Chapter 1

I can almost taste the salt in the air as we pull up to our resort. I've been waiting for this for a year. Finally a vacation. With the stress of school and my drama-filled friends this is very necessary. I'm excited to finally just veg out at the ocean.
My father puts the rental car in park and I walk inside the lobby to grab a luggage cart. The lobby is open air with a fountain in the middle. We haven't stayed in a hotel this nice in a long time- ever maybe. I feel a cool breeze blow through the openness. In the air I san smell the light scent of flowers and vanilla. I just kind of stand there for a minute, taking it all in. I guess I closed my eyes because all of a sudden I hear someone clear their throat. "Ahem," my eyes fly open. "Can I help you with something?" the stranger says. The very good looking stranger. Their uniform tells me that they work here- and the fact that they asked if I needed help.
"Hi, yes. Sorry. Uhm, do you have uh, the things for luggage..." I make a motion like I'm pushing a cart. I'm stumbling all over the place.
"You mean a luggage cart?" they say.
"Yeah, that," I say, exhaling, pushing my hair out of my eyes. They motion for me to follow them, and look back at me. I smile, flustered. We walk until I see the carts. "Thanks," I say, grabbing one of them and turn it around. Apparently they walk me back out to the door of the lobby, because when I got to the car my dad asks, "Hey, who was that girl with you?" I turn around to see her walk back into the doors.
I put my luggage onto the cart on the cart and sigh. I try to take it all in. As my brothers pile their luggage on top of mine I look at our room assignment and realized that we have 2 rooms on our list. Never in the history of our family vacations have we booked two rooms. It was always the same deal. A one room hotel room with two queen beds. My brothers on one, my parents on the other, me on the couch or cot. My brothers and I were going to share a room, while my parents had their own room. I would have my own bed. I wouldn't have to wait for 45 minutes to take a shower.
We look around for the elevator once we're in the lobby, and head toward it. The elevator is spacious and covered in mirrors like usual. My brothers and I automatically revert into the kids we were the last time we were all on vacation, making faces at each other in the mirror and jumping up and down, even though my oldest brother is going into his junior year of college. I have a feeling that this is going to be a great vacation.
Opening the door to the hotel room, I know something's off. The smell of stale cigarettes fills my nose, and I start coughing. "Guys, do you smell that?" They nod and scrunch up their noses. My parents follow in behind us and their noses scrunch up too.
"You guys can't stay in here," my mother says with that tone she uses when she's about to file a complaint. "Let's go," she says with distain as she walks out of the room. We follow her down to the lobby and hold back while she talks to the manager at the front desk. After a short period of time she joins us again with a new room key in her hand and this look in her eye.
"So...?" I say.
"Follow me," is all she says before turning on her heel and walking to the elevator. She hits the button for one of the top floors. Next to the button was a star and she has to swipe the room key in this slot before the elevator begins to go upwards. My brothers and I exchange glances. When we get up to the 23rd floor we walk to the end of the hall way, passing only 2 other doors on the floor. My mother pauses for effect after the little green light above the door handle blinks. She opens the door and let us all file in before she turns and shuts the door.
"Holy-!" Sam says as we all take in the incredible suite. There's a huge living room with several doors leading into the bedrooms. There's a full kitchen and two full bathrooms. Then we see the view. We've got the corner suite- there's a full wall of glass doors with a huge lanai (hawaiian for balcony) that overlooks the ocean. We open up the doors and marvel at our incredible view. To the right you can see some of the island with palm trees lining the coast. To the left you can see the resort's pool, which looks absolutely amazing. One of the pools has an infinity edge, making it look like the water just flows over the edge and into the ocean.
We all claim our rooms: Peter and Sam take the room with the two double beds, I take the room with the queen bed, and my parents take the room with the king sized bed. My room has its own bathroom and closet. Since I have the space I decide that I'll actually unpack my things and not live out of my suitcase for once. I grab my bag of toiletries and start to set them up in my bathroom. I hang up the dresses I brought for nights out and put my shorts and tee-shirts in the drawers of the dresser the TV sits on. I flop down on my bed and stare at the ceiling. My mind drifts to the worker who had helped me. She had this certain....je ne sais quoi. I think about her smile and how- how real she seemed. My stomach flutters as I start to think about her walking with me to the lobby doors. I think about going to see her, but I realize I don't even know her fucking name. Besides, I didn't even know her; how weird would she think I am going to visit her when she had only just helped me find the luggage carts? That's her job. I wasn't anything special to her.
"Alright," I think. "Time to hit the beach." I roll to the edge of the bed and do a kind-of summersault off- knocking into the bedside table. I curse and stand up. I get dressed in my black swim shorts and green and white bikini top. Suncreen. And lots of it. I spray sunscreen on my body, making sure I get every inch. I'm not about to get burned and put a damper on my whole vacation. I'm not one of those people who can just tan. Curse the Irish skin I live in. I put on my thin, white beach coverup over it, and go to the mirror to fix up my make-up and hair after the long flight. I packe up a tote back with my iPod, 2 towels (one to dry off with, one to lay out on), more sunscreen, and a new book. I walk into the living room and join my brothers on the couch, while my parents sit across from them.
"Ground rules," my mother says. "Boys- no girls in your rooms. Clem- no boys. Your curfew is midnight unless stated otherwise. Tonight we're going to dinner at the hotel, so be back around 5 to get ready." All of us nod and look at each other.
"Beach?" I say, holding up my tote bag. The three of us stand up and head out of the suite, the heavy hotel door shutting behind us. We push the down button for the elevator and we all stand at which one of the four elevator doors we think is going to open. It's mine, and we all step inside, the doors close and we head down to the lobby.