The Sturniolos' Assistant

Chapter 11: Detail-Oriented

As I'm waking up from one dream, I'm greeted by another dream. Matt's arm is draped over my waist. His hand is on top of mine and our fingers are intertwined. I'm glad he stayed with me. This island is creepy, and I probably wouldn't have been able to sleep alone but with him by my side, I slept peacefully.

My plan was to hang out with James and forget about Matt, but last night put a huge wrench in that plan. I was not expecting this and now I like Matt even more. I don't like it when people see me vulnerable and I was definitely holding back my stubbornness, but Matt took care of me anyway. He's sweet, funny, honest, and caring. He obviously has pretty eyes and he's gorgeous.

When Matt called me beautiful, it scared me because it seemed like he might like me back. I can't believe I was actually brave enough to hold his hand. I didn't know what else to do. I was comfortable liking him in secret without him liking me back. In any other situation, this would be perfect, but I work for him and his brothers so the whole dynamic would change. I don't want to lose my job or be replaced, and I don't want us to ruin the friendship. 

I don't even know why I'm thinking too far into it. I'm procrastinating. I need to wake up. I slowly get out of bed without waking him up. I take a quick shower, change, put on sunscreen, and get my things together. I decided to go write on the beach. I don't want to wake him, so I leave a note on my pillow saying where I'll be. 

I walk toward the beach with a notebook and pen and wonder what time Nick and Chris got in last night. It's not like they could've texted me. Stupid reception. I think I heard them get in around two, but that could've been something else. We made plans to check out the golf course later, I hope they're still down to go.

I found a lounge chair under an umbrella and sat down with my notebook in my lap. As I'm watching the waves, I realize that I'm the only one out here. No one is surfing, swimming, laying on the beach, or even walking by. It's not that early in the morning, I would've thought other people would be awake and doing things by now. Maybe everyone stayed up all night at that party.

I try to focus on finishing a scene that I started writing months ago, a simple little story about first love, but the lack of people around me is distracting. This place is weird and now I can't focus on anything else. I start to make a list of all the weird things so I can see them all at once.

There's no internet or reception.

Before we left, we researched the island and found many positive reviews. None of the reviews mentioned the reception or Wi-Fi. If all of the guests are rich businesspeople or influencers, wouldn't they complain about the lack of reception and Wi-Fi? Or if this is a new problem, why haven't they fixed it yet?

West side vs East side villas.

Cassie invited us to the island and added us to her reservation, but our villas are on opposite sides. I think it's weird that the four of us are the only ones staying on this side of the island. On top of that, it seems like everyone has been here before. We're the only newcomers and we're isolated from the rest of them.

The ferry only comes at night and won't be back until Monday.

What if I wanted to leave before Monday? Would someone be able to call and schedule the ferry to come back? Is there another way to get back?

All of the workers act strange.

I hadn't thought much about it before, but none of the servers talked much. They acted like robots. The only workers I've talked to are Alfred and Jack. That brings me to my final point.

Jack

Jack is a creepy dude and maybe I shouldn't think too much about what he said, but I can't help it. He told me not to take drinks from anyone and not to trust anybody. I feel like he knows something and even though I don't feel totally safe around him, I want to talk to him again.