Tomorrow Never Dies

Chapter 51 - "now you have us"

By the time we touched down in Miami, I'd become firm friends with the woman next to me. Her name was Amanda, she was coming on the cruise as a passenger, and her husband was waiting for her in Miami. They'd met in college, and they were going on the cruise as a tenth wedding anniversary holiday. When we reached the luggage carousel, she spotted him, and left me, telling me she'd look out for me on the ship.

I picked up my luggage, threw my cases onto a trolley, and pushed my way through the airport, through immigration and customs, and out towards where a coach was parked to pick me up and transfer me to the coast where the cruise ships were waiting. When I saw the bus with the cruise company logo displayed in the window, I handed my luggage to the driver, helped him load it onto the bus, and took a seat inside. A few others boarded, and I presumed them to be passengers judging by their age and the fact they boarded in families and couples, where I had boarded alone. I saw Amanda and her husband, and then suddenly a girl caught my eye. She too was alone, about my age, tall and slender, with beautiful curly brown hair, and light brown skin. I waved her over, and she came and sat in the seat next to me.

"You a dancer?" I asked.

"Yep," she smiled. She was British, and her accent was beautiful. "Leigh-Anne." She offered me her hand, and I shook it, smiling at her.

"Flora."

"Are you Australian?" I nodded. "That's very cool."

"You're British, I'd love to live in London."

"I guess." Suddenly, the coach roared to life and began to drive. I looked out the window, never having been to Miami before, so all the sights I was taking in were brand new. Soon enough, we pulled into the cruise terminal, and the coach driver began to unload our luggage. I grabbed my cases, waited for Leigh-Anne to do the same, and followed her to the staff check-in point. I handed over my papers and my luggage, and waited for a cabin boy to come and lead me to the room I'd be staying in for the next six months. He took me to a twin room with massive closets, and plenty of space. My luggage was placed next to the bed, and I remembered that I had time to unpack before I went to laundry to collect my costumes, then to the dancers' room to meet the rest of the team. I pulled everything out of my cases, putting them away in the wardrobes and the drawers, lining my shoes up tidily at the bottom of the closet, and putting my electronics and books in the bedside table.

No sooner had I finished unpacking than a girl whirled into the cabin, luggage everywhere, her hair flying every which way, and she collapsed onto the bed. I raised my eyebrows in amusement before speaking to her.

"Alright there?"

"Yeah, yeah, just lots happening, lots going on," she replied. "Jade Thirlwall, nice to meet you."

"Flora Lighthawk." My accent resonated through the cabin and she smiled. "Do you need a hand unpacking?"

"That would be great, thank you," she laughed lightly. We worked through her stuff, and I shook my head when I pulled out a vibrator.

"You dirty dirty girl," I teased, waving it in front of her face. She snatched it out of my hand and stuffed it into her bedside drawer, blushing fiercely. "I'm not judging."

"Being away from your boyfriend for a week is bad enough," she shrugged. "I miss Jed already."

"Me too," I sighed, hanging up a stunning red dress in her wardrobe. "I'm not gonna see Michael for eight months."

"We're only on rotation for six," she frowned.

"He's on tour with One Direction," I admitted quietly.

"Wait, Michael Clifford? You're the Flora Lighthawk?"

"That's me," I smiled, shoving her case on top of the closet next to mine. "Want to come to laundry with me?"

"That's so cool," she rushed. "You're one of the best dancers I've ever seen, now I get to work with you!" I laughed at her kindly. Her excitable personality was going to make me happy for the next half a year, I could tell. We arrived at the laundry room, handed over our papers, and they gave us a suit carrier each. There were 14 costumes, one for every night of the cruise that the passengers were on. We carried them back to our cabin, hung them up, and found our way to the dancers' room, where a small group of girls was waiting for us.

"Hey, girlies," one of them said. "I'm Natalie, I'm dance captain for the Pride of Bermuda, and I just want to say I can't wait to get to know you over the next couple of months." I spotted Leigh-Anne come in through the door and I waved her over to me and Jade. "We have a run through at 4, doors for dinner open at 5 and we perform at 8. Make sure you stop by the kitchen and grab your meal before we dance, I'm not having anyone pass out on their first day." We nodded, and she dismissed us with a wave of her hand, going back to chat with the other, more experienced dancers. Leigh, Jade and I wandered across to a different table and sat down near a girl who was sat on her own, running her hands through her reddy blonde hair.

"Hey," Jade whispered to her, and she turned to face us with a smile.

"Hi!" she smiled.

"You okay?" Leigh asked. "You seem lonely."

"Yeah, I don't exactly get on with the other girls," she shrugged. "I'm used to it."

"Well now you have us," I beamed. "I'm Flora, that's Leigh-Anne and Jade."

"I'm Jesy," she smiled. "Good to meet you all."

"Right," I said, standing up. "I'm gonna get back, have a rest, and then I'll see you all in the hall for rehearsals yeah?" They all nodded and I made my way back to the cabin and flung myself on the bed for a bit. I set an alarm for half three so I could get changed before the run through, and let my eyes close.

*****
Short chapter but lots of new people so i'm gonna keep it that way
happy new year!! what are all your resolutions? mine is to drink more water, to kick depression's ass and maybe if i feel confident enough come out to my year... maybe

song of the chapter: sex by the 1975