Chapter 55

OLIVIA

I GOT TO my feet and went down to the other deck, where I was greeted by a man in a suit who checked if my name was on the list before allowing me to enter. Fortunately, I was able to enter the first deck of the yacht, where I saw people swimming in bikinis and guys in swimwear.

Others sat in the sun loungers, watching a movie projected on a projector screen. It was actually weird that this party was more normal than the one upstairs. No loud music at all and no alcoholic drinks. I just watched people enjoying themselves in the pool. Some were eating at their tables, and some were chatting with their friends.

My classmates were all upstairs partying. Then here were the people, who, based on their looks, were wealthy businessmen.

"Reese!" I heard Mia's voice calling my name.

I turned to her and noticed that she was sweating.

"Where have you been, Reese? I was looking out for you. I can't seem to find Charles in his own party!" she added, and I could feel the irritation in her voice as well.

"I'm sorry, Mia. I didn't expect to have that kind of crowd upstairs. There is no way I can match their energy, though at first, I must admit that I got carried away and danced like a freak on stage."

She only shrugged her shoulders and we went to one of the lounge seats and enjoyed the peaceful ambiance of this place.

I looked around and finally saw Charles who was at the edge of the deck. He was holding two lovely women in his arms and was smiling from ear to ear.

"Hi there!" I greeted them as I approached them. "Hello there, lovely ladies," I said as I glanced between the two lovely girls in his arms.

He noticed my presence, then whispered something to his girls, which made them both leave. Charles then greeted me, and I could have sworn that he was shocked after he laid eyes on Mia.

"You didn't tell me you were going to bring someone so lovely here to my party, Reese. It's nice to see you here, Miss," he said, full of attention and eyes sparkling solely for Mia.

"That's Hayley Mia Brown, you idiot," I said to Charles, making him laugh.

"No way. That nerd? Mia Brown? Don't kid me, Reese." He laughed once more as he shook his head. "No really, what is her name? Is she your friend?"

My eyes went to Mia, and she was holding out her tears. She stood up and glanced between me and Charles.

"See? I told you, Reese. All men are jerks!" she said, then walked away.

I gasped as I didn't expect Mia to react that way. But she was totally right about what she just said. Charles was a jerk.

"Have you seen what you just did, Charles? You are really a stupid jerk!" I said, totally irritated. "I already told you that she's Mia. She dressed nicely and was no longer the nerd you used to know!" I pointed my index fingers at some guys who were glancing at Mia as she walked away. "You see, all the guys right there are checking her out!"

My gaze followed Mia. She went to the other side of the deck, standing alone in the corner. An elderly man in a pink polo shirt casually approached her and immediately touched her face. Mia's face was horrified. My eyes widened, and I stood immediately to rush into her, but Charles stopped me.

"Stay here. Let me take care of it."

Charles's jaw clenched. For a brief moment, I saw the anger in his eyes. He quickly walked in Mia's direction. I was stunned when Charles stopped the elderly man from touching Mia. He held him so tightly in his collar and then let him go when he finally apologized to Mia.

I rushed into them and immediately hugged Mia.

"Are you alright, Mia?"

I could feel that Charles was sincerely worried about her. Her eyebrows furrowed, and then she tried to walk away again from him.

"I'm sorry, alright? I knew this from the beginning. I knew it was you, Mia," he said as he grabbed her hand. "Please accept my apology. The truth is, back in the day, I already knew that you were beautiful and I was just teasing you because I knew we were childhood friends. To be honest, Mia, remembering the past only brings back such dark memories, but I was glad to have you, you didn't leave me," he stated.

"You idiot," she said, then pulled her hands away from him.

She then walked past him.

"Let's go, Reese, we can consider this mission accomplished," she stated.

"Really?" I asked curiously, then my glance went to Charles. "His eyes, though, are sorrowful. I think Charles wanted to talk to you more. Look at him."

She then turned around and checked on him. He pulled up a stick of tobacco and lit it up while staring at the pitch-black sea.

My forehead immediately creased. My eyes roamed everywhere, and all I saw was the sea.

What the hell? This yacht was sailing? I thought we'd be staying near the port! I gaped, completely shocked and was caught off guard.

Dang! I was planning to go back to the port at ten or eleven! Mathias was waiting for us near the port!

"Mia!" I called her and turned in her direction, but she was gone.

My eyes looked for her and I realized she went back to Charles and talked to him.

I palmed my face. "Goodness, what should I do?"

Biting my lower lip, I decided to follow Mia.

"Don't smoke, it's bad for you. I thought you had already stopped that years ago," I heard Mia say to Charles.

The cold and salty wind blew in our way. I couldn't help but hug myself and watch them.

When Charles tried to throw the stick of tobacco into the ocean, he was stopped by Mia by holding his arm.

"Freak! Give that to me, and I'll dispose of it for you," she said.

Charles shook his head and asked the staff nearby to throw it for him.

"Would you like to dance or have a drink or something?" Charles asked, then Mia's face turned red.

She glanced at me, then I gave her a thumbs up to give her a signal to go on. I couldn't hide my smile any longer. These two were so cute. It was as if they were high school teenagers.

"Alright, sure," she said nervously.

"Mia, play hard to get first, okay?" I whispered, nudging her elbow as she walked past me.

"Reese!"

I chuckled. "You guys, have fun!" Then I glanced at Charles. "By the way, Charles, I would like to ask what time I could go. I need to be at the port at eleven," I asked.

"What? We will go to a private island! It's Sunday tomorrow, so there should be no class. Take a break, Reese! Don't tell me that you didn't know?" he asked, then he didn't bother to wait for my answer as they had already walked somewhere else.

"Shit, I'm screwed!" I frowned and started biting my nails as my anxiety doubled.

The fact that Mathias was waiting for me near the port, there's no way Chase wouldn't find out about this! I didn't even inform Chase that this would be an overnight party!

Charles didn't even mention it when he sent me the details!

I leaned against the railings and started craning my neck, hoping to see any positive things that could actually calm myself down at this point. However, all I saw was the waves of the sea as the yacht continued to move somewhere I didn't know.

My eyes went back to the crowd of businessmen.

I let out a heavy sigh and thought I should take advantage of the situation. I could start making connections with some businessmen here. They might be able to inspire me to run a specific business in the future.

My heart pounded with excitement as I thought about having my own business. One of the things I'd like to start has something to do with boosting girls' self-esteem. like Mia.

I checked Ellie Steward's calling card again, and after a few minutes of contemplating.

Perhaps starting a makeup or clothing line would be a good idea, but there were so many thoughts and worries racing through my mind that they began to overwhelm the little shit in me.

What if I couldn't make it? I bet it would only disappoint Chase and his father.

I exhaled heavily and lowered my head.

"Why is it so difficult to come up with some business ideas without worrying so much?" I murmured to myself.

I then looked around and saw Ellie Steward, who was interacting with some businessmen on the deck. Our gaze met. She immediately recognized me as she offered me a thin smile.

She then waved her hands to the businessmen and then approached me.

"Hey, why are you all alone here? Where is your friend?" she asked curiously.

"Oh, Mia? She went with Charles. I think they are going to talk about some things."

She nodded. "Interesting. While everyone's busy having fun here, I'm walking around, trying to check on the women's outfits and accessories to come up with a new style of products I'll plan to launch this year."

"That's really how business-minded people work, huh?" I commented.

We both chuckled.

"You see, I truly find you pretty. Your choices in your jewelry stunned me. I can say that you have great fashion sense, Reese."

I was surprised to hear it from her, and I was overwhelmed. Hearing a compliment from a business owner was totally different from normal people.

"Thank you, Ellie. It's an honor to be complimented and praised by someone like you for my fashion taste. It's my first time hearing it from someone who has all the knowledge about fashion that I truly respect," I said, hoping that I made an impression on her.

"Would you like to partner with me?" she asked curiously. Her eyes narrowed as she looked at me.

I gave her a wide-eyed look. Was this for real?

Ellie Steward, the owner of the luxury brand of leather goods, just asked me to partner with her?

Oh, shoot! I knew I had to stay calm at this moment so that I wouldn't give her a bad impression of me, but I couldn't fight the urge to feel excited about it.

"I would love to!" I exclaimed. My voice came off so loud and excited.

Laughing, she shook her head and patted my shoulder.

"I'm excited to work with you, Reese. Let's set up a meeting once I free up my schedule, alright?"

"Thank you for believing in me, I can't wait to have that meeting with you!"

She then left and joined a group of men after our conversation. Many ideas had just exploded in my head. I was already imagining myself having my own employees, attending board meetings, and Chase was just head over heels in love with me, feeling so proud of what I had achieved.

Though I wasn't sure whether that would be enough or not for me to prove that I could establish my own name. Doubt and fears started to attack my chest.

There would be trials, that's for sure, but in order for me to be liked by the Chase family, I should do this no matter what.

I clenched my fist, thinking that I hadn't met Ellie Steward by accident. There should be a purpose, and this should be the key to my next big step toward entrepreneurship.

I was suddenly curious about what happened with Mia and Charles. The loud music started playing.

I walked around and saw Charles with Mia beside him.

"Guys, I want you to announce my girlfriend, Mia Brown,"

Everyone on the yacht applauded and cheered for them.

"What just happened? That was fast! Oh my gosh, Mia!" I exclaimed.

Mia then smiled at me and gave me a peace sign.

"That girl already fell for his charms right away!" I rolled my eyes at her while she was still grinning from ear to ear.

The DJ then played a piece of slow music, and they started dancing together. It was their own moment. Everyone was watching them in the center. The lights also become dim. Warm lights were switched on in every room on this yacht.

"Such a romantic scene. I wish Chase was with me..."

Some of our classmates then went down to check if they had witnessed such a scene. Somehow, I was like a proud mother to Mia. A few days back, I was only teaching her to be confident in herself, but now she has Charles head over heels with her beauty.

"Guys, let's toast and cheer for us. This is for me and Mia. I should confess that ever since I became a billionaire, I've owned different businesses under my father's name. Mia was there for my ups and downs. Then I was blinded by my infatuation with someone that I hadn't opened my eyes enough to see that there was Mia, whom I truly loved. So please join me in celebrating not only the grand opening of my private resort, which we will see in a few minutes as we arrive, but also my confession of love to Mia!"

"Cheers!" Everyone was tossing and raising their glasses. We celebrated the moments that Charles and Mia shared with each and every one of them. Then everyone began to dance to the beat of the music that the DJ was playing.

While the people were dancing, I saw that the yacht was heading towards a secluded island.

"Is this the private island that Charles was talking about?"

I took a look and checked it from where I was standing. The island was surrounded by light posts that lit up the entire shore. The wooden cottages were also scattered everywhere. There were some flags of different colors waving through the wind. Then, on a much higher part of the island, castle-like houses were built.

I felt so guilty about Mathias, who was still waiting for us in the port. I felt so bad about it. When I checked my phone to contact him since it was already eleven in the evening and he was supposed to see me there, my eyebrows furrowed when I noticed there was no mobile signal from this area.

"This is stupid. Mathias would surely call Chase at this point if he found out that I lied." I palmed my face. "I am so doomed! How can I explain this to my husband?"

A loud growl from my stomach made me run to the comfort room at this point.

"Get out of my way!" I asked a few people as I ran.

I went inside the comfort room and then settled into one cubicle. My stomach felt so ill, perhaps because of the drinks that I had earlier.

"Charles has a new victim. I wonder how many days it will take before she gets dumped by him!" said the woman who went inside the comfort room, which made me raise one of my eyebrows. She seemed to be talking to someone.

"That's exactly what I am thinking about. She's not even that pretty. If you removed her fake eyelashes and makeup, I bet you'd start seeing an animal like the ones we've seen on television. She's like a disgusting animal from the zoo."

They both laughed. My lips formed a thin line as I tried to peep to check on their faces. I swore that I would remember them. My eyes widened when I saw the blonde girl whom Charles had dated before.

"You're such a jealous girl. How dare you pass judgment on Mia's make-up and eyelashes!" I whispered through my gritted teeth.

I was about to confront them, but a bunch of girls went inside of the comfort room. I then closed the cubicle door slightly before peeking to see who was approaching.

"Did you have it?"

"Yes, of course! Let's have fun. Here, take it while no one's here."

My eyes widened when I saw a small pill that they both took. I wasn't born yesterday, and I knew that it was a party drug. When they were trying to leave, my stomach growled, then my body started shaking as I let out a loud fart in the cubicle.

"Someone is here?"

"Who's there?"

My heart was pounding so fast. My stomach and my farts betrayed me. I was sweating bullets and also getting nervous about what would happen next.

"Come on, let's go! Frederick is waiting outside!"

The girls left the comfort room as I heard their footsteps with some guy named Frederick, whom they said was waiting for them.

I couldn't ignore what they did. I'm sure that it was a party pill that they took. I should be careful.

I couldn't help but wonder whether Charles knew about this or not.

He shouldn't have allowed this to happen at his party! We would be screwed!

I bit my lower lip, realizing that we were on a secluded island. Of course, it would be safe to say that things like this would happen because there would be no authority.

"Oh, no, Mia!" I went into an instant panic.

I immediately went out of the cubicle, then washed my hands and fixed myself in the mirror. I should have warned her not to drink any of our classmates' drinks!

When I went outside of the comfort room, my eyebrows furrowed as I saw Mia in the middle of the crowd dancing with Charles. She was handed a drink by a stranger, but as soon as she started to sip from the cup, I rushed towards her and grabbed her from the crowd.

"Tell me, Mia, have you taken any pills from them?" I asked her.

"Oh, Reese! You should've seen what just happened. Charles just kneeled in front of me a while ago and confessed his feelings for me. I can't say no to him!" She exclaimed with delight.

I noticed her cheeks flushing and her eyes seemed a bit narrowed.

"Are you already drunk? Tell me, did you take some pills from random strangers or from our classmates?"

"No, why?"

A sigh of relief came out of my chest. I could have sworn I'd never forgive myself if Mia had been drugged all because I tagged her here. I needed to protect this lady from the party pill that was circulating in this crowd.

"Shot, shot, shot, shot!"

A lady drank almost half a bottle of tequila while the crowd was cheering for her.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I wanted to make an announcement. We finally arrived at my private island. Everyone, you can now proceed to go down from this yacht. Let's continue the party at my private resort!"

"Let's go!"

"I would like to take the most expensive room, Charles!"

The crowd was so excited that they had already claimed some private rooms. Some of them would probably make out because everyone here was already drugged by the pill.

I need to protect Mia at all costs. I'm hoping that Charles was not behind this...

"Mia, promise me you are not going to accept any drug pills or drinks from our classmates, okay?"

She nodded. I then explained what I saw earlier inside the comfort room.

"I wasn't sure if Charles knew about this, but I just don't want to be involved in this. I don't want to pile up my wrongdoings against Chase. He would be so upset if he found out what was going on at this party."

Mia's brow furrowed when I said that.

"I can ask Charles. I'd be upset if he knew this all along and wouldn't mind our safety. I also don't want to be drugged by anyone or someone from our classmates. I'll be mad at Charles if this is his plan all along to take advantage of other girls."

"That's right, we should have known earlier and asked Charles about this. The last time I was involved in something like this, I was put in jail. Because someone put a bag of illegal drugs in Chase's car and it's a good thing, we're proven not guilty with the help of his father."

Mia's face crumpled as I said that to her.

"I know it's truly unexpected to hear it from me, but trust me, you wouldn't like it to be interrogated by the police." I continued.

Our classmates and some random strangers then started to go down from the yacht. Everyone became excited, and they rushed toward the island. I didn't follow them, and Mia and I waited for Charles.

When the three of us were now alone on the yacht, I confronted Charles.

"Charles, did you know about the circulating party pill at your yacht party?"

He was taken aback and scratched his head.

"I noticed it but it would be difficult for me to stop them. This is just one night. I don't want to ruin the grand opening for my private resort."

"Yes, but what if this comes out to the media? Our school's reputation and our own reputation might be tarnished!"

"This is normal, Reese. Some of the investors that are here at my party, including Ellie Steward, whom you spoke to earlier, were aware that it was happening, but they kept quiet because they know that it is also a business for someone on this yacht. Selling drugs makes a good amount of money..."

What the hell?