Chapter 51- Flowers of Love

Part 1 - 04/08/2024

Nothing could change Will's mind but there's no need to worry. Will is fine. Will isn't brainwashed or being manipulated. Will just doesn't want to leave Brie because she knows what it's like being alone. As for Lucy, she just doesn't want to leave Will again like she did the last time until she's certain that Will is ready. That's what Faith said. Faith seems to have all the answers including why it would be good for a change of environment. It's one way to make sure that no one is following. It's an opportunity to see if this is a good place to settle which everyone agrees that five months is still too soon to decide. Surrounded by nature is nice but it isn't any better than Toronto because it rains as often even if it's not as cold in the winter. Summer time is nice though since it's not as hot and today is turning out to be the best day of the year so far.

"I can't believe he still remembers me." Amy said as she continued to look at Zander who's enjoying running around the playground set.

"Of course he would. I made sure of that…"

Janet hasn't changed much, still so bubbly, except for the weight. She finally lost it. Months without Nadia's cooking must have helped. With no one except Scud to look after Zander, she must be looking forward to today for quite some time since she has a lot of stories to tell. Anyone would be happy to learn that their child is gifted with a good memory but no one would describe their child as an eavesdropper. Now that's funny. It is until she said Zander overheard her conversation with Scud.

"He wanted to know what a divorce is, where you went, when you'll be back. And the most bizarre thing he said was Waygoway, he meant Reyjavik. He knew where Lucy went. Scud didn't even know at that time. Isn't that weird?"

Not weird at all. Maybe he heard it from Scud when he was talking to Lucy on the phone. Maybe it's just a word he heard before. More detail is needed to determine how he knew. But right now, Amy has no interest in finding out how it happened and when it happened because she now realized why Janet deliberately asked Nadia to go play with Zander for awhile. It's not just to talk about Holly and everything that happened in the past year. It's because she heard about Lucy. Who told? It could be Lucy. It could be Nadia. Regardless, there's no need to hide it from Janet since she needs to know the vaccine isn't 100% effective. "You can still get it. So if you have a sore throat, don't assume it's nothing. Make sure you isolate." That's what happened after that night. A few sneezes one day turned to more cold symptoms the next. It felt like a cold until the self-testing kit for covid came out positive. Luckily, it wasn't serious. The self-testing kit wasn't accurate either. But one thing is certain, staying in one part of the house wasn't enough to stop the spread because Faith got the same symptoms the next day. "Quarantining is necessary." It's a logical reason but not good enough for Janet to think there is nothing wrong. Now it's obvious. Janet is prepared for this because now she's talking about everything that Lucy did, the sacrifice, the pain, how she almost died, and everything she went thru. If Max were here, she would've rolled her eyes because Janet is describing Lucy like she did nothing wrong. Would she still think that if she knows about Ezz? Would she still think that if she knows that Lucy slept with Brooke after hooking up with me? Would she still be able to see Scud the same way if it was Scud, if Scud was once a womanizer? Of course she won't. She too would have nightmares. She too would wonder what else Lucy is hiding. She too would wonder if it will happen again. People don't change. They just get better at hiding who they really are. That's what CJ said. Surprisingly, Faith said the same thing. She is who she's always been. Janet would most definitely disagree because now she's freaking out and being overly-dramatic. "I really don't think she's going to try to blow up Australia again."

"of course not, duhh, she's not crazy but she'll blow up that forbidden island for Brooke and because of you"

Meanwhile

It's been over a year yet it feels like nothing has changed except for the location. Scud still looks the same but apparently, his IQ has improved. An explanation was already given a long time ago. No more questions were asked since then. Now he's not convinced and Anthony is looking like he just realized he had been lied to. It's not a lie. It's because there's no need for them to know the details. But they're right. It is difficult to trust anyone related to Schaeffer, let alone his son. It is difficult to believe that he was able to remove the bomb himself. An expert might not even be able to. But Christian did because he was prepared. All it took was a bucket of liquid nitrogen and a distraction that no one else is supposed to know about, not Anthony and not Scud who, for some reason, realized the summary given doesn't make sense and now he wants to know how two guys in the van failed to notice what Christian did.

"So?" Scud asked since Lucy is in thinking mode as if trying to think of a better reason than what she said before. Wanting to know what she will say cannot be the only reason. "If you're not going to tell us, we could always ask-" Scud didn't continue since it's working. The glare given shows that she must not want Amy to know.

Should I? Lucy takes a gulp of water while remembering that moment of confusion, fear and not knowing what to do. There was nothing she could do other than do what Dr. Hazel once said. It wasn't a suggestion. It was a joke because Dr. Hazel doesn't believe anyone could be hypnotized unless they're willing. Surprisingly, it worked. Somehow banging her head against the wall caused enough pain to overcome Doc's hypnotic drug. What's even more surprising was finding out what Adalyn put herself thru. There weren't just questions. One touch on one hand led to more. Did that happen in every hypnosis session? That's what she was thinking. As inappropriate as it was, she continued with the pretense, doing what she was expected and saying what she had intended because it was the only way to make them believe that she had been telling the truth and that Brooke didn't know anything about the key. She didn't realize that Christian also had his own plan B until she heard the sound of the helicopter and saw the underground tunnel that leads to a panic room which was quite impressive. But none of that is as surprising as what Christian confessed to. It wasn't a plan B. It was Adalyn's plan from the beginning. They both already know but they don't need to know what Adalyn did. "I told them what Brooke and I did. It was very, very detailed. It's not true. But don't mention it again. And don't ask her about Doc. Don't mention Doc's name, ever." They're both smart. They would probably be able to figure it out since they both know what men are most vulnerable to.

"wait, you mean"

Yup. Scud's brain always works faster than everyone else's. Don't ask for details. You're not getting any.

"She believes her?"

Oh. Maybe not this time. Obviously he still doesn't believe Doc. Sadly, Amy does and was even more upset than the time she found out about Brooke. After being told to get out that day, she thought the marriage is over until she was told not to go near Doc and Adalyn again. Each day she slept alone, she wondered if the next day would be the day when Amy would say It's over. After one week, then another and another, she realized what Amy was going thru since she too had that experience when the nightmare about the megastar won't go away. The only way to resolve it is confront it. But in Amy's case, it would be more difficult even if sex didn't happen with Brie because Brie wasn't the only one in the nightmare. Adalyn, Brooke and Ezz were there too. It was a mistake to let Amy know that Doc could be another, one that she wished she could undo. "She believes she could be."

"Do you?" Scud asked, wondering why Lucy still has to think about it when there's no proof. "c'mon, I could be wrong. It was so many years ago." Scud regretted letting her know about the time when she came back with an injured bandage hand. He didn't know why she asked if she had an injury until she said Doc once treated her. "She's making it up to get you to trust her."

I wished that were true. But in this case, it's difficult to deny the possibility. The picture of a younger Doc along with a story of how it happened made it even more possible because it happened around the time after Brooke left. Scud had said many times that she wasn't the same back then after the break-up so it's not hard to believe that her reckless behavior almost killed a man for making too much noise in the hotel room next door while she was trying to sleep. It's not hard to believe that she unknowingly saved the prostitute from the man who wanted his way than the negotiated sex that he paid for and the prostitute called Doc for help instead of going to the hospital since she didn't want the police involved. It's not hard to believe that it was a one-night stand because she remembered the time when she woke up with two naked women after having too much to drink. But in this case, no one was heavily drunk. According to Doc, it happened because she was feeling lonely, exhausted and overwhelmed with the same issues that females have in society especially as a medical student. It happened because there was a connection and mutual understanding. It happened in the same way, for the same reason, as Ezz. Sex for money. That's how. She was drowned in debt like Ezz was. She was older but she was young and beautiful. Why wouldn't I? "You haven't seen her in person. You would too." That would be enough for a reason. They don't need to know about the birthmark near her private or anything else. They need to mind their own business though especially Scud who for some reason thinks he can persuade Amy when he doesn't even know what Amy is going thru. "Who you texting?" Lucy said in case Scud is texting Amy.

"She's not sleeping with you. So I want to know what she's thinking."

How the heck did he find out so fast? One week quarantining at home did not keep him from noticing apparently.

"How long has it been? One month? two? A year?"

Scud always tries to help but sometimes his methods made it worse. That's personal. Now Anthony knows. "It's just temporary. She got the flu. She didn't want to spread it to me."

"Not sleeping with you, not living with you. That's called trial separation. Trial separation leads to divorce."

Scud likes to exaggerate because then it would let others, in this case Anthony know how serious the situation is. "It's not like that. I moved out because" Lucy didn't continue because Scud just extended his phone in her face. That's not close enough. Can't see. She realized it was not meant for her to read it after he quickly took it away.

"She's not going to divorce you because technically, we're not married."

Sometimes Scud can be very confusing. Now with the crazy, illogical, effed up change of the different meanings of pronouns, it's even more confusing. Does he mean he and Janet or me? "What?" Lucy asked, then realized where he's getting the information from after he repeated it in finger quotes. "She said that?"

"She told Janet."

"Well then, you better get down on your knees and beg for forgiveness." Anthony said.

What! For someone who would never do that, it's surprising to get this suggestion from him. He doesn't even know the whole story. Lucy had no intention of letting anyone else know what happened that night but now it's necessary so that they both know why Amy wanted to sleep in separate rooms. One black eye is not fatal but next time could be. Nightmares can't be controlled. Knowing how many there were, who they are is the reason Amy is having the nightmares. Getting the flu then became the reason to continue. Moving next door wasn't Amy's idea but she agreed to Faith's suggestion to see if it would help. "She said she needs time."

"Then she must have realized there's no other solution so you better stop giving her time and start crawling."

Anthony has good advice most of the time but this one sucks! "How's that going to help?"

"Have you tried?"

What's up with him? A moment ago, he's been quietly listening. Now he's responding as quickly as Scud was.

"Look, you can't change the past but you can change the future. The question is would you be able to get over it?"

He must be hanging around with Faith for too long. Now he's talking like her. What does that even mean? Scud looks confused too.

"Look"

I'm looking. Lucy continued to look down from the balcony but still can't understand what she should be looking at. It's still a mess but it's better than an hour ago. Bryan is still setting up the floor. Nothing is standing out except for CJ who's waving her hand. Oh. The flowers are here. Is that what he's referring to? It doesn't make sense if it is. It's not but his suggestion is the worst one yet. "What drugs are you taking?" That would be better than saying 'Are you out of your effing mind?'

"Think about it. It's the only way."

"Thank you for your concern but please keep that to yourself." Lucy shook her head as she walked out to show him how she really feels.

"If I were you, I'd tell her tonight. Or kneel! Do both!"

It must be old age and loneliness. Why else would he make such a ridiculous suggestion? Crazy. It's crazy to think that this would be an easy task. Holy cow. That's a lot of flowers. No wonder CJ needs help. Three hours to go. Shoot. Getting professionals would've been better. Hated when Anthony is right.

"Umm, where are you planning to put those? That's not in the design, is it?"

"I ordered too much." Lucy admitted the mistake before telling Ethan to put them all in the corner for now. Having Ethan here wasn't the original plan but having him here would make this task a lot easier and is the right thing to do. But having him here probably gave Anthony the crazy idea. "Get down here" Lucy waved to Scud while wondering why he's still up there talking to Anthony when he knows why he's asked to be here. What else do they have to talk about? They better not tell Amy. Amy would be so pissed. Amy would probably be pissed about this too.

Three hours later, Lucy realized she's right. But it's worth it.

Pink and ivory roses beautified every wall, table, seat and corner. The water view along with the blue sky and the surrounding nature made this place look even bigger and more attractive than a hotel banquet hall. Who knew an outdoor tent wedding would be this beautiful? Holly did. It's her idea and shockingly, she was able to keep the bride from knowing. Keeping it from others was a piece of cake. It took a few lies but the look on their faces was a moment to remember, even Amy's who was a little ticked off for being kept out of the loop but now she has the same expression as everyone else. Nadia's expression is different from everyone else though. That's because she didn't know Ethan is going to be here until now. Don't stop. Keep going. There will be time to talk later. Now it's time to follow the music which Faith is doing a fantastic job at with the electric piano and with no preparation. Don't trip. With Holly by her side, Nadia didn't but couldn't control her tears from falling. It is difficult to contain the happiness within without crying. Even Ethan couldn't. Alec couldn't either and he's watching from thousands of miles away with his wife who's going to be due any time this week. This wedding is small but it has everything that Nadia wanted, family, friends, gorgeous view, elegant setting, and cute little Zander who made everyone laugh after shouting 'I do' at the same time that Holly did. Not everything worked out as planned but mission accomplished. No one has any complaints. Amy must have a lot since she's still talking with Ethan. It has been over a year. There's a lot to catch up on. But really? Interrupting their conversation would surely get Amy even more pissed. Giving them a moment would be better. There's no need to worry. Ethan is completely over Amy and Amy would never be interested in – Now what? This is a big house. A phone call would be easier but what's the urgency? Why can't he say it over the phone? What did he find out this time? He didn't find out about Doc. Did he? Oh crap if he did. Doc no longer works for anyone. Digging into her past could let others know that she's still alive. No one else is supposed to know. Now it seems like a mistake to keep her secret from him and Scud but letting them know that Doc once belonged to a similar organization like Holly's would probably have the same outcome. Lucy hurried to the entertainment room as told and hoped Anthony's urgency isn't about Adalyn either.

It's not. What…the hell. Anthony always has his own way of thinking. It would be nice if he asks for permission first! He's doing it again! Is this pre-planned? Is this why he suggested to use this place? Ughh. It's too late to hide. It's not too late to yell at Anthony but later. Getting looked at from head to toe is expected. But please don't slap me again. Amy isn't here but if she were, she probably would just wait to see what Brie would do like Anthony is doing now.

"Reallyyy?"

Okay. That's unexpected. "It's necessary." Lucy said before apologizing so that no one else would think that she's apologizing for anything else other than hiding her gender. Getting a hug is better than a slap.

"Thank you" Brie said.

That's not necessary. Really, it's not. Okay. That's too close. Too hard. Too much. If Amy were here, she might think something is going on. Is she trying to feel if my body is real or does she want to get even? Hey, hands off the butt.

"You can tell me all about it later."

What's that supposed to mean? What else is there to tell? Now isn't the time to ask since an introduction is made. That's not necessary either but it is appropriate since this is the first time. Getting words of gratitude and a hug from the one whose life has been difficult from the moment she was born is exactly how she imagined it would feel. She's worth it. "How do you feel?" Lucy asked even though she already knows the answer since Will has been helping Brie. One month was all it took to prove the effectiveness of the vaccine. Four more months made a huge difference, physically and mentally. She does have a pleasant voice, just like Will said. Christian is one lucky guy. Where's he? Anthony didn't invite him? Possible. It's also possible she agreed to this because she wants to talk privately. Okay. Well that's odd. Anthony, like Scud, still doesn't trust Christian but he obviously trusts his girlfriend since he's leaving with Brie without being asked. Maybe he already knows what she wants to talk about? "Want something to drink?" Alcohol would not be suitable but everything else should be okay.

"No, thank you"

Another thank you isn't necessary. A story of how she got infected is good to know. But oh man, if she has never been on the forbidden island, that could mean Lanai and other islands have it too. Poisoned by flowers and bitten by a poisonous spider is one combination that Doc didn't mention. It is possible that Doc didn't know since Christian didn't mention it either but did say Brooke loves taking pictures of nature especially when something is unique. Who knew this love almost killed her. Who knew a few days of vacation in the Aloha state would turn into a nightmare? Christian didn't. He probably would've killed Jack himself if he did since he thinks Jack's intention was to find more about her so he can use her against him if necessary. That is possible. It is odd that Jack just happened to be in the same tour so that can't be a coincidence. But why would he poison her? If he knew about the flowers, then why did he still go to that island? That doesn't make sense. What does is if he was hitting on her, like she said. Her name probably did reminded him of Brooke. She doesn't look like Brooke but she's pretty. She's the type that he would be interested in. She also has a weird way of telling a story. It's not Jack's fault. It's Riley's? What? No one said that. No one did because no one knew, not even Riley herself since the symptoms didn't show up until 2 months later and Riley had none. It was an accident. It was unintentional. Getting the spider off is a spontaneous response to fear. Anyone would have tried to get it off their hand in any way they could without thinking where it will land. It landed on her which then forced her to fall on an area with wild plants and flowers. Jesus. Many is born with bad luck. She is one of them. Riley is too. No one knew Riley was infected because just like Francois, Riley was in a coma after getting struck on the head but she was struck by her ex who tried to assault her. But unlike Francois, Riley's coma lasted only 2 weeks. After she woke up, she too had forgotten certain things including the incident. That is one strange virus. It does seem to affect people differently. Maybe it is from the spider. Maybe she didn't get pricked by the flowers. Maybe she was bitten by a baby gecko but didn't know that she was. That's possible too. Another possibility could be because Riley has never been in love. Flowers of love. That's what Doc said too. Faith was right. It wasn't sex. It's love.

Lucy felt the need to look away into the panoramic window and exhaled a long breath to prevent the tears from forming.

"sorry"

There's no need to apologize. None of this is her fault. "I'm glad you're okay." No one would know the truth if she's not.

"I meant, for Christian and Adalyn."

Ohh. Yes. Apologizing for her boyfriend and friend who did everything they could to try to save her is necessary. "He's one lucky guy." It's a compliment but oddly, it didn't have the effect that she thought it would. There was a smile but that disappeared very quickly. Now she's looking at the window. What's the sigh for? What happened? Please don't tell me they've been lying about their relationship.