Love Island 2021 - A Summer of Love

Gossiping With Sharon

Gemma P.O.V

"... Aaron."

Wow. Okay. Definitely not the boy that I was expecting. But, I'm safe. Jake and I are still coupled up.

Aaron pulls Chloe into a hug. He droops and arm around the shoulder of his new partner as we fall silent, looking at each other and wondering what we are meant to do. Shannon looks lost. No one knows her fate.

A text arrives on Shannon's phone. She'll probably be given until the next re-coupling like in past series. Shannon brushes her hair through her fingers nervously, swiping open the notification. The glowing, infectious smile moulds into the disappointment of an abandoned puppy. It's obviously not good news.

"Oh my God. I've been dumped."

My jaw hits the ground.

No way has she been dumped! We've only been here 48 hours! There is no way they can be kicking someone out now. Surely?

I launch myself from my seat and pull Shannon into my arms. She's shaking, but I hold her still. I'd be breaking down in tears if it was me. How is she managing to keep herself together?

"Are you okay?" I whisper into her hair.

"Yeah, I'm okay."

"You sure?"

"No, but I will be."

Everyone begins to say their goodbyes.

"I feel so bad," Chloe admits.

"None of us knew," I reassure her. "None of us would ever think that she would get dumped. Don't blame yourself."

"Gemma's right. None of us knew this was going to happen." Brad sighs.

I liked Shannon. Although I haven't got to know her very well, she seemed like a lovely and genuine girl. I know that she's going to meet somebody on the outside. Maybe Love Island just wasn't meant to be for her.

The girls and I help Shannon pack. I intricately fold all of the sexy underwear that she brought. This would have been ripped off in the hideaway by her dream man. As I'm folding up some white stockings and blue sets, tucking them into the corner of her case, I pull a lacy red set from her drawer.

"You can keep that." Shannon smiles. "It's not very flattering on my bum, and it's your size."

I look at the label. Size 12. Most of the girls in the villa are an 8 or smaller. I seem huge compared to them. "Are you sure?"

"Completely. It's not like I'm gonna get any use out of it now."

We take our time packing up Shannon's things, because none of us wants to face the moment of saying goodbye. We girls have formed a really good bond. I'm not as close to her as Sharon or Kaz, but she was still so easy to speak to. Once her bags are packed, Aaron carries the case to the front door and we all gather around to say goodbye.

"We never got to wear our matching outfits," Shannon refers to the yellow bikinis we found in our wardrobes yesterday.

"We'll wear them soon, I promise."

And with that, Shannon rolls her suitcase out of the door. We all watch as she walks the path, closing the book on her island experience. Our villa has gone from 11 people to 10 in the blink of an eye. Anyone could be next.

The mood gets depressing very fast and we collectively decide that we're ready for bed. Kaz has dressed up cute in a pink set, whilst I stick to grey sweats, vest, and a bralette. I tell the girls how Jake hasn't made much effort with me, especially compared to the likes of Brad and Hugo.

I push open the bedroom door. Jake and Aaron are the only ones in the room. Aaron has tucked himself in his new bed, whilst Jake is sprawled like a starfish on our duvet.

"What we saying then," Aaron looks between us both. "Is it too soon to spoon?"

"Never," Jake cackles. "I like spoons."

"I'm cool with whatever," I shrug. I'm not really up for it tonight.

When the lights go out, Jake makes an attempt at a spoon. I'm too focused on losing Shannon to think about cuddling with Jake. His hands slide around my waist and he shuffles to my side of the bed, pressing his chest against my back. We spoon for a while, but the room is too hot. The cuddle feels forced and uncomfortable. I finally drift off when Jake rolls over, and we remain on opposite sides of the bed for the rest of the night. 

*

I sit with Sharon on the daybed. Kaz and Toby have gone on a date this morning, so we are patiently waiting on her return.

Watching Hugo and Brad in the gym is something I could happily wake up and do every morning for the rest of my life. Hugo is in full teacher mode, instructing Brad to lift certain weights and do certain numbers of reps. Brad is completing every challenge with ease.

"So did anything happen with Jake last night?" Sharon asks, tucking into her bowl of cheerios. It's obvious that we're perving on Brad's insane back muscles, but neither of us cares. "Any spoons?"

"A little one."

"No way!"

"To be honest, it wasn't great."

"How is a spoon not great?"

"It was just . . . I don't know. It felt unnatural."

"Do you reckon that you're going a bit too fast?"

I shake my head. "No, I don't think it's that. I don't know what it is."

Sharon stares at me. I can see the cogs in her head-turning, trying to suss out what's going on like some sort of psychic. She slurps the milk off her spoon and then points it at me. "I know what it is."

"What is it?"

"You're not feeling it with Jake, because you've got stronger connections with them." Sharon teases, pointing the spoon towards Hugo and Brad who have now moved onto push-ups. "You and Hugo disappeared for a bit last night. Chloe said you were on the balcony chatting. What was going on there, Miss Croft?"

I don't say anything for a few seconds. Retracing the memories of last night brings a huge smile to my face that I can't push back. "Hugo and I were literally just chatting. But he's such a lovely boy and we had proper good banter too."

"You're welcome to him. Hugo and I are platonic mates." Sharon grants her approval. "If he tells me anything I'll be sure to let you know. Brad though? The snog in that challenge yesterday was something else."

I tell Sharon in the only way I can describe it. "See, Hugo is the guy I could see taking home to my parents and going on dates with. Brad is the type of guy whose head I want between my legs."

"Gemma!" Sharon gasps.

It's true. The sexual tension between Brad and I is starting to get stronger. The fanny flutters haven't started yet, but they'll come thick and fast. Hugo? He's the type of guy that I'm going to fall for, but it may take a bit longer.

"How are you and Aaron though?" I tease.

"Yeah, we're cool. I mean we kissed in the challenge. He's a really good kisser to be fair, so I thought when the next chance came that I'd take it. He's with Chloe now."

"I reckon that'll just be a friends thing," I assure her. "Chloe will move in on Brad, I reckon."

"Not if he gets to you firsttttt." She pokes at my side playfully.

* * * * *

What did we think of tonight's episode?

I don't want to follow the TV show word of word, so I'm going to add some cute scenes to mix things up. If you have any suggestions of scenes you'd love to see between Islanders, comment below!

Let me know if you want longer chapters than this one. I can make them around 2000 words if you like, but the updates will be less regular and the chapters longer to read x