"One match can set off an explosion?" I asked myself. "What the heck?"
"You shouldn't do it Em," Lilith warned but I ignored her.
"This is the only way I can pay of my debt," I argued.
***
Emily...
We all stood back at the deck where our family and friends had arrived. Everyone was bidding each other fair well. I looked over at Emily and Lilith, the bubbly aura from this morning was gone. In its place was a high sense of tension.
"Well son, I will be waiting for you Emily once you are out," my dad said. I snapped my attention back to him and nodded.
"We will see you then," I replied.
"You and Emily are a great match. I am happy for you Zayn," Kenneth said as he patted my back. I gave him a grateful smile.
"Thank you both for coming," I said before giving each of them a hug. We walked over to Emily and Lilith.
"You have to tell h—Oh, hey." Lilith waved at us nervously. I scrunched my eyebrows together, confused by her cut-off sentence.
"Is everything alright?" I asked.
Emily nodded with a smile. I could tell it was forced, but the way she bit her bottom lip. She always did that when she was nervous or lying.
It was clear that she did not want to talk about it, so I did not press the matter.
"Emily, it was lovely to meet you," my father said as he engulfed her into a quick hug. "I hope to see you after this contest is over."
"Y-Yeah, I would love that," Emily replied, but it was obvious her mind was elsewhere.
Kenneth also walked over to her. "It was really nice meeting you. Please take care of my dear friend, and don't let him get into any trouble."
"I promise," Emily smiled as she looked at me. This time her smile reached high and I could tell it was genuine.
We waved goodbye at our friends and family as they boarded the boat. Lilith gave Emily one last comforting hug and whispered something in her ear before making her way to the large vessel.
I wrapped my arms around Emily and looked down at her, but her gaze was focused on the departing ship.
"Is everything alright?" I asked as we started to make our way back toward the center of the island where the huts where.
Emily looked up at me. Her eyes swelled with tears and she parted her lips a little as she tried to speak.
"Let's get ready to party!" Jake yelled before Emily could respond. He grabbed one of the nearby champagne bottles and popped it open.
Emily sighed. "Can we talk about it after the party?"
I furrowed my eyebrows together in concern but gave her an understanding nod. We walked over to the other contests. The directors had organized a nice farewell party for the finalists. Similar to another reality tv show called Love Island, in the farewell party, each couple would write a speech for their loved one. They could either say it in front of the other couples or in private.
"How about we start things slow?" The DJ said as he slowed the tempo of the music.
The soft voice of a female began the familiar lyrics and I turned to Emily, extending my hand for her to take.
"May I have this dance?" I asked in my best gentleman-like tone.
"Yes," she said with a small smile. She slid her hand into mine and I gave the back of it a light kiss.
We walked toward the designated dance floor. The fairy lights that had been set up illuminated the dark night. We swayed to the soft melody of the music.
Blue moon You saw me standing alone Without a dream in my heart Without a love of my own
"And then they suddenly appeared before me The only one my arms will ever hold," I held Emily closer to me. One hand wrapped around her waist, the other interlock with hers and resting on my chest to emphasize the words I sang.
Blue moon Now I'm no longer alone Without a dream in my heart Without a love of my own
I smiled down at Emily knowing that lyrics resonated with me, with us. I finally had what I longed for. Someone to love, someone to grow old with.
Emily smiled up at with moist green eyes. I could not tell if they were from happiness or sadness. I leaned my head against hers.
"I love you, Emily," I whispered. "I am happy that it was you who I got paired up with. I wouldn't want to have experience this with anybody else."
Emily looked up at me and smiled gently. "I love you, too."
I was shocked by her words, but it was soon washed away and a huge grin made its way toward my lips. I had longed for her to say those words.
I leaned down, closing the gap between us and placed a gentle kiss on her rosy lips. We continued to sway to the music as our lips danced together.
I frowned when I felt a warm liquid on my cheek. I pulled away and noticed Emily crying. I grabbed Emily and tucked her face on the crook of my neck so the others wouldn't see her crying. I made our way back to the privacy of the bathroom.
"What's wrong my love?" I asked as I wiped away the tears. She looked up at me with her makeup smudged.
"It's my brother," she whispered. "H-He's dying."
Fuck.
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Author's Note Hola my lovelies! Here is the second update for today! I know, it was supposed to be a cute little moment, but I did not want to delay Zayn finding out about Emily's brother. I will leave it as a little cliffhanger for this week. If I follow the layout of the book I have now, I should be finished with this book next week. I had to cut out some chapters because they derailed from the original story line, so only four chapters left. I will be uploading these last few chapters next Tuesday and Thursday as double-updates. I will see you then my lovelies! Enjoy your weekend and stay safe. Thank you all so much for reading. Xoxo, Liz 💋💋💋
