Always, Paradise, Time...

Inside

Hi, Stella. --Luna

Oh hey, Luna right? --Stella

Yeah, (wow she could not even remember my name, who is this girl?), sorry my friends came to drop me off and they wanted to see if you would be willing to do a project with them. These are Ava, Aria and Scarlett. -- Luna

Nice to meet you, maybe we can talk about the project after our thesis? --Stella asked.

Luna, why'd you ask her that? It was nice meeting you. Whenever is the perfect time for you to discuss, just let us know. --Aria

Anyway, we'll be going now. See you at the beach house tomorrow, Miss Fuzzy. --Ava

-Stella's POV-

Hmmm, she looks familiar. Have I seen her before? She got company. I should have told her to come alone but it would sound creepy if I did that. Oh well, damage has been done. I just hope they are not one of those nosy people. I can't let anyone know who I really am, otherwise they will just use me just like my "family friend".

All right, Stell, be cool and calm. They're not gonna bite you. If they ask about my personal life, just say it's none of their business. Breathe in and out.

-POV End-

So, uhm, is it okay for you if we do the thesis at my place? --Stella asked.

It's okay. Oh by the way, I brought some tarts. --Luna answered.

Thank you! They're my favourite. Oh, we should take the back door. My car's behind the store. --delighted, Stella said.

Huh? Back door? Could you walk me through? --confuse Luna.

Come on, I'll tell you on our way, but you have to promise me that you will not tell anyone, not even your friends. And another thing, my place is a bit far, so if you have to go to that beach house that your friends were saying, I could ask someone to bring you there. --Stella.

Okay, thanks. --Luna.

While they are in the car....

I know you're probably wondering why we had to go through the back door. It's because some people are very nosy, they want to know everything about me, and I just want to have this little privacy I have left. --Stella explained.

No need to explain yourself, I get it. A lot of people want to be updated about your daily life. But I was wondering why are you telling me this now? It's okay if you don't answer. --Luna.

Well it's because you're my partner for the thesis and that project is actually 80% of our final grade, so I have to pass. And I don't want you to feel weird or uncomfortable while we're working on this. --Stella

I see. Wait are we at the airport? Why are we here? Don't you live in the same building as Scarlett? --Luna asked (anxious).

I do have a condo unit, but it's our midsemestral break, so I don't have to stay there. Plus, we could focus on our project if we went to my home. Just promise me that you won't tell anyone. Oh and if it is really okay with you, can you turn off your phone's location system, just to be safe. --Stella requested.

This is hard for me to process for the sake of good grades, but your actions are "illogical" per say. And now we have to take a plane. Yay great! I did not bring clothing for this mischief! --Luna said, sarcastically.

Come on, not to worry, I'll give you some of the clothes there. --Stella with a smirk.

How long till we get to your place? I don't do well on long flights. --Luna.

In a few minutes, we'll be there. And if your going to ask if we have the resources to finish our thesis proposal, we do have access to it and whatever we need I'm pretty sure we can find it. And if you have any allergies to food or anything, please don't hesitate to tell me. --Stella.

Okay. -- Luna answered.

-Luna's POV-

She is really weird, she's taking this trip every weekend just to get away from people? Why upload videos and go live on social media if you don't want your life to be an open book? All this fuss about what, what she would gain from this, aside from headache? If she's this rich, I 'm sure she can afford a chauffeur and private security. This girl makes me wonder about her logical thinking. Is she in the right state of mind? Does she even realize that even with this money and power, people can't come near her anyway?

Wait, is this her place? This thing is an island. It's not private, but it's paradise. This is a gorgeous place.

-END POV-

Luna is still shocked that they arrived on an island with a private airport, and from the airport there is this tall gray concrete fence. As she gazed around, they entered the premises of the compound. From the air strip it took 5 minutes by car to Stella's house.

So? this is your place that you don't want anyone to see or know? --Luna asked.

Yes, but maybe this is not the time for those questions. We have a project to work on. So this is the library. We can use this as our working station. And about your clothes, I'll get them for you and you can change in the guest room. Come, follow me. --Stella answered abruptly.

-Stella's POV-

Damn, this girl asked so many questions. This is why I don't want people coming here. Too many questions and then they will feel awkward about all this. I'll take her to the guest room and I'll get some blankets and pillows too. I have a feeling that we're gonna pull up an all-nighter.

-END POV-

Here is the room and there are a few clothes and shirts in the closet. Not to worry, no one has used them, you can take them with you as well. I'll go freshen' up and prepare our meal. My room is at the end of this hall if you need something. --Stella instructed.

Okay. Thanks. --Luna.

Phone ringing.....

Hi guys, about tomorrow I have to cancel. I'm not gonna be joining you 'cause we plan to finish the proposal this weekend. Sorry guys. --Luna

Ugggh, why and where are you? We sent you a lot of messages and we want to know how it went with your partner? --Scarlett.

She's weird and very mysterious. I'm at her place right now, I can't send any pictures 'cause I'm not here to spy on her. We have got things to do, and besides, I need this thesis to get a good grade, so I don't have to take the written exam. --Luna the story teller.

Okay, okay but please make her say yes to the collab, pretty please? --Scarlett.

Look, why of all is it's her that you go for a collab, I mean I know she has a lot of followers and that she do a bit of modeling, but there are other influencers and personalities that you can get from your dad's agency, right? --Luna asked.

My dear Luna, my dad won't let you into his office. He said I must not intervene with his artists and that they are too busy to be in my videos. He always tells us that we have to succeed on our own. --Scarlett mentioned.

I'll see what I can do. I gotta go. See you at school. --Luna

Knock on the door...

Luna, after you change your clothes, just head straight to the library. I'll bring our snacks there so we can start early. --Stella.

Meanwhile, inside the room...

She sure is very hospitable, but these are all shirts for both male and female and they come in 2 colours. But I must say this room is like a boutique with only two colours of clothes available, but it comes in different sizes and designs. Men and women with emotional problems would love to stay here, everything is in neutral colours. Hmmmm, oh what do we have here? Scents from Yves Roche, O wow, I think she has all their liquid bath scent. ---Luna talking to herself.

Luna decided to take a picture of every scent and she even found a full-line Maybelline and Mac collections. In the far corner of the room she found perfume and body mist, and the doorway to the bathroom. She was amazed at how Stella could have all these and never brag about them.

After a while, they both entered the library and started working on their thesis proposal. Luna notices that most of the books are novels, fiction and romantic comedies in the genre. On the other hand, two whole shelves are for reference.

So, uhm, there are only a few physical books here, I'm gonna need your wi-fi password for my iPad and laptop, can you give me access to them? --Luna asked politely.

Give me your laptop and iPad. I will set them up and, if you need more references, there is a laptop on that desk, it has access to online libraries from overseas universities. --Stella answered.

It's 1:30 in the morning and Stella was suddenly awakened when she was about to fall from the chair. She noticed that Luna was sleeping on the couch, so she walked towards her, fixed her blanket and pulled out the leg-rest of the sofa.

"I do remember you, Luna, you were that cute little friend I had at boarding school. I'm sorry for not saying goodbye back then. I was confused back then. I don't know if I am falling for you or if it's just one of those filial feelings. All the time that I was away from you makes me realize that love knows no boundaries nor gender. A lot has changed since then. I wish I could tell you everything, but I'm not brave enough. I still like and care for you. I just don't know how to show it to you now that your here with me. I don't want you to know that I have feelings for you.............princess." --- Inside Stella's mind while looking at Luna's face.