Chapter Eleven

Alice stepped into the ship’s grand lobby, the rich mahogany walls and sparkling chandeliers giving the space an air of opulence she still hadn’t gotten used to. Guests milled about, chatting in clusters or strolling leisurely, their laughter blending with the soft piano music playing in the background.

At the concierge desk, Alice picked up a copy of the ship's glossy brochure, its cover showcasing a serene image of the ship cutting through turquoise waters. She turned away from the desk and settled into one of the plush armchairs nearby to flip through the pages.

The brochure was packed with information: dining options, scheduled events, and an intricate map of the ship. Alice’s finger traced the pathways and staircases, her curiosity piqued by the variety of activities available—dance lessons, cooking classes, trivia contests,..... and even a sprawling arcade tucked away on the lower deck.

As she read, the faint sound of familiar footsteps caught her attention. She looked up to find Daniel approaching, his expression warm and easy, as if he’d been searching for her.

“Hi, Alice,” he said, stopping a few feet away. “Exploring the ship?”

“Just trying to figure out what this floating palace has to offer,” she replied, holding up the brochure.

He grinned, nodding toward it. “Anything catch your eye?”

“Not really,” she said with a shrug. “It’s all... a bit much.”

Daniel tilted his head, his grin softening into a look of mild amusement. “Come on, Alice. Surely there’s something here that seems interesting.”

“Maybe the lifeboats,” she said dryly, closing the brochure and setting it aside, in her hand bag.

Daniel chuckled. “Well, that’s grim. How about this—let me show you something fun instead?”

Alice raised an eyebrow, skeptical. “Fun? What is

it?.”

“Let it be a surprise,” he said, his tone light but challenging. “Come on, just for a little while. No strings attached.”

She hesitated, her instinct to decline warring with a flicker of curiosity. Finally, she sighed and stood. “Fine. But if this turns out to be boring, I’m holding you responsible.”

“Deal,” Daniel said with a smile, motioning for her to follow him.

They descended a staircase and walked down a corridor lined with sleek, modern decor. Soon, the faint sounds of electronic beeps and cheerful music reached Alice’s ears.

“The arcade?” she said as they stepped inside.

The room was alive with color and sound—blinking lights from arcade machines, the rhythmic clatter of air hockey pucks, and the occasional burst of laughter from other guests. It was a stark contrast to the refined elegance of the rest of the ship, and Alice couldn’t help but be intrigued.

“Thought we’d start with something simple,” Daniel said, gesturing to a row of vintage game machines. “Do you have a competitive streak?”

“Not particularly,” Alice said, eyeing the machines warily.

“Perfect,” Daniel said, leading her to a racing game with two side-by-side seats and steering wheels. “I’ll go easy on you.”

“Don’t patronize me,” Alice muttered, sliding into the seat beside him.

The game roared to life as they selected their vehicles and tracks. Alice gripped the wheel tentatively as the countdown began, and then they were off.

To her surprise, she found herself laughing as she struggled to keep her car on the track. Daniel, on the other hand, maneuvered with practiced ease, glancing over occasionally with a smug grin.

“Don’t you dare let me win,” Alice warned as she veered off the road for the third time.

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Daniel said, though he deliberately slowed down to let her catch up.

By the time the race ended—with Daniel claiming an effortless victory—Alice was flushed but smiling.

“Not bad for a beginner,” Daniel said as they stepped away from the machine.

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Alice replied, her tone lighter than it had been all morning.

Daniel led her to other games—skeeball, a basketball shootout, even a claw machine that yielded a small stuffed dolphin after several failed attempts. Alice was reluctant at first but gradually found herself relaxing, her guarded demeanor softening in the face of Daniel’s easy charm.

They eventually paused near a snack counter, where Daniel ordered two sodas. He handed one to Alice, his expression thoughtful.

“See? Fun isn’t so bad,” he said.

Alice took a sip, her eyes scanning the bustling arcade. “I’ll admit, this is... better than I expected and probably what I need.”

“That’s progress,” Daniel said with a wink.

She rolled her eyes but couldn’t suppress a small smile.

For the first time in a long while, Alice felt a faint spark of something she couldn’t quite name—something dangerously close to contentment. She leaned against the counter, her fingers brushing the cool surface of her soda can. The lively noises of the arcade filled the air—the cheerful ding of tickets spilling out of a machine, the rhythmic thumping of basketballs hitting the hoop, and the occasional triumphant shout from a nearby player.

“You’re not as bad at these games as you thought,” Daniel said, leaning casually beside her.

“I wasn’t bad,” Alice retorted, lifting her chin slightly. “I was... inexperienced.”

Daniel chuckled, his gaze resting on her for a moment longer than necessary. “Fair enough. I’ll give you that.”

She smirked, taking another sip of her drink. For once, the tension she carried so tightly around her shoulders seemed to loosen, though she kept her guard firmly in place.

“You seem to know your way around this place,” Alice said after a beat, her voice neutral but curious. “Do you normally do things like this for fun?"

Daniel shrugged, his expression thoughtful. “Not arcades exactly, but anything that offered a bit of an escape. It’s easy to lose yourself in the fun, even for a while.”

Alice tilted her head, studying him. “You keep talking about escape. What exactly were you running from?”

He paused, his eyes flickering with something unreadable. “A little bit of everything, I guess. Sometimes life gets... heavy.”

She nodded slowly, her lips pressing into a thin line. “Yeah....tell me about it.”

They stood in silence for a moment, the noise of the arcade filling the space between them.

“What about you?” Daniel asked, breaking the quiet. “What do you do for fun?”

Alice hesitated, the question catching her off guard. “Nothing fancy,” she said eventually. "I liked

to read and take long walks and also dancing. Just simple things.”

“Simple can be good,” Daniel said, his tone genuine. "And now I get how you could dance so graciously and effortlessly with that man at the party last night"

She glanced at him, her brow furrowing slightly while suppressing a smile “You were watching me?”

Daniel smiled faintly, his eyes softening. “I'm sure I wasn't the only man watching you last night.”

Alice blushed slightly and looked away, paying attention to her drink. Daniel noticed and smiled, enjoying the nice warmth he felt to see her shy away. He wished to be able to gently raise her face to his, stoke her chin a little and plant a tender kiss on her alluring lips.

“So......What’s next on your grand itinerary?” Alice interrupted his reverie.

Daniel’s grin widened as he gestured toward another corner of the arcade. “Let’s try air hockey. You can’t possibly mess that up.”

“Oh, you’ll be surprised,” Alice said dryly, following him to the air hockey table.

The game started with Alice hesitantly holding the paddle while Daniel slid the puck onto the table. It whizzed past her almost immediately, scoring him the first point.

“Wow,” she muttered, narrowing her eyes. “That was fast.”

“Don’t tell me you’re giving up already,” Daniel teased, resetting the puck.

“Not a chance,” Alice said, her competitive streak flaring.

The game quickly grew more animated, with Alice focusing intensely as she managed to block a few of Daniel’s shots. By the time she scored her first point, she couldn’t help but let out a triumphant laugh - a tempting sight to Daniel that made his almost paralyzed, dreaming of sweet fantasies.

“See? You’re getting the hang of it,” Daniel said, smirking, being able to pull himself out of his day dreams.

“Beginner’s luck,” Alice shot back, though her cheeks were slightly flushed with pride.

They played a few more rounds, the tension between them dissolving into lighthearted competition. By the time they finished, Alice was laughing openly, her usual guarded demeanor momentarily forgotten.

“Okay, I’ll admit,” she said, catching her breath, “that wasn’t terrible.”

“High praise,” Daniel said, chuckling. She shook her head, setting the paddle down.

Daniel leaned against the table, watching her with a faint smile. “You’re different when you let your guard down, you know.”

Alice froze for a fraction of a second before her expression hardened. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

He held up his hands in mock surrender. “No judgment. Just an observation.”

“Well, keep your observations to yourself,” she said curtly, brushing past him.

Daniel sighed softly but didn’t press further. Instead, he followed her back toward the entrance, their pace slower now.

As they stepped out of the arcade, Alice glanced at him, her expression more curious than hostile. “Why are you doing this?”

“Doing what?”

“Trying so hard to... be around me. To make me laugh. What’s your angle?”

Daniel stopped walking, his gaze meeting hers directly. “No angle, Alice. Sometimes, people just need someone to remind them that they’re allowed to be happy.”

His words lingered in the air between them, and for a moment, Alice didn’t know how to respond. She turned away quickly, focusing on the map in her hands.

“Well, thanks for the distraction,” she said briskly. “I’ll take it from here.”

“Anytime,” Daniel replied, his voice calm but tinged with something she couldn’t quite place.

As she walked away, Alice felt a strange mixture of relief and unease. Daniel was too persistent, too perceptive. And yet, for reasons she couldn’t explain, she didn’t entirely mind.

*******

Kelvin paced the length of the suite, his phone still clutched tightly in his hand. The video call with his grandmother had ended just minutes ago, but her words echoed in his mind, sharp and insistent.

“I don’t care how busy you are, Kelvin,” she had said, her tone firm despite her age. “I want to see both of you together next time. If I don’t, I’ll board that ship myself to find out what’s going on.”

The thought of his grandmother—sharp, observant, and unrelenting—prying into his carefully laid plans filled him with unease. She wasn’t one to be fooled easily, and her threatening to visit the ship was more than an idle warning.

“Damn it,” he muttered, raking a hand through his hair.

He moved to the minibar and poured himself a drink, the soft clink of the glass against the counter barely breaking the tense silence in the room. Staring at the amber liquid, he tried to focus, to think clearly, but the messiness of the situation weighed heavily on him.

Marrying Alice had seemed so straightforward - a means to an end. She was supposed to be naive, an illiterate, a girl who would be weak and scared to do anything, she would just keep up appearances, just long enough for him to secure his inheritance, and then he would divorce her. But Alice had turned out to be far more complex than he’d anticipated. Her defiance, her refusal to bow to the situation, was throwing everything off balance.

The video call had been a disaster. Alice hadn’t even shown up, and his grandmother’s sharp eyes had caught on to the missing piece of the puzzle almost immediately.

Kelvin took a sip of his drink, the burn of alcohol doing little to dull the edge of his frustration.

He could hear the faint hum of activity from the hallway outside the suite, but it only heightened his irritation. Somewhere out there, Alice was wandering the ship, doing who-knew-what, and with God-knows-who - completely indifferent to the storm brewing back here.

His grandmother’s words returned, her sharp voice cutting through his thoughts. “If I sense even a hint of trouble, Kelvin, I will come to that ship myself.”

He set his glass down with a thud, his jaw tightening. That couldn’t happen. His grandmother prying into their lives would spell disaster—not just for him, but for the fragile arrangement he’d built around Alice.

Kelvin leaned against the counter, his fingers gripping the edge tightly. He needed to talk to Alice, to make her see reason, but he could already feel the fight brewing. She was already enjoying torturing him, she would never see reasons with him and begging her was out of his options, for he would never see himself begging a lowlife like her.

With a long, frustrated exhale, Kelvin straightened, adjusting his shirt as if preparing for battle. He had no idea where Alice was or how this conversation would go, but one thing was clear: he needed to salvage the situation.