"Seriously, how, what, where from? What is happening?" I asked, calming down.
"I came here on vacation with my girlfriend and I find a video of you spread all over the internet and the whole island," he recounted. "At first, I didn't recognize you, and I couldn't believe my eyes that this was the same Luanna Perez from my childhood."
"And I can't believe it's you! You've changed so much," I was so happy. So very happy.
"You're talking about me? Look at yourself! You look amazing," he complimented me. "And you've changed so much. Not just your looks, but your character too. The Luanna I knew wouldn't have danced on a bar, feeling no fear and being perfectly confident in herself."
"I admit it," I laughed along with him.
"Jacob?" a sweet girl approached us.
"You must be his girlfriend," I stood up. "Nice to meet you, I'm Luanna," I introduced myself.
"I'm Lilah," she shook my hand.
"She's very sweet," I told Jacob, turning to him.
"I know," he smiled.
"Why are you both crying?" Lilah asked.
"Because I found the most important person from my childhood after thirteen years," I replied with a smile.
"She's the friend I told you about," the guy said. "She's just very changed. Give me your number," he asked.
I did so. "Seriously, where do you live now, what are you doing?"
"Right now, I live and study in New York," I laughed.
"You're studying?" he started laughing. "More like you're sitting around doing nothing."
"Alright, that hasn't changed," the three of us laughed again.
"Listen, we have to go, but please, let's keep texting or calling. I don't want to lose you for another ten years," I hugged them both.
"Definitely, bye!" I said goodbye and lay back down.
I felt better. I felt happy, but like something was missing.
"What about you?" Niall came and sat down next to me.
"Nothing," I sighed deeply.
"Were you crying?" he asked.
"A little," I replied.
"What happened? Are you okay?" he immediately started questioning me.
"Yes, I'm fine," I grumbled.
"But what happened?" he didn't give up.
"I met a friend. A former best friend."
"And that's why you're crying?" he frowned.
"For the first time after thirteen years," I finished my thought.
"That's nice then," I could feel him feeling awkward.
"So much has changed in that time," I smiled to myself, looking at the sky. "But he knows me better than anyone else. Even my mom."
"Sounds fun," he lay down.
"It is. I'm happy for him. He remembered me, found a wonderful girl, is traveling. Just like we dreamed when we were little," I explained, and it felt like Niall's muscles relaxed and he, himself, loosened up.
"My only friends since childhood are those four idiots. I met Josh and Jake here. I never even needed more friends," he shared his story.
"Yeah…" I drew out, not knowing what to do and trying to stop myself from mentioning what he was up to in fifth or sixth grade. Thank goodness, my phone rang just in time.
L: "Hello?"
M: "Hey there, still alive?" Matt laughed.
L: "No need to mock," I muttered. "Yes, I'm alive."
M: "So you're coming over to my place today, right? People will be very happy to hear that they'll even be in the same club as you," he laughed.
L: "What the hell did I even do yesterday that everyone knows me?!" I frowned.
Niall next to me snorted, but then settled back into a normal lying position and pretended that nothing had happened.
M: "Poor Luanna doesn't remember," he chuckled. "Anyway, it doesn't matter. I'll send the address soon and I'll be waiting for you at eight."
L: "Okay," I replied, and he ended the call.
I deeply inhaled and exhaled. At least the fatigue had faded a little.
"Sometimes life is so annoying," I muttered.
"Why?" Niall was interested.
"Because we're leaving here soon, and finally, the vacation will be over soon. I hate school," I grumbled.
"But you do well without studying," he reminded me.
"Many years of memory training and working to hear what's needed," I laughed.
"I guess so," he joined me. "Would you like to go home now? Not to New York. To your mom's?" he asked out of nowhere.
"No," I just answered. "I'm having a much better time here than I had all year in London."
"Why, if I may ask? I would love to go. Eddie lives in New York with my dad and his new wife, and I see them occasionally, but my mom and her husband stayed in Ireland."
"So Eddie is your stepbrother?" I asked, and he nodded.
"He's very sweet."
"I know," I smiled. He was proud of him.
"I don't want to go home because I was never happy there. I never had a great relationship with her, and I haven't seen my dad since I was three," I told my unhappy story, although it doesn't bother me anymore. It's just life, and I'm living in the present.
"I'm sorry," he said sadly.
"Why?" I asked. "I'm happy now. I have the best friends, the team. I'll finish school, start a career, an independent life, and forget all the bad things that ever happened to me."
"That's right. I completely agree," he nodded his head.
An awkward silence began, but I didn't try to break it and pretended not to feel the strangeness. After a minute, the savior appeared.
"What are you two doing here?" Jake ran up to us.
"Lying down, relaxing, sunbathing," I replied. "You?"
"I came to join you," he slumped onto the sunbed next to us.
"Do you happen to know what time it is?" I asked.
"4:57 PM, why?"
"No wonder it's not so hot here anymore," I shifted. "Maybe we should leave soon?"
"We can," Niall said lazily.
"Time goes so fast here," I sighed. "It feels like we just arrived, and there are only two days left here."
"Especially for you, when you party like that at night," the guys scoffed.
"What did I even do?" I whined.
"We don't know everything fully," Jake laughed. "But we saw videos and even heard rumors."
"Do I want to know that?" I raised an eyebrow.
"I don't think so," the blond chuckled.
"Well, fine," I said and started gathering my things.
"Does anyone want to help me pick out clothes? I don't know which is better," I asked everyone who was in the apartment.
"Busy," Josh shouted from the balcony, indicating he was on the phone.
"Lazy!" Zayn and Jake yelled from their rooms at the same time.
I turned to Liam and Niall, sitting on the couch and talking about something.
"No," they said seriously.
"Come on," I whined. "You just have to tell me which outfit looks better."
"Alright," Niall sighed.
I quickly ran to the bathroom and changed into the first outfit. I walked past the guys like a model, turning and showing them all sides, and then ran to change again. I did the same thing the second time.
"I think this one," Niall said.
"And I think," Liam paused. "This one too."
"May I ask where you're going?" Liam inquired.
"To work," I replied, standing in front of the mirror and fixing my hair.
"To work?" Niall didn't understand.
"Matt offered me a little job," I began. "Tonight, I'll be in charge of the music at his club," I explained.
"Not bad," the blond was surprised.
"You know how to use all that equipment? There are about a million buttons there," Liam frowned.
"There's nothing difficult about it," I said and dashed out the door.
When I arrived at the club, Matt was waiting for me. He told me to follow him, and we walked around to the back entrance. As we walked, he showed me the inside and introduced me to a few people. Music was already playing, and I saw the DJ leaving, giving up the space to me. We high-fived as we passed each other. I stood behind all those million buttons and waited for the signal.
"Hello, everyone!" Matt greeted the crowd. "I'd like to interrupt you very briefly. Today is a special day because a special person will be playing music for us. She's a great, old friend of mine, and you definitely know her," people looked excited. "Today we have... Luanna Perez!" he shouted, and all the lights turned to me.
Everyone in the hall started screaming and cheering. Some took out their phones and started texting others. It's going to be a long night.