Kiss Me Not

The next morning, Brione arrived early to the set to finish her final scene for her current drama series in which she was the lead actress. She rehearsed her script for a while and when she was done, she grabbed Gavin's journal and smiled.

She always kept the journal with her because she somehow found solace whenever she would look at it and reread it. She stared at it for a long time before she hugged it close to her chest, and closed her eyes.

'You promised that you would stay with me and never leave my side Gav. What happened to your promise? How long do you plan to keep me waiting and worrying about you like this?' she thought sadly.

Her eyes started watering as she felt a sharp pain in her heart. She started feeling suffocated and couldn't breathe properly. She fought with herself to stay calm and composed every time she thought about Gavin.

Her manager saw the sad look on her face and immediately approached her to bring her out of her stupor.

"Brione, you're spacing out again," Mitch commented as she sat beside her.

She looked at the way Brione possessively held the journal in her hand and felt dejected. She had seen how Brione would read it every day, caressing every page as if it was Gavin's face, remembering him in every moment of her life for the past year.

Brione was still following her normal routine, showing her cheerful and energetic self to the eyes of the public, but only a few knew how dead the superstar was on the inside ever since her best friend went missing.

Brione turned to her and asked, "Is there any news from my brother?"

Mitch sighed helplessly and replied, "Still nothing Brione. Your brother Noah has not rested for a single day and is trying to find Gavin relentlessly. But unfortunately, it doesn't seem to reap any results, it's really a hopeless case."

Mitch hated herself for speaking so bluntly when she saw the tears threatening to fall from Brione's beautiful eyes.

"I am willing to do anything just to have him back Mitch," Brione said in her broken voice as tears slid down from her eyes.

Mitch looked around to check for people and was grateful that the staff working there were busy with their tasks so she immediately reached out and wiped Brione's tears.

"Get a hold of yourself Brione. There are a bunch of reporters here and it won't be good for you if they start to get suspicious and spread rumors to ruin your reputation. Please stop crying now okay?" she begged as she passed some tissues to Brione.

Brione grabbed a tissue and tried her best to control her emotions and murmured, "If those gossip mongers ask anything about me crying… Just tell them that I was practicing my script and working hard."

Mitch smiled and nodded her head in agreement. She handed Brione the tab and said, "I will. But first, read and check the contract. This is the project I was talking about last night. I have a good feeling about this project and you know that my hunch is never wrong. We have to leave as early as tomorrow so we must not waste any more time.

It's a good thing that the management gave us time till tonight to make a decision before they go ahead and get another endorser. You should know that there are many actresses and models who are anxiously waiting for you to turn this proposal down so that they can get signed for this endorsement."

Brione let out a breath and nodded. After wrapping up the shoot, Mitch immediately brought her to the company to meet the people whose brand she was going to endorse and sign the contract immediately.

Back in her apartment, her personal assistant, Berry, helped her pack all the things she would need for the trip.

"We are going to stay there for a week Berry, not forever…" Brione mumbled while watching her PA pack her stuff.

Berry chuckled and said, "Manager Mitch said that the shoot can be extended for a few days, so it's better to be well prepared and bring enough clothes and other stuff with us. Besides, we are taking a private plane directly to the island tomorrow so there's no need to worry about customs either. By the way, I researched about that island a little bit and found something mysterious about it."

"I told you to stop reading those online novels, now look at you acting paranoid," Brione whispered.

Berry dropped her shoulders and murmured, "I'm being serious, Boss. I heard that Prince Cedric lives alone on the island with no companions except for the servants. There are rumors, saying that the man is cursed. They said that his curse is the reason he never shows himself in public. Apparently, the curse is that whomever the Prince kisses will die..."

Brione's mouth twitched and said, "Then I'm cursed too right? Since I have a fear of kissing!"

"Ahh, your's is a disorder, my Boss. You see, you had a trauma when you were a child and because of that you are not able to kiss anyone, so your case is very different," Berry clarified.

Then Berry dreamily commented, "Boss, I heard that the Prince is still single and just turned 31 a few days back. Do you think the Cinderella kind of story still happens these days? If he's handsome then I will try my best to get his attention. Oh, that reminds me, I should pack a gown for you since there will be a masquerade ball held at night tomorrow. We should definitely not miss that," making Brione chuckle.

"I thought you said he was cursed? Aren't you afraid of him? What if he kisses you and you get a contagious disease that's not curable?" Brione questioned, amused by her words.

"Well, I won't mind the curse if he's handsome and likes me back. Besides, he's rich too, so I'm sure I can live like a nun even if he is cursed. And, you're being funny talking about contagious diseases right now Boss. Is he a zombie? I don't think so," Berry mumbled with a grin and raised her arms, wriggling as she acted like a dead zombie.

She was trying her best to act funny whenever she was with her Boss, whose smiling eyes were mostly filled with grief ever since her best friend went missing.

Berry herself could not believe that Gavin disappeared just like that. He was her Boss' best friend! And she shipped and rooted for him and her Boss. Their story was so touching. He and Brione were childhood friends and she was aware Gavin was deeply in love with her Boss. They were practically each other's first love but their story did not have a happy ending. So many feelings were left unspoken...

Berry too believed that there was no hope of finding him anymore. The famous news anchor and novelist should have been dead by now. His body was missing but who could find the body of a person who drowned in the vast ocean? Sharks and other creatures in the sea would have devoured it already.

"Don't settle for such things in life Berry. Emotional attachment and feelings towards the person are still what matters the most…" Brione, whispered helplessly to Berry, recalling the same words she often heard from Gavin.