ROMANCE: Romantic Comedy: Love in 30 Days - The Best Plans Don't Always Work! (Plus 19 FREE Books Book 13) (32 page)

“Well that is indeed good to hear.” said Emma.

Emma and Matt seemed to hit it off instantly. It seemed as if they had been dating since high school. Seeing them together reminded her of her days in high school and college when life was good and there was love in the air. She did not have to worry about a thing back then. She was so sure her life would be nothing like this back then. But she decided not to dwell on things that upset her anymore. Now that she had agreed to come along on this trip, she wanted to make sure she enjoyed the vacation.

She was seated right beside Ethan on the plane and they struck up a nice conversation. It was a long flight of 18 hours to Thailand and they had to do something to pass time. Ethan was a good looking guy and it was pretty obvious that he was hitting on Vicky. Vicky felt good talking to Ethan too. He was a young businessman who had started a chain of shops for sporting goods in LA and from the look of things he was doing quite well for himself. The best thing about Ethan was that he could make Vicky laugh – something that Fred had not managed to do in the two years that she was married to him. They talked for a couple of hours and then Vicky dozed off for a while. The PA woke her up when the pilot made the announcement that they were about to start descending soon. She opened her eyes to see that both Emma and Matt weren’t in their seats. She saw them exiting the toilet together; Emma trying to tuck her shirt in and Matt zipping up his pants. She understood that they must have been having sex. Ethan had woken up too by then and when he headed for the toilet, Emma came and took up his seat beside Vicky.

“Yes, we did it in the toilet. Stop looking at me like that.” said Emma flashing a naughty smile.

“I am not looking at you. But I am judging you!” said Vicky with a laugh.

“I remember all your escapades in college Vicky. You do not get to judge me!” said Emma a little upset.

“I know! And I am just pulling your leg here. Nothing to get all serious about this.” said Vicky.

The flight landed soon and the two groups split up at the taxi stand. While Vicky and her friends were travelling to Ko Samui in a boat, the guys were heading to Krabi. They exchanged numbers and email addresses and planned on meeting up in Bangkok again in a few days. The taxi drivers were a nightmare to deal with but Emma had fixed a guide at Bangkok beforehand and he was there to help them out. The boat ride to Ko Samui was really pleasant and they checked directly into their hotel that evening. The hotel was pretty good and the three of them had a room each to themselves. They decided that it would be best to rest up for a bit and take a shower and then hit the hotel bar in about an hour or so. It was already dark and they were all excited to see the famed Ko Samui nightlife.

Chapter 4

Vicky and the girls met at the reception and asking for some directions from the very well-spoken receptionist headed out to a bar nearby which was frequented by tourists the most. They had heard so much about Ko Samui’s nightlife and the full moon parties. The full moon was still about two three days away but they could already see the town flooded with tourists from all around the world. The bar they were directed by really crowded and they barely managed to place their order for drinks. When the drinks did come, they went ahead and placed an order for another three rounds and tipped the waiter some cash so that he kept the drinks flowing without making them wait too long. There was loud music blaring from the speakers in the bar and it got them going as soon as they were a couple of rounds down.

Suddenly Christie choked on her drink and motioned towards the entrance of the bar.

“Oh my god, Vicky! Is this for real? Is that Ryan?” asked an astonished Michelle.

Vicky’s heart stopped beating for a second. She could feel the sound of music going down as Ryan face became clearer. It was him. There was no doubt in Vicky’s mind that it was Ryan. She could make that face out anywhere in the world. Flashes of memory from high school started flooding back to her all of a sudden. She still remembered sneaking out of class with Ryan on his bike and going on those endless rides. They had some pretty wild moments when they were younger. So much had changed since then. She recounted those days very often. Ryan was her first real boyfriend. Since they parted ways after high school, she had never found another man like Ryan. She never found love like that ever again. And she found right now that she still had some feelings for him.

Michelle was the first to shout out Ryan’s name from their table. Ryan looked around was equally astonished to see familiar faces among the crowd. He rushed over to their table and greeted everyone.

“Well, well, look here! I see the whole gangs here! Emma, you look just as good still. Christie, how long has it been? How are you, Michelle? Vicky! Wow! You look just the same!” Ryan was clearly excited to see them.

Ryan could not take his eyes off Vicky and she felt a tingling sensation at the back of her neck. She was not sure how she should even react. Ryan looked just as young as he did back in high school. But he had surely bulked up. Vicky could see the muscles on Ryan’s arm flex quite clearly over the skin hugging T-Shirt that he wore. She got up to kiss him but stopped herself when she saw a woman walk towards Ryan and hold his hands.

“Guys, meet Giselle, my wife! It’s our first marriage anniversary the day after and we planned this to celebrate it!” declared Ryan as all three of Emma, Christie and Michelle turned to look at Vicky.

Vicky knew she was getting too hopeful too soon. She cursed herself for always doing that. How could she not have known that Ryan would obviously move on? He always had a plan for his future. He had already made up a business plan for opening a Restaurant back when he was in high school and every decision he took including the one to take up business studies in Harvard was towards achieving his goal. That was one of the reasons that Vicky loved Ryan so much back then. He was always level headed in any situation and always had a plan.

“Congratulations Giselle! And Ryan!” said Vicky as she raised her drink.

Giselle had picked up on the look that the three of Vicky’s friends had given her when Ryan introduced Giselle. She knew there was more to this than just friends. And the way Vicky was looking at Ryan when she was walking up to the table and how she reacted when Giselle held Ryan’s hands, gave her a feeling that Vicky and Ryan had some sort of a connection.

“You never talked to me about your friends here Ryan! Come on give me a proper introduction please. I feel so out of place!” said Giselle.

“I’m so sorry darling. So this is Michelle, that’s Christie, she’s Emma and that’s Vicky. We were all in high school together. Those were some crazy days, huh?” asked Ryan.

“Indeed they were Ryan. More for you and Vicky if I remember correctly!” said Michelle as all of them laughed out loud.

“Is that right Ryan? You never told me about your high school flings!” said Giselle with a tone of sarcasm as she looked at Ryan with questioning eyes.

The way Giselle reacted to what Michelle said made all four of them cringe on the inside. Michelle dreaded letting that out and blamed herself for creating the awkward silence that ensued. Vicky was enraged that Giselle had stopped and thought hard before using the word “fling” which she thought was a very crude word for the relationship that she shared with Ryan.

Ryan tried to diffuse the situation and said “Yes, we had a thing back in the day. But we’ve moved on. I heard you got married Vicky. So congratulations to you too! How is the husband doing?” asked Ryan.

“I am divorced. No longer married.” said Vicky plainly as she held up her hand to show the absence of a ring on her fingers.

Giselle stepped in and asked “I am so sorry to hear that Vicky! What went wrong?”

“I don’t think that is a discussion for a place like this Giselle.” said Ryan trying to protect Vicky.

Vicky knew Giselle had asked that question to only make her look like a loser. She thought that there was very little that could go wrong with her life right now and answered “That’s alright Ryan. I don’t mind. I actually caught my husband cheating on me with an older woman.”

Giselle was quite taken aback with the blatant reply from Vicky. She changed the subject and asked Ryan to escort her to the washroom at the back and excused themselves.

“What a bitch!” exclaimed Michelle as soon as the couple were out of earshot.

“She is threatened by Vicky. I sensed it as soon as she walked over to our table.” said Emma.

“Did you see how Ryan tried to protect Vicky? I think he still has feelings for Vicky.” said Christie.

Vicky did not really want to hear what anyone had to say. It was hard enough that she was fighting Fred over the divorce but to be questioned and ridiculed by Giselle was really hurtful. She put up a brave face but she was hurting inside. She was over the moon when she saw Ryan again after all these years and she cursed herself for thinking that she had a chance with him again. She felt guilty too now that she had seen that he was married to another woman. She almost felt like the person who steals another woman’s husband. She did not want to be involved in any complex relationships anymore. She excused herself and went out of the bar to get some fresh air.

Giselle was furious with Ryan that he had not mentioned Vicky before and asked for an explanation. Ryan said that he did not mention Vicky because he did not think it was important to do so. Ryan said that it was something from the past and that Giselle should not be reading too much into it. They came back to the table to find that Vicky was not there. Ryan went out looking for her after Emma told him that she had stepped outside to get some air. Ryan went out to find that Vicky was sitting on an empty table outside.

“Hey there! I think I know you.” said Ryan playfully.

Vicky smiled when she heard Ryan’s voice and turned around to say “I think I know you too.”

“So a divorce huh?” asked Ryan.

“Yes, a divorce. I have never been lucky in love like you.” said Vicky.

“Well I really wouldn’t say that. I just couldn’t wait for you all my life now, could I?” asked Ryan.

“Oh shut up. You have a lovely wife.” shot back Vicky.

“She is not always like she was back then, that’s true and I must admit that. I am so sorry about what went on inside. I am sure she did not mean to upset you.” said Ryan apologetically.

“It’s alright. She just asked questions. She isn’t the one responsible for the crisis that I am in. So, no hard feelings.” said Vicky.

Vicky and Ryan just sat there for a while without talking. A cool breeze was flowing across their faces. Vicky felt like they were back home at the top of the hill that they used to frequent.

“Do you remember our rides to the top of the hill and the view from there? It was really something, wasn’t it?” asked Vicky.

“Every single day. You know what? I went back home after mom passed away last year. We sold off our old home. But I made a final trip to the same place we used to visit and saw another couple there sitting in the exact same place that we used to. It was surreal to see that. I felt something inside me die that day. I decided that day that we will probably never even see each other ever again. I met Giselle soon after and within a few weeks we were married. But I miss our bike rides every single day.” said Ryan longingly.

A tear trickled down Vicky’s cheek. She was extremely happy that Ryan had made the trip to the top of the hill. She noted how she never went back to the place. She got too busy with her life to see where it was heading. And she had blown her chances with Ryan also. They kept sitting there without saying a word until the girls came out from inside. Giselle seemed quite drunk and ran up to Ryan and hugged him from behind.

“Let’s go the hotel darling. I am horny!” said Giselle, slurring while speaking.

“I think you have had a little too much to drink Giselle. Just sit here for a while I go find a cab.” said Ryan as he sat her down and went looking for a cab.

Giselle was so drunk that she dozed off on Vicky’s shoulders. Ryan came back soon after hailing a cab and then came picked Giselle up. Vicky helped put Giselle inside the cab and waved as they drove off.

Chapter 5

Vicky and her friends continued drinking late into the night and most of it was done without talking. Vicky felt bad for her friends for spoiling their mood on the very first day they arrived for their vacation.

“Guys I am sorry that you guys were put in such a situation. To be fair, it was also very sudden on me. Maybe I should have dealt with the situation better.” Vicky said.

“You have got to be kidding me. That girl was completely out of line for asking you a question like that. You should have slapped some sense into her.” said Emma defending Vicky’s reaction.

“That girl does not know a thing about you. And she never will. You know why? Because you are a superstar and she is just a normal woman.” said Christie slurring while she spoke.

“You have too much to drink Christie. I think the toll of giving birth to a new born has taken away your very unique talent of downing the amount of alcohol that you were used to.” said Michelle.

“Let’s just call it a night guys. Let’s just put this whole incident behind us and move on. I am pretty sure we are never going to bump against each other ever again.” said Vicky.