~*~*Chapter 6*~*~
Riana woke up to a vibration under her bed. Shaking her head, she walked out of her room and looked at the clock that hung on the wall in the kitchen. 7:45. The ship left port at 7:30, so Riana figured the slight rumbling was the engine. Satisfied with her conclusions, she walked back into her room and slept.
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Nick tossed and turned all night long, trying hard to get Riana's beautiful face out of his mind. But it was very hard to do. After dancing with her all night, she was the first and the last thing on his mind. The only thing on his mind. He thought back to when he was dancing with her that night. She looked so beautiful, but yet so carefree. Someone that could fill the empty void in his heart. Someone like, Riana. Now, not feeling embarrassed that he had admitted his feelings to himself, he smiled. He was happy that he finally found someone that could replace "her". Oh no. Her. Someone that Nick hadn't thought about since he had met Riana at the beach. Letting his conscience get the best of him, he disregarded his feelings and tried to go to sleep.
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"What is there to do today? We are stuck on a ship!" Riana argued as they sat on the Lido Deck. The sun was beating down on them as they sat tanning in their beach chairs.
"There's plenty to do," Leah breathed, watching AJ as him and Brian jumped in the pool.
"Oh, you are pathetic!" Riana laughed, hitting Leah playfully in the arm.
"You know what? I'm really thirsty. I'm going down to get something to drink. Wanna come?" Riana asked.
"Nah, I'll stay here and enjoy the view," Leah said, not taking her eyes off of AJ. Riana shook her head sarcastically and grabbed her tank top and shorts before walking down to get her drink.
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"Where are you guys sitting?" Nick asked AJ and Brian. Brian and AJ were playing a very competitive game of volleyball in the pool. Nick, Kevin and Howie recently gotten into the pool area.
"Up there on the deck," Brian said, pointing towards the deck that directly overlooked the pool.
"Yeah, over by Leah." AJ said, staring at his girlfriend who had her eyes closed.
"OK, thanks," Nick said, and threw his towel over his shoulder and walked up the stairs onto the deck.
"Hey Leah," Nick said once he reached her. She opened her eyes.
"Oh, hi! Here, take a seat!" Leah said, sliding Riana's towel over so that Nick could sit down. They were talking for about ten minutes when they were interrupted by a voice.
"Hey! Who moved my towel?" Riana asked coming up the stairs with a drink in her hand. Nick's mouth dropped open when he saw Riana with her blonde hair flowing so it shown like the sun. She wore no make up, which made Nick even more determined to forget about Emily.
"I did, I'm sorry," Nick apologized. He moved so Riana could have her seat back, but she pushed him back down.
"Stay." She said simply, sitting next to him so their knees brushed. Nick blushed and turned the other way. Riana noticed Nick's embarrassment and smiled to herself. He looked so cute when he blushed.
"So, Nick--" Riana began before AJ and Brian appeared next to them. Without thinking, AJ scooped Leah into his arms and carried her down to the pool. Riana looked over at Brian, who was looking at her with a devilish grin.
"Don't you even think about it," she warned him. He just chucked along with Nick, who was starting to play along.
"No fair!!" Riana cried, throwing off her tank top and shorts, revealing a beautiful body with a plain black bikini that outlined her every curve. Nick stopped laughing to notice how beautiful she was. Knowing her fate, she ran past them and jumped into the pool.
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"You're going down!" Leah said as they started a chicken fight. Leah sat upon AJ's shoulders, as Riana sat on Brian's. Brian and AJ laughed as they watched their partners try to knock each other off. Nick, on the other hand, was doing anything but laughing. Instead he hoped that Brian would want to switch places.
"There! HA!!" Riana called out when Leah fell backwards off of AJ's shoulders. She slapped Brian's hand and jumped off of him.
"Hey Nick! Come on and play!" Riana called, hoping in her heart that he would. She noticed how Brian's face fell, but she played it off as Nick walked into the pool so he stood in front of her.
' Not bad...' she thought to herself, glancing down at his chest that seemed to stand out.
"I'm gonna get out now. I'm getting kind of hungry," Brian said. He crawled out of the pool and walked upstairs onto the deck and then left to go to the snackbar. Leah and AJ were whispering sweet nothings into each other's ears, so that left Nick and Riana alone. Nothing to complain about, right?
"So, Nick." Riana said. She smiled at him.
"So, Riana." He repeated. They started talking in the 3 feet of water they kneeled in, not knowing what time it was or how long they were talking. Their conversation was interrupted by a splash coming from the left.
"It's 5:00 now. You guys want to go out to dinner tonight?" AJ asked, swimming over to them.
"We can't. We are in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean," Riana reminded him.
"Oh yeah! Well, there is a nice restaurant on the bottom deck. We could go there if you'd like," AJ suggested. They all nodded in agreement and left to get ready.
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"How do I look?" Riana asked, walking out of her bedroom. She wore a light blue sundress right to her thighs, showing off her now sunburned body. She wore simple diamond earrings with a little diamond necklace. Her hair was pulled back into a simple white clip, with little blonde tendrils framing her face.
"You look great!" Leah exclaimed.
"You think I will need a jacket? I mean, it may get cold.." Riana asked, rubbing her sleeveless shoulders.
"Nah, you'll be fine." Leah said. She glanced at her watch. "We told them that we'd meet them in the lobby at 7:30, and its 7:45. Let's go," Leah said. _______________________
"What's taking them so long?" Nick asked unpatiently.
"A little anxious, are we Nick?" Brian joked. He knew Nick wanted to see Riana, it was pretty obvious. He had watched them with a heavy heart today at the pool. Brian knew that he had no chance with Riana. He could tell by the way her deep, sea-green eyes sparkled when Nick came in the room. He could see that Nick was happy when she was with him, or even near him. Brian smiled when he remembered the chicken fight in the pool. He was happy she was his friend. A friend was a friend, and that's what Riana was to Brian. A friend.
"Look, here they come," AJ said, and stood up from his position on a railing.
"Hello," Nick said to Riana. She looked absolutely gorgeous.
"Hello to you, too," she said, smiling. Nick quickly turned away.
' What was that all about?' Riana thought to herself, her brow furrowed. She wondered what was wrong until they sat down at the table for dinner. Nick stared at Riana from across the table. He watched as the moonlight from the outside danced upon her face like fire. He felt so stupid. He was slowly but surely pushing her away.
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"It was fun," Kevin remarked as they stood outside the boys' room. They all nodded and made plans for tomorrow. Tomorrow they would stop in their first country on the list, Australia. Riana wanted to see the sights, so Nick agreed on taking her. Was it her or was he sending mixed signals? At dinner, he had reached under the table and squeezed her hand lightly, but when she squeezed back, he dropped her hand and placed it in his lap, not saying anything until he offered to show Riana around Australia. Leah, Nick, AJ, and Riana watched as Brian, AJ, and Howie went into their rooms and then the four of them walked back to the girls' room. AJ and Leah walked inside and shut the door quietly, leaving Nick and Riana alone.
"I had a good time tonight," Riana hinted, hoping for a sweet little kiss.
"Yeah, me too. It will be even better tomorrow," he said, stepping a little closer towards her. Close enough so Riana could feel his breath on her cheek. Their lips were inches apart when Nick pulled back.
"I'll see you tomorrow. Bye," he said. With that, he turned around and left Riana standing outside her room.
' Was it something I said?' she thought to herself as she walked into her room and locked the door.
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