𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐃𝐎𝐌 & 𝐒𝐎𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐄𝐒 [closed]

[ptolemaea]

𝐒𝐘𝐍𝐎𝐏𝐒𝐈𝐒 ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

every year, twelve prominent members of celebrity circles are invited to stay the summer at a private
island owned by the hudson family. three months full of mingling and partying, the getaway is
designed to bring the richest young adults around the world together. so why is an outside force
tearing them apart and pitting them against each other? and what happens when the heiress putting
it all together is found dead in her room, leaving all ten to pick up the pieces in the fall out of her
death, no way to get off of the island until the original departure date?
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𝐑𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒 ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

i. all cs rules apply ii. discord is mandatory once sorted out iii. no character limit, lgbtq+ accepted
and encouraged iv. i want this to bring out each character’s flaws, give them flaws v. not a rule,
but bring me your cattiest characters – i DON’T want everyone to get along, it’s more fun if they
don’t!!! vi. pm me to res :)
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𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐊𝐒 ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

DISCUSSION
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[ptolemaea]

𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒 ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

jolie hudson ─ twenty three, she/her, x, birdwhistle<3
cove mason ─ twenty one, she/her, x, birdwhistle<3
eddie hackett ─ twenty three, he/him, x, bigwig.
rachel hackett ─ twenty one, she/her, x, bigwig.
vegas st. clair ─ twenty four, he/him, x, bigwig.
rowena nightwood ─ twenty five, she/her, x, tawneypelt0504
arthur blake ─ twenty six, he/him, x, tawneypelt0504
maliah castro ─ twenty four, she/her, x, senna_
andrew yang ─ twenty two, he/him, x, wonyoung
jaidyn elks ─ twenty four, he/they, x, wonyoung
karkat fifita ─ twenty four, he/they, x, wonyoung
blake boo ─ twenty three, she/her, x, wonyoung
sooyun chae ─ twenty three, she/her, x, only angel‵
charlie moon ─ twenty four, he/him, x, only angel‵
luke griffin ─ twenty four, he/him, x, only angel‵
ha-ru "leon" moon ─ twenty two, he/him, x, idéa
sara banks ─ twenty two, she/her, x, idéa
hyo-sonn "delphine" seol ─ twenty two, she/her, x, idéa
jae-un "arlen" ahn ─ twenty four, he/him, x, mtuan,
seung-hun "cypress" yang ─ twenty two, he/him, x, mtuan,
tatum jeong ─ twenty two, he/him, x, gunthyr
alex jang ─ twenty four, he/him, x, gunthyr

[ptolemaea]

marking just in case

[ptolemaea]

ᴊᴏʟɪᴇ ʜᴜᴅꜱᴏɴ── tags: none location: the dock wc: 521
A thin tapestry covered the windows in the dusty bedroom which Jolie Hudson was resting in. She’d not been to the getaway, though one spring her father had taken her to the estate, letting her pick out a room of her own in the spacious home. Though he’d been gone for five years, and her sister had done it, and her brother had done it, it felt so very wrong to be sleeping in the master suite her father had slept in for so many summers. The same bed a dead man had rested in while living.

Death was a concept Jolie had trouble with. For a person to simply be gone in a matter of moments, to be overlooked weeks after. To be forgotten. Jolie, for one, knew she was forgettable. Hollywood would breathe a sigh of relief when she goes, then carry on brighter than ever. No matter how strained her relationship with her father was, she had been in quite a dark place since his death – it really had been in the blink of an eye. She couldn’t help but dwell on it, numbly rising out of the patterned chair to glance at herself in the mirror.

God, would she ever look alive? She groaned, tugging on some summery top and picking out an expensive pair of sunglasses dark enough to hide her tired, bloodshot eyes. Of course she was the one in charge, twenty three and the only Hudson with nothing. No career nor family, she spent her life floating from one thing to another, never truly happy in any of them. Her only sustenance was parties, whether it be the adrenaline or the ability to be reckless with others who wanted the same that fueled her until the next. Three weeks with no physical contact to the outside was already getting to her.

It wasn’t as though Jolie herself had any personal connections – she never really had. Sure, there are a good few people she had been close with ages ago, but nothing ever really lasted, romantic or platonic. Yes, she was aware it was the fault of her own actions, her unwillingness to change or calm down. Still, it would be nice to have at least one person. The thought of this event bringing her a friend drifted around her head once or twice, but she wasn’t too hopeful.

A faint knock sounded at her door, and she rushed out of it, nearly knocking over the elderly woman who had knocked to signal the arrival of the ferry. Peering out a window, she scoffed lightly and turned to the woman, shaking her head with disapproval as she started down the staircase and exited the mansion through a side door, making her way down to the dock. She still couldn’t understand how her father loved this event so dearly, but then again, she never really understood the man. The sun beat down on her pale skin as she watched the sailors unfold the ramp for the guests to exit the boat on.

Perhaps once everyone was off she would try to make a run for it.

[lush]

xxx──𝑨𝑵𝑫𝑹𝑬𝑾 𝒀𝑨𝑵𝑮...
xxxxxxxx(singer/songwriter)xx(tags) - cypress xx(mentions) tags

andrew didn't know what he was doing. one minute, he was getting ready for another comeback, singing his heart out until his throat was raw and he had to drink honey water to make it feel better. next minute, he was suddenly on a ferry with one of his close friends, patting his back because he was getting sea sick. not exactly the getaway andrew was thinking of, but all that mattered was he was having a break from all his responsibilities, and that he was with one of his closest friends, hopefully ready to have a good time.

hopefully.

drew couldn't remember the last time he genuinely had fun. of course, being a celebrity was fun in it's own ways. he got to do the puppy interview everyone eats up, so that was kind of fun. though, drew was more of a cat person, himself. he got to see thousands and millions of people watch and scream his name, praising him specifically. he guessed it was supposed to be fun, but after a while nothing was actually very fun. it was very stressful. drew often found himself awake at odd moments in the night due to stress, or freaking out when he hit a note wrong and almost having a self induced panic attack because his voice was too strained in the moment.

being a celebrity, a singer, was one of drew's biggest regrets. he didn't know if he was fit for the life of stardom, fit for the way everyone else was. they seemed to handle it just well, while drew was on the verge of tears in almost every interview or recording. his breathing always speeding up when he has to explain to his managers what went wrong and why he was in the wrong. he hated being a singer. he hated the way it made him feel. he loved the thrill on stage of hearing everyone scream his name and adore him, screaming until their voices went out and their chest hurt - drew knew that exciting feeling. but at the same time, the moment he was away from his fans, away from those who loved him and screamed out for him, drew had no interest in his job again.

the interviews were never anything new. same old questions, same old loser asking them, same losers wanting to hear about it. no one even wanted to know the real drew. all they wanted was some dumb junk. they never asked how drew was, or who drew really was. it was just who his persona was. and how his persona was writing songs about ex lovers.

ex lovers. drew hadn't had many of them, but he had a few. which was enough to somehow fuel some songs out of him, but that well was running dry, and it was running dry quickly. drew only had two exes. but one did scar him enough that he was genuinely scared to be in a relationship afterwards. after falling in love with his best friend's brother, dating him behind her back, only to get cheated on and lied to, it was a good song. it was a great album, in fact.

but it wasn't enough for the manager.

drew didn't even feel like falling in love again. he was too scared to, too nervous. and hesitant. he didn't even know if it was worth it. he had watched his own parent's marriage and love fall apart, how was he supposed to believe in love when the people who took care of him together, watched him grow up together, fell in love enough to even have him couldn't work out? he asked his mother that all the time, but the only answer she had was 'it seems i just wasn't enough'. which absolutely destroyed drew's heart. if his own father could be a cheap skate and cheat all the way up until his death, who in this world was good enough? who in this world was someone that could be trusted like that?

turning to the male next to him on the bed, drew sighed. cypress. his best friend, who was currently sick to his stomach. poor guy was sea sick, trying not to vomit into the trash can next to him.

"are the pills helping?" drew asked quietly, chewing on his bottom lip as he sat up to sit next to him closer, even though the smell of spit up was absolutely revolting. earlier drew found some nausea pills - giving them to cypress to hopefully help him not feel so nasty, so sick. "we should be there any minute now, you'll be okay soon. and maybe we can get something in your stomach. i don't know, i don't know what it's like to be seasick," drew tried, puffing out his cheeks slightly as he shrugged his shoulders to lay back down on the bed.

"even when you're sick, you're pretty. hope you know that."

[jungwonie]

XXX──── 𝐋𝐔𝐊𝐄 𝐆𝐑𝐈𝐅𝐅𝐈𝐍 ──────────── ( ♚ )
xx𝐃𝐄𝐓𝐀𝐈𝐋𝐒 ─ 24, fashion designer 𝐋𝐎𝐂 ─ kitchen/bar 𝐓𝐀𝐆𝐒 ─ jolie and maliah 𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒 ─ rowena and alex

xxxxxLuke Griffin, for once, was not dressed for the right occasion. Most people when they think of an island getaway, don't turn to a simple t-shirt and black jeans combo, they usually go for free-flowing silhouettes where the heat wouldn't bother them, but Luke? The heat was no match for this guy. Checking his watch as the ferry finally made landfall with the sophisticated Hudson Island, that only the most famous and lucrative were invited, the designer flicked a spare piece of hair from in front of his eyes as he looked towards the ferry's floor. His boots were almost suffocating in the new summer's heat, but he saw no point in complaining now. He was committed to the outfit, no matter how uncomfortably the hem of the neckline felt against his collarbones or the new tan-lines he was making upon his pale skin. Luke recognized few faces, of models and ghosts of the past, which he couldn't find himself in the mood to say hello. Instead, Luke strayed to the side of the ferry with his two premium suitcases and watched the water ripple against the side of the ferry and the ever-famous island.

xxxxxAs soon as it was acceptable to step off, Luke made a calculated trip to the only place in sight, the dock, where their gracious host was stood at the edge of, looking a few shades too confused to see the voyagers of the ferry. Rolling his suitcases smoothly behind him, Luke narrowed his eyes at the Hudson daughter, as she looked a bit out of it in his eyes. However she may have felt, Luke offered her a small, sophisticated smile. "Thank you for having me, Jolie. Luke Griffin," his introduction was short and sweet, like he'd intended, and he even extended a small bow towards her, though Luke yelled at himself for doing it. It was only right to greet a hostess in such way, especially considering he'd be taking place in her residence and consuming resources she'd been gracious enough to extend to him. His act was in no way malicious, as he stood up straight and glanced back towards the other socialites as they removed themselves from the ferry. In the mix of faces he knew and did not know, Luke found himself stuck in the line of sight of one of his most renouned models as she strode her way from the ferry towards Jolie. That instant, a feeling deep within his chest lapped the sides of his chest, wishing for a way out. Luke hadn't seen Maliah Castro since her last modeling gig she did for him about a year or two back. It was perfect, a highly successful campaign, and it paved the way for both Maliah to branch out into more modeling jobs and for Luke Griffin as a brand.

xxxxxLuke awaited her arrival over by the house, which was quite the grandeur compared to some of the places he's lived in. His chocolate brown eyes watched and greeted her, but with a simple wave of acknowledgement, Luke caught himself standing up to meet her in the middle. "If it isn't Maliah Castro in the flesh," his tone was that of a taunt, but it meant no harm considering the fond past the two have had. He almost couldn't believe his eyes as she stood before him, adorning one of his designs unironically, not even knowing he was meant to be here. A surge of electricity powered it's way through Luke's body as he leaned in for a small hug, burning the parts of him that touched the model. "I'm very happy to see you. How long's it been? A year, since we last spoke?" The formality was a curse of routine for Luke. He was meant to be prim and proper when dealing with business, but this island was no sort of business to him, although he could make some new clientele and partners here. Glancing away from Maliah from their release of embrace, he noticed he seemed to be standing outside of the kitchen. There was a bar inside, whether it be full or not, it was good enough for him. His emotions were tight enough seeing the sample of people who'd come to Hudson Island, a few drinks of liquid courage couldn't hurt.

xxxxx"Care to join me inside for a drink? A celebration of our reunion," he suggested smoothly, dark eyes twinkling as he caught her hand gently, pulling on it towards the door to the inside of the kitchen. Surely their luggage would be cared for by the help, and taken to their respective rooms, so Luke paid no bother to their suitcases as he wafted Maliah into the kitchen with almost an air of overconfidence. It was easy to be by her side, hell, he trained himself to be able to tolerate his models for excruciating amounts of time to ensure their comfortability when shooting, when the days had grown long and dragging. His boots clicked against the freshly polished floors as he reached for shot glasses and a plain bottle of tequila. "Care for a drink?" This, of course, was certainly no simple drink, in fact it would probably do more harm than good, but Luke poured two shots for them, to get the party started. He waited in the dim lighting for Maliah to join him, holding a trademark smirk on his face as he drank up with an old friend, not noticing that more people had begun to enter the kitchen as well.

[mtuan,]

.. 𝐘𝐀𝐍𝐆 𝐒𝐄𝐔𝐍𝐆-𝐇𝐔𝐍. 𝙒𝙃𝙊𝙇𝙀 𝙎𝙀𝙏 𝙒𝙄𝙏𝙃 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘿𝙄𝘼𝙈𝙊𝙉𝘿, 𝘾𝘼𝙇𝙇 𝙄𝙏, 𝙎𝙀𝙏 𝙄𝙉 𝙎𝙏𝙊𝙉𝙀 !!
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(tags) drew
(misc.) 1,139 words
no, i did not proof
read
mtuan, kim mtuan

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𝐀
𝐊
𝐀

𝐂
𝐘
𝐏
𝐑
𝐄
𝐒
𝐒

The blasting of the gym, the sound of machines working, the slight stank that was so typical of his work place, and the solid thud of fists hitting the standing bags filled every sense and every fiber in Cypress' body- from head to toe. Sweat dripped from his temple, making his wildly dyed yorkie fringe stick to his forehead, brows furrowed in deep concentration, as he took another jab. Jab, cross, hook, roundhouse, repeat... The thought of only hitting the bag as if it were another one of his opponents is the only thing to really cross the young man's mind. A session for himself without his students, who, although he loved each one of them dearly, often took up his time with a much slower session than he would have liked.

Of course, Cypress spent most of his time in his private lessons, indulging in his students, allowing himself to be hit in their spars together. He indulged in the bruises and the soreness. And maybe the way he could correct their postures from time to time and show off his own prowess. The other coaches already knew of his expertise in boxing (and, of course, his kickboxing), no one batted an eyelash any longer. His students indulged in his whims more than any one colleague of his could.

But of course, it left Cypress equally wrung out and mentally exhausted- and pent up, at the end of his sessions. The young barely had the time to spend for himself, after he'd gained speed and fame as a coach.

Needless to say, it felt good for the man to practice a bit on his own. The firm hits to the bag leave Cypress feeling more than satisfied with himself. The way the bag swung, the satisfying collision between the bag and his glove- or shin, on the occasion. His mind empties itself and surrenders to the void then. Jab, cross, row, hook, cross, row, repeat...

But that was months ago now. Only a mere dream in his many dreams after shattering his lead shoulder and being forced into leave. Rest and months of physical therapy built the young coach back up, yet he hadn't felt one hundred percent in a long time. Many months now, unfortunately.

Still, it certainly led Cypress to the opportunity of this... celebrity island vacation-thing. An invitation the young man would have not taken if not for Andrew- Drew as he would have preferred to be referred by. His best friend and fellow celebrity... of sorts. Though, unlike Cypress, he was not of the... gym rat kind. (Thankfully.)

Pretty with delicate features and long, soft locks, he was made for the idol life. If Cypress hadn't been personally invited, he was sure Drew would have no matter the circumstance. And it worked out- if the boxing coach really wanted to be there, he could- er, would, have simply shamelessly asked for a plus one invite.

'Course, he's happy to know he'd earned his own invite without the "handicap" of his best buddy.

That is, until Cypress ends up seasick as hell, uncomfortable, and feeling as if he'd already rearranged his guts with the way he'd been gagging. None of those with the right head space, either. This trip really was going to mock him until the very end. Laugh in his face for ever thinking he'd fit in with the rest of these... losers (haha, joking-) at all.

Tsk. He had even dressed nicely for this dumb trip, in some hawaiian dad shirt and a pair of fitted jeans, pulled together in some black leather belt. Cypress wasn't afraid of admitting his intent either- unbuttoning said shirt and simply allowing the wind to blow against his toned abdomen. A bit of a showing off, perhaps. After all, he hadn't heard much from his classes since taking a leave for physical therapy on his shoulder and all.

But of course, the universe hated Cypress with a burning passion.

Because rather than allowing him the privilege of flexing his abs in the sun, somehow, here he was, stuck in bed, stomach practically in pain with how many times he'd gagged. Still flexing, just much less... attractive. Curse the universe for being so quick to slap him down with an ego reduction.

Oh- and to make matters worse, of course his best friend just had to be by his side the entire ferry ride. Bless Drew's heart, but this wasn't exactly the image Cypress had in mind when he first chose to be included in his trip. Bless Drew for his patience. Hah.

Again, Cypress couldn't help himself but to let his abs tense again in pain.

God- curse the breakfast he thought he would keep down this morning.

Disgusting as it sounded, it was no longer... in.

"Ugh."

The soft voice of Drew pulls Cypress' attention from the sickness back to his friend. Shaking his head almost a little pitifully, the young man sighs. "Nah, not really. I appreciate the effort, but I don't think my body is happy with me... if it wasn't glaringly obvious enough, right? Hah."

"Can you see shore ahead? Is it visible yet? God, I hope." Cypress takes a moment to take another hurl at the poor trash can by his friend's feet. "Is it weird to say, I'm both sick to my stomach and also so hungry it's kind of crying, right now." The pout is evident.

Feeling like a kid again, Cypress almost finds that he wants to be doted on- maybe just a little bit. His stomach is empty, but his head is sick. His heart pounds in his chest and a thin sheen of sweat sticks to his skin. Except the difference now makes the young man feel disgusting. And helpless with each rock of the ferry. "Sorry you have to experience this though- you should be out there enjoying the sea breeze. Don't worry about me, I'll survive... hopefully. But you should definitely go outside and take in the view- for the both of us. I heard the deck is awesome."

He shakes his head once, twice- and then stops a little too suddenly when he feels like throwing up again. Terrible decisions.

"Thanks, I appreciate the sentiment, dude. But even I can tell that I look like an absolute mess. And you're missing out on the fun and excitement of the trip, just because my body is saying no."

There's a distinct moment when the gears in Cypress' head seems to turn.

"Seriously, go check out what the others are doing, I heard there are a bunch of you famous people hanging about. Don't let me be the one to drag you down. And I'll be fine here on my own for a bit. You did say we were close to shore already, after all."

[serafim]

x
𝐃𝐄𝐋𝐏𝐇𝐈 𝐒𝐄𝐎𝐋 ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･ ･
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( ♡ ) | 𝐓𝐀𝐆. tate | 𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓. x | " 𝐋𝐈𝐊𝐄 𝐀𝐍 𝐄𝐂𝐇𝐎 𝐏𝐄𝐃𝐀𝐋, 𝐘𝐎𝐔'𝐑𝐄 𝐀𝐋𝐖𝐀𝐘𝐒 𝐑𝐄𝐏𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐒𝐄𝐋𝐅 . . . . "
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indenther fingers knotted themselves in her hair as she used the black scrunchie around her wrist to tie her hair up, not minding what strays of hair managed to slip their way out and tucking the pieces behind her ears. she wondered what had gotten into her to agree to say on a island with a bunch of strangers, her idea of a summer vacation normally being one involving solace in her own company or a particular man── no, a little angel trapped on this poor excuse of a planet that she had been pathetically pining for── not scooting uncomfortably to the edge of a ferry listening to the idle chatter going on around her.

indenthowever, the sun warming her skin offered her a bit of familiarity, watching the waves slowly rock beside the ferry. she wondered if there were a chance he was invited to the trip as well── she was allowed to hopelessly run with the thought── to have someone to occupy her time until this vacation was over, and hopefully afterwards as well.
a few days before the trip, she could have sworn she saw his face in the mix of the crowd of her last game of the season and she was tempted to run over the moment the game ended but the reporters and different sport-brand representatives all had a different idea in mind. her gaze had struggled to keep up with the familiar figure as she tried to peer around them, however soon she had lost track of him and plastered a fake smile on her lips as a microphone and camera were shoved in her face, the beginnings of what would be many interviews starting.

indentdelphi was pulled from her thoughts when she felt the ferry come to a slow halt, her attention drawn from the blue water to the crowd that was beginning to form at the back, everyone seemingly eager to get off just as she was as she meandered over, picking up her luggage up from the slick floors and lining up to get off. she noticed jolie, the hudson daughter who was their host on this little vacation standing on the edge of the dock awaiting their arrival. she noticed the hint of a frown etched that threatened to curl on the woman's lips, quirking a brow to herself to the sight. their host didn't appear to seem all that excited to see the small crowd flood off the ferry, but if she were in her position she probably wouldn't be chipper either, but that was the least of her concerns in the moment as she lugged her luggage along with her.
she realized she never really took a good look on who was on the ferry with her, but now her curiosity was leading her gaze across all the faces in front of her.

indentin a moment of hopefulness, she concentrated on solely finding tate in the crowd over anyone else. for her, he wasn't hard to find in a crowd── she could vividly recall the way his eyes sparkled like a sea of stars, the way his lips would twitch into a shy smile when he was met with others he was comfortable with and the way his cheeks paint themselves in a shade of soft pink; she devoured the sight every time and had grown all too familiar with it.
as much as she could try to stop herself, the smile curling on her lips was automatic when she spotted him.
delphi watched him make his way to the vacation home, slipping through the people momentarily mingling or also making their way to the home before catching up to him. eventually she snaked an arm around his free one, her smile brightening as she shifted the handle of her luggage to her other one, peering up at him through her lashes and purring, "i was hoping i'd see you here, tate."
indentdelphi was secretly optimistic that he'd be equally pleased to see her. her wavy, red-merlot colored hair bouncing along as she walked with him and subtly leaned into his side. the two of them were frequently tied up in their awful mixture of schedules so they hadn't gotten the chance to have time together in a while── but now they had the summer, and suddenly this trip wasn't as dreadful as she imagined it to be for herself.
her fingers gently rapped against the skin of tate's arm── the warmth of his tanned skin something she didn't realize she yearned for until this moment── her smile slipping into a sheepish one as she meekly murmured, "i'm sorry i didn't get to talk to you much lately, i've just been super busy with my games and all," her eyes soon turning into crescents as she began to beam, "but this vacation should make up for it, i promise."

she wasn't known for sweet admissions, but for tate everything about her seemed to unravel at the seams── the aloof air she surrounded herself with melting in his presence, her touches tender but firm and her heart fluttering in her chest to the sight of him felt almost natural like it was breathing── and she didn't mind it one bit, "i really missed you."

[bigwig.]

>> 𝐄𝐃𝐃𝐈𝐄 𝐇𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐄𝐓𝐓
X ✧ male ✧ twenty-three ✧ location: docks --> bar ✧ tags: -- ✧ mentioned: jolie, rachel
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"Rachel! 'S time to go!" Eddie barked, fist hammering on the door to their cabin. He'd been restless all day and had probably walked the whole ship at least twice, although most of his time had been spent out on deck, watching the island slowly come into view on the horizon, piercing the monotony of the endless blue sea and sky. His sister, however, had stayed still in the cabin, deciding she'd rather spend her time listen to music or something. He knew she wasn't the most enthused about this whole thing, but she could at least pretend to be excited. They got to spend their whole summer on a private island with a bunch of gorgeous movie stars and supermodels, and she was acting like it was another boring magazine interview.

Eddie waited until he heard her come to the door before turning and starting to leave. He heard the door open behind him but didn't bother turning around to check; she could make her way on her own. Plus, she was probably still mad at him or whatever for convincing her to come along. She'd get over it, though - and hopefully soon. Honestly, she just really needed to get out more. Maybe she'd even learn to lighten up a little bit and enjoy herself while she was here. Who knew - maybe they'd even get along for a little while.

Eddie ducked and weaved his way through the crowd, pushing carelessly past a bunch of people as he rushed down the gangway. He'd been cooped up on that boat for what felt like forever, and he wanted to get on with the party already. Three months on a private island getaway, partying with some of the biggest names from around the world? Of course he was excited. He was about to have the time of his life, and nothing was going to stop him. Then, bounding down the docks, hair bouncing buoyantly in the warm island air, he caught sight of her.

Jolie Hudson. Well, it was no surprise - she'd invited them, after all. This was her family's island. But seeing her in person felt...strange. It's been a while; she and Eddie used to party together, had a wild time at a couple Hollywood ragers. Tabloids had been on fire with rumors about how the Hudson girl had picked up a bad boy paramour to match her rebellious image. It was a perfect storm. And then... then whatever had magnetized the two to each other had just as quickly repulsed them. The polarity had reversed. Eddie wished...

Eddie wished a lot of things. He waved at Jolie, but couldn't convince himself to smile in her direction. Then he just as quickly walked right by her, glad when she was out of his view. What a start to this trip. Well, he wasn't going to let it get him down. He didn't want to think about the fact that she was going to be here the whole summer, hovering in the corner of his vision and reminding him of his shortcomings. Surely not everyone else here would be as insufferably melancholy as Jolie and his sister. He made a beeline for the house, flipping his hair off his neck. It was hot out, and he was starting to sweat already, even in his muscle shirt and jean shorts. Well, only one thing to do about that. Eddie grabbed the hem of his shirt and flipped it off over his head, his dogtags jumping up and crashing down on his tanned chest. He slung the shirt around his neck like a gym towel.

Eddie jogged off towards the house, feeling the fresh island air rush over his body. His Dad's place in Long Beach was huge, but the Hudsons' mansion here might've been even bigger. Eddie did his best to act unimpressed, though. He marched right into the house like he owned the place, even though he didn't really know where he was going. He could go looking for his room or whatever, but that sounded unbelievably boring. Where did Jolie keep the booze?

[bigwig.]

✦✦ 𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐋 𝐇𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐄𝐓𝐓
X ✧ female ✧ twenty-one ✧ location: docks ✧ tags: -- ✧ mentioned: jolie, eddie
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Rachel heard the knock.

She thought about ignoring it; her stomach almost turned over at the thought of actually getting off the ferry. But she knew she couldn't put it off forever. She'd sealed her fate when she'd gotten on the boat in the first place; now she was in it for the long haul. With a sigh, Rachel closed her book and put it back with her things. She got out her sunglasses, hoping to hide her tired eyes, and picked up her luggage. Sure, there were people who could drag their things off the boat for them, but the help probably had enough on their plate with so many people arriving. Rachel didn't want to make their jobs even harder. She saw her brother's shock of curly blonde hair disappearing into the crowd as soon as he opened the door; he was in a hurry, apparently. Rachel sighed deeply and followed him.

She let herself fall to the back of the crowd. A dour frown was fixed on her face, although she wasn't really conscious of her expression. She squeezed around people, their faces wildly unfamiliar. Maybe Eddie knew some of them - ah, but he'd run off already. Not that he was the best with introductions, anyway; she'd probably make a much better first impression just by herself. Nobody here would probably recognize her, either - not because she was a no-name, but because she looked a lot different in person than she did in the magazines and on the billboards. Well, that was somewhat true of many models, but Rachel actively tried not to look like she did in her photoshoots. That gorgeous girl with the long blonde hair wasn't her - it was just a face that she kept in a jar by the door. A facade she put on to trick people into thinking she was pretty. This Rachel, with no makeup on her freckled face and her hair cropped short, was the real Rachel. She hated seeing herself in ads, selling makeup or perfume or clothes or whatever. It didn't ever look like her.

Rachel was awkwardly silent as she walked down the gangway ramp and onto the docks. She didn't really know anybody here and she wasn't sure she wanted to. She didn't really keep up with who was who in the eyes of the media, although she'd probably heard of some of the people here just from general chatter. However, she felt too awkward to try to introduce herself to anyone just yet. There'd probably be a party or something tonight where she could mingle or...ah, who was she kidding, she probably wouldn't go -unless Eddie nagged her to. She was torn between not wanting to get caught up in the crowds and knowing there wasn't much point in trying to avoid it.

She smiled at Jolie as she walked by, though it wasn't the most convincing smile she'd ever put on. The other girl didn't seem particularly happy either though, at least based on her expression. Maybe she just didn't like all the attention. Eddie had talked about Jolie quite a bit in the lead-up to their trip; Rachel knew her brother well enough to pick up on the unspoken parts of his story. She was another girl he'd done that 'almost dating' thing with - because of course she was. Then he had the audacity to act like that wouldn't make things awkward for the entirety of their vacation. Rachel didn't know why he was so...weird about things anyway. She had never really tried to hide the fact that she was attracted to women, and their mother had never really said anything about it. Their father? She hadn't told him and didn't care.

Her head was already swimming with morose thoughts by the time she made her way inside. She deliberately avoided her brother and set out to find her room so she could put her stuff away.