Chapter 7
After Braxton, came Mason and then Sean.
The intercom soon sounded again "Singles, the winner may proceed to pick the person he would like to go on a date with"
Everyone knew Gavin was going to say Zabrina's name but instead, they heard "Jasmine"
Jasmine looked at him in surprise, she hadn't really talked to him much except when they were cooking the day before, she didn't think he might be interested in her.
The next person to pick was Harry.
Jasmine looked at him from where she was standing, wishing he was the first winner and that he had chosen her.
"I will like to go on a date with Raya"
He was going to say Jasmine's name but seeing she had already been taken, he called Raya's name instead.
It was finally Braxton's time to choose.
As it was a live dating show, the outside world was so curious who he was going to choose.
A girl who seems to be obsessed? Or another girl who looks like a hot figure? To be honest he had options.
"The person I will like to go on a starry date with, is Zabrina"
Fabiola almost gasped when she heard Zabrina's name from his mouth. Did she interest him that much? She knew he wouldn't pick her because he was probably irritated but she still hoped he would, deep down. She wanted to talk with him after all these while.
9pm sharp and the winners had already left for their dates, they were going to be coming back in two hours time. Fabiola just knew she wouldn't be able to sleep tonight until she sees them back. She decided to sit facing the ocean, as the moonlight shined on her face and the wind caressed her hair.
Natalia soon came to meet up with her "I just can't help but wonder what they up to right now"
"Probably drinking," Fabiola said without thinking.
"I guess. I didn't know Braxton was into Zabrina that much. With her, I stand no chance" Natalia said again sulking and Fabiola almost rolled her eyes. This was much harder for her to watch because he was her ex and she never really forgot him.
"Hey guys," Sean and Mason both walked towards them with a drink box.
"We found this, let's enjoy it together" Mason said, bringing out the cups and started turning in whatever wine they had. A few minutes later, Sean was already on the floor.
Fabiola thought about how she knew this was a bad idea. They were all sulking, except Mason. She was sure he was more than happy to have her here with him.
Drinking didn't affect her much as she seemed to know how to hold her liquor but Sean and Natalia kept on groaning Jasmine's and Braxton's names that it seemed very funny.
"Let's take them a picture" Mason suggested as he stood in front of them, raising the portable camera high and taking two shots.
"Let me see" Fabiola said and Mason gave her the picture it produced "Wow, we look so… "
"Messy" Mason finished.
Messy wasn't the word Fabiola wanted to use but it was okay to describe how destructed they looked.
"So, I know we haven't really gotten to talk much but I'm glad we have that opportunity now" Mason started as he cleared his throat.
Fabiola could already guess the conversation he was about to start "Hmm, what do you want to talk about?" She asked, looking at him. To be honest, she was curious about this man.
"About us" Mason answered at once and looked away, far into the night "If I had won today, I would have picked you because I think we would talked about ourselves better in paradise"
He was finally coming out in the light. She didn't have any problem with him confessing his feelings but the problem was… she wasn't here to fall in love! She isn't even among the participants and this certainly is not among the scenes she's supposed to have.
She was supposed to butt in relationships but Mason had none for now. If it wasn't because she was scripted, would she have fallen for him? She couldn't help but wonder.
"There's still time though, you can ask any questions you want" she was going to just plant in the middle of it all. Not knowing if this was even allowed at all
Mason nodded "first, I will like to let you know that I have set my eyes on you from the very first day we met and I'm very sure that I am not interested in anyone else"
"Wow, I'm speechless" Fabiola replied with a small smile.
"Yooh!"
"Wooow!"
Both Sean and Natalia interjected with their smudge looks. Fabiola wondered if they could even understand what was going on.
"Love is in the air" Natalia said as she sniffed the air a little and fell flat on the floor while Sean immediately started laughing for reasons best known to him that Fabiola feared he might faint.
"Maybe we should take them to their rooms?" she asked Mason worriedly.
"It's okay, they are going to be fine" he replied, glancing at them one time and returning his focus to her.
"Paradise then?" She asked, rubbing her hands. There was no cold, she was just so scared that she was acting on her own.
"I would love that very much" Mason grinned and they stared far into the night, each accepting they were going to choose each other.
"I wonder what they are doing now," Fabiola said, looking at the stars, thinking about Braxton having his starry date with Zabrina. She bet they were laughing like maniacs now.
"It's just a two hours date, paradise is more special"
"I guess…" she said but Mason didn't miss her sad tone.
****
The starry date with Harry and Raya was rather a loquacious atmosphere from Raya as Harry didn't expect her to talk so much or maybe he was the one with the quiet problem.
On dates, they weren't also allowed to talk about their occupations and ages, just other things about themselves. They all came to meet Lobster Mac and cheese, braised short ribs, chicken marbella, scalloped potatoes, sauteed mushrooms and white wine.
"So, that's how my last relationship ended with him. He was a narcissist who always made me believe I was the bad guy" Raya ended her speech and Harry nodded, saying "Sorry about that"
"It's alright. I hope I don't meet someone like him anymore. What about you, how was your last relationship like?"
"I have never been in a relationship"
"Wow, that's… new" Raya said and almost rolled her eyes. None of this made sense to her as she was only here to gain fame, she couldn't care less about a nerdy guy.
"Why did you choose me?" She asked, remembering the afternoon scenario.
If Jasmine wasn't already choosen, would he have even mentioned her name? She didn't care though.
"Because… I want to get to know you"
"Hmmm"
"Let's get to know each other then"
At Gavin's and Jasmine's starry date, jasmine had totally relaxed into talking with him.
"I thought you would pick Zabrina, it totally came as a surprise when I heard my name" she said, sipping the Romania wine and staring at the beautiful stars.
She liked how this little house was built into three compartment. You couldn't see the other couples but the sky was so beautiful with twinkling stars that dazzled.
"Here, let me pour you more wine" Gavin offered, bending the bottle to her glass and she looked at it, to see it was more than enough for her to swirl. Didn't he see it?
Nonetheless, she stretched her cup and he poured in a ridiculous amount.
"You caught my interest from the first day I saw you, and when we made scrambled eggs together, I enjoyed your company"
Jasmine looked at him in surprise, she was sure he wasn't staring at her the first day and was also sure she didn't do much when they were making the scrambled eggs.
It was mostly him and Raya talking, or maybe she was the one who didn't notice.
"Oh… I didn't notice"
"I wasn't out with it, so I understand" he said and she gave a nod.
"Cheers to knowing each other" he raised a glass towards her and she did the same as they both clicked their glasses against each other.
At the same time, Braxton and Zabrina were continuing their chat about celebrity lifestyles. Zabrina was here as Raya for the same reason- to gain fame, and Braxton just happened to be a good way for her to while away time. Besides, the food on the date was supposed to be good too.
Braxton on the other hand would rather pick her than pick Fabiola. Infact, he was already regretting coming to the show.
Did he really expect to find true love here? Most people just come to find fame and he knew that was what Zabrina was after, she just kept talking round the entertainment circle forgetting there was life outside it.
If he didn't know her in real life he would have already deduced which sector she works in. It was a good thing though, she never asked why he had chosen her till the two hours elapsed.
Two hours felt like a lifetime and even if he tried to enjoy it, he couldn't help but wonder what Fabiola was doing right now.
Worse off for him was that she was with Mason, who liked her. He looked at the sky for a moment "You would have liked this"
"Huh?" Zabrina asked, surprised.