After about a twelve-hour flight, made a little less awful due to Johnny upgrading us to first class we finally arrive at the airport on the main island of Howlwaii. The flight was actually not all that awkward, Johnny and my dad talked scaring while I filled my mom in on all of my college "drama" so to speak. Though I don't really consider it drama, just a fight between friends, it'll pass.

All of our bags are eventually accounted for and Johnny locates the shuttle to the resort where we are staying. I hand him my bag as he assists the driver is loading them in the back of the black van. "Have you stayed here before?"

"At this resort?" Johnny asks as he helps me and my mom into the van, "Oh yeah, many times." He climbs in after my dad and closes the door. "It's really beautiful."

"You probably stay in those presidential suites, don't ya, boy?" My dad asks, his tone playful.

Johnny chuckles. "Yeah, we actually own the penthouse at this resort."

My mom's eyes go wide. "Could we stay there?"

"Honey, we've already paid for our rooms." My dad says, looking somewhat disappointed.

Johnny gives my dad a kind smile. "I could have the front desk refund your money if you'd like. Or I could just pay you back."

"No, you don't have to do that." My dad waves his hand. "It's no big deal."

"I insist." Johnny says, charming his way through this.

My dad hesitates, looking to my mother who is giving him her wide eyes. "Alright, I guess there is no harm, but only if you really want to. I don't want to take advantage of you."

"Don't worry," Johnny glances to me. "She's got that covered."

I punch him in the shoulder. "Shut up."


We pull up to the resort and my jaw drops to the ground. The huge building covers acres of land, palm trees swaying every which way, an open-air build that allows the fresh sea breeze to flow through the building without breaking. A bright-eyed bellhop takes our bags for us and Johnny tells him to take it to the penthouse. "One second." Johnny says to me before walking up to one of the receptionists standing at the huge front desk.

I look over to my parents and my father has his arm around my mother's waist, watching her with loving eyes as she points to every beautiful thing she sees. I aspire to have my parents' love life. They are high school sweethearts. Mom actually had me when she was seventeen, but they never stopped working and eventually, life turned out pretty well for them. They're not rich, but they have worked hard for what they have and that's why they are so hesitant to spend money. They're afraid they'll lose everything they've worked to gain, which I can respect.

"Well," I hear Johnny walk up to me with a couple card keys in his hand. "We are all set, our bags have already been brought up." He glances over to my parents and smiles. "They look happy."

"They are." I say, leaning against him. Maybe I can have what they have with Johnny. Maybe.

I feel excitement rise up in my belly as Johnny sticks the card in the door. "Ready to see what a penthouse looks like?"

I nod and can see that my mother looks like she's going to wet herself. The light on the door clicks green and Johnny opens it with his usual dramatic flair. "Welcome to your new home. For the week."

I step inside and am blown away. A huge sitting room in all white decorated with all kinds of tropical fruits and paintings of local wildlife dot the space. I admire the modern leather furniture, flat-screen TV, modern style bar with blue barstools. I walk across the huge space towards the wall that is just one huge window that leads out to a giant balcony. There is even a pool. I open the sliding glass door and am hit with the warming scent of the ocean, the sound of the waves crashing on the beach just a hundred yards away. "Can we move here?" I ask when I notice Johnny is standing beside me.

"Do you want to move here?" He asks, leaning back against the metal railing.

I nod, closing my eyes, taking in the sounds and smells. "It's so cleansing."

I feel a thick arm wrap around me. I open my eyes as Johnny is laying his head on top of mine. "We can live wherever you want."

"You've been acting weird lately. Like you're hiding something." I say watching a family with two small monsters walk to the beach.

"Nothing you should worry about." He says, giving the side of my head a kiss. "Everything will make sense in due time."

I glance up at him and he is giving me that smirk. That smirk that I once hated, but now can't get enough of. "Alright," I say. "I trust you."

"Good," He gives me a tight squeeze before letting go of me. "Shall we unpack?"

I nod. "We shall."

Johnny and I finish throwing our stuff into the dresser in our bedroom. My parents are actually okay with us sleeping together. I guess they're trying to let us be adults, even though Johnny is more the adult than I am. I plop down onto the huge king sized bed, wrapping myself in the white silk sheets. "Yes," I purr to myself, watching Johnny put our suitcases in the closet.

He glances at me over his shoulder and laughs. "What are you doing?"

"I am a burrito." I say. "Please do not eat me."

"I dunno," He says, turning to face me, crossing his arms. "You look pretty delicious to me."

I inch away from him. "No." I growl.

Johnny arches an eyebrow at me. "You dare challenge me, burrito?"

I bare my teeth at him, letting a soft hiss out, making him laugh hard. "You're cute when you're trying to threaten me."

"What are you two doing?" My mom's curious voice calls from our doorway.

"Apparently, she's a burrito." Johnny says with a chuckle.

My mom laughs. "She's always been like that. She just loves soft blankets."

"I did not know that." Johnny says, giving me a curious glance.

My mother laughs and steps aside as my father walks up to her. "You guys want to go check out the beach?"

I jump out the blankets and run to grab my swimsuit, "Yes!" I skip to the bathroom next to our room and close the door, throwing on a blue bikini. I stroll back out and see that my parents are getting ready in their master bedroom.

I walk back to our room and see that Johnny has thrown on a pair of red and gold swim trunks with a white tank top with the ROR letters on it. He looks over to me and smiles. "You look cute."

"Thank you. The dollar bin's late summer collection." I playfully model the swimsuit, making Johnny laugh.

"You seem a lot more relaxed." He says, lying down on the bed.

I plop down next to him, turning on my side to look at him. "I'm just a little different without all the stress of school and scaring on top of me."

He rolls onto his side as well, resting his arm over my hip. "So you're saying school makes you boring?"

I punch him in the chest. "No, I'm just, more focused."

Johnny simply smiles in response, his violet eyes never looking away from mine. His hand reaches for my face and he gently caresses my cheek, stroking it slowly with his thumb. "I love you."

I grab his hand and smile. "I love you too."

"Come on you two." My mom calls from the doorway. "You can do all that later! Besides, beaches are more fun!"

We make it to the beach and my toes sink into the soft sand. I look out to the crystal blue water and feel my heart in my throat. I'm actually on a real vacation with my family. This is amazing! I pull my sundress off over my head and throw it on the ground. I'm not waiting to help them set up our little beach spot. I'm going swimming.

I reach the edge of the water and let the tide wash up to my feet. The water is such a perfect temperature. I take a step closer and watch as the waves crash in the distance. I ready myself to dive right in when I hear footsteps running towards me.

"Reed!" A familiar voice shouts. "Oh my God, Reed! Hello!"

I slowly turn my head and see Ginger in a gold bikini running towards me, her tail swaying behind her. "Ginger?" I say, trying to not sound completely freaked out.

"Hey!" She stops right in front of me, her ears perked. "I didn't know you guys were coming here!"

"Yeah, I didn't either, the parents made a last minute decision to come here rather than the Gulf." She says, shrugging. "Where's Johnny?"

I look over to where he is helping my dad set up the beach umbrella. Oh my God, he is going to lose his mind. "He's helping my parents."

Ginger follows my gaze to where Johnny is currently lying out beach towels. "Oh, wow, those are your parents?"

I nod. "Yep, that's them."

"Wow," She says, her ears twitching. "Are you part dragon or something?"

"Yeah," I shrug. "Not full-blooded though."

I swallow hard when I see Johnny notice Ginger. I grit my teeth as I watch him come towards us, his eyes narrowed. Yeah, he's pissed.

He walks right up to Ginger, growling in her face. "What are you doing here, I thought you were going to the gulf?"

"Dad changed his mind." She glances over to two monsters bathing in the sun, they look like Johnny and Ginger. Those must be their parents. "For some reason. We are staying in the beachfront condo just up the way."

Johnny looks over to me. "He must've known your parents planned to come here." He rubs his forehead. "Shit. He's going to try and scare you away." He growls to himself.

"Why would he do that?" I say, narrowing my eyes at him.

"Because he doesn't think I should be with you." Johnny hisses, keeping his voice low. "He thinks I should be with a more 'elite' monster."

"Why?" I say, trying to not be insulted.

Johnny looks to Ginger then to me. "He is concerned about the family legacy. He doesn't realize how amazing you are. You are an elite."

I shake my head. "He can't keep you from me."

"No, he can't." Johnny snaps. "And he won't."

I glance over to his parents and see his dad looking up at me and I feel the urge to run the other direction. He is like Johnny times ten. No wonder my dad doesn't like him. He looks like he could snap me in half and think nothing of it. I move closer to Johnny, whispering to him. "Your dad is staring at me."

Johnny's gaze immediately whips around to his father. "Don't worry, he can't get to you as long as I'm around." He then glances to his mother who is now also looking at me. She looks a lot more happy to see me. Actually, she looks extremely happy to see me. Oh God, she's coming towards me. "Johnny," I whisper and he gives me a soft pat on the shoulder. "She won't hurt you." He says.

"Hello there, miss," Her voice is very elegant and wispy. I notice her silk scarf wrapped around her neck as it billows in the breeze. "I couldn't help but notice you. You must be Reed." She holds out a delicate hand. "My name is Shirley, I'm Johnny's mother."

I take her hand she gives it a light shake before letting go. "Nice to meet you." I say, trying to not run the other direction. I look over to Johnny and he is watching his mother carefully, though not the same way he does his father.

"Mom," Johnny whispers softly, though I can clearly hear him. "Please make sure dad stays away from her."

"Of course, baby," She says softly, rubbing Johnny's arm. "I'll make sure he leaves you two alone." She gives me a wink. "It was nice meeting you, sweetie, maybe us three could have lunch sometime this week."

I hesitate, looking to Johnny for approval and he nods. "That sounds good." I finally say, though very timidly.

"Good, good," Shirley says. "Well, I'm going to get back to your father. He hates when I just run off." She laughs. "He's still a teenager at heart. Well, bye-bye." She waves before trudging back through the sand, taking her seat next to Johnny's father under their private cabana.

Ginger quickly follows her, quickly waving goodbye before plopping down on the sand beside her father. I peer up to Johnny and he looks unhappy. "I can't believe he made them come here."

Johnny continues to glare in their direction and I see my dad approaching us. "You kids alright?" He says, his eyes concerned. "They weren't bothering you were they?"

I shake my head. "No, they were just saying hi."

"Alright, well I've got drinks in the cooler and the towels are all spread out. You two just help yourselves." He gives me a smile. "Your mom and I are going to walk along the shoreline. She is really insistent on finding seashells."

I snicker to myself. "Alright, you guys have fun."

My dad smiles, looking at Johnny who returns a polite grin, "Be careful you two." He says before walking towards my mom, looping her arm through his. I glance over to Johnny's parents and see that they are holding hands while both reading their own books. Our parents both have their own unique connections. My parents are playful, his are subtle. I glance up at Johnny who looks like he is thinking the same thing I am. I narrow my eyes at him and he just stares right at me. "Think fast!" I yell, pushing him towards the surf, but he clearly saw it coming because he wraps his arms around me and pushes me in instead. I land in the waves with a splash and as I push my head above the surface to breathe I glance over to Johnny, who is still perfectly dry, standing at the edge of the shore. He smirks playfully, crossing his arms. "Nice try, freshman."


Uh Oh! The Worthingtons are at the beach with them! This should be a fun week, huh? Hehe. I have a lot planned for this funfest of drama that lies ahead so please continue to leave your support and even your ideas for what should happen next! Trust me, Reed and Johnny are not going to have it easy! That wouldn't be very fun to write or read. So I hope you guys enjoyed my little twist! So, until next chapter, bye-bye!