It Could Only be You

Episode 2: Intricacies

"A new Islander already!" Gary says, turning away from Hannah to everyone else. "What are we thinking, boy or girl?"

"Does it matter? We won't find out until tonight anyway," Marisol says as she and Ibrahim come to stand more central.

"I hope it isn't another girl already," Hannah says, her face lined with worry.

"Guess we'll have to wait and see, mate," Gary replies, his gaze going over her head to the other Islanders.

"Did you just call me mate?"

"Sorry, mate," he replies sheepishly, looking at her for the first time. "Anyway," he says, his grin firmly back in place as he looks away from her again, "We've got all day to get to know each other..."

"Exactly," Marisol says, a mischievous grin on her face, "Let's crack on, guys."

Daphs feels a nudge to her side. She turns and sees Rocco grinning her way. "Wanna go for a chat?" He asks. "Get to know each other before tonight?"

With a wistful look out at the others, Daphs resigns herself to give Rocco a chance. "Sure, let's go for it."

Daphs and Rocco pass by the other Islanders heading to the rest of the Villa as they take up the seats at the far side of the garden. As Daphs passes Hope and Noah, Hope raises her eyebrows and gives Daphs a look. Already Hope and Noah are walking one-in-one with their arms around one another.

The white sofas are comfy, with pillows in each colour of the rainbow. Daphs takes a purple one, sitting cross-legged on the sofa with the cushion in her lap. Rocco's eyes are on her as she sits, his face lit up.

"If I'm being honest, it's such a wild tip coming in here and meeting all these girls. It's like, I've been five minutes in here and I'm already sitting next to the most beautiful girl I've ever seen."

Daphs raises her brows. That's some line Rocco's trying to feed her, but she doesn't see the harm in it. "You're pretty hot yourself," she replies truthfully with a casual tilt of her head.

Rocco grins and runs a hand through his hair. His smile is easy, and his eyes go back to the intense look he had smoulderingly tried earlier. "Thanks, Daphs. The competition is pretty fierce out there. For both of us. My head has been non-stop spinning. It's all been so much to take in. How are you finding it?"

Despite herself, Daphs smiles back at him. "Truthfully, I'm loving it. It's all so different. It's exactly what I think I need."

"It's wild, right? I never thought I'd make it in," he has a slightly astonished look on his face that Daphs thinks is genuine, "and now there's so much happening all at once." He looks around at the Villa where far off chatting drifts across the lawn. Daphs looks too and see that pretty much everyone has paired off in their couples.

Marisol and Ibrahim are by the gym. He looks like he's sizing it up while she watches from the side lines, keeping up the conversation. Hannah and Gary aren't far off. Daphs can only see Hannah's back, but she's perked up and, like Marisol, seems to be the one prompting the conversation. Unlike Marisol and Ibrahim's conversation, the listener does not look impressed, and Gary's gaze keeps darting to the side like he's looking for a way out of the conversation.

Noah and Hope have taken up a daybed, stretched out on it together and lying down so the only thing anyone can see is the soles of their feet which are pointed in at one another. Below the daybeds, beyond the wall, Lottie and Bobby are sitting on separate sunbeds looking out over the pool. They're chatting but it looks chilled. As Daphs watches, both Lottie and Bobby turn towards her and Rocco, almost like they're the topic of conversation. Lottie looks away with a shy smirk, having been caught out, but Bobby's gaze remains with a smile spreading across his face until Daphs is the one who happily turns away.