It Could Only be You

Episode 20: Suck and Blow

That familiar ding interrupts the conversation, stopping it dead.

"Oh no..." Gary groans, sitting up.

Daphs gets her phone out. "Guys!" She shouts, "I've got a text!" All heads perk her way as everyone gathers around. "Islanders, to help keep everyone in the party mood, you're all going to play a game of Suck-and-Blow. Hashtag, lip locking, hashtag, mouth to mouth."

"Suck-and-Blow?" Rocco says, sitting down next to Daphs and looking puzzled. "What's that?"

"Here are the cards," Lucas says, picking up two decks of purple cards with a pink lipstick mark on the back of them all. "It says, starting from one end, the Islanders must pass a card along the line using only their mouths. If a pair fail to pass the card over, they have to perform the task written on the card."

"Oooh!" Priya says, sitting down next to Lottie and Noah, who's gone in on Daphs other side. "So, what side are we starting from?"

"Let's do this one!" Hope says, pointing to her and Lucas who make up the end nearest the pool. Bobby is sat on the other end with Marisol by his side. He makes eye contact with Daphs for a moment before turning unhappily away.

All thirteen Islanders are squashed on the bench, boy-girl-boy-girl. It goes Lucas, Hope, Gary, Lottie, Henrik, Priya, Noah, Daphs, Rocco, Kitty, Ibrahim, Marisol, and then Bobby. No one is sat next to their partner, Daphs and Rocco not counting.

As the other Islanders cheer, Lucas sucks the card to his lips, leaning to Hope, who leans into him, sucking the card to her own lips. It goes down, down ... Daphs getting weirdly nervous as it gets closer. Noah leans to Priya, securing the card from her. Daphs leans up to him as he turns around ...

The card drops suddenly, their lips touching for the briefest moment. Daphs spins away, hand over her mouth, embarrassed as the other Islanders yell, "Way!"

A flushed Noah picks the card up from his lap. "For twenty seconds, you both must kiss the Islander you would couple up with if you weren't in your current couple."

The chorus of, "OOOOH," is almost deafening as everyone looks between Noah and Daphs, who have both gone pink. Daphs keeps her head turned away from Bobby's side of the bench.

"Daphs!" Priya shouts at Noah, shoving him into Daphs as she pinches at his cheek, "We know you'd pick, Daphs!"

Priya calms down as Noah looks to Hope almost like he's looking for permission. "You can go first since it's your fault we're doing this," Daphs tells him as he eyes her.

"I'm fine with that," he says, his arm falling around her.

Noah leans towards her as Gary shouts out, "Twenty seconds, someone time 'em!"

Daphs lets him kiss her eagerly, happier than she'd care to admit that he's her choice. He takes his free hand, holding her face to his. She's aware of the other Islander's getting gassed up, but all she hears is the sound of her own heart beating. The side of his body that's pressed up against her feels so overwhelmingly warm that it's got to be impossible to be real. She feels his tongue pressing to enter.

She's thought about kissing Noah before, she has to admit to herself. Hey, he's a gorgeous guy, after all. Though it's heartening to be picked by him, she probably would have preferred to save a kiss from him outside a challenge ... even if that happening isn't likely.

"Time!"

Daphs isn't aware who says it, but it pierces through the other hyped-up voice, and she breaks away from Noah, not wanting it to look like she wants the kiss to last longer than needed, though she does...