Chapter One

"Come on, that's just so crazy." Vivian laughed.

Vivian was having the time of her life. It was the night of her cruise ship vacation; the ship had just departed the port and was heading away into the night. She had never been so excited in her life.

It was the first night of the cruise and Vivian was in the mood to party; the drinks were flowing and the music was playing. She was feeling the effects of the alcohol, and it made her feel invincible.

At one point in the night, Vivian felt the urge to act out a scene from a movie she had seen recently. She had been fascinated by it, and felt like she could do it justice. She started to act out the scene, and soon a small crowd of her cruise mates had gathered around her to watch in amusement.

"Fie, you witch!" She seemed so serious as she stepped into the character from one of her favourite Williams Shakespeare novels.

Vivian was feeling bold; she had never acted in front of an audience before, but the alcohol gave her the courage she needed.

She spotted a group of people gathered around what looked to be the ship’s karaoke machine. Her hazy mind suddenly stirred up with yet another wild idea.

She stepped up to the mic and started singing. As she launched into her version of “Let It Go” from the hit animated movie Frozen, everyone around her seemed just as mesmerized as she was. Before long, she was soaring through the song and even threw in a few of her own drunken dance moves.

The more she drank, the more daring Vivian became. She tried to flirt, but her clumsy attempts at seduction only resulted in laughter. She stumbled onto the dance floor and began swaying her hips and singing along to the music.

Her voice was loud and off-key, but neither she nor any one else seemed to care. She was having so much fun, that was all that mattered to her presently. Little did she know that the night was going to be longer than she expected.

*****

*A FEW HOURS AGO*

Vivian had been looking forward to this three days cruise vacation for weeks and now here she was. The vacation was set up by Alpha Zee company, where she had been working for only a few years, but had already proven herself to be a diligent and dutiful employee.

She was really eager for this vacation, especially when she told her boyfriend, Sam, the news. He was equally excited and agreed to join her on her vacation. Coincidentally, that day marked their one year anniversary as lovers too.

Vivian felt a twinkle of excitement inside her as she took in the view of the ship's deck. She had never gone on a cruise ship before and the experience was almost dizzying.

Sam laughed, teasing her, and Vivian blushed. They held hands and then began exploring the ship together.

At the back of the ship, they got to the bar and started to drink. Vivian was soon feeling quite merry. She was having a great time but as the night wore on, she began to get frustrated with Sam.

He was busy flirting with other girls around, and paying them more attention, almost ignoring her completely. The night was not going really well as she had hoped.

"Babe, can we talk?" She started, eager to start up a conversation about their one-year anniversary.

"Huh?" He quickly cast her a glance before returning his attention to the ladies by his side.

"Babe!" She dragged her words desperately.

"Umm... Can we talk some other time?" He addressed her. "Let's just have some fun in the moment with everybody." He teased and pecked her, then continued with his side attractions.

She felt dejected. Her relationship with her boyfriend had been rocky lately and she had been trying so hard to fix it. She had been so intent on getting him to spend their first anniversary together that she was not paying attention to the little details around their relationship. All the rough times, all the fights they had- all of that meant nothing to her anymore.

She resolved to drinking away her sorrows.

"Two shots, please." She said to the bar man.

She downed the shots almost immediately, and requested for another. And another. And another. It wasn’t long before she was completely and utterly drunk.

After having a couple of rum and cokes, and then switching to sangrias, in her drunken state, a series of crazy ideas struck her and she decided to act out, letting go of all her worries and just living in the moment.

*BACK TO THE PRESENT*

Vivian's POV

 With a heavy heart and a completely drunken state now, I decided to go back to my room and take a nap.

"Hey, I'm on my way to the room. Come join me, I got something for you." I managed to type a message to Sam with clumsy fingers and blurry eyes.

I wished to spend the night together with him, being our first anniversary since we got together. I had already prepared a special surprise for him in the room.

I was so angry and disappointed that I took more drinks to distract myself. The alcohol made my head spin, and the only thing I wanted now was to forget everything that has happened recently.

Luckily for me, the alcohol was doing just that. But it also made me forget to pay attention to my surrounding. I walked along the hallway very drunk and ended up entering the wrong room, unknowingly.

It was dark inside, and I felt eerily calm and comfortable. It didn't feel right being in here but I was too tired to care. I tried to make my way to the bed, but then I felt the presence of another person standing in the room. I didn't bother thinking twice realising it definitely had to be my boyfriend, Sam.

In my intoxicated and angry state, I wanted nothing more than to curl up and rest now. I just went over to the bed and laid, until I felt a wave of relief come over me when he came to lie beside me on the bed. Being in his embrace made me feel as if all was right in the world again.

It was too dark for either of us to be able to see each other, but we just moved with emotions, and before long, a soft and gentle kiss was exchanged; an innocent kiss between two lovers.

Here I was, spending the night exactly how I envisioned it. The kiss was followed by a night of passion and sex. My first experience ever.

I had never felt something so beautiful before. It felt as if all my worries had been forgotten and that the world no longer mattered.

When we finally laid down again to sleep in each other's embrace, I heard the words coming from his mouth- "Will you marry me?", words that sent streams of joy through my heart.

I had dreamt of this moment for what felt like a lifetime, I had imagined this night in my head countless times. This was the moment I had waited a long time for. and it felt almost surreal.

Taking a deep breath, I felt myself nod in agreement, letting out the infamous words, "I do."

As my eyes slowly closed and sleep took over, I felt something cold being placed on my finger. I knew what it was without having to look, and my heart felt heavy with joy once again.

Slowly, I felt a whisper near my ear, "Don't ever leave me".

I was in the clouds, the happiest I had ever been. Finally, I had found the light at the end of the tunnel.

Or so I thought.