn't dreaming.

When his set ended, we went to the bar to refresh ourselves. We were drenched in sweat and probably smelled like one.

"I couldn't what just happened!" Anna exclaimed.

"AAAAA! He sang a song for us!" Charlie added.

"I have to freshen up before he saw me in this disgusting state," Anna excused herself which Charlie decided to stay. I volunteered to stay to guard our drinks.

Only a few bikini-clad women were swimming in the pool. It seems they were having fun except the pool was probably filled with spilled drinks.

I decided to find us a seat while bringing our drinks as I tread through the crowd. When I looked up, I saw Alina waving at me. She was with a man with his back turned to me. I was expecting it to be my brother. When he faced my direction, it turned out to be Gregory.

He was staring at me, his eyebrows crossed and jaw clenching. I saw him inhaling sharply. I nodded at Alina and turned away. I don't want any Gregory tonight.

As I turned around, I accidentally bumped into a guy. This guy was busy greeting people around him because it's his party and it was Gray Jansen. He was looking more handsome up close. He had a clean haircut, thick eyebrows, one with a scar that divided it in the middle. He had tattoos from his neck down to his muscular arms. He was wearing a black shirt.

He smiled at me sweetly. "Hey, let me help you with those drinks," he offered.

"Nice party," I remarked shyly.

"How about the performance?" he asked which got me embarrassed.

"Oh, that was top grade," I commented and smiled.

"Nice," he responded and smiled back as he pulled me away from the pool's edge but it was too late when people started to crowd him. He was pushed which pushed me to the pool's edge and had me almost falling to the pool. Fortunately, he had his one arm around my waist and I grabbed his shirt's collar and my other hand holding the two drinks. For a moment, we were frozen, a breath away from diving into the pool but the gravity worked against us. As the drinks started to slip from my hand, we slipped into the pool.