The moon shone brightly across the shoreline, illuminating the sand with pale light. The ocean was calm, but it felt like it was holding its breath, as if it was waiting for something.
Selina suddenly lay back on the sand with her legs wide open, her uniform creased and her skirt flipped, unveiling her pink undies.
"You can… do as you please."
Cedrien froze in disbelief.
The silence was awkward, with only the sound of the wave and the distant sound of seabirds filling the night.
"Selina… what are you doing?" he asked quietly, utterly confused.
She avoided his gaze; she stared at the sand beside her. Her long golden hair spread across the sand, matching its colour, her hands raised slightly and lay across the ground as a sign of surrender.
Her cheeks flushed pink with humiliation.
Yet she managed to utter the words:
"Just… do it."
The bold tone she was presenting seems to be cracking; her legs trembled slightly, perhaps it was the cold breeze.
Cedrien's eyes widen as he inspects her body. Something bulges on his crotch but he couldn't believe that a girl like Selina would do such a thing.
"Stop it.. Selina, I don't know what is going on inside your head… but trust me, you don't want this"
Selina lifted her head and met his gaze this time. She barely held together the front she was presenting, cold and composed.
And then, like a typical teenager who felt vulnerable, she used insult as armor.
"You're such a loser," she said, voice trembling despite her effort to sound bold and cold.
Cedrien exhaled in amusement and annoyance.
"Loser, huh?"
He moved toward her slowly, and the bold front she was trying to present quickly shattered as he got closer. Her legs tightened together, and she tried to ground her hands in an attempt to sit up.
But Cedrien moved swiftly, pushing her back into her previous position.
He pinned her wrists against the ground with both his hands and pushed his hip between her legs. Her skirts flipped from the push, and their crotch met; she felt the bulge.
"Selina," he said, with a low and steady voice.
"Is this really what you want?"
Just as he spoke those words, her entire body trembled, trying to break free as tears dripped down her cheeks, her lips shaking as if she was going to break apart at any moment.
But she whispered.
"Just… do it."
Cedrien leaned a little closer and felt her fear, so he stopped, he released his grip on her wrist and slowly stood up.
His eyes lifted towards the sky, his gaze fixed on the enormous moon dazzling over the strange island where one million teens found themselves trapped, including them.
It was like they just teleported here. No one knew how they got here, but they just woke up here. Just moments before they woke up here, they were at school doing their usual activities.
But now these two normal senior high schoolers found themselves in this awkward situation, the night got colder.
And Selina curled inward, hugging her knees, crying softly with her face buried in the sand. Her uniform was smeared with sand, and her bright blue eyes were now puffy and red from crying.
Cedrien looked down at her, confused by her actions yet feeling sympathy for her.
"You insisted," he said quietly. "Why did you pull away at the last moment?"
Selina didn't answer. The only response was her crying.
Cedrien sighed and slowly sat down on the sand beside her. He stared at the distant stars, trying to understand how any of this happened.
"I'll never understand women," he muttered.
Minutes passed in silence. The tide crawled up the beach, muffling the soft cries of Selina.
Finally, she spoke with a genuine tone this time.
"I wanted the first time to be with someone I… at least know." Her voice faltered. "Because here… on this island… things like earlier will happen again. There are a million teens here, Cedrien. And none of us know what's coming."
Earlier, they were being pursued by some delinquents, who wanted to take away Selina for whatever reason, but Cedrien barely managed to escape with her.
Cedrien looked at her. Really looked at her.
Her eyes were red, her face left visible lines from all the crying, yet she still tried to sit with dignity.
He exhaled heavily.
"One million teens," he echoed. "Dropped on a massive island, surrounded by endless ocean, without warning, a perfect recipe for disaster."
She hugged her knees tighter.
"I just want to go home," she whispered.
A growl broke the moment.
Cedrien frowned. "…Was that your stomach?"
Selina stiffened. "N-no." She looked visibly embarrassed, but her stomach betrayed her.
Her stomach growled again, loudly.
Cedrien sighed. "Right."
Immediately, she puffed up her cheeks, adopting her usual attitude.
"Well? Go get food, you useless donkey."
He shot her a dry look. "You were just crying a minute ago."
"Shut up!" she snapped and slapped his back.
Cedrien opened his mouth to complain, but then another sound emerged.
Not a stomach growl.
A low, wet, animalistic snarl.
Both froze.
"That… wasn't you, right?" he whispered.
Selina's voice cracked. "Cedrien… that wasn't me."
Cedrien slowly turned his head.
Something stood under the moonlight, a few feet away, its figure resembling nothing they had seen before. As they looked closer, they saw a:
Small, twisted, green skin, hideous-looking, lean creature.
It's yellow eye gleaming with hunger.
"…Is that a goblin?" Selina screamed.
The creature sprinted toward them.
Cedrien barely lifted his arm before the goblin slammed into him, its claws digging into his forearm. He yelled, staggering back. The creature snapped viciously at him, shaking its head like a rabid dog.
Selina froze for half a second, then surged forward, screaming.
She kicked the goblin's head with all her strength. The creature hissed, stumbling. Cedrien seized the chance, his hand wrapping around its throat.
He slammed it into the sand, then dragged it toward a stone. His survival instinct acted up, adrenaline pumping up, and so he was able to drag the creature.
He lifted the goblin's head.
And smashed it, repeatedly against the rock.
Green blood splattered across the sand, soaking into his shirt.
Just as he killed the goblin, a weird sensation went through his spine to his skull; it was rather energizing.
[ +100 Reaction Time ]
[ +100 Strength ]
He fell back in shock.
"Selina… did you feel something?"
She gasped, touching her chest. "I… feel stronger. Cedrien, what's happening to us?"
The forest behind them rustled. More weird sounds and creatures of the night could be heard.
The night was pressing on them; it felt heavy and scary.
Cedrien shivered.
Without a word, Selina scooted closer until her trembling body pressed against his. She wrapped her arms around him, burying her face into his shoulder.
Cedrien turned red from her sudden move, but her body was warm and comforting.
"You… actually smell good," she whispered shyly.
Cedrien blinked, stunned.
For a moment, the chaos faded.
Just two terrified teens, clinging to each other beneath a foreign sky for comfort.
The sound of someone sprinting towards their direction could be heard in the distance. When they looked over, they saw a girl holding a torch, running towards them.
She shouted with a worried and shy tone, "Wha.. what are you guys doing here?"
She frowned nervously as she got a clearer look.
"This is not what it looks like, Ivy."