Booked into Love in Fiji

Chapter Five

They stopped walking after, the laughter fading into something quieter, heavier.

“I should go.” Lucy said softly. “ I have an early start in the morning.”

Marcus nodded. “Yeah. Of course.”

When she reached her quarters, she paused , turning back to him. “Good night, Marcus.”

“Good night, Lu,” he replied.

Her phone buzzed minutes after she closed the door.

Marcus: It was really nice seeing you tonight. You look amazing.

She stared at the screen longer than she should have before replying.

Lucy: It was nice seeing you too.

One message turned into another. Casual at first, how long she’d been performing, how Fiji was treating her, how strange it felt running into each other like this.

Time slipped quietly by.

She didn’t realize how late it was until her eyes burned from staring at the screen.

When she finally set her phone down, her heart felt conflicted, lighter than it had earlier, but uneasy in a way she couldn’t explain.

She fell asleep wondering when talking to him had become so easy again.

Morning sunlight crept through the thin curtains, pulling Lucy awake.

For a moment, she forgot where she was.

Then everything rushed back.

Fiji. The resort. The wedding. Marcus.

Then Lila came into the room, all sweaty from the long run she had in the early hours of the morning.

“Where were you last night?” She asked while cleaning her face with a towel.

“What do you mean?” She asked, looking at her phone on the bedside table.

“I woke up to use the bathroom, and you were not here. Where did you go?”

“Oh, I couldn’t sleep, so I went for a walk to clear my head.” Lucy answered, standing up from the bed and picking up her phone, the last message from him unread.

And with that thought heavy in her chest, she went to the bathroom and began a day she already knew wouldn’t be simple.

Lucy tiptoed out of her quarters, eyes darting around the quiet hallway. She was determined to avoid Marcus at all costs. Every step felt exaggerated, like a cartoon sneak, arms slightly out, shoulders hunched, as if her very posture could make her invisible.

She paused at the corner, holding her breath, certain she heard the faint click of footsteps. And then…

“Lucy! Hi!”

She jumped, spinning around. There stood Britney, all smiles and sunshine, as if nothing in the world could touch her.

“Oh…hi,” Lucy stammered, straightening. “Good morning.”

“I’m so glad I ran into you!” Britney said brightly.

“Actually, I was on my way to the spa, and I could really use a friendly face. Everything’s just been…a lot today with all the wedding prep, and now with my mum and sister supposed to arrive, well, their flight got delayed because of the weather. So they’ll be coming tomorrow.

Lucy nodded, forcing a polite smile. “Ah…yeah, that sounds stressful.”

“You should come with me!” Britney insisted.

“It’ll be fun, trust me. Some relaxation before the chaos really starts.”

Lucy hesitated, then nodded. “Okay…sure.”

The spa was serene, soft music mingling with the gentle hum of the air conditioning and distant ocean waves. They were led to adjacent massage tables, the scent of essential oils calming Lucy’s nerves more than she expected.

Britney leaned back against the pillows, sighing deeply. “So…tell me about you. Do you have someone? A boyfriend?”

Lucy stiffened slightly. She met Britney's curious gaze in the mirror before looking away. “ No… I’m not in a relationship.”

Britney tilted her head, intrigued. “Not even…ever?”

Lucy hesitated. “ I…was in a relationship. Three years. We were even engaged. But…he relocated, and we…broke up.”

There. The words out. A sigh escaped her lips, though she wasn’t sure if it was relief or resignation.

Britney’s expression softened, sympathetic. “I’m sorry. That must have been hard.”

“It was,” Lucy admitted quietly. “I thought it would last…forever. But it didn’t.”

Britney reached over subtly, placing a hand on hers. “Marcus…he’s not like that. I love him. He’s my person. My soulmate. The love of my life. I just…I feel like he really understands me.”

Lucy nodded, offering a small smile, though her mind was somewhere else entirely. She could still see the moonlight dancing on the waves last night, feel the weight of Marcus’s words, the way his voice had softened when he apologized.

Every step along the beach, every awkward pause, every laugh over that ridiculous ramen memory, it all replayed behind her eyelids.

“Yes, I can see that,” she murmured in response to Britney's expression of love about Marcus. Her voice was polite, measured. But she wasn’t really listening. Her thoughts were miles away, tangled in memories of the night before, emotions she hadn’t fully unpacked yet.

Britney continued, chatting about wedding plans, flowers, and how she and Marcus had met, while Lucy nodded along, answering when necessary, but only half present. Her mind kept wandering back to the sand, the ocean, the way Marcus had looked at her, the apologies, the warmth, the familiarity she thought she’d left behind.

And as the massage therapist’s hands pressed gently into her shoulders, Lucy realized that no matter how hard she tried, avoiding Marcus wasn’t going to be as simple as staying out of his path.

After the massage, Britney insisted they grab lunch together afterward, her enthusiasm undimmed by the spa’s quiet calm. Lucy smiled, nodded, then gently shook her head.

“I actually have a performance tonight,” she said. “I need to rehearse and get my voice ready.”

Britney’s face fell for just a second before she recovered. “Oh! Of course. No worries at all. We’ll catch up later then.”

Lucy exhaled in relief the moment they parted ways.

On her walk back to the quarters, she kept her head down, hoping to slip through unnoticed. But fate, apparently, had other plans.

“Well,” Josh said, appearing beside her with a grin, “we really need to stop meeting like this.”

She laughed despite herself. “Agreed. People might start talking.”

He walked with her for a moment, hands tucked into his pockets. “So… are you free tonight?”

Lucy raised her eyebrow. “Are you asking me out?”

“Yes,” he said simply. “On a proper date.”

She hesitated, not because she didn’t want to but because she did. And that scared her. Still, she nodded. “Okay. Yes.”

That evening felt lighter than the others had. They danced, laughed, shared drinks that loosened the tight knots Lucy hadn’t realized she’d been carrying. Conversation flowed easily, stories, jokes, quiet moments that didn’t feel awkward at all. Josh had a way of listening that made her feel seen without being exposed.

Later, as the night wound down, Lucy glanced at her phone. No messages. No interruptions.

“Do you want to come back to my quarters?” she asked suddenly. “We could watch a movie. Lila won’t be around, she’s…uh…staying over with a mystery man.”

Josh laughed. “A mystery man, huh? Sounds serious.”

They sat on the floor, backs against the bed, laptop balanced between them. The movie was romantic, slow paced, filled with longing glances and near-misses. When the kissing scene came on, Lucy felt the shift immediately. She glanced at Josh. He glanced back.

They both smiled, nervous, soft, unsure.

By the time the credits rolled, Lucy’s head had slipped onto his shoulder without her realizing it. Josh carefully closed the laptop, trying not to wake her.

She stirred. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you.”

He smiled. “It’s fine.”

“It’s late,” she said, rubbing her eyes. “You can stay. Take the couch if you want.”

“I don’t mind,” he replied easily.

Lucy nodded, suddenly aware of how quiet the room felt. She moved to the bed, pulling the covers back, her heart beating a little faster than before.

She lay down, staring at the ceiling, listening to the faint sound of the resort outside, and the presence of someone else in the room.

Someone kind. Someone safe.

And that, somehow, made everything feel even more complicated.