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He knows I’m staring at him, yet he won’t turn to face me.
“If I say something, I mean it, Jack.”
I turn away from him because it’s apparent he doesn’t want to turn to look at me in this proximity. It’s too personal.
“Why did you choose Hawthornes?” he finally asks.
“Because it’s a good college.”
“Why did you choose Hawthornes?” he repeats, not satisfied with my reply, and I sigh because the truth will make me look selfish and presumptuous.
“Back in Manhattan,” I start, not sure how much I will tell him. “I was suffocating under the weight of expectations. My days were filled with shallow conversations and superficial relationships, surrounded by people who saw me as nothing more than a pawn intheir social games. My parents, bless their hearts, viewed me as little more than a business asset, a means to elevate their own status in society.”
I pause to watch the sun dip a little more into the ocean.
“I needed to get away from all that and believed Hawthornes was a new start. But….” I hesitate because admitting it would also admit my failure to change.
Jack patiently waits for me to finish my sentence.
“But, I fell into the same crowds. It was just a different place, different people, but the same fakeness. Here though….I don’t know… on this remote island, I’m free from all that. There are no expectations to fulfill and no facades to maintain. It's just me and the raw beauty of nature, stripped of all pretense.”
As I watch the sun dip below the horizon, casting a golden glow over the sea, I feel a sense of peace wash over me.
“Yes, my life back in New York may have been filled with luxury and privilege, but it was also filled with emptiness and loneliness. Here, surrounded by nothing but the sound of the ocean and the rustle of palm trees, I have found a freedom I never knew existed. Even the threat of cannibals and the need to survive almost seem more surreal than what I left two days ago.”
I feel nervous telling Jack all this.
“Does that make any sense? I am finally free to be myself, away from the constraints of society and the expectations of others.”
He says nothing, and I guess I was right. He’s probably thinking the worst of me.
“Here,” I say, feeling a little bitter by his lack of reply, and pass him his coconut. I need to get out of here. Somewhere, I can hide my face from opening up like this. I’ve never spoken to anyone about this before, and I know I should never have spoken aloud my inner thoughts.
He turns, and in the exchange of the coconut, our hands touch. An unexpected jolt of electricity seems to pass between them, igniting a spark that I don’t think either of us can deny. The look on his face tells me he felt it, too.
Our fingers linger for a heartbeat longer than necessary, the warmth of his touch lingering even after we’ve parted. It's a subtle yet undeniable sensation that sends shivers down my spine and sets my heart racing.
“You felt that too,” I breathe out. It’s not a question because his usually stoic face wears a different kind of seriousness. One I’ve never seen before.
It's as if time slows down for a moment, and in that fleeting instant, we both feel a connection that transcends words. As we gaze into each other's eyes, we can see the reflection of our own emotions mirrored back at each other. There's a sense of excitement and possibility in the air as if we've stumbled upon something rare and precious.
He leans slightly towards me and reaches out. His hand brushes a strand of hair away from my face, and I feel him move his hand toward the back of my head. As he draws me closer, our temples meet.
“Yes, Eve.” He whispers. “I’ve felt it from the first moment I laid my eyes on you.”
I let out the breath I had been holding with his confession.
“You were always meant to be mine,” he adds, and I can almost feel the start of an unexpected journey that promises to be as exhilarating as it is unpredicted.
“Yours,” I say without knowing what the hell that means, but I’m so captivated by this moment. I want Jack Bancroft to kiss me. I don’t care that he’s a mysterious goth with a touch of a basket case going on. Right now, I am so attracted to him that I need to feel what it’s like to get lost on his lips.
“Eve,” suddenly, our magical moment is interrupted by an outsider.
As Jack pulls away, our moment seems to fade into the deep abyss of the ocean. We both release ourselves from that connection that drew us and turn to find Mr. Coldwell standing down at us.
“Jack,” he addresses immediately. “I need you to help Zane with the roof of the shelter. I don’t know if we’ll have a tropical rainfall or not, but it’s best to be prepared for this evening regardless.”
I watch Jack nod and stand up. I go to follow him, but Mr. Coldwell puts his hand out to stop me.
