a new ex in the villa ✨

Prologue | Pie Me Off

The Beach Hut's humming studio lights blur the soft freckles on your nose and brighten the amber in your eyes. With a deep exhale, you smile. You aren't nervous. Actually, part of you thinks you were made for something like this – all the lights, the cameras tilted toward you, the expectant excitement hanging in the air. This... better than a dream, you reckon.

You had spent months hoping for a fresh start, but to hard launch so quickly into sheer paradise is absolutely wild, even for you. You grin, knowingly, and adjust the thin gold chain around your neck. Your fingers, painted pink and dotted with small tattoos, check the clasp and make sure its tucked behind your long, dark hair.

You shift in your seat, skin sun-kissed and smelling of coconut and warm vanilla. Your crossed ruby bathing suit glitters as you lean forward.

"Alright, MC," the Producer says, shifting a camera imperceptibly, just enough for it to focus perfectly on your face. "We'll start with a few questions, you know, just for some introduction shots. Sound good?"

You nod, grinning confidently. "Sounds good."

"Great," the Producer says. He pauses, glancing down at notes. "Okay. Firstly. What's MC short for?"

"Mara," you say. "Mara Chloe. It's the name I perform with, y'know, with my band, so MC stuck. Way easier to say. Can't blame 'em."

"Clever," the Producer grins. He smiles at you, nods curtly, and then glances back down at the brief notes he's scribbled. "Okay, great. MC – what brings you to Love Island?"

You grin wider. You thought often about what you might want to say given the opportunity, and thought a lot about what could possess you to step in front of the camera like this.

But it's natural. You lean back, and your dark hair swings back and forth. Your lips curl into a thoughtful smirk.

"I'm a little hard to pin down," you say. "I'm pretty impulsive. I can be lot of fun, but I think it'll take someone special to keep up with me."

"Right," the Producer nods knowingly. "Of course. So – you say not everyone can handle you. Why do you think that is, then?"

"Everyone takes themselves entirely too seriously," you laugh. "So I'm interested in meeting a person who can hop on that wild ride with me. Whatever that looks like. I don't really like labels, but I'm trying to come out of the box a little bit these days. Maybe grow up a little bit."

"If you find love, where are you heading back to?"

"I'm a Galway girl, baby, but I've seen a lot of home. I'm interested in going somewhere new with someone new. I'm not trying to stay stuck in one place for too long."

"And what do you do?"

"Oh, right," you say quickly. "I got a law degree. I did the smart thing, went down that road. But what I really do, I tour locally with my band, paint and have some art shows occasionally. I've been thinking about taking some time away from work for a year or so, and this couldn't be a better opportunity to do that."

"What's your type on paper, MC? Who are you looking for?"

"Well, I really don't think I have a type. My last girlfriend was a whirlwind; we went on two dates together and then decided to spend three weeks backpacking in Spain, just on a whim. It was wild, but it wasn't always healthy. Healthy is most important to me now."

"And what do you mean by that?"

"In the past, I might've let some people get in my head a bit," you say. "Uncharacteristic for me. It's really important to me that I be with someone who also prioritizes us. I protect myself and my peace religiously, so anyone I bring into my life would have to understand and respect that."

The Producer nods.

"You're good at this, huh?"

You grin.

"I practiced in the mirror at home," you say. "But yeah, generally I am pretty good at this kind of stuff."

"Alright. Final question," the Producer says. "What was your greatest heartbreak?"

You pause.

"I spent years with someone," you say softly. "And that's hard. We spent Thanksgiving with my family, Christmas with his."

The Producer smiles sadly at you; it's curiously encouraging.

"What happened?"

You glance down at your hands, and notice that you've begun to nervously twirl a garnet ring around your thumb.

"He loved the idea of me," you say. "And I couldn't blame him. All of the things that make me fun and exciting don't always feel as great when I'm not shiny and new."

You pause and almost sigh, but you catch yourself and continue.

"Everyone says they want spontaneous, risky, fiery," you say. "They say they want something exciting, but it would truly take a special person to keep up with me. So far, I haven't found that yet."

You look back up, eyes sparkly.

"And your turnoffs?" the Producer asks. "What makes you get the ick?"

"I don't do cheaters," you laugh. "And I don't do second chances. If you can't, bare minimum, talk about how you're feeling without self destructing like a ticking time bomb, then I have no interest. Sorry."

You smile again while dabbing at the inner corner of your eye, softly, to prevent your meticulous eyeliner from smudging.

"So is that it, then?" you ask, forcing polite. "I could use some of that champagne."