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CHAPTER 25: The Deal
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The Secret Island CHAPTER 26: Day Nine
Celine had a personal motto that she could get anything she wanted. And she got everything she wanted since she could remember. Sometimes, even before she asked for it.But she knew that this time was different. Relationships are complicated. She couldn’t own a person.For Martin and her, their feelings were unnamed, and the relationship was labeled with a short-term status. We both knew when it would end. She tempted fate and waited to see what was to happen.A risky experiment for her heart.Celine looked at her ‘new boyfriend’ and stood on tiptoe to kiss his cheek. Martin’s face turned red. He looked to his left and right, figuring out whether anyone was watching. We were strolling along the pier, seeing the townspeople and tourists walking past.“Isn’t kissing me in front of plenty of people a bit too much?”“Not really. Why? Are you shy? I just wanted to kiss my boyfriend, and there was nothing to be ashamed about that. We don’t have that much time together. My boyfriend is also
The Secret Island CHAPTER 27: The Therapist II
Martin had always been happy with his planned and organized life. He had good grades. He was a class valedictorian. He went to one of the leading universities. And he worked for a top company that offered extremely high pay. He could never imagine, in his wildest dream, getting that much in a month. He achieved everything he set to do from a young age. It was beyond his wildest dream and more. But all of that, in the end, can't save him from the harsh realities of the business world. A sky-high profit that caused innocent people to die… in front of him.The Second Therapy Appointment “Sit as you feel comfortable. Take it easy. Think about the events of that day again, Martin. I know that all this is difficult. But in the healing process and for you to heal, you have to understand the past and accept it as it was.” The therapist told her, and her voice calmed him down. He took a deep breath and exhaled. He was sitting on the upholstered chair; the whole room was dimly lit
The Secret Island CHAPTER 28: Day Ten
“Celine, do you want to take a walk?” Martin woke up the young woman sleeping next to him. She was so serene. Her eyes were still closed, and she was breathing in an even rhythm. He wouldn’t dare wake her in a normal circumstance, but after he decided to commit to this ‘relationship,’ he wanted to do it to the best of his ability; this role of a boyfriend. He felt his face going a bit hot every time he thought about it. He didn’t believe he could feel like a teenager at this age. How absurd. No matter what happened from this point on, no matter what was waiting for him, in this short period of time, he would spend every second of the life he chose with the woman that dispelled all the darkness in his head. He wanted to experience the light, even for this short time we had together. She said she liked him. He didn’t even like himself. He didn’t see anything good in him. No bright future waiting ahead. Nothing he could do for her. But in the six, no, five day
The Secret Island CHAPTER 29: Our Morning
This morning, Celine helped him cook breakfast. He taught her a simple recipe like pasta. She was hesitant at first, but she followed through anyway. He began with the simple steps; preparing the sauce, boiling the pasta, and the kitchen safety protocols. She was a smart girl; it didn’t take her long to learn it. He could see she was very attentive. “Martin, well, I have something to tell you.” During the time we had our breakfast, Celine began a conversation. He looked up to smile at her. “Yes?” “Well, it will be my birthday in three days. I need a favor; can you go to this one place with me? I’ve picked a place to celebrate on that day. I will tell you the details later.” In the next three days, the day before she left. He nodded, and she gave him a jovial smile. “Should I prepare something? What’s your plan?” “No, that won’t be necessary. Since I was born, even at the age of one, my parents hosted huge parties for me every yea
The Secret Island CHAPTER 30: Her Future
“Martin, enough! I have a severe headache from all these activities. Can we discuss this matter the other day? I demand not to go through with all this planning. Please put it off for another day. It has been too much.” He sat with her for the past two hours, being a combination of a business consultant and a life coach. She complained incessantly all the while. He spent the first hour interviewing her likes and dislikes. He concluded that with her freedom-loving soul, she had to carve up her path to authority within her family’s company. Her own product line was highly recommended. She agreed. On the second hour, he drilled down on the detailed business plan after a quick read of her company’s finances on the public database. And at this point, she had reached her last straw of restraint. Celine walked away from him, who was sitting amidst piles of papers and books. In his hand held a business plan for her own brand of apparel that was supposed to be
The Secret Island CHAPTER 31: Joe
Each day, there was a short period called ‘private time’ that both Martin and Celine could do anything they wanted without another person’s presence. The time ranged from just one hour to three to four hours. Celine used it to call her friends or surf the internet. And Martin continued his reading hobby, checking emails and buying groceries. Or he tried to get in touch with his best friend who was hiding somewhere far and away. After Celine went into the bedroom to call her friends, he got out the spare phone he had secretly bought. Martin got into a small empty storage room inside the villa to ensure there was no wiretap, any hidden camera, or microphone. One could never be too careful. There were many things he had to do. However, there was no intensive work he had to do until the time Celine had to leave. But he had important matters to deal with, and one of them was talking to Joe. A man who was hiding somewhere in this world and having in his possessio
The Secret Island CHAPTER 32: The Innocence
Me? Me? Really? Did I fall in love with that girl? He thought about that word again. Thinking about it, he didn’t have time to contemplate his feeling and didn’t fully understand what he agreed with Joe about how he felt.After the call with Joe yesterday, he sat alone, lost in his thought, on the sofa again. He heard Celine's voice through the door. He smiled because she laughed.When had this bond so strong? All this concern and goodwill he had for her. When had all these feelings towards her gotten this strong? He thought it was almost impossible to get out of. For sure, he didn’t fall for her on the first day they met. On that first day, he even thought she was kind of annoying. And the second day didn’t get better either. That day he just wanted to help. Or was it the third day? Or the fourth day?He massaged his brows. Everything that happened was unexpected. He didn’t know if it was coincident, or her liveliness had become the only color in his miserable world.Once he knew it
The Secret Island CHAPTER 33: Day Eleven
Martin woke up. Today was another day he woke up before her. Yesterday, Celine asked him to sleep in the bedroom again and emphasized that in our remaining days together, he must sleep in the bedroom—an unladylike order as she once accused herself. But Martin didn’t think much of it. He understood the rationale behind her thoughts. They both wanted to spend as much time together before everything was over. Things were ending, and the concern dimmed the initial excitement during this holiday. When the thought of our last day was prominent, what else could be fun? It was a shame. There were still many days left… Martin looked at the woman in his arms and kissed her forehead with care. Celine was sleeping—he thought she looked younger and so adorable he couldn’t resist spending time watching. “Hey, do you want to see the sunrise together again this morning?” He decided to say that to wake her up in a soft voice. Because she insisted that we should
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