You Kissed Me First!

Jasper Elsner I was too confident in my ability to change the mind of the owner without even knowing the complete situation. I thought it would be a job for a week top, but since I arrived here, I have started to lose confidence in this project. Did I not lose confidence in myself? Of course, not! I would have been able to crack this deal if the owner wasn’t a crackhead. Yes, I said it right. She is a crackhead. I mean, what else am I supposed to assume when the first thing I saw when I reached here was a woman in her twenties snorting cocaine? “Austin, can you confirm it for me? Is the owner really Aria Simone? I thought the owner was some middle-aged woman!” I spoke to my younger brother over the phone. After I walked out of the beach house, I was told I would find Aria Simone. “Damn, brother. What time is it there? What happened?” Austin chuckled. I rolled my eyes and looked up at the dark sky. It was close to midnight in Ao Nang, Krabi. I just reached here. Well, not exactly just – but I got here a couple of hours ago. I decided to stay in the resort my dad wants to buy. I can see why Dad wants it. It is built in the most mesmerizing location I have ever seen in Thailand. I am sure the place will look stunning when the sun is up and shining. When I reached there, I asked for Aria Simone. I was told that she threw a party at her beach house a few kilometers away. It was an open party, which means anyone who is staying in the resort could go, so I went there. I thought it would be nice to break the ice before I proposed the deal to her, but as soon as I arrived – nothing made sense. What I thought would be a friendly gathering turned out to be the wildest party I have ever been to. Half-naked people were dancing around – half drunk, half high on whatever drugs they were taking. The place reeked of weed, alcohol, sweat, and everything disgusting. I first thought that I was in the wrong place, but then I heard Aria’s name being called. A group of foreign and local people was in the corner, cheering on her as she snorted cocaine from the table. “Don’t ask. Just tell me what I asked!” I gritted my teeth. “Yike, relax. Let me ask Dad, wait.” He put me on hold, while I stood because of the beach. The soft waves touched my shoes. I didn’t even care that my shoes were getting soaked. I just wanted to be away from the beach house where I could stand the smell and the loud music. After a few minutes, Austin came back online, “Yeah, so Dad said that middle-aged woman is Aria Simone’s aunt. She looks after the place when Aria is not around. Aria Simone is the real deal. Now, will you tell me what happened? Why are you calling so late? Is she not there?” Austin asked. I rolled my jaws and pinched the bridge of my nose, “Oh, she is here.” I muttered. Before I could say anything else, someone held my arm and spun me around. “Woah – hey!” I protested as I dropped my phone on the sand. I frowned and looked at the person. It was Aria. She could barely stand. Now that she was standing hardly a few inches away from me, I noticed how short she was. She was looking up at me. She slowly blinked. I wrinkled my nose as she smelled like alcohol. She gulped and took my hands in hers. I was confused. I frowned and before I could ask her what she was doing, she placed my hands on her waist, “Hey, lady! What…?” She didn’t let me protest. “Shhh,” she hushed and glanced sideways, “Just kiss me, okay?” “What?” She is completely crazy! I wanted to take my hand off her waist. Since she was wearing a crop top, my warm hands were directly touching her sweaty and cold skin. She was colder than she should be. “Are you crazy?!” I glared at her and tried to take my hand off her, but she tightened her grip and dug my fingers into her small waist. The first thought that came to my mind was that this woman needed to eat. My thumb could feel her ribs poking out. She was very thin and cold. “Shhh, just kiss me so that creep will leave me alone!” She gritted my teeth. I looked over her head and noticed that a man was standing a few feet away from us. It was dark out there, so all I could see was that he was shirtless. He was awfully still, and even when I couldn’t see his face, I could tell that he was staring at us. Before I could say anything, Aria tip-toed, put her cold fingers on the nape of my neck, and pulled my head down. I couldn’t even process it as she quickly kissed me on the lips. The two of us were still coming. I could taste the beer on her lips. After a few seconds, she whispered against my lips, “Hold me, please. I am completely wasted. My legs are giving up. I think I am about to fall. Please don’t let me fall.”