章 4: Sweet and friendly

Going around the house took her just a few minutes since it consisted of a living room, a kitchen, a small dining set, and two bedrooms. It was small compared to her actual home, but it was a beautiful villa with all the amenities she would need.

It had simple interior decorations, enough to make it look exotic and attractive. The backyard, built with a wooden patio, had a great view. A few plants sparingly scattered around, and a Jacuzzi on the balcony overlooking the ocean added to its exotic beauty. She felt like she was on an actual vacation. This place was her safe haven.

After unpacking, her things were all in order. Sabrina thought of what to do next. She called Lindsey to order some grocery stuff, but Lindsey would not have it.

Lindsey insisted that it was her job to cook for her and take care of all her needs. Sabrina decided to let the matter slide this time since she was tired from the long travel and the latest event in her life.

The ringing of her phone interrupted her thoughts. "Hey, did you like the place?" Jessica immediately asked.

"Yeah! I'm in a freaking paradise. I love it." She sat on the white couch that was at the center of the living room.

"Good. Make sure that whenever you go out, Gerry will be there to escort you." Jessica instructed. "But, on second thought, if you can avoid going out as much as possible, it will be better. Lindsey will take care of all your needs."

She decided to remove her cellphone away from her ears because she knew that Jessica would start with her ceremonies about how it was not safe for her to be out here, on her own. Jessica initially wanted her PA to accompany her, but she decided against it.

When they landed earlier, she asked Amy to go back home. Amy hesitated first, but she was able to convince her eventually.

"I think my service is getting a bit unstable." She started making some buzzing noise. "Are… still…" Then, turning off her phone for good.

She loved Jessica like a mother and knew that Jessica only wanted what was best for her, but Jessica could be overbearing sometimes.

She believed that she was capable of making her decision and dealing with her problems. That was her excuse, but at the age of 23, getting involved with a married man seemed to be a very irresponsible way of proving her maturity.

Having a father, who almost gave her all her needs, did not teach her how to be independent. Ending up with a manager, who acted like a very protective mother, did not help either.

The only sole decision she ever made for herself ended up to be the biggest mistake she would regret for the rest of her life. Thinking of him would be hard not to do. She loved him.

She could almost feel the tears threatening to fall from her eyes as she continued to remember the happy memories of the two of them together. She needed to do something else than to think of him.

Looking beyond the horizon, she suddenly felt that a stroll on the shore would surely do her some good. She started venturing to the patio leading to a path towards the sandy beach. She could see the majestic sun slowly gliding down behind the mountaintop, shielding her eyes from its bright rays.

The colors it produced on the adjacent blue skies were a great work of art, with its different hues ranging from pink, orange, yellow, and some tinge of green. It displayed the beauty of nature. It was as if God had painted it with his hands.

Then, she felt someone was moving from behind her. It must be some locals, she figured, ignoring it. But, as she stepped a little further, she became uneasy, suddenly cautious that it could be a paparazzi following her.

"Who's out there?" she asked with a shaking voice, but no one responded. The entire shoreline remained empty as the only sound she heard was the waves crashing on the sand.

She had nothing on her to protect herself from whoever it was that was following her. Then, she grabbed some sands, remembering that she could use that as a weapon and throw it into the eyes of her assailant.

When no one came to view after a minute of her scanning her surrounding, she decided that it was just her imagination playing tricks on her. She breathed a sigh of relief, laughing at her paranoia as she continued to walk on the shoreline.

She saw a big house just a few meters away from her place, so she decided to go in that direction. Maybe she could make some friends with the people living in that house. She hoped that they would not recognize her and treat her just another ordinary person seeking new friends in this lonely place.

When she entered the fence, another noise came from the path leading to the house. Something was moving in the bushes just in front of her, but she could not see what it was. She contemplated whether it was a good idea to proceed or just walked back to her house.

Curiosity got the best of her as she tried to look closer to the bushes. Something suddenly jumped in front of her, almost giving her a heart attack.

"BOO!" a little figure said. Making silly faces and sporting an adorable smile.

"Aaahhh!" She stepped back, shocked with the sudden appearance of a shadow, making her trip on a stone and falling flat on her ass on the sand. She had to hold on to her heart because she thought it would have jumped out of her chest with the little antic this little boy did.

"That was not very nice. You almost scared me to death." She scolded the little boy, who suddenly felt sorry for what he did.

"Oh! I'm very sorry. I did not mean to scare you. I thought you were someone else." The boy said, sincerely apologizing for his action. He offered his hand to help her up, "Let me help you."

"Well, you should be mindful of what you are doing, but don't worry. It's ok." She decided to let the matters dropped as she grabbed his hand. "Why are you here all alone? It is almost dark," she asked him.

"Well, I'm not supposed to talk to strangers, but you are too pretty to be a stranger. I have an idea. My name is Xavier. What's yours?" The boy was smart for his own good, she thought.

"You should be listening to whoever told you that, but you are right. I also like to get to know you." She steadied herself, brushing off the sand that stuck on her hands and clothes before offering it to the boy for a handshake. "I'm Sky." Remembering the beautiful colors of the rays of the sun on the blue heavens earlier. She liked it better than what Jessica used as her alias.

Her manager reminded her that she should not use her real name when she was in other places. They usually used aliases like fruits or fairy tale characters, but this time, she like Sky better.

"Sky is a peculiar name. I like it, and it suits you." They shook hands as they smiled at the new friendship.

"Will it be ok if we sit on the steps while we talk? I'm a bit tired after walking on the sand." It had been a long day for her. She suddenly realized that she was already exhausted.

Xavier immediately dragged her to a bench that she did not notice before. From the outside of the fence, no one would suspect that this house had a garden. It had a beautiful landscape, and a large pool was seating in the center of the backyard.

"Where are you staying?" The handsome boy with dark hair and brown eyes asked her. He was probably at the age of ten.

"Oh, just over there. That one." Pointing to the bungalow house that she could barely see in her current position.

"That's great. I can easily visit you. Tomorrow I will drop by with a wonderful surprise," Xavier announced excitedly, even clapping his hands in the process.

"No. You don't have to do that." She did not want to cause trouble or inconvenience to this little boy.

"We are now friends. I want to welcome you here to our little island." Xavier said, not at all offended by her words.

"If you insist," Sabrina finally succumbed, unable to say no to him anymore. He was such an adorable child. If she had a little brother, she would surely want someone like him.

"Xavier. Where are you?" A teenage girl in a ponytail came out of the house.

Xavier immediately called the girl, who quickly walked towards them.

"Who are you?" Looking directly at Sabrina when the girl saw her with Xavier.

"This is Sky. My new friend." Xavier interrupted. "This is Monic, my baby sitter." The girl, named Monic, continued to stare at her face, seemingly trying to picture her face somewhere.

"Hi, it is nice meeting you, Monic, but I think I better go. It's kinda getting late." She bade goodbye to the two before the girl finally recognized her. Monic was already eyeing her curiously. Sabrina could not let her figure out who she was.

As she walked back to her new home, her mind returned to the little boy, who was so sweet and friendly. She was glad that she decided to explore her surroundings and found a new friend.