Tuesday, April 23rd, The Year 2219

Brooke's POV

By the time I came to, I was on the couch. Asher was sitting next to me. My head was pounding. I could feel a bandage on it.

"What happened? The last thing I remember is the captain mentioning the ship had engine failure."

"After that, we crash-landed. I just looked out the window and it looks like we landed on a planet. But I don't know where."

"Just great. We are stranded in the middle of nowhere. We have to see what happened to Chanelle and Simone!"

"You need to lay on the couch. Brooke, you hit your head and passed out. There was a cut on your head. So, I cleaned it and put a bandage on it. I'll go check. You stay here." Asher left my room. I glanced around and saw that my room had suffered some damage. We are stuck on this horror ship on a horrible planet. What's going to happen next?

Chanelle, Simone, and Asher then came running into my room.

"Oh my gosh, Brooke are you okay?!"

"Asher says I hit my head pretty hard. When I woke up, I was on the couch."

"Ladies and gentlemen, please come to the pool area so we can take a headcount of passengers," announced the captain.

"My head hurts. I need some aspirin or something."

"Here's your bag." Chanelle handed me my bag. I found a bottle of aspirin and took two with a glass of water that Simone just brought to me.

"Thanks." After taking the aspirin, I stood up off the couch. Then, we left for the pool area.

During the walk, "Are you two back together because I see Asher is holding your hand?" Simone asked.

I let Asher answer. "Yes, we are. We both made regrettable mistakes and admitted to them. I should have never let her go."

"I can tell because Brooke has a glow that says she was thoroughly pleased last night," Chanelle says as she arched her eyebrows at me. "And, can you both not let anyone break you up again?"

"Thorough is the right word for it. Now, I have to tell Jason that I'm back with Asher. I hope he is not mad."

The pool area was packed. It looks like it is divided into two groups - those who need medical attention. And, those who don't. I don't want that doctor anywhere near me.

"Ma'am, do you need medical attention?" One of the cruise employees asked.

"No, I don't."

"Please go to the right side of the pool area." We did, and we saw Jason. I took a big gulp. Then, we walked his way.

"Are you all okay?" He asked.

Oh, I am definitely okay. "I hit my head, and I have the biggest headache ever. I took some aspirin before I left my now destroyed room. Uh, Jason, I'll just come out and say it. Asher and I are back together, and we had an amazing night to seal it. I'm sorry. I know I said that I don't want to be with him, but I do. My heart belongs to Asher. The right girl will come for you. It's just not me. And, I asked him to please me. He didn't ask me so, please don't be mad at him. You're sweet, Jason. I couldn't lie to you."

He didn't say anything for a minute or two. "I understand. I have to respect your decision. Goodbye, Brooke." He kissed my forehead then walked away.

We even saw Crystal and the guy she was now with. She dared to walk this way. As they walked closer, I noticed who the guy was!

"Wait a minute?! You were on this cruise?!"

"Hello, Brooke."

Simone, Chanelle, and Asher were confused. "Who is this?"

"This is the guy that I cheated with! I think these two set me up!"

"They what?!"

"And, you fell for it, up until now. Taylor and I got sloppy. I see you and Asher must be back together," she had the gall to say. "Ooh, not good for either of you."

Chanelle was about to punch her in the face! "I should have known you were up to something! Why did you set my sister up?!"

"Ha! You will never know. Looks like we will not collect our part of the deal, baby." They just walked away after that.

"Who wanted us broken apart?"

"I have no idea. We sure are going to find out. Let's go find a seat." Luckily, we found three seats. Chanelle and Simone sat in two of the seats. I sat with Asher in the other seat.

After about an hour, we saw the captain enter the pool area.

"Ladies and gentlemen, our crew is working on the engine as we speak. It looks as though we will be delayed for several hours. We sincerely apologize for the delay."

"This sucks. I need to get off this ship."

"Well we do have several hours, so how about we get off for a little bit? We must stay close," Asher suggested.

"Let's go." I got up first. Asher then stood up. All four of us made it to the plank.

"It looks like quite a few people had the same idea." It was a stream of people getting off the ship. We waited in line to get off.

Once we got off the ship, I wish we stayed on it now. "The planet looks abandoned, Asher, and recently to be exact. There are still buildings on fire."

"I agree about the recently destroyed part. But, look to the right. That part hasn't been touched. Look at that house," Asher says.

"Let's check it out." Asher led me, Chanelle, and Simone towards the house.

The lawn seems like it was recently cut. It is well manicured. Too perfect if you asked me, especially considering that the left side of the town is destroyed - burning buildings everywhere.

"Doesn't it seem strange that this house is perfectly fine, unlike the rest of the place? Oh, not to mention the door is conveniently unlocked," Simone says as Asher opens the door.

"What's stranger is it looks like no one ever lived in this place. It has everything in it." We walked to the kitchen, which was untouched and fully stocked with food and appliances.

"How do we know if anything in here has been poisoned?"

"It looks like what we would eat on Ralmainia." Chanelle looked in the refrigerator. "The captain said we are stuck here for several hours. The refrigerator is fully stocked. What do you guys want to eat?"

"I'm starving. I haven't eaten anything since seeing Miki sitting on that darn floor."

"Brooke, Miki, and Kristi died from something else. We all would have died from what we ate at the service. Simone and I even went to the restaurant and ate several times after that. We are still here, okay?"

"That's true, Simone. But still, I didn't want anything from that ship."

"Whatever we eat here should be something quick. Granted, we don't want to be on that ship. I certainly don't want to be here," Simone says as we all nod in agreement.

"There's meat, cheese, and bread. I'll make us some sandwiches."

I looked in the fridge and saw roast beef, cheddar cheese, mayo, and wheat bread. I made one for each of us and passed one to everyone.

We sat at the table in the kitchen to gather our thoughts and enjoy these sandwiches. We stayed there for an hour. Asher says, "We should probably head back to the ship."

"My room was damaged beyond repair. Where am I going to stay?"

"With me, of course. We'll go get your things and carry them to my room. We're back together, remember?"

"I didn't want to assume. And, what if your room was damaged too? Thank you though." As we made our way out of the house, we heard a rumble. It sounded like an engine starting.

"Wait!! I thought the captain said the engine was damaged!!" We all made a mad dash to the shop and sure enough it was pulling away!

"He said several hours, Asher!! What is going on?! We have only been off the ship for an hour!!"

"I'm beginning to think this whole cruise was a setup. Someone wanted us left off that cruise ship. I don't see any of the other passengers that came off with us," Asher says in an angry tone.

"What have we ever done to anyone?" Chanelle threw out that question.

Asher answered, "It doesn't matter. There are some really sick people in society. We are pawns in whatever game they are playing."

The ship is now out of sight. "We have no way of communicating, no clothes, nothing. We are freaking stuck on a weird planet where half of it is burning away. And an immaculately, placed house that was not touched exists on the other side!"

Asher's POV

"Let's go back inside the house. Ladies, for us to make it through this ordeal, we need to stick together. It looks like we are the only ones that were left off the ship. Also, we need to see if the house has clothes and whatever else we will need."

Brooke, Simone, and Chanelle were in tears. I wrapped my arms around Brooke as we walked back to the house.

"Have a seat. I'll go see what's upstairs."

"Asher, no you will not. You just finished saying we should stick together. I have already lost Miki and Kristi. I'm not losing you when I just got you back. I'm certainly not losing Simone or Chanelle. We all are going together."

"Ugh, fine. Stick close to me." As soon as we reached the top of the stairs, we saw a sign that said, "Welcome to your new home, Brooke."

She made a beeline down the stairs, and out the house. I followed right after her. Someone is really sick!!

"Brooke, wait!! Come back!"

"No!" I caught up to her.

"Wait. You can't be out here by yourself."

"I don't want to go back inside that dang house of horrors, Asher! The first thing to happen was the cheating, then come to find out Crystal set me up! Next, Miki and Kristi die very strangely! We were supposed to have fun, not watch my friends die! The cruise ship supposedly had an engine failure, so we crash-landed on this stinking planet. We get off the ship for a darn hour, and now we are stuck here forever! Lastly, I see a darn sign welcoming me to my new home! We are never getting off this planet! How am I supposed to take this?!"

"Running away on an unknown planet won't make matters easy either. It will make it worse. The house is the safest place for us now." I pulled Brooke closer to my chest to hug her as she cried.

"Who is torturing me, Asher? When is it going to stop? I want to go home, and I miss my parents and brothers. I'm never going to get married or ever have kids. I could never raise kids on this dang planet."

"I'm sorry, baby. I wish I knew. We have to find a way to get a message out to anyone even near the planet. But, right now, we need to get inside. It's getting dark, and you're shivering."

"Asher Connor Gray, I am not going anywhere near that house."

"Brooklyn Ava Palmer, yes you are."

"It's Brooke. You know darn well I don't like being called Brooklyn. Now, let me go."

"Why not? It's a beautiful name. Perfect name for our future daughter. And, I am not letting you go. I will forcibly take you inside."

"I would like to see you try."

She asked for it. In one swoop, I threw her over my shoulder and walked back to the house.

"Put me down, Asher!"

"How about nope?" Once safely inside, I locked the door.

"She wouldn't listen, so I took matters into my own hands."

"Oh, okay," was all Chanelle said. Simone came out of the kitchen.

"Uh, okay. I'm not going to ask. I fixed something quick for dinner. And, guess what? This house has a huge freezer downstairs, full of everything. Someone wants us permanently on this planet, and they want us alive. How else do you explain all the food in here?"

I carried Brooke into the kitchen and put her down.

"Also, there is plenty of clothes for all of us for months. There are five bedrooms. Each bedroom has a bathroom."

"Asher, you made me feel dizzy." Brooke seemed like she was about to pass out.

"Sorry. You wouldn't listen. Maybe you should rest. I'll bring you something to eat." This time I carried her like a bride, upstairs to the bedroom that has her name on it. Where is this person so I can choke the life out of them?

"Asher, please don't leave me alone. You know how I feel about this house. Call one of my sisters to bring something up."

I went to the bedroom door and yelled, "Chanelle!"

She came running up the stairs. "Is something wrong?"

"Brooke doesn't want me to leave her alone. Can you bring something for her to eat?"

"Sure."

Chanelle came back upstairs with some soup. Brooke sat up to eat it. After 20 minutes, she was done eating.

"Thank you."

I put Brooke's soup bowl on the dresser.

"I missed our cuddles. So, plop right next to me, and let's cuddle."

I obliged and plopped next to Brooke. "Let me pull the cover back first." Brooke got up just enough for me to pull the cover back. Then, she rolled on top of me. I turned the light off.

"Try and get some sleep. Since there is power, maybe we can make a connection or something. But we'll need to find the source. Good night, baby."

I looked down and saw that Brooke was already asleep.

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Wednesday, April 24th, The Year 2219

2:00 am

"Asher, someone or something is banging on the door," Simone says as she enters the bedroom. I hate to do it, but it needs to be done. I peeled the covers back.

"Brooklyn, wake up for me, love."

"What did I tell you about calling me, Brooklyn?"

"I need to get up. Simone said someone or something was banging on the door."

"Say what?!" Brooke shot up. We all went downstairs. "They're here to get me!!"

"Nobody is taking you away from me. Find something that you can swing. I'll open the door." The banging was non-stop. Both Brooke and Simone found something to swing.

After counting to three, I opened the door and grabbed whatever was banging on the door. "Wait!" We looked down and saw.................. Jason.

"What are you doing banging on the door at 2:00 am?!"

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