Alyssa's PoV:

"I will meet you up there" he said, Cady grinned from ear to ear and left the jacuzzi quickly.

"I am getting ready then" she said before leaving, I watched her leave with a frown and a disgusted face on... really right in front of me?

The door closed and the silence didn't take long because Mason interrupted it

"You are really frowning" he commented as my eyes landed on his on the other side of the jacuzzi

"Why are you so interested in my frown, I guess you have things to do and places to be" I spat out after hearing their conversation, it didn't need a genius to find out the topic of the talk.

"I do yes" He nodded calmly while looking now at the bubbling water

"You could hurry then and leave me alone" I replied

"but that's not my intention yet"

"Well, it should be" I answered he was about to speak but my phone rang with a sound of a notification. I took my attention to my phone on the floor next to me and I watched the notification "Chase" I mumbled to myself, again. He has been all day blowing up my phone asking how I was doing... it's 1 AM, what tells him that I am not sleeping? I grabbed the phone, glad for the distraction.

Chase: Hey, how are you feeling? Heard you were sick. Missed seeing you today.

"He must be really worried" Mason said from the other side of the jacuzzi, I decided not to answer the message yet

"Probably" I commented putting my phone down

"So you like him?" he questioned with narrowed eyes, focused on my answer

"He's a nice guy" I mentioned telling the truth and sitting back on the jacuzzi again

"That was not my question"

"What about you... do you like her?" I said curiously changing the conversation

"Why? Do you care?"

"That was not my question" I replied, and suddenly I took the courage and did exactly what he was doing to me "But why do you care about Chase? What if I like him?"

"Do you?"

"What if I do?" I shrugged my shoulders "What are you going to do about it?" I asked a smirk starting to appear on my face as his grin grew bigger and he shook his head in disbelief

"Don't start something you can't finish" he mumbled.

"Stop giving me half answers," I said as anger built up in me and my body leaned forward.

"Do you want me to give you full answers?" he asked in a threatening tone, his tone a bit higher and his voice deeper, his jaw tightened, and his easygoing smirk fell for the first time.

I gulped at his seriousness, but I was interested in his answer " I do"

"I don't think you can handle them" he mumbled with a grin

"Right" I rolled my eyes already tired of his answers always trying to turn the topic around

"I will answer you once you tell me why you are always frowning when I am with Cady" his grin never left his face

"This again" I whispered to myself sick of this conversation. I scoffed, feeling my frustration bubble over. " So what? What if I frown or pout or cry... what does it matter to you?"

Mason leaned forward, his eyes locking onto mine with an intensity that made my heart skip a beat. "A lot"

"Stop meddling in my life and actually care about yours?"

"How can I not meddle in your life when you are always in front of me and making awful choices" he commented with a snort at the end

"But they are still my choices" Mason's eyes darkened at my words, and he moved closer, the steam from the hot water mingling between us as the tension reached a breaking point.

"Your choices, huh? Like chasing after Chase last night when you were sick, just to save a guy who wouldn't do the same for you?"His words stung, the frustration in his voice clear, and I felt my temper flare.

"You don't get to judge me, Mason. Not when you're letting Cady hang all over you like some accessory."

He scoffed, leaning back slightly but never breaking eye contact. "This isn't about Cady. It's about you always running after the wrong guys who don't give a damn about you, Alyssa. And you know it."

"You think you know everything, don't you?" I shot back, my voice laced with sarcasm. "But you don't know me"He stared at me, his eyes searching mine like he was trying to read something buried deep within me.

"I know enough. And I know that every time you look at Chase, you're settling. You're worth so much more than that, and it pisses me off to see you wasting your time."

I felt my breath catch, his words cutting deeper than I expected, I hated that he was right.

"And who do you think I should waste my time on then, Mason?" The question hung in the air between us, daring him to answer, daring him to cross a line we'd both been tiptoeing around for days.

He didn't back down. Instead, he moved closer until the distance between us was nothing but a whisper. "You know"

The tension between us clearly noticeable. My heart pounded, and my mind raced with a million reasons why this was wrong, but none of them seemed to matter at that moment. Mason's gaze dropped to my lips, and for a split second, everything else faded away.

The air between us was thin and warm, I felt my body burn and I was sure it was not from the jacussi, my chest going up and down as anger filled me in, I could hear his breath as if he had run a marathon. His eyes were very close, sparking with the small brightness from the moon outside, and piercing into mine, with a weird look on them something that didn't feel right but it didn't feel wrong either, just felt very drawn to them and everything around stopped in time. He was also very close his sculpted chest and muscles were almost suffocating me.

"We can't..." I whispered, my voice shaky.

But before I could say anything more, Mason leaned in again, his hands grabbing softly my face now, his lips brushing against mine in a softer, more tender kiss, as if sealing the moment, confirming that what had just happened was real.

When he finally pulled back, he didn't let go of me. His hands stayed on my cheeks while his thumbs softly rubbed my face, his forehead still resting against mine.

I could even process what was happening, Mason moved closer, his hands finding their way to my hips, pulling me toward him in one swift motion under the water.

I gasped, the sudden closeness sending a jolt of electricity through me. My hands instinctively went to his chest, but instead of pushing him away, I found myself numb and forgetting everything around me.

But then reality hit me like a cold splash of water. This was Mason. My brother's best friend. The guy who had Cady hanging off his arm. The guy who I wasn't supposed to feel this way about. I pulled back abruptly, gasping for breath, my mind reeling from what had just happened.

Mason looked at me, his expression a mix of confusion and something that looked almost like pain. "Alyssa—"

"No," I cut him off, my voice shaky as I backed away, the water splashing around us. "We can't... I can't do this."

His brow furrowed, and he reached out as if to stop me, but I shook my head, scrambling out of the jacuzzi.

"Alyssa, wait—"

I didn't let him finish. I grabbed my towel and wrapped it tightly around myself, my heart pounding in my chest as I turned and fled back toward the villa. His calls of my name echoed faintly behind me, but I didn't stop, didn't look back.

I practically ran to my room, slamming the door shut behind me as if that could block out what had just happened. My mind was racing, my emotions a jumbled mess of guilt, confusion, and something I wasn't ready to name. I pressed my back against the door, sinking to the floor as I tried to catch my breath.

What had I done?

I squeezed my eyes shut, hoping the memory of Mason's lips on mine to fade, but it was still there, burning bright and undeniable.

God! What did I do? This can't be happening!

This was not supposed to happen. We weren't supposed to happen. And yet, in that brief moment, it had felt like the most natural thing in the world and I JUST CAN'T SEEM TO ERASE IT!

I can't let myself think about that.

I can't let myself feel anything for him—not when everything was already so complicated. I buried my face in my hands, hoping that by the time I woke up tomorrow, I'd be able to convince myself that this was just a mistake, and if I crazy enough I maybe convince myself it was just a dream.

As my thoughts drove around my mind my body kept pressed against the door.

Every part of me was tangled up in the memory of the kiss—the way Mason's lips had felt, warm and urgent, like he was pouring all of his unspoken feelings into that one moment. My fingertips still tingled from where I'd touched him, the ghost of his hands on my skin lingering long after I'd pulled away.

This wasn't supposed to happen. Not with Mason. He was my brother's best friend, practically family, and he was never meant to be more than that.

I got up slowly, each step feeling heavy as I made my way to my bed and sank into the covers, pulling them up around me as they could somehow shield me from the mess I'd created. The room was dim, lit only by the faint glow of the moonlight filtering through the window, and I stared up at the ceiling, my mind racing.

What the hell was I thinking? The kiss played over and over in my head, each replay making my heart tighten with a confusing mix of regret and something else I didn't want to name. I couldn't pretend it hadn't happened, but I also couldn't let myself dwell on it. This was Mason—he was impulsive, carefree, and always playing games. He flirted with Cady and probably didn't even see what he was doing as wrong.

Except he had kissed me like... he meant it?

Oh my god what I am saying?

I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to shove that thought away. Mason's voice from earlier echoed in my mind: "Do you want me to give you full answers?" He'd been serious, and I hated how much that scared me because it meant I'd have to face something real, something I'd been burying for so long.

I heard a soft knock on my door, gentle but insistent, and I my belly froze just thinking about who could it be. My heart skipped a beat, but I stayed silent, hoping he'd just go away. But Mason didn't. He never did. The knocking came again, and then I heard his voice, low and muffled through the wood.

"Alyssa... please, just open the door."

I bit my lip, torn between wanting to confront him and wanting to hide away forever. My hand hesitated over the doorknob, fingers trembling, but before I could decide, he spoke again.

"I'm not leaving until you talk to me."

That was Mason—persistent to the end.The guy I had kissed just a few minutes ago and the same guy that pissed me off daily.

I opened the door just a crack, enough to see his face, still damp from the jacuzzi, hair slightly tousled. His expression was softer now, devoid of the teasing smirk he usually wore. There was something raw and real in his eyes that made my resolve waver.

"What do you want, Mason?" I whispered, my voice barely audible, betraying how vulnerable I felt.

He leaned against the doorframe, his gaze locked on mine, and for a moment, he didn't speak. He just looked at me like he was trying to piece together the right words, like he was afraid of saying the wrong thing and pushing me further away.

"I wanted to make sure you're okay," he finally said, his voice quieter than I'd ever heard it.

I laughed bitterly "Well, I'm not. Thanks to you."

"Alyssa, I—" He paused, running a hand through his hair, frustration evident on his face. " I didn't mean to—"

"Didn't mean to what? Kiss me? Or make everything ten times more confusing?" I shot back, my emotions bubbling up faster than I could control them.

"Both," he admitted, stepping a little closer. "I'm sorry, okay? I'm sorry if this made things harder. But you can't just pretend it didn't happen."

"Well, maybe I want to," I snapped, hating the way my voice broke. "Maybe I need to."

He shook his head, a flash of hurt crossing his features. "You don't get it, do you? This isn't just some game to me, Alyssa."

I stared at him, taken aback by the intensity in his voice. Mason, who never took anything seriously, who always laughed things off, was standing in front of me, raw and vulnerable. And that scared me more than anything because it meant this wasn't just a mistake—it was real, and I wasn't ready to deal with what that meant.

"Well, this isn't a game to me either" I whispered, my anger giving way to the sadness I'd been holding in. "So I am stepping away before we even start"

He stepped closer, and I could feel the warmth radiating off him, his presence overwhelming in the small space between us. "Is that what you really want?."

"It doesn't matter what I want, remember?"

"What about what I want? I can't understand what you do to me.. "His voice was rough, full of a frustration that mirrored my own. "And it scares the hell out of me. But I still want it"

We stood there, the weight of his confession hanging between us, and I felt my walls cracking under the pressure. But I couldn't let them break, not yet. Not when I wasn't sure what it all meant or where it would lead. I took a step back, creating a significant distance that felt like I had just built up a wall.

"I can't do this right now, Mason," I said, my voice shaky but firm. "And.. we can't do this...ever, we both know that"

He nodded slowly, pain flickering in his eyes, but he didn't argue. "Okay. If you think you can do it sure"

"What is that suppose to mean?" I asked with a frown

"It means I am quite done backing up" He said proudly with a soft grin forming on his lip and I quickly understood his words, he wans't going to make my life any easier

I closed the door quickly, leaning against it once more, feeling the full weight of everything that had happened. My mind was a whirlwind of emotions, I was burning and I didn't know if it was still from the kiss or the way he made me mad, but either way I knew the culprit was Mason and my life was surely about to change.