“Did you really have to smile-? Ugh, no matter, I uploaded it anyway.” Indira was talking to herself at this point. She didn't even raise her head to show the boy next to her the scowl present on her face. Of course Nate had to be cheeky enough to smile last minute, making her perfected pout look out of place beside him. Unfortunately ('More like unfortu-nate-ly, right?') it was the only picture Indira was allowed to take, as she had promised Nate to stop bothering him in exchange for one picture for her followers. She took one more glance at the image, her eyes being drawn back to her lips again briefly before she clicked her tongue and moved on to check the comments again.


Her phone had been buzzing the entire time, and the social media addict was was on top of her game today. One comment stood out from the rest, making the girl almost snort in an undignified manner. Forgetting the promise momentarily, she shoved the gadget in Nate's face. “Look at that comment! I take it back, you gotta smile more. This Belladonna chick really likes you. What kinda name is Belladonna anyway? It's so Game of Thrones-y.” She mused as she proceeded to stalk Belladonna's profile. It wasn't a name she was used to seeing around, but it was cute.

However, right as she was done showing Nate her phone, she pouted at her screen. On it showed the dreaded '10% battery remaining', reminding her that she had forgotten to charge her portable charger to last the ferry trip. Quickly after checking for any Whatsapp messages and checking for any Insta DMs, Indie turned off her phone with a miserable 5% remaining.

With her phone off, Indie turned to bother Nathan once more but she was stopped by the announcement that the the ferry had docked at the pier. 'You win this time, Nate.' She thought as they followed the rest of the Krackens onto the beach and towards the giant stage, where she could just about see Rachel ready to welcome everybody onto Carnation island.

As Rachel began introducing them to the island, Indie felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning around revealed an employee with a thick envelope with her name written on it. She thanked the employee before tearing her envelope open, almost tearing the map that was tucked carefully inside.

Indira and Nate split up once Rachel was done with her announcement. Well, in reality Indie lost Nate somewhere inside the crowd, but her priority was finding her cabana. After wandering the island for a good few minutes (already forgetting about the almost torn map with her), she found the cabana assigned to her. Beside the door was a number and below that was a name plate carrying her name and...

Lottie's.

Yikes.

It had been a good two weeks since Indie had talked to Lottie. She knew she couldn't avoid her best friend for long, so the events should actually be a blessing. Indie entered the cabana a little nervously, quickly rushing to the closest outlet so she could charge her phone before heading into the bathroom to freshen up. She hoped that once she was done getting ready, Lottie would join her at the cabana.

As a fine spray rose off the Indian Ocean while the party boat made its way towards the intended destination, the girl in the red tank top and jean shorts with the giant sunglasses on her face and a lemon vodka cooler in her hand was taking some time to reflect on the days journey that brought her to this point. That was days' not day's, and Jade Scott wouldn't be forgetting that fact any time soon.

Upon learning of her itinerary when she agreed to come to Carnation Island, the soccer star had to do a double take. Money was no object. The hush-hush payments from a certain major athletic apparel company gave her more than enough cash to make this trip many times over and still have enough for souvenirs for the entire school. Instead, 35 hours of her life was the asking price, spread across four different countries. The first leg wasn't terrible. Denver to Vancouver was no different than the Denver-Seattle flight she usually made when visiting her parents. Or when flying to matches for that matter. Even the five-hour layover in Canada was tolerable... until everything in the airport closed down at midnight.

That made it a little difficult to stay up for her 2:30 am flight on July 19 that didn't land in Shanghai until 5:40 am on July 21. That was an ordeal. There were no meals served until late in the 12-hour trip because most of the stewards assumed people would be sleeping. Not Jade. Not with her seat right near the engine, droning over her headphones until the battery power on her iPod finally gave out. Starving, she struggled to get food during another long stopover in China. Six hours in Pudong International Airport, trying to find an outlet for her electronics and a place that served better versions of food than the bastardized takes on Big Macs and venti lattes in the Terminal. After such a long trip, the Golden Girl was in no mood for the struggles of learning how to order a grilled chicken salad in Mandarin, so she sucked it up until the final leg, a seven-hour trek from Shanghai to Malé where she managed to get a little bit a sleep and a half-cooked airplane chicken breast. It was better than nothing. Recovery at her one-night hotel room in the Maldives' capital required the whole evening.

But the promise of free drinks and a summer of endless parties seemed to be worth it. If Jade Scott wasn't going to get to celebrate a World Cup championship with Megan and Alex and the others, then she was damn well going to match them in their drunken glory, at least if Ashlyn's Instagram was anything to go off of. That was her self-assigned goal for the vacation. Rachel was going to see to that.

As the boat finally pulled up to the Carnation Island docks, Jade was eager to wheel her duffel bag off to her private cabin and then take in the sight of the calm ocean waves as she sipped the first of what would be many daiquiris of varying flavors on the balcony. It sounded like the perfect way to prepare herself for this relaxation period. Of course, Rachel would have other plans from the sounds of things.

Her bonfire announcement was a spectacle. Naturally, given the girl invited half the campus to this picturesque paradise. Release the Kraken indeed. As Jade elbowed her way to the main stage and grabbed the stylized envelope marked "Jade S.", the packet revealed she would have cabana #9. Perfect, since it was her number on the pitch. Damn, Rachel. Just got all this figured out, huh? She smirked.

Her smile grew wider as she followed the boardwalk path towards her assigned home for the next couple months. It was a massive villa, two stories tall. The entryway revealed a level of opulence that even Nik that unnamed apparel company had yet to offer her. The living room area with the giant couch and a freaking hanging light shaped like a manta ray gazed over an elegant pool, perfect for soaking in. Jade dropped her bag and ran outside. The place had a damn waterslide attached to it! She walked around and discovered the mini-bar, well-stocked with fruits, chocolates and a few choice bottles of wine, along with water, shots of alcohol, and other mixing ingredients. She saw the master bedroom, a king-size bed with another gorgeous view of the Indian Ocean. Everything appeared to be layered in a calming bamboo color. I could get so used to this...

Leaving her duffel behind, she went exploring the other side of the villa... and found another bedroom. Huh. Guess the luxury villas must come with the option to send the fuck buddy to another room. All right, that's cool. That's cool. Jade worked her way upstairs and spotted a pool table and a TV, replete with game systems hooked up, as well as a gym for staying in shape during this binge she was about to embark on. Awesome. I can kick ass on multiple levels. Good shit. Walking down the hallway however, she found... more beds. A couple of them. On the other side of the pool table, an open door revealed more beds. What the... Six beds in here? I'm not having a damn orgy! What's Rachel doing giving me this? I don't need all of this.

Jade moved back downstairs and fished her cell phone out of her laptop bag. A quick connection to the Wifi gave her access to all her apps, specifically WhatsApp, which was the preferred method of communication overseas. Take that for data, Sprint. Locking in on Rachel's number, the Rocket sent a quick message:

To: Rachel Party Queen

Rachel, it's Jade. Just wondering what the heck is up with this cabana. I mean, I fucking love it, no lie. But there's six beds in here, and I definitely don't plan on rotating...

Jade thought for a second and a look of dread crossed her face.

I swear girl, if you set me up in a house with a bunch of randoms, I'm not going to be a happy camper, you got me? I'm a star attraction here! I need my own space! I'm not in for some Big Brother Love Island bullshit! Fix this before the bonfire!!!

The soccer star tossed her phone onto the bed and collapsed alongside it. Knew this was gonna be too good to be true. Fucking Rachel. She closed her eyes and again pondered her lot in life as the sounds of the waves breaking upon the stilts were the only sounds filling the villa for the moment.

For it being her vacation away from everyone back home, Andrea didn’t feel like partying.

Standing at a point on the boat as it made its way to the pier, the tiny blonde stared blankly at the ocean, the motions of a rocking boat coming second place to the World War-scale battle she had with her mother just hours ago. She didn’t understand what her mother had against her coming here. They usually saw eye to eye on a lot of things. Whether it was shopping, choices of schools, her sexuality -- everything she chose to disclose to her mother, she knew Viola Banks was always accepting. They were more like sisters than they were mother and daughter.

“So why did she make a big deal about me coming here?” She asked herself that very same question for hours. Ever since she got on the boat, the fight had been lingering in her mind and nothing else.



And the more she thought about it, maybe she was too harsh. In retrospect, she knew her mother was doing what she did, no matter how crazy or irrational it was, from a place of love. And it wasn’t like how she and Sonny were a couple of years ago. She has never nor will she ever hate her mother. Maybe the reason she blew up at her like she did was since the two of them are more alike than either realizes. Or maybe she knew just how alike they were and that was part of the problem. Maybe the distance between them for the next couple of weeks was just what the doctor ordered.

Or, more like what Rachel Ashford ordered. And speaking of the hostess with the mostest, her beautiful, clear face appeared in 4K upon two LCD monitors, welcoming everyone to the island. After a few minutes of her rambling on about the resort they would be staying in, much like everyone else, Andrea followed them and she soon settled into the cabin that she was sharing with a few others, particularly the always energetic Zayden Aspen.

“Great now I’ll be thinking about his ugly mug for a few hours.” Not that Drea minded it one bit. He was quite ...handsome.

Drea tossed her things into her room in what was dubbed "The Party Cabana". It was one of the larger cabanas available and honestly, she underestimated the size. Rachel really liked to go all out, it seemed, but she underestimated just what all out entailed. Even by the standards of someone originally from Crown Heights, a place where over-luxurious asshats (like the Castillos), but even she had to admit this was a little surprising. Still, even she had to take a moment so she could take it all in before she claimed the room with "D" written on it.

She took in a breath and started to unpack. As she was in the middle of it, she heard someone from the room next to hers and couldn't help but be a little nosey. So as she waltzed her way over to the room, she saw someone laying on the bed and Andrea being her usual self took a few extra moments to admire the sight in front of her. Only after she had her fill, she knocked on the door. "Pretty amazing set up these rooms have, huh?" She remarked, leaning against the door, trying her best to keep her eyes on the girl's and not letting them venture elsewhere, but she was having a bad time.

Apparently, Andrea truly was her mother's daughter, after all.

If there was one thing Michel Russo had zero interest in partaking in, it was joining those at the bar or wherever the most people seemed to be converging towards. Now don’t get him confused for some weird antisocial weirdo. He had all the social grace as a royal but he lacked the interest in caring what other people thought of him. Plus, this wasn’t the first time he had been to the Ashford private island.

About a year ago when the Ashford clan was hosting some extravagant party that he couldn’t be bothered to remember, he came with his father and kid sister. As one could expect, it was over the top and had way too many white people in the same room. Now, granted Michel himself looks white, but in his blood flows that of the great Italians. So, if he reminds you of Henry Hill, then that’s probably why. As for the part itself, it was as generic as it got and he was forced to endure every moment of it because his father demanded he does so.

Those were fond memories that Michel would cherish right next to the shit he took just before he freshened up after dumping all that he had with him. The only thing that remained was a sense of freedom, a fashionable summer outfit, and the confidence of someone ready to party. And as Rachel promised, it was quite the setup. No matter where he let his eyes fall, Michel saw hotness all around: men, women, bonfires, cabanas. It was full of eager people ready to let loose. Either they were free from the constraints of uptight parents, stress from college, celebrating recent graduations, or just wanted to kick it on a private-fucking-island.

As for Michel, he fell into a couple of those categories. He just graduated college but also, why not come to this island? At least now he could enjoy the ...sights. “Wow. Rachel’s got a lot of attractive friends,” he muttered to himself. Both sides of the spectrum were represented and hell be damned if Michel wasn’t going to indulge in the foreign cuisine.

He briefly sighed, knowing he had to avoid the bar at all costs. It was way too crowded for his comfort and he needed to start slow. Only fools eat their dessert before trying some free samples.

The only problem with that was hardly anyone he recognized was around, especially his two favorite people. ”I guess I’ll have to frequent the bar.” He rolled his eyes but Michel was, if nothing else, a trooper. He could place himself in situations he didn’t like for the long term enjoyment he saw beyond the horizon.

Soon the German native took a seat, though it was a few seats away from where he spotted Theodore Wallenberg and a few others. “Yeah, just give me whatever is on tap,” Michel said without even looking at who was tending the bar. Only when he had enough interest to do so did he come to a welcomed sight. “Farah? No, that can’t be Farah Ladonna. She was working at the bar when I was here last. Surely she would have found a better gig by now!” Michel tended to let his sarcasm live where genuine surprise should, but she was away for the weekend.

When the consistent pattern of the waves was broken up by the sound of a door opening, Jade did her best to block out the world. Of course there was no explanation from Rachel yet as to the meaning of this camp living she was going to be subjected to. It would be best to just ignore the newest visitor to the cabana and just let them drift around while she kept her eyes closed. Hopefully, they would leave her be while she waited for the escape hatch from the gracious host.

"Pretty amazing set up these rooms have, huh?"

Alas, she would not be so lucky. At least it was another woman. With a direct question asked of her, Jade opened her eyes and turned towards the door where she saw... Well, it definitely wasn't a terrible sight. The first thing she saw were those emerald green eyes staring back at her own, sparkling almost in the face of the outfit that definitely screamed of someone dressed to kill. She had better fashion taste than most of the girls on the team, that was for sure. And Jade was including herself in that group.

The star striker boosted herself up, resting on her palms on her claimed bed as her dark brown hair cascaded behind her shoulders. "Yeah," was all she could offer back to start. "Yeah, it's something else. Pretty sure this bed is bigger than the dorm room I had in freshman year." Jade pushed herself up to a seated position. "Have you seen outside yet? There is a freaking water slide out there!"

As she steadied herself on the bed, Jade tried to work out if she knew this girl from somewhere. Did they share a class? Cross paths at a concert? She didn't seem like much of the sporting type. Probably just buddy buddy with Rachel to get into a place this opulent. "So, I'm guessing you're crashing in here too, huh? The cabana, I mean. Not this room. This is my room." If she was going to be sharing this place, even with someone like the fashionista in front of her, she was going to stake her claim early.

And what a nice room it is.

Andrea couldn’t help herself. Between the sight of the bed to the sight of the brown beauty, she was enjoying the sights in front of her. To her surprise, when she walked closer to her, she wasn’t as tall as she appeared to be. Maybe it was the way she carried herself that gave the blonde that impression, or maybe it was Andrea was so used to everyone having at least half of a head over her that she didn’t think there could be others like her who suffered from the relentless short jokes.

“Yeah girl, it’s pretty crazy. But then again, that’s the Ashfords for you. Simplicity isn’t in their framework.” She laughed, leaning against the doorway.

Her head was somewhat angled up, though Andrea’s eyes remained on Jade. She didn’t know her that well but she knew her name at least. They had crossed paths a couple of times. Honestly, there had always been a part of her that wanted to approach Jade, but there was never a right moment. Andrea was a busy girl and every moment that wasn’t studying for exams or making trips to Palm Beach to make sure her idiot brother didn’t ruin every relationship he found himself in was spent doing her extracurriculars. But all that aside, she knew Jade and had often observed her in those free moments. So, now was kind of perfect. Their one on one with no interruptions.

At least, it would have been perfect if she didn’t hear the same song that she knew a particular boy she was quite fond of repeated way too much. Also, she was approached by another cute boy, though this one had a very mild demeanor. “That would be Zayden. Don’t mind him. He just likes to blast that music THAT’S TOO LOUD!!” She screamed directly at Zayden, knowing her voice carried despite her tiny frame. Though, for now, her attention remained on the towering blonde who spoke so softly. “Sorry, sometimes Z just needs to know that not everyone shares his love for loud music.” She laughed, rolling her eyes. “Anyway, I’m Andrea and this, I believe, is Jade. She’s an athlete or something, right?” She asked, looking over to Jade.

“GET BENT, DREA!”

The music went up a notch and this time it played the next song on his list which was Wait (The Whisper Song) by the Ying Yang Twins. Awesome. His best friend was chilling in this cabana too. This summer was going to be fun. Dropping to the floor, from doing quite a few pull-ups, intentionally and obnoxiously LOUD, Zayden was fully awake and energized ready to get this party started! But first. Push ups and sit-ups. His work out wasn’t over yet. Man, music shuffle was weird sometimes. Whatever. He could get with this song. He’d smack Drea’s ass later.

“IN YOUR DREAMS, ASSPEN!” She shot back, huffing. “Again, sorry for that doofus. And ignore his inappropriate choices in music.” She said that as though she didn’t want to hum along to the Yin Yang Twins. Z knew exactly what ruffled her feathers and he did that on purpose.

Jade was enjoying the conversation. It seemed like this girl was at least chill enough that it wouldn’t be too much of a bother to share this palace with her. Even if she had no idea what her name was. Did it start with a K? She would have to subtly try and get a glimpse at her luggage or something.

She was going to answer the girl’s remark when the sounds of inescapable crunk started blaring from out of nowhere. It was so obnoxious it could easily be a sign that the bonfire party had started, but it was way too early for that. Plus it was making the cabana shake. It could only be a male doing something that stupid. Unfortunately, it appeared as though it wasn’t the one who had materialized in her doorway. Good thing I didn’t start unpacking anything yet. Jesus.

The boy looked like a skyscraper next to the other girl, and he was asking questions that Jade didn’t care to have answers to. Not that she would know. Although she could now piece together that both his and the girl’s names both started with D. Well that helps. So what is it? Diana? Denise? Destiny? Daenerys?

Apparently, the answer was none of the above as Andrea Nope. Way off. took control of things, shouting up to … Zayden? Never would have gotten that one. He was living up to being a Zayden, that was for sure. Andrea knew Jade well enough to know her name. That was a nice boost to the island ego. Once the shout fight with Zay had ended though, and the song changed to something a lot quieter, Jade decided to correct something in the newly christened Drea’s introduction.

“I mean, athlete is underselling it a little bit,” she said with no hint of humility in her voice. “I am kind of a big deal. Star striker for the Kraken, just missed going to the World Cup this year, I’m an elite athlete, Drea.” She reached around looking for where she had tossed her iPod. “Also, if that homeboy upstairs wants to start throwing down, I will crank some Missy at him and show him what good rap sounds like.”

“Okay, so I was mistaken,” she said, turning to the blonde giant. “This is Jade, America’s next Olympic Gold Medalist.” She shot Jade a quick smirk. “And what about you, handsome? You got a name? Obviously, it starts with a D. All the best things in life start with the letter D!”

Truth be told, somewhere between the guy upstairs (Zayden! That was good, there had to be like, what? Three Zaydens in the whole world? That one was probably his buddy!) and the other girl yelling at each other, Dax had more or less checked out of the conversation, and was instead fiddling with a fidget spinner he’d pulled out of his pocket. Sure, they went out of style like, almost a year and a half ago, but Dax didn’t spend two and a half hours watching YouTube tutorials on fidget spinner tricks to not carry one of the fuckers in his pocket to spin when things like this were happening around him.

It wasn’t until the athlete started talking, that Dax allowed himself to snap back to reality and listen to the not so good music that was blasting around him, and at least listen to what the girls had to say. Olympic Gold Medalist? Missed going to the World Cup? Elite athlete? Not just athlete, but elite athlete. That seemed important. If Dax had time, he would have written that down. It was cool! He wished he was good at sports… He was like, okay at tennis, but that was about it, and it was mostly because of Lottie.

Maybe he could ask this girl to teach him some cool tricks in her sport. Soccer, it had to be. El futbol. Or… whatever they called it in the rest of the universe. Then, Dax turned his attention to the other girl in the room, which consisted mostly of turn his head down to look at her. “Dax. My name is Dax. Well, Daxton, but you can just call me Dax. Please.”

Jade had triumphantly pulled her iPod out of her carry-on bag as Dax introduced himself. “Got it after the third time, Dax. Will do.” She was now looking around her bedroom for some sort of speaker system to combat Zay’s bad 2000’s rap with her excellent 2000s rap. There didn’t appear to be anything until she remembered the living room. There had to be a sound system out there. “What say we take this party out of my room and start hitting Zay with some education?”

Drea liked Jade the moment she saw her spread on her bed, but now she liked her even more. They shared the mutual hobby of putting Zay in his place when he became too obnoxious for his own good. Not that Drea wasn’t obnoxious herself, but Z took it to new levels she didn’t think was possible. And the fact he was playing the highly-inappropriate song just made her want to team up with Dax and Jade to give him a fight he wasn’t ready for.

“I’m so in!” Drea’s eyes shot directly to Dax. “What do you say, handsome? Wanna be on the winning team and defeat the antagonist upstairs?” She asked Dax.

Well, Dax was smart enough to not disagree with someone calling him handsome, but he didn’t think he much wanted to participate in a battle. He just wanted to unpack and get settled in his room… but if he had to pick a side, then he was going to have to be on Zayden’s side. After all, they were friends! “If you’re gonna make me choose, I gotta side with Zayden.” Dax admitted, with a sad shrug of his shoulders. Besides, Dax would never rain on someone’s parade, but… Missy sucked anyway. “Are we gonna share the D room, though? Or should I find a different room?” He asked, looking down at the short, loud, attractively angry blonde.

“‘Cuz I’m down to share.”

Andrea sighed, rolling her eyes along with Jade as Dax had not only chosen to side with Z and his lame-ass, but now the topic was back on the room, which as dull as it was, she admitted that issue needed to be resolved. “I suppose we can share but there’s only one bed in the room. And I sleep in my birthday suit.” She said as she wiggled her eyebrows suggestively. “Would that be a problem?”

Maybe Dax was already too high. This girl seemed to think he was… not interested? Or perhaps she was trying to bait him? To make him answer something she didn’t want to hear so she could start a fight? That was possible, in fact, that was maybe even likely… Dax just didn’t think of people like that. Dax only saw the positive, only saw the possibilities. The good, never the bed, and especially never the ugly.

“Uh, no, that’s definitely not a problem. Do you want me to sleep naked too? To make you like, confident. I support your uh, freedom.”

Jade just shook her head. “This is a conversation that is best had in a place that is not MY room. You two want to be naked under the covers, do it in a different bed. For now, however…” She hopped off her own bed and moved towards the door. “It’s time to make Zay lose control.”

The striker made her way out to the living room and quickly spotted her target, a giant sound system in a bamboo cabinet off to the side. There were all sorts of cords neatly draped to the side of the machine, and Jade quickly tossed them all aside to find the one that would hook up to her music. Flipping the switches on the board until she heard a familiar hum, she smiled. “Showtime.”

The lyrics were swift and merciless, proclaiming “MUSIC MAKE YOU LOSE CONTROL” twice before descending into the xylophone that heralded Missy Elliot’s 2005 hit. Jade turned the speakers up loud enough to drown out Zay’s music and make sure he heard it clear enough in the upstairs.

There was no retaliation. Instead, the music upstairs cutoff and before they knew it, the devil himself approached them with the confidence of a lion. Speaking of birthday suits, Zay was dripping wet, with a towel wrapped around his waist, having taken a five-minute shower, striding his way downstairs to see Drea, Dax, and a girl he sorta knew but not really, Jade. “Yeah, you know what this means?” He mischievously and widely grinned, eyeing Drea from head to toe, before entering their kitchenette, opening the cabinets and seeing if his bae, Rach, gave them the hookup.

She did.

“It’s pregaming time!”

After pulling out four shot glasses, clink, clink, clink, clink, he displayed their options, “Crown Royal Whiskey, Absolut Vodka, or PATRON! Choose your poison.” They should know better than to think Zayden, of all people, would let them get away with no alcohol in their system. They were going to a party thrown by RACHEL. She didn’t tolerate pussies. And since they were cribbing with him, he was going to make sure they got to his level or higher.

“Like you even have to ask.” Drea said as she walked up, trying her best to reach for the Vodka but goddamn it, it was just too damn high!

Jade shook her head at the brash display from the semi-naked Zay. Wasn't terrible to look at, and at least she had control of the pre-game music now. All in all, it was a win, and now apparently it was time to claim her reward. Might as well. This was her vacation after all.

"Well, everyone knows that the queen needs her Crown," she stated, grabbing a nearby chair since if Drea was having problems reaching the booze, she would as well. The chair did its job and the soccer star grabbed the vodka for her fellow female and the whiskey for herself. While there she tossed the tequila to Zay, figuring that was his choice. As she hopped back down, she uncorked the bottle of Crown. "And she fears no poison."

Jade was not sexy at all and even though Zayden was literally right by the cabinets, she went out of her way to bring a chair and get it all herself. What a power-play move. Shrugging to himself, graciously taking the tequila, though he preferred whiskey he didn’t mind Parton, Z poured his shot and waited for everyone else to join him so they could shoot it up together. With a smug grin on his face, he peered down at his tiny friend. “You did your best.”

The only reaction Zayden got from Drea was an exasperated expression as she took the vodka from Jade and her arm wrapped around Jade’s neck. “Thanks for being so great.” She innocently kissed Jade on the cheek. It was short and sweet and by the time it ended, she had a wide smirk on her face, looking at Z.

“Gayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy. Okay, y'all bitches ready?” Rolling his eyes at his friend, paying no mind to her antics, he lifted his shot glass, “Cheers to the summer and having unforgettable memories.” He turned his head and beckoned the other boy toward them, “Dax, get your ass in here. Here. Take this.” He poured another patron shot.

“Hey, man, I don’t wanna throw off your vibe, but could you… could you put some drawers on?” Dax asked while looking at the shot that was offered to him, before an idea clicked in his head. He looked down at the shirt he was wearing, and then pulled it off and held it out to Zayden, trading it for the shot. “You can wear this like a sumo wrestler thing. It’s cool, I don’t even like this shirt.”

“...thanks, but I’ll go put some clothes on upstairs. Okay. 1-2-3.” Since Dax wanted him to cover up, he had to rush the shot process. Swiftly and with experienced ease, he drank the shot and placed it back on the counter. “I’ll be back, then we should head out. Don’t want to waste time to mix and mingle. Ain’t that right, ladies?”

Jade was in a tiny bit of a daze after that kiss from Drea, but she still had the presence of mind to pour her shot of whiskey and down it in time with the party lead. She was still thinking about the action. She had kisses before, teammates in the throes of victory, jackasses at the campus bar who thought they could sneak a quick one. That one was more than hell to the conquering hero type though. It felt good.

"Yeah for sure. Can't deny Rachel her star attraction now, can we?" she agreed. "Although I should probably get changed out of these boat clothes too." She looked at Drea. "I can rock island formal just as well as I can causal." She then winked at Zay. "Give me 15 minutes and I'll be ready."

“Word, and sorry for earlier. I’m not the most observant when I’m tired as fuck so I thought I had this place to myself. Then finding out Drea was here… she just has a way of really pushing my buttons.” Hey, even Zayden knew there were times he could be an asshole and he wasn’t too prideful to not say sorry if his music did upset anyone. Maybe later they’ll set ground rules, but for now. It was time to get ready. “Yeah, fifteen minutes everyone meets back here and then we’ll head over to wherever everyone else is. Probably the bar.” With that, the hype man walked away, towel and all, back to his room.

“And thank god he’s gone!” She sighed, taking a hefty swig of vodka. As she did, the blonde couldn’t help but linger at the sight of Zayden walking away. He only remained in view for a few moments after but it was enough for her to start ...thinking things and these were thoughts she rather not have at the moment, thank you!

Shaking her head, it quickly went away. “Well, to our rooms it is.” It was only a moment after those words left her lips did Drea remember. “Oh damn that’s right.” Her eyes went to Dax. “We never did figure out who was taking the room next to Jade’s, did we? But, ya know, I think you should take one upstairs. You and Z seem to have bonded.” She nudged Jade. “Isn’t that right, Jade?”

Dax raised an eyebrow. There was some confusion here, from the taller, shirtless man — he’d thought they’d reached an agreement? “I thought we were sharing? Were you joking? I wasn’t.” He explained with a tilt of his head. If that’s what she wanted to do, that was fine, but he’d thought they’d made a call!

He was serious? “The bed is certainly large enough for two people.” She scratched her head. What was her intention to trick Dax into taking a room upstairs so she could be alone next to Jade turned into one of the best reversals on her since high school. She respected Dax’s genius strategy. And if it was unintentional, then that just meant he would only get more diabolical as the summer went on.

“Yeah, I suppose we can. Nothing wrong with that.” Was all she had to say. She genuinely had nothing to clap back with.

“Cool.” There was no diabolical scheme behind Dax’s words, and the bright little smile on his face spoke in favor of that. The simple reality was… Dax had already put his stuff in that room — he didn’t wanna carry it upstairs. He’d shared beds with people before, in a totally non-sexual, non-gay way (it was totally Zay), and this was no 0different. “I can wear pants when I sleep if you want. Or even, like, crash on the floor. Not everything is about sex! Appreciate each other for the company, man.”

Jade looked over at the woman now sharing a bed with a man on day one of this excursion. "See, this is why I prefer the subtle 'Get your ass upstairs' approach," she whispered to Drea. "Less chance they actually get bold enough to think they have a shot at something." She pulled back slightly. "Does he… actually have a shot at something?"

Drea looked at Dax for a moment, her eyes quickly scanning him up and down. Tall, fit, and not entirely repulsive personality-wise: everything that Drea wanted in a man if she ever saw herself settling for one. She didn’t like limiting her options, but if Dax ended up being the guy who she got with in the end, then she wouldn’t be a complaining woman. Still, she had to explore what else the summer had to offer before making those decisions.

As she smiled at Dax, she leaned to Jade. “I don’t know. But he is interesting.” She found herself admitting.

Jade stared at Dax for a moment, trying to take in every part of the man who stared down a challenge from a girl who was very attractive and not only didn't blink but also managed to hit her back with the laser reflection and score a win. He was bold. Interesting? That remained to be seen. All she knew about him was that he was tall and had no problems being all up in the personal space.

"Well," she said, clasping her hand on Drea's shoulder. "I am gonna leave that whole finding out how interesting he is to you. Instead, I am gonna go put on this little number that I picked up in Malé and get set to rock this party." She turned off her iPod and gave Drea a wink as she headed off to her room, which she had all to herself, and prepared to prepare for tonight.