Love Island

Chapter 38 - Never Have I Ever

"What are you guys doing for your face?" Julie asked from her new vanity the next morning. Her hair was already wavy from an overnight braid that crinkled her blonde locks. "I'm seeing some concealer and bronzer? Or is that blush? I guess I wouldn't know, I'm so bad at makeup. I guess that's why I only wear mascara," she smiled politely from her seat and retrieved the tube from a drawer. From a glance across her features, I could see that she was wearing blush, tinted moisturizer, bronzer, eyeliner, and mascara.

"Wow, Julie. You're so different, you're not like other girls," Ella commented, earning a laugh from me. She smiled gratefully over.

Julie scrunched her brows and stood up, placing her hands on her hips in a desperate grab for dominance. "Everyone hates pretty girls," she complained and stormed out of the room as if any of us were going to chase after her. 

"I'm begging that this is not another Amelia situation," Giselle rolled her eyes as she ran product through the tight curls in her hair. The white cream made each strand gleam beneath the lights overhead. "I don't have the time or energy to worry about someone breaking the thermostat again."

Peach giggled from her vanity across from mine. "Oh, god. That would be a nightmare! Or we could tell the new people it's like, initiation into the villa!"

"To sweat your ass off because of a temper tantrum?" Peyton asked.

"Exactly," Peach grinned back. With her morning routine finished, she went to the wardrobe to pick out a swimsuit for the new day.

Polly yawned at her vanity and stretched her arms out to her side, knocking over a bottle of product onto the floor as she did so. "Oops!" she exclaimed and bent down to pick it up, swiftly falling off of the stool and onto her hip.

"Jesus, Polly, are you okay?" Giselle came to her aid quickly.

"I'm fine, just tired," Polly answered with another yawn.

Abby stood quietly at her wardrobe. "Let's hang out today, Polly. I'll help you align your chakras."

"What's that supposed to do?" Polly asked as she stood up and sat back down on her stool, giving her hip a tender rubbing.

"It can do a million things that can change your life," Abby said. "Including helping with your balance, achiness-" she gestured to Polly's hip, "-and give you emotional stability."

Polly watched her carefully whilst rubbing her skin. "Alright, that doesn't sound too bad. Can we do it one-on-one?"

"Of course!" Abby smiled. She slipped a green and orange bikini over her shoulder and walked into the bathroom to change.

"She's exactly like Blake," Peach commented.

Peyton nodded, letting out an exasperated sigh. "I hate to admit it, but it's true. They're a good match." She didn't look up at any of us when she spoke. Instead, she kept her hands busy on her vanity, whether it was applying things to her face, screwing lids tight on jars, or organizing the products against her mirror.

"And with Blake preoccupied, you can focus on getting to know Mason," I pointed out. "You could travel anywhere in the world with him."

The thought of it brought a smile to her lips. "Gosh, I guess you're right. And I could become a travel nurse," she said. "I always thought that would be so fun! I just need a few more months of experience at the hospital, first."

"There ya go, Peyton," Giselle said. "See? It can all work out. I know that recoupling seemed like a disaster, but everything happens for a reason. It's a blessing in disguise."

I gave a good and honest hard thought about how my situation was a blessing. I wondered if the man of my dreams would be entering the villa, but even then, my mind flickered back to Charlie. I wondered what he thought of me now, or if he even still thought of me at all.