I adjust the large floppy brown hat when the plane lands. Anthony takes a step out and holds out his hand for me. I smile, placing my hand on top of his. My eyes maneuver around us to see an endless amount of greens, and I can see the shore not too far off.
We got into a car and began heading towards our destination. I roll down the window to focus on the scenery instead of the man beside me.
The sky and the water seem to fuse into one at the ocean; a charming scene. It's much hotter than New York causing me to sweat through my peach color dress. Soon, we reached our destination, and my heart couldn't help but beat once I saw the endless amount of huts. A man made his appearance and aided us towards our own.
My eyes widen hearing a loud moan from one of the huts. "Oh! Yes! Yes! Yes!"
The man coughs lightly. "Your hut will be a bit farther where it is quieter," he said, while I stared at the ground unable to look into Anthony's eyes.
The hut had the look of a private plan enterprise. The walls of planks were brilliant, allowing streams of sunlight to shine through the shelter at the location. It wasn't particularly large; instead, there was a single spacious bed and a bathroom.
"If you need anything, we are merely a phone call away," the man said, gesturing towards the phone. "And our 24-hour service number is on the nightstand. Would you like a tour?"
Anthony looks at me, and I shake my head. There isn't much to tour around here. "We will call you if we need anything," he said, and the man excused himself.
I began exploring the hut to see a clean bathroom, and that's mostly it. I would say the best thing about it would be our view. On the outside, there is a small balcony allowing two chairs to settle. The water is gentle, clean, and soft, with barely any wind to push it.
Anthony walks towards me and wraps his arms around my waist, causing me to jump slightly. "Oh, you scared me," I chuckle anxiously, placing my hands on the railing.
I can feel his smile on my neck. "If you don't like this, we can change into a hotel," he suggests.
"No, this is nice," I respond.
"Want to take a walk?" I nod, and he grabs my hand. We walk out of the hut and onto the wooden boards. Once we reached the beach, I noticed there weren't many people. Once in a while, we would see another couple, but that was it. I know Anthony's guards are nearby despite not seeing them.
I stop walking, seeing the pale tones of rose-pink guava. I had the most considerable urge to take a whiff of its scent, but I knew it would be too weird. Glancing over, I noticed Anthony was staring into the distance, so I quickly smelled the guava.
"What are you doing?" Busted.
"I'm...smelling the guava." It sounds worse outside of my mind.
"Why?"
"To see if it's ready to eat."
He takes a few blinks. "Is it ready?" he said in his usual serious tone.
I look at the guava again and smell it once more. "I think it needs a few days."
Anthony grabs the guava and then tears it off causing me to gasp dramatically. I'm not quite sure why I did it, but I already did it. He takes a bite of the fruit without cleaning it. "What are you doing?" I ask, almost horrified by his actions.
"Eating it."
"But it's not ready," and you practically stole the guava.
"Mio cuore, guavas are best to consume a few days before its ripe time while it's hard and crunchy." He takes another bite. "And I didn't steal it." He read my mind once more.
I snarl at his comments.
He brought the fruit into my face. "Here...try it."
I lean back. "Umm, no thank you."
He bites again. "I can see why your family used to be short of food. It's because you're all picky."
I gasp. "I am not picky! You didn't wash the guava!" I'm not quite sure why we are arguing over fruit, but a part of me enjoys it - meaningless bickering over something so insignificant.
He shakes his head. "You won't survive if you continue to be picky." He talks as if he isn't an overly wealthy man.
I snatch the guava and take a bite. My eyes crunch due to the slightly odd flavor before I begin chewing it. After some time, I take another bite. Then, another. It wasn't bad. After my last taste, I look up to see Anthony staring at me. I wipe my face with my forearm and swallow the last piece before throwing the guava back into the tree. I smack my lip. "It's not bad," I quickly snatched another fruit and then walked off.
I can hear his silent laughter behind my back. Anthony snatches the fruit from my hands and bites it. "Hey! That's mine!" I screamed and began motioning towards it only to have him extend his gorilla arm. There was a mischievous smile on his lip as he took another bite. Immediately, I jumped only to have him move his arm up. "You tall freak of nature!" I cannot believe I yelled those words at him.
Afterward, we continued strolling around the island. We keep consuming the mangos, rows of lychee, and whatever other fruits offer from the soil. I think I understand why they charge so much now for vacation on the island. There were flecks of green here and there. It's pleasing to the eyes.
I took off my shoes and began wandering around the nearly isolated beach with Anthony's steady pace behind me. I saw a sand dollar and picked it up. "Look polpetto! I'm ocean rich!"
He only shakes his head at my statement.
I hold the sand dollar tightly in my hand while continuing my exploration, capturing what's left of my youth. I saw a small-looking cliff and rushed towards it. "Polpetto! Look!" I scream while continuing my run.
Unladylike, I climb up despite wearing a dress. There's already a trail suggesting that other tourists have already visited this place. Once I reach the top, the wind flutters against my clothing. I stared at the seemingly calm water as he stood behind me "I'm going to jump," I made a bold statement that even shocked me.
He lifts a brow. "I highly suggest you don't."
I throw the shoes to the side and strip off my dress. Anthony grabbed my wrist. "What are you doing?"
"You know how you would see one of those couples in movies where they would jump off a cliff because it's somehow romantic?"
"No, I don't watch television, and there is nothing remotely romantic about jumping off a cliff together knowing there is a chance of getting injured."
"We should do it," I brush off his underlying warning.
"Mio cuore, we are not doing it," he stands his ground.
I tuck my lip over my teeth, wondering why I even thought of such a thing. Perhaps, it's the weird comfortable atmosphere causing me to go with the flow and allow me to gain a bit more courage. For fuck sake, I ask a gang leader to jump off a cliff with me.
I take out my phone. "Can you at least take a picture of me? I want to show it to Lily."
He eyes me suspiciously before grabbing the phone. "No games."
I nod before walking off to the edge of the cliff. Anthony places the phone in the air. "Do one of those multiple photoshoot thingies."
He nods and adjusts the phone before placing it back into the air. Without a single word, I turn around and jump off the cliff. "Angelica!" Anthony shouts.
The breeze only picks up as I drop closer to the water: kicking the adrenaline. Memories of the past seem to evaporate as my body crashes against the ocean - the water flows in my ears and around my body. Feeling a hand grasp around my waist, I began swimming upward with Anthony. Once we reach the surface, I inhale a deep breath of air.
"Are you insane?!" Anthony said frankly, causing my body to tremble slightly at his aggressive tone.
Anthony is certainly divinely handsome from the depth of his eyes to the aggressive expressions of his voice as the water flows down his structure features. Without allowing him to speak another word, I wrap my legs around his waist, hands on his cheeks, and crash my lip against his. He didn't take long to return the kiss.
The whole day, we spent it on the beach with the clothes barely hung on our skin. All I could feel was his hot flesh press against mine as his body rested beneath me. My knees dig deep into the sand as his lip laces down the vein of my neck. My fingers brush through his hair as my waist presses down into his. Anthony rolls me onto my back. "You're getting too daring, mio cuore," he said deviously before biting my exposed breast.
My back arch, allows him to enter deeper between my chest. I cling my body onto him as my eyes trace across the colorful painting of heaven - so beautiful.
***
The rain crashes against my skin as I continue running. Rain falls in crazy, uncontrollable drops as the gusting wind carries them. It runs down my pale face in dense, thick layers. My eyes are wide with fear; afraid of the devil chasing after me. The thick trees were making things much more difficult, roots twisted making everything look the same. The forest is already so dense, and the vicious clouds only make it much more horrifying. My adrenaline surges so fast I almost vomit, I can taste saliva thickening in my throat even in the wet weather.
This is all a game for him.
I stop when the pebbles bounce off the end of the road. I could no longer run - I was trapped.
Steadily, I turn around to meet with devious electric eyes. Unable to utter a single word, he grasps his hand against my neck and lifts my body from the ground as if I'm a feather. I held onto his wrist and began pulling his hand away. He didn't utter a single word as I continued struggling, clawing my way out of his grip. He only brought me closer. "Remember, I'm the one who gave you, your freedom."
His grip only tightens around my neck. "And when I tell you to fucking behave. You better fucking behave."
My eyes only widen as he walks towards the edge of the cliff. "And I must say, you have not been behaving...mio cuore."
He drops my body.