Bailey's Dilemma (Follow-up)

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Sunday

June 26

2022

After almost a month away, Bailey has finally returned to Cozy Beach. The first thing she sees upon stepping out of the airport is her sister, standing there on the dock, and they embrace with open arms. She knows how hard it is for Mia these days, and she completely blames herself for it: her relationship with K.K. Slider has drifted the sisters apart.

She had left on the twenty-seventh of May, just two days after Gulliver's birthday, and spent the whole time traveling with K.K. The others went on summer vacation without her, which she was okay with, but what happened during that time changed everything: she was leaked in a magazine, after staying in the shadows for months. Now she has a decision to make: stay with K.K., unwillingly become well-known, and spend time away from her sister; or break up with the man she loves and become alone again. It's been difficult to process it all, as the last couple weeks have been extremely overwhelming.

After the others returned home, she and K.K. went to the place they had been: a small town where Gulliver used to live over fifteen years ago. She met Daisy, a kindhearted girl who knew Goldie back in high school; and her boyfriend Lemuel, who happens to be one of Gulliver's former crewmates. There, K.K. set up a small concert for just those two, a daisy-themed venue in a grassy yard, and she was able to confidently express herself onstage without the fear of being seen by the public. It felt so good...if only K.K. wasn't so rich and famous, they could live ordinary lives together. She has always known, however, that it will never work out that way: he is rich and famous, and she definitely doesn't want to be.

She walks down the path now, her giant suitcase trailing behind her, and Mia closely follows. It's been at least fifteen minutes since Wilbur landed her plane, and the two sisters have spent the whole time catching up. They plan to meet again tonight, out in the town square, to talk some more. For now, though, Bailey wants to spend some time by herself, as she hasn't really done that in what seems like forever. So, leaving Mia alone on the path, she turns around and continues on toward her house.

...

Once inside, she takes off her shoes and places them neatly on the mat by the door. She has always been a neat freak; even when she and Mia were kids, their parents constantly praised her for having the cleaner room. It even made her sister a little jealous, and they would fight over it sometimes. Neither one of them is a slob, though, especially now that Bailey has gotten to know Gulliver. She still can't believe that he lives in such a mess all the time.

She has to carry her heavy suitcase up the stairs, so by the time she reaches the top she is slightly out of breath. As she enters her bedroom, she notices that a couple of things are off: the door has been left open, the nightstand lamp is turned on, and the blanket on the bed is lying there in a heap. She doesn't remember leaving everything this way before she left...she immediately suspects that someone was in here.

There doesn't seem to be anyone around now, so she shrugs her shoulders and places the suitcase by the closet. I'll unpack later...it's too much work right now. All she wants to do is sit on her bed and relax, maybe even ponder about the whole K.K. situation. Making sure her phone is still in her shorts pocket, she walks over to the bed...but she stops for a second. The blanket seems to be moving ever so slightly, and as she glances over at the pillow, she notices a familiar face lying there. Wait, what the heck?

"Gulliver, get out of my bed!!" she exclaims, practically shouting into his ear. He groans as he slowly stirs, his eyes still closed. She hadn't quite realized he was asleep.