[EDITED: 3/30/2020]
"Hm...that's a really cute top." murmured a 17-year-old Hispanic girl. She sat crossed legged on one of the chairs in the lobby lounge area, reading a Glamour magazine.
She was wearing brown sandals, along with denim shorts, and a dark magenta-pink t-shirt with the word 'Princess' on it. Her dark hair was down and wavy, and looked to had applied some makeup on her face, along with some lip gloss on her slightly full lips.
The young woman read through the fashion article and went to the celebrity news section.
She curled her lips in disgust, "Ugh...to this very day, I don't know why Twilight has been made into a movie," she skipped that page and read another article.
"Paulina, sweetheart?" said the voice of the girl's father.
Paulina Sanchez broke out of her reading trance to look up at her father, who was standing next to her with a smile on his face.
"We've checked in and we're ready to go to our rooms," Mr. Sanchez told her.
Paulina smiled, "Okay, Papa! But maybe you guys could go on without me? I like to explore the resort a little bit. I'll catch up to you and Mama in just a moment."
"Oh," Mr. Sanchez's smile went down for a moment, "Well, okay sweetheart. Just...uh, don't be out for too long."
The girl smiled reassuringly to her father, "Don't worry, Papa, I won't. I'm just checking this place out. It's really nice! Whoever Jeremy is, tell him 'thank you' for the trip!"
Mr. Sanchez smiled warmly at his daughter, "Sure thing, sweetheart," he then got the card-key for her room out and gave it to Paulina, "In the meantime, here's your key, sweetie. Your mother and I will be in our room. Just text us when you're at your room safe and sound."
Paulina rolled her eyes humorously at that last part and took the card-key from her father. "Papa, don't worry, I'll be fine. I'll just be in the resort's vicinity is all."
"I know, I just..." Mr. Sanchez looked a little uncertain until he took a deep sigh, "...Just be careful, okay, Paulina-Dear?"
"I will, Papa. No worries," Paulina said with a comforting smile.
Mr. Sanchez nodded with a smile and went to his waiting wife, leaving their daughter out in the lobby as Paulina looked at her magazine some more.
As she sat there, she was thinking about her father's concern.
'I appreciate Papa looking out for me, but he needs to stop being so worried. I can take care of myself...' Paulina frowned, '...I mean, I can understand why, but...I just want to feel independent again...'
Paulina's frown turned into a soft smile.
'...Phantom really came through that day.'
"Oh my gosh, Paulina!?"
Startled, Paulina looked up at the familiar voice that called her. Her eyes widened and as she exclaimed, "Star!?" she looked at the other girl next to Star, "Valerie!?"
Said girls blinked at the Hispanic girl, both dumbfounded as to see their(well, Star's anyway) friend here in the same resort as them.
"Uh...Paulina?" Valerie said in slight shock, "What are...what are you doing here?"
"Yeah! This is like...I'm not gonna lie, so weird right now. You booked a vacation to go to the Bahamas as well?" Star asked Paulina flabbergasted.
"Uh...no. I mean, well, kind of. I mean..." Paulina shook her head to clear her thoughts, "What are you two doing here?"
"My folks and I were booked here on vacation by my dad's boss. I brought Val along because there was an extra plane ticket," Star raised a brow, "What made you and your family come here for vacation?"
"Well, my dad's friend basically booked this trip my parents and I are on as well," Paulina studied them a little curiously, "Did...your dad happened to say his boss's name?"
Star seemed to get where she was getting at. "I think it was...Jeremy?"
Paulina's eyes widened. "My dad's friend is named Jeremy too."
"Whoa, hold on a minute," Valerie interrupted, trying to make sense of this, "This sounds a little too coincidental."
"Star?" said a teenage male's voice.
"Whoa, what are you gals doing here?" said another teenage male's voice.
All three girls turned their attention to the voices that spoke to them, revealing themselves as none other than...
"Kwan!?" Star said in shock.
Valerie raised a brow, "Dash?"
Sure enough, the two football jocks were walking up to them, both of them in their summer attire and each of them a little surprised.
Kwan was wearing some dark blue drawstring shorts with white tropical patterns on it, with an opened light blue shirt and a white undershirt underneath it, as well as wearing some brown sandals. He grew his dark-raven hair out to let it reach to his middle neck, and has bulked up in the past years, having a strong build.
Dash still has his blonde buzz-cut hairstyle and also has the same strong build, but he was wearing a red sleeveless O-neck gym tank-top with some brown shorts, along with black sandals.
The two boys looked at the girls in confusion. "Whoa. You girls are in the Bahamas as well?" asked Kwan.
Each of the girls glanced at each other, unsure what to make of this.
It was then Valerie spoke out, "Okay, scratch that. This is way too much of a coincidence."
"What's going on here?" Star asked. She then turned to Kwan, "I mean, it's not like that I'm, well, not happy you're here or anything, Kwan, but...what exactly are you and...Dash doing here?" she said the blonde boy's name with a slight sneer.
Dash frowned as he sensed the obviously harsh undertone of how Star said his name. "Aw, come on, you're still not mad about me bringing beer over to your party that one time, are ya? That was like, a month ago! Let it go already!"
Star glared at him, "For one thing, I was grounded for a week when my parents found out that someone brought beer into my home. I even told everyone not to bring alcohol, but you did. The least you could do was throw away the beer cans, and I'm not including my own trash bins! Secondly, that's not all that I'm upset about. You broke Catherine's heart in front of everyone in school!"
"Hey, she had a weird laugh, okay? I couldn't handle it!" Dash defended himself with a scowl on his face. "And I threw away some cans!"
"Actually, you did. You threw away four consumed cans of beer before getting drunk along with you and your buddies, trashing my place," Star seethed.
"Hey, a party is a party," Dash grumbled, "Besides, what was I supposed to do over there? The party was about our graduation that was coming up, we all had to let loose."
"Well, the least you could do, is try to at least be respectful to the person who's throwing the party!" Star growled as she exclaimed.
"Whoa, Star, just hold a second," Kwan said gently as he intervened in the argument, "Okay, to answer your question, my folks and I were given some tickets by someone to go to the Bahamas. I just brought Dash along cause there was an extra ticket. Plus, I thought he needed the vacation."
"Was...this person named Jeremy?" Valerie asked, a little weird out by the possibility.
"Huh? No, it was someone named Pamela..." Kwan thought about it for a second, "...Although, my dad said he knows someone by the name of Jeremy. My mom also knows someone named Pamela as well."
"Wait a minute...Pamela...why does that name sound so familiar?" Paulina muttered to herself.
"Well, either way, somebody is giving your parents these tickets to the Bahamas," Valerie stated, "I'm just here because Star invited me."
"Pamela...wait, my mom talks about a Pamela!" Paulina realized.
"Whoa...are we, like...on some kind of reality TV show right now?" Kwan asked everyone, extremely puzzled.
"Hey, that would be kind of sweet," Dash smirked, as he flexed an arm, "Hope they get my good side."
"Dash, this is serious. I mean, this vacation is really nice and all, but something is going on her-" Then Valerie's words abruptly halted when she saw someone near the entrance to a little convenient shop in the resort close to their lobby.
The rest of the teens looked over to where Val was staring at...
Kwan, Star, and Valerie blinked, while Paulina, turning in her couch seat, saw who they were looking at. Her eyes widened, while Dash had a dumbfounded look on his face along with a raised brow.
"Sam!?" Valerie exclaimed in shock.
The goth girl apparently heard her name clearly, startling her as she jumped a little bit. Turning to the voice who called her, violet-purple eyes laid on the group that was gathered in the lobby. Her eyes widened as she froze there in place, mouth partly agape.
They stared at each other for a moment...
Sam blinked at them, as the gears were turning in her head.
'...Oh...no. They DIDN'T.'
"Uh..." Kwan said, "Um...hi Sam?" he said a little awkwardly.
Valerie shook her head to clear the shock, "Sam? You're here too?" Val began to walk up towards the goth girl.
"Wow," Star said, a little flabbergasted, "This Jeremy and Pamela even got the Manson's too."
Upon hearing that, Sam's judgment is now definitely confirmed, 'WHAT!?' she exclaimed inside her mind.
"Oh, great," Paulina said in irritation as she rolled her eyes, "Goth girl is here, too. Why would this Jeremy guy book a ticket for her and her family here?"
"Tch, yeah. What next, Fenturd and Fouley here as well?" Dash remarked rudely.
"Hey, come on, guys, don't treat 'em like that. They're not bad," Kwan vindicated.
"Yeah. What are you living in, freshman year?" Star rolled her eyes specifically at Dash, who in turn glared at her. She turned to Paulina, "And come on, you're still not holding a grudge against Sam, are ya?"
Paulina frowned, "After what she did to me in your party? How can you say that!?"
"To be fair, we don't know who...well, did that to you," Kwan said as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"Are you serious!? She basically told a drunk Lester that I was into him and he tried to make out with me!" Paulina seethed, "He even smacked my ass, the perv!"
"You know, even though he's a nerd, I got to hand it to him, that was a bold move. He got some respect in my book," Dash remarked.
"Still, you did basically threw some beer onto her face," reminded Star, "I wouldn't blame her really, that was uncool of you to do."
"You know, you're testing our friendship more and more every day, Star," Paulina droned.
"Come on, we're seniors now, haven't we put that part in our school lives behind us?" Kwan notified Dash and Paulina.
"Hey, to me, always a geek, stays a geek," Dash clarified.
"And to me...well, I have nothing against Danny and Tucker anymore," Paulina shrugged, "They're okay. As long as they don't hit on me. But Sam..." she glowered at the girl, who was talking to Val at that point, "...I just cannot stand her!"
"Why is that?" asked Star in curiosity.
"Is it because she has a bigger chest than you or something?" Dash asked bluntly.
Paulina turned her head to scowl at him.
"Hey, she may be a geek, but I got to say, she's doing pretty good for herself with that veggie diet she's on."
"Uh..." Kwan raised a brow at his friend, "Dash? Buddy? That just sounded weird coming from your mouth."
"Huh? What do you mean?" Dash asked in confusion.
"Um, Dash, you do realize that you basically admitted that you think Sam looks attractive, right?" Star made it known to the jock as she looked at him oddly.
Dash blinked. "Uh...all I said was that she looked like she was doing pretty good for herse-" he stopped and paused in his speech, "...Forget what I just said," the jock frowned as he crossed his arms indignantly.
Paulina just glared at Dash before she sighed and turned her attention to Star and Kwan, "It's because she...I don't know, she thinks she's better than me or something!"
Star and Kwan both blinked at that and glanced at each other looking a little bit puzzled. Star turned back her attention back to Paulina, "I don't know why you'd think that. You'd excelled in everything so far at school."
"Yeah, well, she seems to be good at everything else! I mean..." Paulina sighed, "Look, it's...it's complicated, okay? And believe it or not, it's not because of looks or anything, alright? It is what it is...it's complicated," Paulina crossed her arms in a huff, frowning as she looked down.
Kwan and Star still looked confused while Dash just simply shrugged.
"Sam? What are you doing here?" Valerie asked her as she walked up to her.
Sam basically stood there, her head reeling at this turn of events. She placed a hand on the side of her forehead and closed her eyes, gritting her teeth, "No...they didn't."
Val blinked. "Did what? Who?"
"My-" Sam's words died on her as she opened her eyes and looked at Valerie. She briefly thought about keeping her secret hidden still, but really, what's there to keep at this point?
She tried really hard on being the outcast and loner at school, hiding from the other kids to not know of her family status, so she wouldn't have to be begged to join some stupid group that involved social status. She really did try to hide this when her father inherited the company that her great-grandfather built(who knew a device for twirling cellophane on tips of toothpicks would be so profitable?) when she was twelve, seeing before how shallow some of the kids are when it came to wealth. At age thirteen, that's when she decided to go goth, so she can be different from the rest of the popular and wealthier crowd.
And now, at this very moment, the truth is coming out...and at the worst time too. She was trying to decide what university she liked to go to, she didn't need this stress.
...Well, actually, she was thinking of going to Harvard either way, but she wanted to know if she would like to do bio-engineering or attend law school.
"Sam?" Valerie called out of her thoughts.
The goth blinked and looked at Valerie briefly, which the African-American girl looked at her in concern.
'...Shit.'
Sam placed both hands onto her face and groaned loudly into them. When she released her face, she took a deep calming breath and let out a sigh through her nose, all the while closing her eyes. Once she opened them, she let out a forced smile. "Valerie...hi."
Raising a brow, Valerie warily replied, "Uh...hi?"
"Yeah, um..." Sam thought of how to break it to her and everyone else that she was, in fact, rich. Valerie she doesn't technically have a problem with now; she would chat with her at times at school. But she didn't tell her about her family's wealth to begin with, unlike Danny, Tucker, and maybe even Jazz. She was gonna tell her sooner or later when the time was right, cause she feels like she trusts her now, especially since she, aka Red Huntress and Phantom, are kind of on good terms now. Still, how would she even react to her background?
'Only one way to find out.'
Sam sighed, "Okay, look, um...you, your friends, and your families got some flight tickets to the Bahamas from random people, right?"
Valerie's eyes widened in surprise. "Y-Yeah, how did you-"
"Those random people are my parents," Sam said without skipping a beat.
...Valerie's eyes widened even further, her mouth agape for a second until she closed it as she looked at Sam in shock.
"...Yeah..." Sam mumbled.
Struck by this bombshell of information, Val blinked and shook her head to clear it, "Wait, that...how can your parents...pay for Paulina's, Kwan's, and Star's vacation?"
Sam raised a brow, "You didn't get one? Neither did...Dash?" she cringed as she took a glance at him.
"Well, we were invited. There were extra tickets," Val explained.
"...Of course," muttered Sam bitterly, "They wouldn't want to spend too much money."
"W-Wait, Sam," Valerie was trying to grasp this, "Are you saying that...you and your family are-"
"Loaded, yes," Sam dully said.
Valerie's eyebrows shot up as her mouth was partly opened, "...Whoa..." she looked back at her group and back at Sam, "Are...Are your parents named-"
"Jeremy and Pamela, yep," Sam nodded.
"...Holy cow," Valerie said in an impressed tone, "What...What does your family do?"
"...My great grandfather was the inventor of that thing that twirls the color cellophane on those toothpicks," Sam answered truthfully, kind of embarrassed.
"...For real?" Val raised a curious eyebrow.
"...Yeeeeee-ep," Sam said, feeling a little awkward as she rubbed the back of her neck, "You'd be surprised at how much profit my family gets from doing that."
"...Uh...okay then," Val blinked once more, "But wait...your family was rich the whole time, without even us knowing?"
"My father inherited the business when I was twelve, so...the money came rolling in years later. I just...didn't want to be associated with the A-list crowd back then, after seeing how they treated everyone at our school, and...yeah, that's basically my reasoning there," Sam muttered as she explained.
"Oh..." Valerie nodded in understanding with a sympathetic frown, "Well..." she looked sheepish as she glanced at the ground, "I don't particularly blame you..." she looked up at Sam again, "Just to be clear, but back then, you would've gone and joined our group, but...you didn't?"
Sam raised a brow, "Uh, yeah, that's...basically what I just said."
"Yeah, I know, but it's just...wow...I find that pretty cool of ya," Val admitted.
Sam looked taken aback, "Really?"
"Well, yeah. You pretty much stayed true to yourself, and not be caught up with this stupid school popularity contest back then when we were in freshman year."
Feeling a little diffident from the praise, Sam shrugged and rubbed the back of her neck, "Well...I was just trying to be different than the A-listers, honestly."
"Still, you made the right call," Valerie complimented with a smile. She tilted her head a bit in curiosity though, "Does...Danny and Tucker know?"
"Oh, um, yeah, they know," Sam said awkwardly with a nod.
"Oh...so...you only tell this secret to people that are like...your close friends, or to people that you really trust...or something?" Val asked with a wince.
Frowning at the slight implication of what Valerie is saying, Sam felt a little shamefaced as she looked down at the floor, "Well...it's kind of a little bit of both, actually."
"...Oh," Val frowned, looking back down at the floor as well, "...Well, um, I wouldn't tell anyone at all about your status, if that's what you were thinking."
"Yeah, I...figured you wouldn't," Sam muttered. She slightly winced, "But, I think it's a little too late to keep this a secret now."
Val weakly laughed, "Uh...yeah..." she looked back behind the group behind her in the lobby, "...Well, y-you could've told me. I-I mean, you know, I, uh...thought that, well, since we both dated Danny that one time..."
Sam looked up at Valerie with interest.
"...and we talked about it during Star's party a month ago, so I thought...that we, you know, were...kind of friends?" Valerie finished sheepishly.
The goth girl blinked at that, "Oh, uh...well, um..." she winced, feeling like all kinds of awkward.
Sensing the uncomfortable tension between them, Valerie decided to just say, "Hey, no worries! I mean, I totally get it. I was jerk back then...but I really think we grew out of all that whole popularity nonsense. I mean, Star invited you to plenty of parties, including Tucker and Danny. And Kwan talks to you at times."
Sam gave out a small smile, "Yeah...they're okay now..." she then frowned, "Except for Dash and Paulina, though. Dash completely trashed Star's home at her last party she threw before graduation."
"Ugh, I was there. The least he could do was be respectful at her house and tone down his party antics," Val commented with a frown as well.
"And drink like, one beer," Sam shook her head as she remembered that display of Dash's drunkenness at Star's party, "Oh, but that would be too responsible of him."
"Heh, hoo-boy, yeah..." Valerie paused for a second and smirked at Sam, "I got to say though, what you did to Paulina was hilarious."
"Oh, you saw that?" Sam grinned cheekily.
"Oh totally! I guess that was the upside of Dash bringing beer, seeing a drunk Lester make advances at Paulina," Val snickered.
Sam chuckled lightly, "Yeah. I thought it was the perfect setup. Just told him that she was 'sooo into him', and it all worked out perfect from there."
Valerie giggled, "Yeah..." she then looked thoughtful, "Hmm...I think she went home after that."
"Tch, for once I don't blame her. Not after what happened to her," Sam said with a roll of her eyes with a smirk.
Valerie raised an eyebrow at the goth, "Actually...why do you not like Paulina?"
Sam looked at Valerie like she grew a second head, "Is that a serious question?"
"Well...yeah," Val shrugged, "What made you hate her in the first place? It couldn't be during our freshman year in high school, could it? I mean, yeah, she was shallow, and she probably still is, but did you not like her still even in grade school?"
Sam stood there in silence for a bit and replied, "It's...kind of complicated..."
The African-American girl was going to ask why, until Star came up to them.
"Hey, uh, Sam, how are ya? Like, pretty weird seeing us all here and...stuff," Star said a little awkwardly, wincing a bit.
Sam just smirk, "Hey Star. Yeah, pretty strange, ain't it?"
Star smiled back, "Heh, yeah...were you sent by a Jeremy and Pamela by any chance?"
Sam and Valerie blinked at the question. The former's lips were tugging upward as she started to gradually snicker until she full-on chortled. Valerie couldn't contain herself as well, giggling up a fit.
Now Star blinked, looking totally confused. She then asked, "Um...I'm thinking that's a 'yes'?"
Sam eased her laughter a bit, "Uh, yeah, I was sent here by a Jeremy and Pamela. Against my own will, actually."
Star raised an intrigued eyebrow, "Huh? Really?" she then stood frozen as her eyebrows went up, "...Wait a second, 'against your own will'? You make it sound like-" she paused as she had a look of realization, "...wait...whoa, hold a second here," she put her finger to the sides of her head and closed her eyes to process the information given to her, "Are you saying...Jeremy and Pamela are, like...your...?" she opened her eyes, squinting at her, waiting for her answer.
The goth rolled her eyes, "Well, I am their daughter."
Star's eyes widened in absolute shock, "...Oh...my..." she straightened up, "...No way."
"Yeah way," Sam drolly said.
"...I...then...t-that means...I mean, your parents paying for twelve plane tickets to the Bahamas?" Star said in awe.
"Twelve? Then that would make fifteen, including us..." Sam mused. Upon realizing that, she blinked at the conclusion. "...Damn, my parents went all out." she turned to Val, "You said there were extra tickets to each family, right?"
"Well, yeah, just in case one us wanted to bring a friend. I came with Star, while Dash came with Kwan," Valerie explained.
"Ah, I see," Sam rolled her eyes, shaking her head as she muttered, "Yet they didn't invite Nana."
"Nana?" Val questioned.
"My grandmother."
"Ah, okay."
"Wait a moment!" Star halted them, "Th-That means you're rich, Sam!"
"What!?" exclaimed a shocked Paulina.
The three girls turned their attention towards the Latina girl who was close to the trio. Kwan and Dash were behind her and must've heard the whole thing as well, since they had dumbfounded looks on their faces. Paulina, on the other hand, has her mouth wide open at the revelation.
Sam flinched, "Aaaand everybody now knows."
Paulina closed her mouth and shook her head to clear away her shock, "You're rich!? Since when!?"
Sam sighed in frustration and muttered, "Oh well. It was fun while it lasted," she looked at Paulina, "My family was always rich, Paulina. The money only started rolling in when my parents, aka Jeremy and Pamela, inherited the family fortune while I was twelve."
"Whoa, wait...your parents are Jeremy and Pamela? The ones that paid for our plane tickets here?" Kwan asked amazed.
"Yep," Sam answered simply.
"Wha...wait," Dash shook his head to clear his mind, "H-How much did your parents inherit?"
"Hmm...I think one-hundred million or something like that?" Sam replied nonchalantly.
All of them, except Sam, had their eyes wide and mouths dropped at that bombshell.
"Whoa...Sam, that...that's like...that's like a very immense amount!" Valerie told her stunned.
Sam shrugged, "Yeah, it certainly sounds like it, doesn't it? Even though we just surpassed five-hundred million this year."
"WHAT!?" Paulina screeched, "Over half to a BILLION DOLLARS!?"
"Uh, question...how did you and your family get so, um...loaded, Sam?" Star asked her curiously.
"Oh, well, my great grandfather invented the machine that twirls cellophane on toothpicks. Thus, it became part of the cellophane industry." Sam explained.
"...Wow," Kwan said, a little impressed, "The things you can make money off of nowadays."
Sam chuckled, "Yeah, it's pretty simple, but also really profitable."
"Wow, Sam. I had no idea," Star said in awe.
"Well...you all weren't really supposed to know, honestly," Sam mumbled out loud.
Star and Kwan, however, made out that murmur. When they heard what she said, their expressions were somber, instantly feeling ashamed of themselves. They treated Sam and the other kids during their freshman year like dirt, being caught up in the popular A-list crowd. Honestly, it wasn't their proudest moments for the two teens.
"Oh really?" Paulina said a little venomously, apparently hearing Sam's mumble, "Well then, what changed your mind on telling us now, huh? Is it because we all finished high school? Was that your time to tell us? Did you just want to flaunt your wealth around so you can tell us how rich you are? Were you trying to prove a point? Rubbing it in our faces? Making us feel like garbage under those stupid goth army boots of yours!?" she ranted.
Sam blinked and scowled at the Latina, "Chill, will ya? This was all my parents' idea. They wanted to set this little get-together up for me so I can make new friends."
"Oh, um, actually, heh, does Danny and Tucker know?" Star shakily deciding to ask suddenly, uncomfortable from all the tension that's going on with Paulina and Sam.
"Uh, y-yeah, they, uh, they know," Val answered for her uneasily, also not liking what's transpiring between the Latina and Goth.
"Oh, well, isn't that nice! You let your little boy toys in on your secret!?" Paulina hollered out at Sam.
Sam frowned at Paulina's word usage and glared at her, "Hey, first of all, don't you dare call Danny and Tucker that! They're my friends, and I would never treat them any differently than how you would treat a guy! Secondly, what's your problem!? It's not like you're any different yourself, Little Miss Shallow!"
"Tch! Whatever! I bet those boobs of yours aren't even real. I mean, you eat vegetables, how can you possibly gain anything and have a chest like that," Paulina sneered.
"Oh, real classy there, Paulina," Sam rolled her eyes as she crossed her arms in front of her nicely-sized chest, "Like I'm that starved for attention, unlike you. And ever heard of a thing called genetics!?"
"Well, at least I can attract guys without any freakish mutation growing out of my chest!"
"Oh, come on! They're not as big as Valerie's!"
"Hey!" Valerie exclaimed, covering her own equally big chest with a self-conscious flush.
"Uh, sorry, no offense, Val," Sam said quickly to her with an awkward smile.
Valerie pursed her lips in embarrassment as she glanced down, "...None taken."
Sam nodded a little sheepishly, until she turned back to Paulina with a glare, "Besides, I don't need looks to get a guy, I have a personality!" Sam countered.
"Oh please, that's what a girl like you would say," Paulina scoffed.
"Uh, girls? Um, maybe we should, like, not do this in public?" prompt a nervous Star.
"Yeah, I mean, people are kind of looking at us?" Kwan said to try to diffuse the situation as well.
However, they were ignored.
"Why are you so mad all of a sudden? What, is karma deciding to bite your fat ass back? Or better yet, slap your ass back like Lester did?" Sam slyly smirked at the reference she made.
"OH, THAT'S IT!" Paulina was about to lunge at Sam until Dash and Kwan grappled her arms to keep her from doing so. The Latina growled, trying to break free of their holds, "Let me at her! LET ME AT HER!"
"Paulina, calm down!" Kwan urged her.
"Yeah, chill! Although seeing a cat-fight would be awesome right now, we can't do it here in the lobby!" Dash says.
Kwan just looked at his friend with a 'really?' look while he struggled to contain Paulina.
"What?" Dash asked Kwan as he restrained the Hispanic girl.
Sam groaned, "You know, I was just going to get some green tea in the hotel's convenience store, but I think I overstayed my welcome here."
"Why don't you BUY the whole green tea company and the convenience store with it, you GOTH FREAK!?" Paulina shrilled.
"Ugh, whatever," Sam rolled her eyes in annoyance, "Well, see you guys around. Bye Val, Star, Kwan," she said, as she turned around to go to the elevators.
"Hey, what about me?" Dash said, looking almost a little offended.
Sam turned to look at Dash with a raised brow after she pushed the 'up' button on the elevator, "...Uh, no offense, but I don't like you."
The 'ding' on the elevator sounded and the doors opened for her to enter inside it. The elevator doors closed with her in it as it went up to another floor.
Valerie and Star were both silent as they glanced at each other and looked back at the elevator that Sam went into, while Dash and Kwan lessened their grips on the Hispanic girl, as she harshly threw her arms to be freed.
Paulina huffed a bit, and then emitted a deep growl, curling her hands into fists, and throwing them down in the air multiple times while sprouting out unintelligible grunts as she stomps on the ground. The people in the lobby all looked at the scene and decided to stay a little bit away from the girl's exasperated fit.
Valerie and Star looked back at Paulina with worried gazes.
"Uh...Paulina?" Star said in a nervous tone, "Are you...gonna be okay?"
"Yeah, um...you're not gonna try to murder Sam during the whole trip, are you?" Valerie asked, a little anxious on what her answer would be.
After one final stomp, Paulina took a deep breath and a guttural growl while her eyes closed. Once she was done, she opened them and looked back at the two girls, answering Valerie's question, "I'll try to contain myself. As of now, I'm going to my room. I just need the silence right now."
And with that, she stomped her way to the opposite side of the elevators and punched the 'up' button, waiting for her elevator to arrive.
The rest of the four teenagers just looked at Paulina, some with worry and some with interest.
"Wow...I wonder what happened between Sam and Paulina to make them get so...hostile?" Valerie asked anybody, but mostly to herself, in curiosity.
"I'll tell you one thing, we definitely would've treated Sam differently if we found that out way earlier," Star muttered.
"Yeah..." Kwan said as he rubbed the back of his neck, "I really don't blame her for keeping it a secret though. We were pretty shallow and snooty back then."
"Yeah..." Star looked down at the floor in shame with a hand on her arm, "...I guess this is kind of like karma getting back at us, huh?"
"Hey, Sam doesn't think anything bad about you two anymore. She doesn't think anything bad about me either, so it's all good," Valerie reassured them.
Dash scoffed, "Oh, but she thinks bad about me. Like, okay, I was a jerk. I get that. But it's not like she has to hold a grudge against me. She never talks to me or anything! Tch! Whatever." he folded his arms with a frown on his face.
Val, Star, and Kwan looked at Dash peculiarly.
Dash noticed the looks that were on their faces and raised a brow at them, "What?"
"...Do...you want her to?" Star asked Dash, looking a little intrigued.
The jock blinked. "What? No! Of course not! I mean, s-she's weird! A-And she's a Goth! I mean, I admit she's kind of hot now, but that's, like, the only compliment I'm gonna give her!" Dash's eyes widened in shock at what he said, "I mean...that doesn't mean I like her, I just-I mean, what I mean by-I mean, I..." he sees the three teens look at him oddly, "...Stop looking at me like that!" he exclaimed.
"Uh, Dash? I think you need to go to our room and lay down." Kwan advised him calmly.
While Dash argues with Kwan and Star, Valerie looked at Paulina as the Latina entered her elevator.
"...This just got interesting," Val murmured.
Meanwhile, back at Danny and Tucker's room...
8:00 PM
"Aaah...this is the life, you know?" Tucker said blissfully as relaxed on the bed in his clothes.
While Tucker was lying on his bed, Danny was sitting on his bed still in his clothes, watching the television.
"Yeah," Danny said with a smile, "And better yet, we don't have to go to that expedition with Mom, Dad, and Skipper. We're free to do anything we want tomorrow!"
"Oh yeah. No weirdness for these two guys," Tucker agreed with a smirk, pointing a thumb at himself, "Which, by the way, you sure you don't want to go to that Bermuda Triangle gig? Isn't that area kind of, like, infamous for weird happenings and whatnot? From the way Skipper was talking about ghost ships, maybe you can keep watch for anything that looks ghostly?"
Danny chuckled lightly, "If you're worried about my parents and Skipper out there, then don't be, Tuck. They'll be fine. Mom and Dad had packed every weapon that's ghost-related to take down any ghost ship or ghost pirate that tries to scrounge them up for loot or gold," Danny assured him.
Tucker shrugged, "Okay dude. I won't worry about it. Although, they could be going into uncharted territory with this Triangle business."
"Tuck, I'm certain the Bermuda Triangle is just a vast area of ocean that has some weird ghostly activity around it. And my parents deal with ghosts all the time, so I'm really certain they'll be fine with or without Phantom. Besides, the boat is kind of small, so I won't be able to find any hiding places that are believable enough," Danny told Tucker.
"Okay then. But know that the Bermuda Triangle is much more than just ghostly activity. Some say that the Triangle is a realm of itself, a portal to both the inter-dimensional and the supernatural."
"Tuck, are you trying to get rid of me so you'll have a chance with the girls here in the Bahamas?"
"Hey now, I'm just spreading facts."
Danny rolled his eyes, "Tucker, those are crazy conspiracy theories. I doubt that area in the sea is like an entrance to another dimension or that it can break the space-time continuum."
"Hey, you been in a zone full of ghosts, as well as ghost portals," Tucker argued.
"And I said that I believe the Bermuda Triangle is a ghostly hot spot, which I think that's all it ever is."
Now Tucker rolled his eyes, "Okay, Mr. Know-It-All, what happened to Amelia Earhart while she was flying through that area?"
"Eh, still a mystery."
"...Really? Come on, Danny, you believe in ghosts and space-science stuff, but you don't believe in stuff like this? What next, you don't believe there's a Heaven and Hell?"
"Of course there is. Some spirits have to go somewhere to spend eternity."
"...That's almost a little harsh if you're saying that some people are destined to go to Hell."
"Look, either way, the spirit stuff I do believe in, as well as the...'kind of' science stuff behind it. Heck, even the cosmos have somewhat of a spiritual plane to it. But this Bermuda Triangle business is just...well, I guess it just doesn't interest me. I would think it's a hot spot where weather patterns fluctuate and build up in due time, thus creating huge storms or something, causing whoever to fly or sail there to disappear because they're in the middle of such strong winds, thus destroying everything in its path. The concept of the Bermuda Triangle being something like a dimension is just...way too out there for me."
Tucker just laid there for a moment, until he shrugged again, "Well, some things you can't always explain. Isn't that like the Universe?"
Danny hummed thoughtfully. "...In a way."
Soon, their phones vibrated next to each other.
"Hm?" Danny picked up his phone and saw that it was a text from Sam. Tucker looked at his phone screen and saw it belong to Sam too.
Sam: Uuuugh...so, good news and bad news. Which one do you guys want to hear?
Danny and Tucker glanced at each other in question. They texted back.
Danny: Uuuh...the bad news?
Tucker: What's up, Sam?
Sam: Well...my parents apparently invited NOT ONLY some A-listers, but guess what?
Danny: ...What?
Tucker: If this is going where I think it's going...
Sam: Well, if you're psychic, Tuck, then I'm just going to straight out say it: Paulina and Dash are here, as well as Star, Kwan, and Valerie.
Tucker: WHOA! Are you serious? I was just kidding around!
Danny: What!? The whole A-list gang is there? And Valerie?
Sam: Yep, believe it or not.
Danny: Holy moly. What are the odds!?
Tucker: What's Star wearing?
Danny: …
Sam: …
Tucker: ...Too creepy?
Sam: I'm going to let you think on that.
Danny: Anyways, what happened?
Sam: Oh, I was just getting some cold green tea in the convenience store near the lobby at my hotel, and I heard my name from Valerie.
Danny: How is Val, btw?
Sam: If you really must know, she's doing good, Romeo.
Danny: Whoa, hey, I'm just being a friend.
Sam: Hm...well, anyway, she and the rest of the A-list gang were in the lobby. She came up to me, and then Star came up as well. Then...I told them that I was rich.
Danny: YOU DID!?
Tucker: WHAT?!
Sam: Hey, I can't hide it at this point. I just told them what my family does, who the people were that booked their flight(my parents), and that I was loaded.
Danny: Wow. Dang Sam, how did they take it?
Tucker: Heh, I bet Dash, Kwan, and Paulina were shocked.
Sam: Oooh-ho-hooo. That was the good news. Dash and Kwan were shocked, and so was Star, but Paulina went BERSERK.
Danny: Uh-oh. So, on a scale of one to ten, how much did she make a scene?
Sam: Haha! Dude, she was freaking out! Then she tried to get to me by thinking I wanted to tell them that I was rich so I can rub it in their faces. I mean, she even had the gall to say my chest wasn't real. How pathetic is that?
…
…
…
Sam: Hello?
Danny: Uh, sorry, I was just sitting here.
Tucker: Yeah, me too.
Sam: ...Come on you perverts, stop thinking what you're thinking.
Danny: Hey, I wasn't!
Tucker: Me neither!
Sam: Suuuure... e_e
Danny: Uh, so, anyway, Paulina basically went crazy on you in the lobby?
Sam: LOL! Man, she was UPSET! She snapped when I mentioned Lester slapping her butt as karma for all the time she did to me!
Tucker: Oooh, did she know that was you?
Sam: Pretty much now.
Tucker: LOL! Man, Lester became a man that day!
Sam: Haha! Lester was kind of eyeballing me as well. He was drunk, but I have to hand it to him, he can actually pick up some confidence when he's plastered! I told him that Paulina was 'so into him and his dance moves' and he just swaggered over there! XD
Tucker: Yeah, he owned it alright.
Sam: LOL. I couldn't contain myself from laughing at her! She looked so humiliated, it was instant justice!
Danny: Sam, don't talk about that anymore.
Sam: ...?
Danny: Sorry. It's just...you don't know what she might be going through.
Sam: ...Uh, okay?
Tucker: Uh...but yeah, what, um...happened?
Sam: Well, she went crazy, Dash and Kwan held her back, and I basically let her blew off some steam while I went to my room.
Tucker: Huh. Looks like you're going to have some play-dates tomorrow.
Sam: It looks like it. Kwan, Star, and even Val I'm really okay with. Paulina AND Dash...oof. I'm gonna have to put up with during this cruise thing tomorrow.
Danny: Cruise thing?
Sam: Yeah. Basically, my folks just hired a yacht driver to accompany me, Val, Star, Kwan, Dash, and Paulina to let us sail through the Bahamas.
Tucker: Yikes. They're going all out on this, huh? Although, I would love to be there and talk to Star...if Kwan wasn't there. X(
Danny: Well, dang Sam, I wish we could somehow make your time more bearable on that cruise. I mean, at least you get to talk to Valerie.
Sam: Oh, I'm really okay with Star and Kwan. I mean I hung out with the latter once, and Star is decent enough. And yeah, Val's cool...hey, I have an idea! :D
Tucker: Should we be scared? D:
Sam: LOL, naw! How about you guys come over to the cruise?
Danny: You want us to come over?
Tucker: Won't that complicate things with the captain and your parents knowing we're here?
Sam: Hey, I can pay the guy to not say anything. It's all good. ;)
Danny: Well...
Sam: Aw, come on, Danny! I NEED some FUN! I don't want to suffer through Dash being a bonehead, Paulina being herself, and all the awkward conversations I could have on this cruise!
Tucker: Hey, if I get to hang out with Star, then I'm sold.
Danny: ...Ah, what the heck, sure. It could be kind of fun, no matter how much Dash can be a jerk. Plus, Val and you will be there. It'll be a better outing than what my Mom and Dad are going to be on tomorrow.
Sam: The whole Bermuda Triangle thing?
Danny: Yep.
Tucker: Quick question, Sam, do you think the Triangle is some sort of portal to a dimensional plane or something?
Sam: LOL, wut?
Danny: Ignore him.
Sam: That's what I usually do. ;)
Tucker: You guys are mean. XP
Sam: LOL. But really, thanks SO much, guys. I really appreciate you coming to my rescue. :)
Danny: Lol, hey, no prob, Sam.
Tucker: Yeah! Just pay the guy some big bucks or something when you bribe him.
Sam: Will do. XD
Danny: So what time is the cruise?
Sam: I think...1:00 PM-ish? It's right after lunch.
Danny: Cool. Well, never worry, Sam! My assailant and I will come and rescue thy damsel from the evil clutches of BOREDOM.
Sam: LOL! Wow, Danny, you're such a dork.
Danny: WELL, EXCUUUUUUSE ME!
Sam: XD
Tucker: Okay, enough flirting you guys. Danny and I will be there tomorrow in the afternoon, Sam! ;)
Sam: XP I'll be counting on it!
Danny: LOL, see ya later, Sam!
Tucker: See ya, Sammy!
Sam: Haha! See you guys later! Bye!
And with that, Danny and Tucker put away their phones. The latter laid back down on the bed, while the former got up from his seat on his bed and came up to their open window that overlooked the sea. Once he came close to the window, he looked outside of it.
Nothing but water for miles and miles, as well as islands in the distance in the black night. The moon and the stars' luminous light radiated on the waters, the ocean basking in their ethereal glow. It looked like a picture-perfect scene, straight from a postcard. It almost looked otherworldly in a way.
The beauty of the heavens shining onto the sea...
"Hey, Danny?"
Danny turned to Tucker, "Yeah, Tuck?"
"Why did you cut off Sam while she was roasting Paulina?" Tucker asked while on his bed with a raised eyebrow.
"...Um...well, she's still a person too, you know, and...school life can be a little screwy at times," Danny answered, letting that be his reasoning.
Tucker kept looking at him, studying him for a moment, until he shrugged, "Eh, okay. I get what you're saying. I just thought you were like, into Paulina again or something."
"Oh, no, it's nothing like that," He shook his head to confirm it, "I just feel she's kind of like us in some way."
"...Like...us?" Tucker asked puzzled.
"Well, yeah. I mean, granted, she was shallow, but...you know, she had to be like us at one point."
"...Man, you're going way too deep into this, dude."
Danny rolled his eyes and sighed, "How about we just switch topics, okay Tuck?"
Tucker shrugged again, "Alright, sure. What do you want to talk about?"
"Well, what are you gonna do here at this moment?"
"Eh, look on my phone, watch a little bit of TV, and go to bed. What are you gonna do?"
"Hmm...it's not late or anything, but I was thinking of getting some air at the moment. Preferably at the beach."
"Oh...you okay?"
"Huh?" Danny blinked, "Uh, yeah. I'm fine. Why do you ask?"
"Well, you usually go outside to think about some stuff that bothers you."
Raising a brow, Danny said, "I just thought it would be a nice night out to take a stroll on the beach.
Tucker looked at their digital alarm clock that said 8:45 PM.
"Hey, it's my first time here in the Bahamas, and it's just a two-minute walk from there to the hotel, so I thought 'why not'?" Danny further explained.
Tucker looked back at Danny, "...Okay then. Just don't stay up too late. We gotta help Sam out on that cruise, and I want to make a good impression on Star when we get there."
Danny rolled his eyes, "Yes, Mom. I'll be back around nine, don't worry," he said in a dull and sarcastic tone.
And with that, he went intangible and flew through the open window to the night outside.
The tech geek just watched him disappear, seeing the sudden wind blow through the curtains, indicating that Danny was outside now.
"...Or, you could just walk there," Tucker muttered as he shook his head and laid back on his bed as he held his phone in front of him, "Well, either way, it's just you and me, Phone!" he said happily with a grin, "Man, you really are my new best friend..." he then whispered to it, "Don't tell Danny...or my PDA," he paused for a second while looking at it until he snickered. He then went back to fiddling with his phone.
Once Danny landed on the beach shoreline, he went tangibly solid once more. Thankfully, no one was on the beach at that time to witness it.
Danny took a whiff of the fresh saltwater air that wafted through his nose.
He began walking alongside the shore, the ocean water rising up as it sinks back down into the sea.
All was peaceful and quiet...the sound of waves casually going back and forth, a thrill in his ears.
After three minutes of walking straight alongside the shoreline, he stopped.
He turned his gaze at the night sea that stretches out in the distance. The moon full, the stars twinkling brightly. The night sky pitch black. The light of the stars and moon shining bright on the water's surface...
It was beautiful.
Danny closed his eyes took a deep breath...and sighed.
He listened to the waves...
...The soothing sounds of the water calmed him.
...It was then Danny decided to hum a song that seemed appropriate.
Somewhere...beyond the sea...
Somewhere...waiting for meee...
Danny hummed the song's tune and repeated the lyrics...
Somewhere...beyond the seaaa...
Somewhere...waiting for meee...
Danny hummed some more...
. . . . . .
. . . . . .
. . . . . .
I'M WAITING FOR YOU.
Danny's eyes shot open in an instant with a slight gasp.
...He stood there frozen.
...He felt cold.
...He could see the puff of his breath.
…And then...just like that, the cold sensation was gone.
Danny stood there in the night, alone on the beach...looking onto the moonlit sea.
...It was calm. Quiet. Silent, even...
He heard nothing...not even the waves.
...Until the waves roared up the shoreline again.
It was...troubling, to say at the least...
"...I...think I need to head back..." Danny said to himself slowly.
He stood there, not moving...it was then he went intangible and flew up and back to his room at the hotel.
...The beach became quiet again.
Tucker was web surfing on his phone, enjoying the peace and quiet, until...
WHOOSH!
"Uh, hey Tuck."
"Gah!" Tucker exclaimed, tossing his phone up a bit before catching it in his hands.
Danny was inside their room and stood a little bit away from their window. The dark-haired boy blinked at his friend.
Tucker turned to Danny with a scowl. "You know, you could give me a warning?"
Rolling his eyes, Danny muttered, "Sorry, Tuck. Just decided to come back to the room early."
Tucker 'hmphed' until he noticed Danny's posture was a little stiff, "...Um...everything alright?"
"Yeah, yeah..." Danny looked like he was going to look back, but thought nothing of it, "I'm just tired. We've been flying all day a little bit and I just need the rest."
"Uh...okay...actually, sleep sounds pretty good right now," Tucker said with a smile, "We want to wake up bright and early to do some activities before we go see Sam, Valerie, Star, and the rest of them!"
Danny smiled, "Yeah. That sounds like a plan."
Both boys changed into their pajamas and were ready for bed, getting into their separate mattresses.
They pulled their covers on them, with Tucker taking his glasses off and laying them on the counter in-between their beds, "Night Danny."
"Night Tuck," Danny said as he reached the lamp to turn off the light. Once their room went dark, both boys got comfortable in their own beds...
Danny, while he was comfortable in his bed, however, stared up at the ceiling.
"..."
He turned to his side, his front facing the window as he looked out the night sky...
It shouldn't bother him. It was probably just a ghost ship nearby or something...
…So why did his whole being felt...odd...when his ghost sense went off?
'...What was that?'
Danny kept wondering...until he fell into a peaceful slumber.
…
…
...
...He-he-he-heeee...
I've found it.
I've found...him.
...Ooooh...and it's a boy.
A half-living and half-dead boy.
...Oooh...so interesting...
He smells succulent.
His mind...I heard something...he'll sail the sea with friends...more children.
Heeee-ha-ha-ha-haaaaa...haaaa...
Oh, this will be marvelous.
More morsels in my domain.
And children, even adolescents, are so much FUN to MESS WITH!
HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HAAAAA!
Ooooh, it will be SO SCRUMPTIOUS!
Once they all enter...they'll never leave...
In due time, boys and girls...I'll be waiting for you ALL.
Heh-heh-heeeh...somewhere...beyond the SEA...indeed.
HAAAAA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HAAAAAA!
...And that's the chapter! ;D
So, yeah! You'll all have to wait until the next one for the 'cruise' to happen! Sorry! D: But in the meantime, tell me how I did with a review! :D If you also like it, please do give me a fave and a follow! I love to hear what you all have to say on how I handled the A-lister group, along with Danny, Tucker, and Sam! ^_^
Thank you all so much for reading this story! Until then, keep on rocking everybody! 8D
-TSP
