Owned By My Stepbrother

Chapter 10: Truth or Dare at the Pool

INIGO’S POV

We are currently having a drinking session with my cousins. We're at the swimming pool area, which is near our own villa.

"Wait! Wait!" Stefan interrupted, getting everyone's attention. "Let's play spin the bottle, truth or dare, so there's some thrill, right? We shouldn't just be drinking all the time. It gets boring! We'll get drunk without even enjoying ourselves!"

"Okay, I'm in," Eren agreed and moved closer to where Stefan was standing.

"Come on, everyone, gather here!" Stefan called to us again. They all gathered except for Kaleb and me. Stefan then took out an empty bottle as River, Kaiden, and Eren approached. "Here, whomever it lands on, truth or dare. No killjoys allowed here. We rarely get together like this!" he explained.

"Go ahead, I'm also in!" River finally answered.

"Hey Inigo, Kaleb! What? You're one of us, right? Come on here!" Stefan called out to get our attention because we still hadn't moved from our positions.

"Hey, wait, am I not included?" Zoey interjected with a pout.

"NO!" Kaiden shouted loudly at his sister. "No kids allowed here!" he added.

"Seriously! That's so unfair. Besides, I'm a grown-up now! I can join your drinking sessions!" Zoey complained to her brother.

"Shut up over there, Zoella! Do you want me to report you to Dad?" he yelled again. "This is for boys only, so just watch from there!" he added, causing Zoey to sit on the side of the swimming pool with a frown, watching us.

"Wait a minute, Inigo and Kaleb haven't answered yet! They might be cheating!" Stefan continued to complain while looking at the two of us.

"Oh, fine, I'm also in!" I finally answered to silence him.

"How about you, Kaleb?" Stefan insisted.

"I can't join you, dude. I'm allergic to it, you know that," he quickly declined and sat next to Zoey, sitting by the side of the swimming pool.

"Okay, let's do it!" Stefan shouted and raised his glass. "For the handsome grandchildren of Master Alejandro Sanders and Mistress Minerva Sanders, cheers!" he shouted louder, already showing signs of being drunk.

"WHAT!? So, Kaleb and I are not one of their grandchildren?" Zoey complained.

"Hey! I didn't say that; it's just for those who can drink, so relax, my dear cousin!" Stefan retorted to Zoey. "Alright, here are the rules, got it?" he turned back to us, who were participating in spinning the bottle. "If the bottle points to you, you can choose between truth or dare. If we can't answer the truth, of course, we'll have a dare, plus we'll take three shots of this beer before making the dare. Sound good?"

"Alright, let's do it!" Eren impatiently responded.

"Okay, first round!" Stefan placed the bottle down and spun it in front of us.

"Chancharararanchanchan!" he added, a sound effect as the bottle spun. I felt like laughing because you could see our faces' nervousness. Obviously, we were all scared of being the first one the bottle landed on. "Okay, okay!" While waiting for the bottle to stop completely, Stefan said, "And the lucky chosen one is..." After that, everyone started screaming. "It's you, Kaiden!" he shouted, accompanied by loud laughter and applause. "Truth or dare?"

"Truth first," Kaiden quickly responded.

"Woooo! I thought it was gonna be me first," River nervously said.

"Alright, I'm ready!" Kaiden said arrogantly. He was the most arrogant among us, but it didn't show on his face.

"Alright, what's the good question, anyway?" Stefan said as he thought carefully. "Have you ever cheated on someone?" he suddenly asked, surprising all of us.

"That's your question? Seriously?" Kaiden sarcastically remarked.

"What a stupid question, Stefan! That's worthless!" Eren chimed in, adding fuel to the fire.

"Sorry! Can't I make a mistake?" he sarcastically replied, clearly taken aback by what came out of his mouth. "That's just what came out first!"

"But you can't take it back now," Kaiden complained.

"Fine, just answer it already!" Stefan impatiently shouted.

"Of course not! Even if I'm an idiót, I'm loyal!" Kaiden proudly declared, earning applause from us. "Okay, next!" After that, Kaiden took hold of the bottle to spin it. "I'll ask this time, alright!" As the bottle turned again, we all fell silent, and the nervousness rose again.

Then they started shouting again when the bottle stopped.

"Oops!" River exclaimed because the bottle pointed at him.

"Game on, game on!" Kaiden exclaimed excitedly. "Truth or dare?"

"I choose to dare! Those truth questions are too childish," River taunted loudly.

"Alright, let's see your confidence," Kaiden said, but he first refilled River's drink. "Go ahead, have a drink. Warm up before I give you the dare!" Kaiden jokingly said as River quickly drank the alcohol that Kaiden poured. "Okay, let's start the dare!" Kaiden said excitedly, accompanied by a mischievous grin. "I dare you to let me tickle you and try not to laugh. If you laugh three times, take three more shots," Kaiden dared him.

"That's so difficult!" River immediately complained.

"It's not even started! You just keep on talking!" Kaiden exclaimed and stood up, approaching River. But before Kaiden could touch him, River burst into laughter. "You're such a fool, River! I'm not even touching you!" Kaiden said, laughing along with us. "You're acting like an idiót!" Kaiden added, as he was already annoyed by River's reaction. "Here! Just drink it, you fool!" He grabbed the beer again and handed it to River, who was still laughing uncontrollably. "Just drink it!" Kaiden said irritably because River couldn't stop laughing even though he had not touched him to tickle. River took another sip of the drink he had poured.

After the last gulp, he shook his head, clearly affected by the amount he had already consumed. "Dámn! Six shots right away. Kai's shots are too high! Okay, my turn," he said as he grabbed the bottle and spun it around.

We clapped and cheered again as the bottle spun. Stefan kept banging on the chair next to him to create a sound effect as the bottle rotated. If we were all nervous at first, we were slowly starting to enjoy the game that Stefan came up with. Stefan was really the mood setter for all of us, maybe because he was the oldest among us.

"INIGO!" They all shouted almost simultaneously when the bottle finally landed on me. River seemed more excited when the bottle landed on me. I knew he was mischievous, so I just shook my head in disbelief.

HERA’S POV

I was lying down and rolling around on my bed because I had nothing else to do, and honestly, I was getting bored. This island is so beautiful, but I don't have anyone to enjoy it with. I was just staring at the ceiling of my room when consecutive knocks caught my attention. I looked over as it slowly opened.

"Yes, Mom?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Come down. We're going to have dinner," Mother said before leaving and immediately going downstairs.

So, I got up and fixed myself before going out and following my mother. When I entered the dining room, only three of us were there.

"Where is Inigo?" I couldn't help but ask. Because of that question, my mother and Felix couldn't help looking at each other.

"He's with his cousins. They haven't seen each other for a long time, so they're making the most of their time together," Felix replied while serving food on his plate.

What? That's so unfair! He's lucky to have someone to enjoy this beautiful island with. I can't help but feel jealous.

"Until when are we staying here? I can't be absent from school for too long because it won't be good for my grades," I asked while scooping up my food.

"Don't worry, dear, I've already sent an excuse letter to your professors, so all you have to do is enjoy and make the most of your vacation here on the island," Felix replied with a smile.

I didn't know whether to be happy or not with what he said because, to be honest, I couldn't enjoy the island. I was getting bored and impatient, but I had no choice but to wait until we returned to Warlington City.

I didn't respond because I didn't know what to say to him either. I quickly finished my meal because, just like our dinner at the mansion before, I seemed to be consuming the silence faster than the food.

"Can I go out?" I asked them politely after finishing my meal.

"Yes, of course, dear. It's good for you to see the island's beauty, especially now," Felix happily responded, and I nodded.

"Just make sure you don't wander too far because you're unfamiliar with the island," Mother added, and I nodded again.

There wasn't really a chance for us to talk, so I couldn't tell her how bored I was. And how I really wanted to go home.

"I'll go out ahead," I politely excused myself.

"Alright, dear, Inigo is just there," he replied.

"Take care, and don't wander too far because it's already nighttime," Mother added as a final reminder.

"Yes, Mom," I replied before finally leaving the dining room.

As I stepped out of the villa's door, I was greeted by a beautiful and brightly shining moon. It was perfectly round and served as the light for the entire island.

"I started walking towards the beach, but I heard noise and laughter in the distance before I could even get far from the villa. Curiosity got the better of me, so I decided to go and see what it was.

The noise was coming from the swimming pool area, and as I peeked, I saw a group of people there—five men, one woman, and Inigo.

"What's up, Inigo?! Just do it now, you're so unfair!" a guy beside him complained, and I noticed he was handing Inigo a bottle of alcohol.

Undeniably, they were all drunk, as some were dancing alone while others were swimming in the pool side as if they were Olympic-sized ones.

"Yeah, Inigo, stop being a killjoy. It's been a while since we were all together!" Stefan sarcastically remarked. Inigo reluctantly took the offered alcohol and quickly drank it.

"Oh, you have a stalker here," said a voice from behind me, and the person pushed me closer to the group who were having fun. It is no other than Ava.

"Hey, Hera! You've been here all along, so why didn't you join us!" Stefan greeted me, clearly intoxicated with every word he uttered.

"Perfect timing, Inigo, she is already here!" another guy behind Inigo said.

"But what are we going to do with her?" Ava asked snobbishly, who was now standing at my side. Everyone in the group turned their attention toward me, and because of that, I didn't know what to do.

"Just let her," Inigo said emotionlessly, and everyone's attention returned to him.

"It's like we've forgotten about you, Inigo!" a guy beside him complained again.

"Do the dare! Do the dare! Do the dare!" everyone teased Inigo.

"Kiss her!" Stefan shouted, pointing excitedly at the sky with both hands, thrilled about whatever was about to happen.

I was confused when Inigo suddenly swam across the swimming pool and walked towards me.

I felt a strange excitement, and I was unsure how to react. Especially when our eyes meet. I couldn't decide whether to step back or what because, as Inigo approached me slowly, my heart started beating faster.

Especially when he was almost in front of me, I was even more surprised when it wasn't me but Ava. He pulled her closer and passionately kissed her on the lips. I couldn't bring myself to look at them, but I could clearly see from the corner of my eye how intense their exchange of kisses was. I also noticed how Ava held onto Inigo's neck to deepen their kiss even more.

I couldn't understand why it felt like something sharp suddenly pierced my chest, causing such pain. It felt like my heart had stopped beating as well.

"Wow!" exclaimed the people around us, applauding. "Hey, enough of that!" someone jokingly added. But those comments hardly registered in my mind.

"Inigo, that was so hot!" Stefan teased. "I wish everyone had someone to kiss on a freezing night like this."

"Next! Eren and Stefan, you're up next!" someone shouted loudly, handing the bottle to Inigo for him to continue the ritual.