His Rotten Apple

57 ~ The Steamy Retreat

Zailey never got carsick, but this particular ride to the mountains gave her a whirling stomach. They had been driving on a zig-zag road for the past 15 minutes, not to mention the roaming thoughts about the person she dreaded meeting at the other side of the road.

She glanced to her right side to find Macy in an identical state, twiddling her thumbs in deep thought. Like sister, like sister.

"You guys doing okay back there?" Lilia asked, particularly looking at Jason. "Huh, looks like I was worried about the wrong person."

For the duration of the ride, Jason leaned and giggled to whichever way the car swayed.

"Rollercoaster!" He threw his hands up.

"Consider the torture over, we're here!" Ron said, quite surprised that rather than calming Zailey and Macy, it made them more frantic.

They pulled over into a small parking space in front of an enormous rustic cabin which was sat right next to a beautiful lake. A dock was connected to a side entrance of the cabin, leading to a small row boat dancing with the water.

The Tsangs orderly and quietly took their luggage out of the car, each one responsible for their own bags. Macy was just about to open the cabin door when the door flew open to reveal a person from the other side.

"Macy!" Andrew stood at the other end, as if he had been waiting for the perfect time to open the door.

"H-Hi," she bit her lip.

"Let me help you with your bag."

Before she could respond, he reached for the bag strap, lightly brushing his fingers against hers. Tingles ran through her fingers, sending electric waves to her stomach. She held onto her stomach at the discomfort, right as Andrew looked back to check on her.

"Are you alright? Did you get sick from the car ride? It was a pretty rough trip for us, too," He let go of the bags and walked towards her in concern.

"I'm fine..."

Zailey smiled at their interaction, barely noticing Connor looking at her from the kitchen.

As soon as she spotted him, she jumped back and dropped one of her bags. "What the hell."

"My parents told us to help you guys settle in," he explained. "But I'm guessing a buffalo wouldn't need help carrying a few bags."

She growled and gave him an exasperated glare, "Well, I certainly wouldn't expect a scrawny chicken to be of any help."

Her parents certainly did not raise her to be a liar, but calling him a modern day manifestation of Hercules would have only served to inflate his ego. She tried to maintain a calm disposition, though she knew he'd be able to see right through it.

He smirked at her as he picked up her bags, "Ms. Tsang, one must not tell lies."

***

The rest of the afternoon was spent unpacking and settling in for the week-long vacation. During dinner, they discussed cabin boundaries and itinerary arrangements. William and the other couples were to sleep downstairs in their respective rooms while the children were divided into each of the two upstairs bedrooms. 

Connor, Andrew, and Winnie were to sleep in one room, while Zailey, Macy, and Jason were to sleep in the room right across. Privacy was to be maintained at all times, and no one was allowed to step into a room they were not designated to.

Once they had all agreed on their rooms and planned their agenda, they all gathered in the living room. The parents seemed to be having some sort of telepathic conversation, of which they all came together with a nod and a deep breath.