I'll Never Break Your Heart

~~ Chapter 1 ~~

"Put on some tunes!" insisted Angelina as she reached towards the radio from the back seat of the car. The girls were on their way to the ski lodge for a "Girl’s Weekend Out”, as Monique would like to call it.
"Sit down Angie! What are you trying to do? Get me a police ticket two days before my birthday?" shrieked Monique while driving the car. The five girls were extremely excited about the trip. Well, except one. Isabelle who was sitting in the passenger seat of the car just glared out of the window and said nothing during the conversations. She had been depressed for the last five weeks, since she saw her now ex-boyfriend with another girl.
"I can't believe you guys dragged me into this. I would be better off at home, miserable and crying into my pillow. The only reason why I came was for you Monique. You guys are the queens of guilt trips. Your weekend is gonna be ruined because of me," complained Isabelle, as she turned in her seat to face her friends who were sitting in the back.
"Oh don't say that Belle. We just want you to get over that scumbag! He was a total jerk for what he did to you. Why if I could get my hands on him..." said Yasmine, as she fisted her hands and punched the back of Monique's seat.
"Hey! Do you guys mind? I'd like to get to the lodge alive, and I'd like to make it to my birthday party,” uttered Monique, followed by a laugh.
"Could someone PLEASE turn on the radio like Angie requested? I am boring the skin off of me here!" whined Cassandra from behind. "Put it on some good radio station. Not some station that plays the same song four times in one hour."
With that, Isabelle sighed and turned the radio on. She kept tuning the stations because they all played the same old songs. Finally she came to a station that was playing a song they had NEVER heard before.
"Hey, Belle. Leave that song for a bit. It's pretty good," Monique said while swaying her head to the sound and keeping her eyes on the road

* I'm never gonna say goodbye, cuz I never wanna see you cry, I swore to you my love would remain, and I swear it all over again and I, I’m never gonna treat you bad, cuz I never wanna see you sad, I swore to share your joy and your pain, and I swear it all over again*

Half way into that song, Isabelle’s eyes filled up with tears. She wasn't going to cry, and make a fool of herself. However, when she saw a tear fall from Monique's eye when the song was over, (she was probably thinking about Richard, her boyfriend,) Isabelle just burst into tears.
"Shut that thing off!" demanded Monique as she saw her best friend bawl her eyes out.
"No, No. It's okay. You guys can listen to it. You know how emotional I can get," Isabelle confessed as she wiped the tears from her eyes and tried to calm herself
"Hey guys... Listen! The DJ's gonna say the name of the song and who it's by," said Cassandra eagerly as she leaned forward to hear it.
"And that my fellow listeners, was Swear It Again by the Irish Boys and UK's top sensation... Westlife!" announced the DJ in an enthusiastic tone.
"What Life? What was the name of the group? No Life or something? That’s so weird... You can be soooo popular in one part of the world.... yet not exist in the other," sighed Yasmine.
"Shh Shh! Listen, there's more!" directed Isabelle as she turned up the volume to hear what the DJ had to say after she had calmed down.
"Now all you lucky listeners who are hitting the slopes this weekend... Watch out for these five guys, because as it stands, they are on a rare vacation skiing the mountains! YES! That's right! Irish Guys skiing! Isn't that an odd picture? So keep your cameras ready, because who knows, there might be a pop sensation at your lodge!" exclaimed the DJ over the radio.
"Yeah right! Like that’s ever gonna happen! Can you actually imagine the luck you would need for that? Anyway, even IF they were at the lodge, I wouldn't really go ballistic! I mean they are just normal people in an abnormal business. That's all. They are human and all," boasted Angelina with a wide grin on her face.
With the last comment from Angelina, they arrived to the resort where they would be spending their skiing weekend, without knowing what was ahead of them!


~~ Chapter 2 ~~

"Everybody out! Whistler B.C. here we are! Snowvalley Resort...our home for the weekend!" exclaimed Monique with gleaming eyes as she got out of the car. As they got out, they headed towards the trunk to get their belongings they had packed for the weekend ahead of them! With their baggage in their hands, they headed towards the resort. Isabelle was the last one to get out of the car because she needed time to he alone, and her friends respected that. Once at the trunk, she was having difficulties getting all of her possessions together. Her handbag was obviously too heavy for her to carry, her skis were too big, and she had a million things to hold. She thought she was prepared to carry everything to the lodge in one trip, when she dropped it all on the slippery snow covered ground.
"This is gonna be one looooong weekend!" she said to herself "How am I going to get through the weekend if I can't even get through taking my luggage to my room?" Just then, she felt a gentle tap on her shoulder. She jumped in a startle and caught the eye of her shocker. He wasn't at all hideous looking. He did actually have the bluest eyes Isabelle had ever seen. They were sapphire blue to be exact. However, they reminded her of her ex-boyfriend. The man was a couple inches taller than she was and be had a look of worry and apology on his innocent face. Flushing the reminders and sorrowful emotions of her previous relationship aside, she managed to force a smile and say something, "My God! You scared the living daylights out of me!" explained Isabelle while catching her breath, and adding a little laughter so the mysterious man wouldn't be offended.
"I am awfully sorry about that, miss. Um... I kinda noticed you dropped all of your things and you looked like you could use a hand. It was all in good intention.... I swear," he explained in an embarrassed tone.
"Erm... that's all right. No need to apologize. It's just my paranoia kicking in!" quietly replied a blushing Isabelle. " I would greatly appreciate your help, Thank you," As soon as Isabelle ended her sentence the young gentleman picked up her handbag and skis and headed for the lodge. Isabelle locked up the car and followed behind, “You can just leave them here. I'll get my friends to help me move them to my room," Isabelle softly spoke while looking around the lobby for her friends.
"It's all right. I can get them to your room for you. I really don't mind," he persuasively replied. "Just show me the way," he ended with a little laughter.
"Um... that's just the problem. I haven't the slightest clue to where my room is. I have to ask my friend. She made the reservations," Isabelle timidly responded, "Oh... I see ... Well... umm I ... er... better go then. My mates are probably looking for me anyway," he replied hesitantly. "But um ... are you sure this is where you want me to put them? I mean I can wait with you until-"
"Oh...no…that's all right. I'll be fine...I mean they're probably just around the corner, -But thank you for your kindness. I mean... who knows if I'd still be outside or not right now... But truly, thank you," she reassured him. Even after hearing Isabelle's reassurance, the fellow was still having doubts of leaving her all alone in the lobby. However, he didn't want to unnerve her, so with a simple handshake, he went off to meet with his friends.

"There you guys are! Where were you, and what took you so long? Do you know how long-” Isabelle was cut-off by Cassandra.
"Relax! We were looking for our rooms. and we were putting our stuff away- Damn woman!"
"Oh.... Sorry... I don't know what's got into me, I mean it's not even that time of the month but I know I'm not gonna have the weekend you guys brought me here for. Now will you guys help me get my things to my room?"
"Um... you mean OUR room," declared Monique. "Us two are sharing rooms, and Yasmine, Cassey, and Angie are sharing one ... hope that's okay?"
"Sure... I don't mind... as long as I have four walls, a roof. and a floor surrounding me... I'm a happy camper!" expressed Isabelle in an eager manner.
"That's the spirit! But, who are you and what have you done to the old, depressed, Belle?” remarked Angelina, getting a few chuckles from everyone. After a good laugh, the girls picked up Isabelle's equipment, and headed to her room.

~~ Chapter 3 ~~

When Isabelle was organizing her articles, it just hit her. She, out of the blue, had realized that she didn't even give the helpful lad her name, or had got his for that matter, She also realized that he had an odd accent compared to her Canadian accent He's was more of a.... European accent. YES! It was an Irish accent! Even though realizing his accent was Irish, Isabelle didn't really believe that be was part of a pop group.
"It's no big deal. It's just a coincidence," she kept saying trying to convince herself.
"What's no big deal? What's just a coincidence?" Monique asked as she walked into the room wrapped in a towel. She had just come out of the shower and seemed concerned to find her friend talking to herself.
“Um....uh ... well Isabelle didn't know how to tell Monique. "Um ... well ... when I was outside, this guy helped me bring my bags and skis inside. And...uh…he had ... an accent."
"Oooh! A guy eh? Was he cute? Huh? Was he? So he had an accent? What's the big deal about that?" teased Monique.
"No! It was nothing like that! And yeah he was kinda cute. He did have the bluest eyes ... But that's not the point I He reminded me too much of-,"
"No! Don't say it! He's gone! Tell me more about this 'mysterious man' with the accent."
"Well um... I was saying it's just a coincidence and that it was no big deal because....he ... um...had an... Irish Accent!"
"WHAT? Can you repeat that again? I could have sworn you said Irish Accent!"
"I did," mumbled Isabelle. At this point, Isabelle was completely embarrassed, and she thought that Monique would think she was nuts!
"Well then! Look at the luck we have! The ski lifts are closed right now, right?" Monique was actually very professional about this, which meant she had a plan. Isabelle looked at her watch.
“Yeah, they're closed. Why? What are you thinking?" Isabelle had a worried look on her face. She didn't like the expression Monique had.
"Well, if the lifts are closed and we can't go skiing, then no one else can- which means, they hang out in the lounge! Get ready ’cause that’s where we’re going! I'll tell the other three to get ready too!"
"Monique! Look at you! You're the one that needs to get ready! You're in a towel for crying out loud. Besides, you can go to the lounge, but I'm not going... I...uh... - don't have anything to wear.”
"You have a point, Belle! I need to get dressed. As for you having nothing to wear ... your maroon turtleneck sweater and black jeans will be fine. You're not going to a wedding that you need to dress up for! Well, not yet anyway! So hurry up and tell the others for me, please!" Monique quickly got up, hugged her best friend, and went to get dressed. Monique always did have a way with Isabelle. Right after Monique ran back into the bathroom, Isabelle left her room and walked down the corridor to tell her friends. She could have easily phoned them with the phone in her room, but she felt she could use a little walk.

"Oh My God! You've got to be kidding me!" squealed Angelina in a high-pitched voice.
"Oh what was that you were saying in the car, Angie? Something like you wouldn't go ballistics!" pointed out Yasmine with an evil grin on her face.
“Yeah, well, I lied!" she snapped back with laughter.
“You guys, what if it was just him though. I mean what if there is no band?" uttered Isabelle quietly.
"Then we're gonna feel like total idiots, and it'll be on your head, Belle!" Cassandra said jokingly. Isabelle quickly hurried back to her room, which was a few doors down. She quickly put on her maroon turtleneck sweater, which had a great affect on her brown eyes, and she put on her black jeans like Monique had mentioned. She quickly brushed her brown shoulder length hair and neatly tied it back in a ponytail, which swayed back and forth when she walked; she did all of this while she sprayed on some of her favourite perfume. Just when she finished, Monique was all dressed and ready to go. Monique had on her favourite Gap sweatshirt and her khaki pants as her straight auburn hair was hanging loose. The other girls basically had on the same things, Yasmine had on her green sweatshirt and her cargo paints. Some of her black hair was clipped back with a little fork clip. Cassandra had on a beigey-brown sweater with her blue jeans, and she let her blonde hair hang loose- Angelina had on a blue B.U.M. sweatshirt and her khaki pants. Her blonde hair was also tied back in a ponytail. They were quite calm as they headed down to the lounge.

~~ Chapter 4 ~~

When they got to the lounge, it was filled with a considerable amount of people. Most of them had a mug of cappuccino, or hot chocolate. There were sofas surrounding a large coffee table with books on it, in Front of the crackling fire glowing in the fireplace. The atmosphere was very calm and relaxing. There were people mingling around and making quiet chitchat. Isabelle was feeling quite uncomfortable with all the couples that were in the room, so she found a seat on the sofa, near the fire, and she picked up a book. Monique saw the heartache in Isabelle's eyes and she sat down on the couch next to her. Cassandra was considerably interested in the atmosphere that was created, so she decided to walk around and look at the old photographs, which hung on the walls. Yasmine and Angelina couldn't wait to hit the slopes the following day, so they chose to go to all the windows and check out which mountain they'd want to go to first.
"Come on Belle. Don't do this to yourself. We're here for a fun time, You can't let all of these people get to you. Get out there and enjoy yourself," remarked Monique sensitively.
"But it hurts. And I don't think I'm ready to move on yet... I know what you're thinking... It happened five weeks ago ... move on with your life... but the thing is ... I can't... I don't know if the next person in my life will be the same or not. I just don't want to get hurt again. I don't know if I’m willing to trust again. It's going to take a lot for a person to convince me into giving my trust to them. Do you understand what I'm getting at?" Isabelle replied openly and honestly, tears almost coming out of her eyes.
"Of course I understand, we're best friends aren't we? But you're missing out on a lot of things by being miserable. I mean, who knows... the one person that you may be able to trust might be in this very room, You just have to get out there and find him You're not gonna be able to meet him if you keep to yourself on this couch. Have sonic fun while you can," remarked Monique frankly.
"I know we're best friends, and I know you're right. It's just that I don't wanna get my hopes up too high. I mean, if I stay low key and aware of whom I trust... then if something goes wrong... I won't be disappointed again," explained Isabelle as she recognized how silly she was acting.
“Of course I'm right! I wouldn't be trying to convince you into getting involved if I weren't. I know what I'm talking about! So will you pleeeease have some fun? For my sake?" pleaded Monique.
"Okay, okay! Jeez! You and the others are damn good guilt trip players! How do you do it? The next person I see, I will introduce myself to them and will have a short chat with them... are you satisfied?"
"The guilt trip thing is a gift... as for satisfied... Not completely, but it's good enough for now," laughed Monique as she got this awkward look from Isabelle.

Following that, the girls sat and talked about how their day of skiing was going to be a blast until Yasmine and Angelina came back from their little tour, Now all of them were exchanging excited comments about hitting the slopes the next day. Just then C-Cassandra came darting over with an electrifying expression on her face- She was waving her hands back and forth repeatedly saying Oh My God! Oh My God! She looked as though she was hyperventilating.
"What? What is it? Are you okay?" questioned Yasmine as she tried to calm Cassandra down. “Is everything all right?"
"Oh my god! You will never believe what I just saw!" squealed Cassandra out of breath. "I was looking at the pictures around the walls when I looked outside the window. Standing there were FIVE hot guys! And they looked like they were coming inside."
"What? You're going berserk because - Wait a minute! You don't think they were… " Yasmine's voice trailed off as she stood there in ponders.
"EXACTLY!" shrieked Cassandra looking around at her friends who were staring at her like she was mad.
“Okay guys! We gotta be cool about this... We don't wanna make fools of ourselves. This is what we're gonna do... Stay here and look casual... and when they come in, just smile or whatever but don't go up to them asking for autographs or anything. That's too unprofessional!" declared Angelina as she tried to remain simple.
"Oh shut up Angie! We all know you're gonna be the first one outta your seat and drooling over them! I could totally call you a hypocrite... " commented Cassandra as she teased Angelina making her blush, and the others burst out laughing, Angelina didn't have a comeback for that because she knew it was true. They sat there anxiously fixing themselves up and waiting for the guys to make their entrance.

~~ Chapter 5 ~~

The girls did the whole check routine. They did the Is-my-hair-okay? check, the Is-my-makeup-smudged? check, and they fixed their clothes. The four girls waited with butterflies in their stomachs, but Isabelle just sat there calmly with the book in her hands.
"Aren't you the least bit excited?" questioned Monique cordially understanding the situation her friend was in.
"A bit ... but remember what I said?... I'm not going to get my hopes up high. I mean what if they aren't in a big pop band? You guys are gonna feel and look like fools..." laughed Isabelle while explaining why she didn't show much excitement. All of her friends just shook their heads and burst out laughing...even though they didn't know what was so funny. It was probably a girl thing; being clueless yet still laughing. While they were all laughing amongst themselves, they didn't realize that the room wasn't as populated as it was when they first entered. They also didn't even notice the guys come its Well, until Monique looked up to see what time it was, She quickly nudged Cassandra who was sitting on the other side of her on the couch).
"Were those the guys?" she whispered while rolling her eyes in their direction. Cassandra turned casually in the direction that Monique had pointed.
"Oh my god! Yes! That's them... I told you they were hot!" Cassandra quickly whispered back. Yasmine and Angelina joined the whispering conversation, and they all shrieked quietly, making sure the guys didn't notice their enrapturing reactions. Isabelle still had the book in her hands and was staring into it. She seemed the most down to earth, but inside she was bursting with curiosity. She was too nervous to look up, so she focused onto the page- Monique glanced up to audit if the fellows noticed the girls' juvenile behaviour, or noticed the girls at all. To her surprise, when she glanced up, she caught the eye of one of the guys that was looking right at them. She quickly gave him a benevolent smile, and was returned with one from the fellow, before she put her head back down. She could feel herself blushing, but tried not to pay much attention to it.
"Belle, you gotta see them... they were checking us out! But I gotta say they're not too bad themselves! I wouldn't care if they were in a band or not!" said Monique persuasively. "Look, they're heading over this way!"
"I get the tall one! He looks dorky, but seems like my type!" announced Angelina and she made certain none of her friends went after him.
"Dibs on bangs!" proclaimed Yasmine laughing at the way she sounded.
"Ooh! The brown haired dude's mine! Not the blue eyed one... but hazel boy!" burst out Cassandra in laughter joining her friends.
"You girls sound like you're shopping or something! Ooh I want that sweater ... oh those shoes are to die for...Damn! ... They are human beings you know!" remarked Monique with laughter. "I'm not choosing because I have a man waiting for me at home! Remember? So, Belle... which one's yours?" she asked wings her friend as the guys came closer. "Remember what you promised me?...By god! Did you even look up yet?" But Isabelle didn't have time to answer. She was saved by a voice saying, "Well hello ladies! Do you mind if we sit with you?" This was the guy who Monique caught eyes with.
"No, not at all- we could use some company," responded Monique welcoming them. Just as the guys were going to take their seats, one of them blurted out, " Well hello miss! Long time no see huh?" Isabelle immediately recognized that voice and looked up without hesitating. The expression on Monique’s face was confusion with astonishment.
"How on earth did you do that? We've been trying to get her to look up for ages... and all you did was say 'hello'. Belle... there are some things I just don't understand about you," teased Monique as she faced her crimson friend and the gentleman that got her to look up.
"So it's Belle. I realized afterwards that I hadn't gotten your name," said the 'mystery man' that Isabelle had met earlier that day.
"Um... hello there. It's actually Isabelle... Isabelle La Rose. My friends just call me Belle for short. I realized I hadn't gotten your name either," replied Isabelle reticently looking at the stranger and then at her friends.
"Well it's nice to meet you again Isabelle. I am Mark…Mark Feehily... and these are my mates I had to leave you to go meet!" he said jokingly. "The one gawking at you gals was Nicky even though he shouldn't be doing that considering he has a lady waiting for him back home. And these fellows are Bryan, Shane, and Kian."
"Hello there. These arc my friends I was waiting for, Monique, Angelina, Cassandra, and Yasmine," introduced Isabelle as everyone shook hands and got acquainted. "We're here for Monique's Birthday...and she herself has a boyfriend she left behind at home too!" Monique seemed a little surprised when Isabelle mentioned her boyfriend, but she was also surprised to see her friend speaking to a stranger. Boy, did Isabelle keep her promise or what! Anyway, her friends seemed to be hitting it off quite well with the boys they had claimed a bit earlier, and Monique and Nicky talked about their sweethearts and how much they missed them already. The cluster of people soon broke down into pairs which were Angelina and Bryan, Yasmine and Kian, Cassandra and Shane, and Monique and Nicky (as just friends) and went off in their own direction, leaving Isabelle and Mark alone in front of the fireplace.

~~ Chapter 6 ~~

Sitting there with Mark put Isabelle in an awkward position, but it wasn't any easier for Mark, considering the fact that he was beet root red- There was a moment of silence when the two of them just stared at the flames in the fireplace. This time it was Mark's turn to find the courage and say something.
"It's a lovely resort, isn't it?" he commented nervously, thinking he could have said something much more constructive than that,
"Huh? ... Oh! Yeah! It's beautiful. It's my first time here," confessed Isabelle as she turned to face Mark, and a little confused by what had just happened. She was going scarlet now and couldn't figure out why. All he did was ask a simple question.
"Oh really? It's my first time here too. I'd have thought you'd be here more often," he reacted in astonishment to Isabelle's reply.
"No, not at all. I'm not the world's greatest skier, I only came along for Monique's birthday, You know Monique- she's the one who made the reservations," explained Isabelle making sure he knew who she was talking about.
"Yes, of course ... she's the one that went off with Nicky, right?" he questioned to make sure they were talking about the same person.
"Yes, that would be her... they were so busy comforting each other about their partners, I hope that they haven't forgotten why they were doing it in the first place!" quick-wittedly replied Isabelle chuckling at her comment and welcoming some from Mark.
"So I take it you found your room afterwards'?" questioned Mark curiously.
"Oh yes. My room number is 205 ... and Yasmine, Angie, and Cassey's room is 210, We are all settled hi!" exclaimed Isabelle, impressed to recognize that Mark was still concerned.
"Well that's good to know! It's so weird though... my room is '1' 05 ! " he answered back in a 'what-a-coincidence' tone. Isabelle was still a little tense about the situation but tried to hide it by making little comments here and there, and by trying to start a conversation. She kept in mind what she had promised Monique, and she ALWAYS kept her word!

Isabelle and Mark had talked on for hours, just about anything and everything. Once the discussion started, they had loads to say. They discovered they had A LOT in common, even though they were coming from two totally different worlds. Isabelle had asked Mark why they had chosen Canada for their vacation, and he had replied by saying that they weren't well known in Canada. They didn't even exist, and they could just be themselves for a weekend instead of having paparazzi and screaming girls shadowing over them. He said it kept their heads straight. While listening to Mark's explanation, she had remembered what Yasmine had said in the car when the song had finished. They were the exact words coming out of Mark's mouth. Mark also added that he might have been able to meet someone that could appreciate and love him for him, and not because he was in a highly successful pop group This comment almost brought tears to Isabelle's eyes, but it also made her blush. Mark saw the effect his reflections had on Isabelle and he quickly changed the subject. However, Mark seemed considerably fond of Isabelle, but he wasn't too sure about how she felt. They had sat there together ever since their friends had left them alone, The only time they parted was when Mark insisted on getting some cappuccino for the both of them.

"I can't wait to hit the slopes tomorrow," remarked Mark excitedly as he looked out the window.
"So I take it you're a pro skier?" asked Isabelle curiously. With that comment, Mark seemed to let out an 'I-don't-think-so' type of laugh.
"No way! In my dreams! And maybe not even then! That’s why I said I can't wait to hit the slopes!" he answered back still laughing. Isabelle, who was confused at first why Mark was laughing, was also laughing and smiling now, while taking a sip of her cappuccino. All of a sudden, Mark stopped laughing and examined Isabelle's face. This obviously made her a bit uneasy and curious.
"Is there something wrong?" she asked in a quiet tone very timidly, searching Mark's face for an answer.
"Uh...no…I was just...It's just that...You have a beautiful smile, has anyone ever told you that?...Oh and it goes well with your white cappuccino cream moustache!" he replied back calmly, trying not to embarrass Isabelle or himself. Even though he spoke with a tender voice, Isabelle could still feel herself going red. She quickly turned away from his gaze and looked at the floor, as she tried to wipe off the cream. Mark slowly raised his warm, caressing hands and cupped Isabelle's face in them turning her to face him. He then gently took his thumb and moved it ever so slowly across Isabelle's upper lip, removing the white cream. He then gazed into her brown glowing eyes, and started to lean forward. Isabelle was trembling and thoughts of chaos were, running through her head. She didn't know what to do. All she knew was that she wasn't ready for what was about to happen; however, she was paralyzed and couldn’t think straight. All she had to do- all she could do was sit there and gaze back at Mark while she turned the deepest shade of red. He slowly leaned forward; eyes closed and delicate hands on her face. Isabelle closed her eyes and hoped that she was just dreaming. Then in her hopes of it all being a dream; she felt the touch of his soft, warm lips against hers. It was a slow and sweet, delicate kiss that Mark had been long waiting for to give to Isabelle. Probably from the moment he laid eyes on her. Isabelle hesitantly opened her eyes as she felt Mark's touch pull away. She found herself drowning in his deep blue eyes. She quickly snapped back to reality and decided what to do next.
"Um…I'd better go," she faintly whispered, as she got up from the sofa where they had sat all night.
"Uh.... yeah ...I should be going too. My lads are probably wondering where I am" he whispered back, slightly embarrassed.
"Yeah, same with the girls. Thank you for the lovely chat ...I appreciate it ... Goodnight," she whispered once again. And this time she didn't give Mark a chance to reply. She said her last words and left without looking back.
"Goodnight," Mark whispered to himself, as he watched Isabelle disappear.

~~ Chapter 7 ~~

"Rise and shine Cinderella!" exclaimed Monique as she headed to the blinds by Isabelle's bed- and unveiled the reflective sun that was shining outside. She knew what time Isabelle had returned to their room and it wag pretty late, especially for Isabelle. She was surprised that her friend had stayed out late, mind you with a guy.
"Is it morning already?" asked Isabelle squinting, yawning and stretching at the same time. Isabelle was the sleepy type, and she could sleep all day if she had to.
"Yes, your highness. That's what you get for staying out so late…anyway, I'm not going to nag you like a mother ... I just want details sista'!" Monique reacts impatiently and avidly, At first, Isabelle was clueless to what Monique was talking about. However, she then came to realize that it wasn't a dream and that Mark had really kissed her the previous night. She groaned and quickly pulled up the blanket covering her head.
"Nothing happened last night," she murmured from the blanket, knowing that Monique was never going to believe her. To her surprise Monique seemed satisfied with that answer (even though she really wasn't.) She didn't ask any more questions, and got up and left for the bathroom. Isabelle could tell she was a little upset, but she also knew that Monique didn’t want to push her.

While Isabelle still laid in bed, reminiscing what had happened between her and Mark, Monique was occupying the bathroom, getting ready for the whole day of skiing. Just as Isabelle was deciding whether to get up or sleep in, there was a knock at the door. Fortunately, this made her decision easier, and she got out of bed, She quickly ran to the door in her pajamas hoping and thinking that it was her friends on the other side of the door.
"Hi guys, come- Oh hello. May I help you?" exclaimed Isabelle as she flew the door open expecting to see her three friends standing there, but only to find a young man in the resort uniform holding a clipboard in his hands.
"Um, good mornin' miss. Sorry to wake you up, but I have this bouquet of flowers to be delivered to room 205. And from what the sign on this door says, these belong to the special lady spending her weekend here," explained the gentleman pointing to the number on the door, and picking up a bouquet of roses that he had behind his back.
"Oh they're beautiful. I'll be sure to give these to her. Thank you very much," a wide-eyed Isabelle remarked as she took the clipboard from the man and signed it. She also took the exquisite roses, which were already in a sparkling vase, and placed them on the night table near Monique's bed. She then thanked the man for his service and closed the door behind her. Just as she turned around from the door, Monique came out of the bathroom, and noticed the roses on her night table.
"Are those for me?" she asked Isabelle with curiosity.
"Yep," she nodded and said no more with gleaming eyes.
"I can't believe Richard would go out of his way just because he couldn't be with me on my birthday, even though it isn't until tomorrow. But I love him," she declared with a sigh without even touching the flowers. She then headed to the flowers and picked up the card that was attached to the stem of a rose and read it. Isabelle was lying down on her stomach with her elbows on the bed, her hands on the side of her cheeks, and her legs waving back and forth in the air. She was eager to know what romantic poem or comment Richard had wrote for Monique.
"So? What's it say'? Is he wondering how his little Juliet is doing on her birthday?" teased Isabelle with gleams in her eyes.
"Not quite," Monique mumbled a little disappointed, "Belle, did you by any chance happen to read the card?"
"Of course not! Why would I do that?" Isabelle looked offended as she sat up straight and her gleaming eyes turned to shock that her friend would even say that.
"Um ... maybe because ... these are for you," replied Monique even more disappointed knowing that Richard hadn't sent them.
"What?! What are you talking about? Lemme see that!" exclaimed Isabelle as she got up and snapped the card out of Monique's hands. Isabelle then looked over the words that were written in the card. They read:
To, Belle LaRose, La Belle Rose!
Last night was a dream come true,
And I'm delighted that I spent it with you!
I'm looking forward to 'hitting' the slopes with you today
From- xox Mark Feehily xox

"Oh my god! What am I gonna do? Monique you gotta help me! I'm begging you!" Isabelle babbled avidly as she covered her month with one hand and waved the cad around with the other, She was overwhelmed with all the attention Mark was giving her, and she was getting panicky by the minute.
"Okay, okay. Calm down Belle! Take a few deep breaths! Breathe in ...exhale out ... an you do that for me?"
"Of course I can calm down ... and I'm not pregnant you know! What's all this breathe in exhale out nonsense? God! I'm freaking out here and you're too busy doing some lemmas breathing! Help me will you?!'?!" snapped back Isabelle. She could get very touchy when she was distressed- but Monique and Isabelle went back a long time, and Monique knew not to take Isabelle's comments to heart.
"Okay, I'm sorry, but I can only help you if you tell me what happened last night. Are you willing to do that?" questioned Monique comfortingly. After listening to what Monique said, Isabelle collected herself together, and explained 'the kiss' to Monique. Monique, who was now gobsmacked, had one hand over her mouth and the other on Isabelle's shoulder. Monique couldn't quite grasp the idea why Isabelle was so upset with what had happened to her the preceding night. It was admiring to know that someone other than her friends and family valued Isabelle, yet Isabelle herself couldn't see it or find it in herself to trust her faith.

"Okay. Well, this is what I think, but then again I'm no Dr. Love. But anyway, I think that you should go and talk to Mark. Tell him how you really feel, and hear what he has to say. I still don't see why you’re upset, but it's a good thing you backed away when he kissed you," advised Monique from what she thought was best to do.
"Um, actually ... I didn't stop him. I couldn't. I-"
"You what?! Well, if you didn't want him to kiss you, then why didn't you make an excuse before he smooched you? Is it that you couldn’t or you didn't want to?" Monique was getting a tad bit frustrated with her friend's juvenile behaviour.
"I dunno! I dunno what I can do or what I want anymore!" spoke Isabelle covering her face with her hands, trying to hold back the tears. "I'm just gonna stay in here today. I don't feel like skiing much anymore. I need some time to be alone and just think"
"What are you going to tell Mark'? He was hoping to spend the day with you." queried Monique, taking the note from Isabelle and reading it once more.
“I don't want to hurt him, because I know the feeling, but I can't face him right now. 0h Monique, why does life have to be so complicated'?" groaned Isabelle as she thought about what she was going to do. "Maybe ... yeah that's it! Maybe Monique, you can tell him I'm sick or something. I have something contagious; what exactly I don't know, but tell him I can't see anyone because I'm really sick. That should keep him away from me for a while so I can get my head straight!"
"Hehehe! Noooo way missy! Ain't happenin’! This poor guy is trying his hardest to get to know you, and you know what? I'm not going to stop him. It's for your own good!" refused Monique with a 'have-some-common-sense' tone. Suddenly, there was a light knock at the door, and some giggling coming from the other side. Immediately, Monique knew it was the girls. She quickly opened the door and let them in, while Isabelle still sat on her bed in her pajamas. Right when the girls saw Isabelle, the giggling was terminated.
"Why aren't you ready Belle? Don't you wanna go siding?" questioned Yasmine curiously and astonished that her friend wasn't dressed yet. Monique instantly filled in the rest of the girls on the 20 minutes. The girls just stood there in awe when Monique reached the part about the kiss.
"You go girl!" cheered Angelina as she encouraged Isabelle and got a laugh from everyone except ... yep, you guessed it, Isabelle.
"No! Don’t ‘You go girl’ me! I'm not going anywhere. I just wanna stay here and think. I hope you guys can respect that. I would also like it if, one of you would tell Mark that I'm sick and I can't see him today, considering that Monique won't do it!"
"Well, Monique's right!" rebottled Cassandra.
"Thank you! See! I know what I'm doing!" Monique was pleased to hear that at least one of her friends was on her side.
"Fine! Whatever! I hate to do this but... Can you guys leave now? I want to be alone! Do whatever you want when you see him! I just want to go home!" whined Isabelle like a complete two-year-old!
"Okay guys, I think we should go now...let's just leave her alone. Give her, her space," agreed Yasmine as she motioned everyone to the door, hoping Isabelle would make the right decision. And without saying another word, all of the girls left for the lobby to get their skis.

~~ Chapter 8 ~~

Just as the girls were walking through the lobby, they spotted Mark who was walking in their direction, smiling from ear to ear,
"Good Morning ladies..." greeted Mark as he finally reached the girls. He seemed to be so cheerful, and all of the girls had a pretty good idea why.
"Hello Mark, how are you?" replied Monique, secretly hoping that he wouldn't ask about Isabelle.
"I'm grand! Can't wait to go outside. You ladies look like you're up for a good day of skiing?! Um ... where’s Isabelle?" he questioned looking concerned that Isabelle wasn't with the girls. Just then Monique turned away from Mark, leaving one of her friends, to answer the question.
"Oh, uh ... Isabelle ... she ... um ... she..." Yasmine started to answer the question but found herself fumbling over the right words. What was she to do'? Tell him that Isabelle was sick, or that she just didn't want to see him'?
"She's sick and won't be able to go skiing!" blurted out Angelina without thinking. This comment shocked all of her friends, and they all gave Angelina looks that could kill. Angelina then quickly shut up, and looked away from Mark.
"You can't be serious? Is she all right? She was fine until last ... night," he asked curiously and with a worried tone. However, his voiced seemed to be a whisper when he came to the words 'last night'. He actually had a little smile when he said those words; his eyes also sparkled, and the girls didn't have to wonder what he was thinking about when he said them. Just as Mark was hoping to receive an answer from one of the girls, Shane and Bryan came up from behind and interrupted the conversation,
"Well hello everybody! Lovely morning isn't it?" addressed Shane as he stood on one side of Mark.
“Hey ya Angelina! How are you?" exclaimed Bryan as he saw her and stood on the other side of Mark. Angelina immediately turned her head to face Bryan when she heard his voice and gleamed with joy to see him. Actually, she was just happy that he had diverted the attention onto him.
"Well hello to you too Bryan! It's good to see you noticed us as well!" reacted Mark teasingly. However, he didn't really care about the presence of Bryan at all. He just wanted to find out more about Isabelle's illness.
"Yeah, so back to Isabelle ... Is she all right?" he asked with the obvious concerned shakiness in his voice.
“Umm...yes...I mean no ...I mean...Isabelle is-" started Cassandra, but was once again interrupted by another greeting. This time it was Nicky.
"Hello! Hello! Hello Everyone! So what’s the craic? Why’s everyone standin' around when there’s slopes to be skied on?"
"Craic? What the hells that? Must be some Irish slang!" questioned Angelina confused and then answered her own question.
"Hello Nick-ita. You're looking lovely as ever," teased Bryan in a feminine voice. "Why not the new hair-do today? Run out of elastic bands, for your hair? I'm sure one of these gorgeous ladies could lend you one of theirs!"
"Ha ha ha! Very funny Bryan- oops I'm sorry Bryana!" shot back Nicky as he threw a play punch at Bryan. "As I was saying ... Why's everyone standing around?"
"I dunno know about you people, but I'd like to find out what exactly is the matter with Isabelle," answered Mark, who was now getting frustrated with the interruptions, and his tone said it all. Just then he looked towards Cassandra again to let her finish what she was saying-
"Oh! Yeah! Um... Isabelle ... she...er… she's sick just like Angelina said," Cassandra gave up her morals and what she had said earlier about Monique being right, and lied to Mark. She didn't want to tell him the truth that Isabelle didn't want to see him, but she didn't want to tell him that she was sick either. It was all because of his eyes. His sapphire blue, puppy dog eyes. She couldn't let him down. "Yeah, Isabelle I think has something contagious. I think it's the flu or something even worse. I'm not too sure," finished off Cassandra receiving looks of surprise from all of her friends.
"Oh, I see. The flu? Well Maybe I should go and see if she's all right. I mean stick around and-"
"NO! You can't! I mean ... we wouldn’t want you catching the flu as well. Yeah... I mean, you have to sing and you can't let all of your fans down, right?" refused Yasmine as she tried to make an excuse for Mark to not see Isabelle.
"Well. first of all... I’m on vacation, which means no singing for the weekend, unless I want to. Secondly, this is Canada, and we have no fans here ... well except maybe for you guys if you’ve even heard any of our songs. And thirdly, I can't let Isabelle stay alone in her room all day when she's in the condition you tell me she's in. I wouldn’t even enjoy my day of skiing,"
"You mean enjoy your day of falling on your face every 5 seconds," cut in Bryan to lighten up the atmosphere, which had turned all serious. He accomplished his goal. He gained a couple of giggles from the girls.
"Shut up Bry! This is no joke! A poor girl is sick in her room and all you seem to care about is making fun of me," shot back Mark. He and Isabelle had something else in common that they could add to their ‘Things In Common’ list. They both were very touchy when it came to serious matters. While observing all of this, Cassandra couldn't help but think of how much Mark seemed to care for Isabelle. He was such a gentleman. He was insisting on giving up his day of skiing just so he could take care of her. God! Isabelle could be such a baby!
“Okay, you know what? I don’t feel like skiing anymore. I’m just gonna head back to my room, and hang out with Kian or something,” he said with frustration for not getting a proper response from anyone.
“Um, I just saw Kian heading over this way, Mark” Nicky informed.
“Well, I’ll just go read or something. Goodbye everyone. Have fun skiing,” he said as he walked off in the direction to his room.

~~ Chapter 9 ~~

Meanwhile, back in her room, Isabelle had climbed back into bed with the thoughts of what she had done. She also thought about how she might have hurt Mark and how the truth could hurt, but how lying could hurt even more. She was confused and didn’t know exactly what to do when and if she saw Mark. She was beginning to realize her childish behaviour and how stupid she was acting. As the thoughts circled her head, she could no longer hold back the tears, so she let them all out, by crying into her pillow. Just as she was about to drift off to sleep from crying her eyes out, she heard a soft knock at the door.
“It’s open, come in,” she said her back facing the door.
“Hey, how you feeling?” Mark whispered as he entered the room carrying a tray with a bowl of soup and a one-stemmed rose in a vase. He then headed to Isabelle’s bed and sat down next to her placing the tray on the bed as well. He obviously didn’t listen to the girls in lobby. As he was heading back to his room, he, at the spur of the moment, turned around and headed to check up on Isabelle.
“Mark! W-w-what are you doing here?” she said as she saw who her visitor was.
“Well, I’m not really hungry for some chicken noodle soup. As a matter of fact, I hate it!” he laughed.
“That’s nice of you, but I’m really sick, and I might give you the bug. You’d better leave immediately,” She sat up straight and wiped away her tears hoping that Mark wouldn’t notice that she had been crying. The only reason she wanted him to leave was so that he couldn’t see that she was crying.
“I’m not going anywhere, you can’t get rid of me that easily. Plus, I’d rather get sick too, than have the thought of you being all alone in your room with your illness. Besides, you seem to be feeling better already,” he remarked as he placed his hand on her forehead. Right after Mark said this, Isabelle started to think about how she had treated him and how he was treating her in the complete opposite way. It was like she had finally turned on her brain. The time she spent by herself sure did her some good.
“Ooh Mark, that’s so sweet. You would do all of this for me even after the way I’ve treated you?” she said as tears started to stream down her face once again. This time she didn’t wipe them away; she didn’t care if Mark saw her crying. She just wanted to let it all out.
“Belle? Are you crying? Hey, c’mon now love. I can’t stand to see a beautiful girl such as yourself wasting her time on tears,” he replied as he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her tears away.
“But Mark, I have a confession to make.”
“Um, Belle…what are you talking about?- Actually, I think I should leave. You don’t need all of this when you’re ill. Here, I’ll just leave your soup for you on this table and you can eat it whenever you feel like it, all right?” he said as he headed for the door.
“No Mark! Wait! I have to tell you this,” she pleaded. Mark thought for a minute what he was to do, and then hesitantly came and sat down next to her again.
“Why do you think you have treated me so badly? You sound like you’re responsible for giving someone a heart attack,” he whispered as he took her hands in his.
“Well, it’s not a heart attack, but I’m sure I’ve done some damage to the heart…your heart.”
“Belle, what are you trying to say?” Mark asked while trying to hide the truth, which Isabelle already knew.
“Mark, you’ll probably hate me forever, but I have to clear up my conscience.”
“Belle, what-”
“Mark, I want to tell you that…I’m not really sick,” she silenced him by placing her finger on his lips.
“Isabelle, I-”
“No Mark, let me finish. I know you’re probably thinking that I’m a stuck up snob who doesn’t care about anyone’s feelings other than my own. But it’s nothing like that. I actually had your feelings in mind. I didn’t want to lead you on but I didn’t know what to tell you. I definitely did not want to hurt you because I, myself, know the feeling. Mark I-” but her babbling was cut off by Mark’s lips pressing against hers. It was so blunt how Mark just leaned forward and silenced her. The kiss caught Isabelle by surprise and felt like it lasted for eternity even though it probably only lasted for a few seconds. Just as Mark felt that Isabelle was caught up in the moment, he slowly pulled away. “Wow!” she slowly said as she found herself drowning in Mark’s blue eyes. Other than that, she was speechless
“Is that it? Is that the big confession you had to make?”
“Umm…yeah. Are you mad at me?” she whispered searching his face for an answer.
“Isabelle LaRose, couldn’t you tell by that kiss? I was trying to tell you that earlier, but you wouldn’t let me. I wanted to tell you that no matter what you had to tell me, I knew deep in my heart that it could never be something that could make me hate you. I couldn’t hate you, nor could I hate anyone. I had to put a stop to your nonsense babbling, and the only way I could do that was with a kiss,” he said as he cupped her face in his hands once again. After hearing these words from Mark, the tears started once again. However, this time, they weren’t tears of confusion or guilt, they were tears of happiness.
“Oh, please don’t start again.” He said as he gently kissed her tears away.
“Can’t you just use your fingers to wipe them away, Mark?” she laughed as she was amused by Mark’s action.
“Erm, well, I can but if I do that, then I won’t have an excuse to kiss you, sweetheart,” he said as he pressed his lips against hers again. Isabelle was starting to like the sweet feeling and didn’t attempt to push him away. Once again he pulled away slowly and embraced her in a warm hug. He then softly started to sing to her in that mesmerizing voice that he has while caressing her hair.

Girl, I know you're hurting
Right now you feel like
You could never love again
Now all I ask is for a chance
To prove that I love you

From the first day that
I saw your smiling face
Honey, I knew that we would be together forever
Ooh and I asked you out, you said no
But I found out
Darling, that you'd been hurt
You felt that you'd never love again
I deserve a try, honey, just once
Give me a chance and I'll prove this all wrong
You walked in you were so quick to judge
But honey, he's nothing like me

I'll never break your heart
I'll never make you cry
I'd rather die, than live without you
I'll give you all of me
Honey that's no lie
I'll never break your heart
I'll never make you cry
I'd rather die, than live without you
I'll give you all of me
Honey that's no lie
As time goes by you will get to know me
A little more better
Girl that's the way love goes baby, baby
I know you are afraid to let
Your feelings show
And I understand
But girl it's time to let go
Girl it's time to let go because
I deserve a try honey, just once
Give me chance and I'll prove this all wrong
You walked in you were so quick to judge
But honey he's nothing like me
Darling, why can't you see

I'll never break your heart
No way (no way) no how
I'll make you cry

Oh, need me
Honey no way
I'll do you right
I say no how
I would never do that to you girl
Ooh, just give me a chance
To prove you how much I love you
I would give you the world
If you're my girl...

I'll never break your heart
I'll never make you cry
I'd rather die, than live without you
I'll give you all of me
Honey that's no lie
I'll never break your heart
I'll never make you cry
I'd rather die, than live without you
I'll give you all of me
Honey that's no lie

“…And Belle, I want you to know I meant every single word of that,” he expressed with a soft kiss. Isabelle just looked back at Mark with sparkling eyes, and just nodded. “Well, what should we do next?”
“Well, we could join the others.”
“Or we could stay here…what do you think?”
“I like my idea better, but mind you I’m not the world’s greatest skier. I’ll be falling on my bum every five seconds.”
“Nonsense! You’re not the world’s worst skier, that’s me job!” he laughed. “But look on the bright side, if we fall, we’ll be falling on top of each other.”
“You sick, sick man!”
“Ah, so this must be the real Belle,” Mark remarked causing her to blush. “Welcome back!”
“It’s good to be back!” she laughed. “Well, I guess I should change,” she said throwing the covers off and headed towards the bathroom. “Where should I meet you?”
“The lounge is fine. I’ll be waiting.”
“Okie dokie. Oh yeah, Mark, by the way, I suggest that you wear extra layers of underwear considering your tushie will get sore from falling! Trust me, I speak from experience!” she quickly added as she closed the door to the washroom and left Mark in fits of laughter in the other room.

~~ Chapter 10 ~~

“Oh my God! What do we have here? Mark? Isabelle? Together?” Angelina announced to her friends (including the other four members of Westlife) as she saw Mark and Isabelle heading over to them. The group was standing at the top of hill and was just about ready to ski down it. “Hey Belle, shouldn’t you be in bed considering you’re really sick?” Angelina said as she winked at Isabelle, thinking she was covering her friend’s excuse.
“Hey Angie! I saw that! Sorry to break it to ya, but we cleared everything up,” Mark confronted with a laugh.
“Yeah, Angie! It’s all good. But thanks anyway,” Isabelle also laughed as she and Mark finally reached the group.
“Hold up! What the hell’s going on here? Would someone please like to inform us- well me at least, on what just happened?” Monique interrupted as she raised an eyebrow. She was obviously confused to the fact that Isabelle was with a guy- Mark for that matter; the same guy she had been trying to avoid all day. Don’t get Monique wrong, she was happy for Isabelle and all, but she was just as confused though. But then again, who wouldn’t be? So Mark and Isabelle clarified the last half an hour to everyone and made sense of everything. The news from the two of them was greeted by ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs’ and just as many ‘awws.’
“Well then Marky, I see I’ve taught you well,” Shane said as he came and stood next to Mark and smacked his bum. “Whoa there mate! That’s one podgy arse! I think you’re getting bigger than our mate Bryan here!” Mark couldn’t help but laugh at this comment and made one of his own.
“Shane, let’s just say, always, always listen to this young lady!” he said while pointing to Isabelle. “She advised me to wear many layers of underwear because she knew I’d be falling on my bum 99.9 percent of the time I’m out here,” Mark remarked as he caused Isabelle to blush.
“I did,” she admitted proudly. “Just ask him how many times he fell just climbing up this hill!” This caused everyone to burst out laughing.
“Boy do you people like standing around a lot and doing nothing,” Nicky interrupted jokingly, but he was probably being serious at the same time because it made him think of Georgina after seeing Mark and Isabelle together.
“Yeah, I agree with Nicks. Let’s make the most of our money,” Kian added. “Last one down the hill is a…erm...um….help me out Bry.”
“Last one down this hill is a rotten egg!”
“Gee thanks Bryan, very helpful. I could’ve never thought of that one on my own,” Kian said sarcastically.
“Okay! The last one down this hill has to claim the title as a wuss and on top of that, they have to buy everyone lunch! As for the wuss part, Kian, you already filled the spot!” Bryan teased. After Kian heard the last bit, he gave Bryan a playful push on the back, which caused Bryan to lose his balance, fall on his stomach, and slide down the hill face first. Unfortunately, waiting at the bottom of the hill for Bryan was a pile of snow, which he then crashed into headfirst.
“Oh my God! Bryan! Are you okay?” Isabelle questioned with concern, kneeling beside Bryan as she reached him first. “You didn’t break anything, did you?” she added brushing the snow off his face and placing his head on her lap. Mark reached Bryan second and couldn’t help but admire what Isabelle was doing. The way she was helping Bryan without hesitation. Mark couldn’t help but have gleams in his eyes, and stand there speechless.
“Yeah, sorry mate! I didn’t mean for you to pull a stunt like that! I was just messing around.” Kian said as he reached Bryan third.
“Yeah Belle, I’m fine. I sure caused a scene didn’t I? And Kian, don’t worry about it. We’re cool.”
“Bryan, are you sure you didn’t break anything? Quick! How many fingers?” Angelina said as she and the rest rushed to Bryan.
“Yeah I’m sure. Thanks Angie. God, it’s good to be me!” Everyone stood there confused at his last remark.
“What the hell are ye talking about mate?” Nicky inquired.
“Well, I may have made an eejit of myself but there is a bright side to this. I…Bryan McFadden do NOT have to claim the title as the wuss and buy all ye hungry goons lunch! And Angie, to answer your question, you’re holding up ten fingers, which just happens to be the number of lunches someone’s gonna buy.”
“You mean eleven lunches Bry. You eat enough food to feed two people!” teased Shane.
“Ha, bloody ha. But no Shane. So, who’s gonna cough up the dough? ‘Cause it surely ain’t gonna be me!” Bryan laughed his head off. Everyone looked at each other, trying to avoid the subject. No one seemed to be willing to volunteer. Who in their right mind would?
“You know what? I’ll do it. I’ll be called a wuss; I don’t care,” Isabelle whispered catching eyes with Mark. She could see in his eyes that he was just amazed by her. She quickly turned away from his gaze and looked at Bryan. Even though Bryan’s head was in her lap she could see the confused expression on his face, although it happened to be upside-down.
“You’ll what? Belle are you mad?” Bryan questioned as he looked up at Isabelle’s face.
“Ya heard me. I’ll buy lunch.”
“Um… Belle, I’ll do it. You don’t have to. He’s my deutzy sham. I’ll buy everyone lunch,” Mark insisted trying to be a gentleman towards Isabelle.
“And he’s not my friend? I’ll do it. And if you try arguing with me- let’s just say DON’T argue with me!” Isabelle declared with laughter.
“Whoa! I like this one. She’s feisty! Marky, she definitely a keeper,” Brian teased as he got up to his feet and put his arm around Isabelle’s shoulder.
“Um Bryan, are you sure you didn’t break anything?” Isabelle questioned slyly.
“Uh yeah…Why?”
“’Cause if you ever try a comment like that again, I’ll break something of yours, and it won’t be too pleasant,” she replied quick-wittedly wrapping her arms around Bryan’s stomach. She then turned to Mark again and she could see ‘that’ look in his eyes once again. However, she couldn’t really tell what he was thinking. After everyone had had a good laugh and Bryan had collected himself together, they all headed to the chalet for lunch, which Isabelle the wuss was to pay for. However, Isabelle would never be a wuss in Mark’s eyes.

~~ Chapter 11 ~~

Once everyone had a nice meal, they all returned to their skiing. They all split up and then agreed to meet in the lounge in the evening to head to dinner. While Mark and Isabelle sat in the lift together, they were surrounded by Cassey and Shane who were in front of them, and Bryan and Angelina who were behind. Isabelle and Mark’s friends couldn’t help but keep on saying how cute they looked together. Bryan, who could be a real pain at times, wouldn’t stop wolf whistling from behind, and this caused Mark to blush. Isabelle, who was feeling warm and fuzzy inside played along with her friends, and laid her head on Mark’s shoulder causing the surrounding people to ‘aww’ at the sight. Mark who was surprised by Isabelle’s action wrapped his arm around her; pulled her close to him and caressed her hair causing another ‘aww’ from the onlookers. When everyone got off at their slope of choice, Mark and Isabelle were left in the lifts alone.
“Isabelle, I just wanted to let you know that…” Mark’s voice trailed off because he didn’t know how to tell Isabelle what he wanted to say.
“Yes Mark? You just wanted to let me know about what?”
“I don’t know how to say this to you without sounding too blunt, or without trying to scare you away. I really don’t want the last bit to happen because I would kick myself for not thinking before I spoke if you ever got away from me,” he whispered turning his head away from Isabelle.
“Ooh Mark…” Isabelle was speechless. She lifted her head from Mark’s shoulder and turned his head to face her. She did feel a bit scared and uneasy but she tried desperately to hide it from Mark, so she wouldn’t hurt him. “Mark, just be honest with me. If what you have to tell me makes you feel scared, you don’t have to tell me. You can take your time and tell me when you feel you won’t regret what you say,” Isabelle spoke softly to Mark while looking him in his eyes.
“Isabelle, when you talk like that, it just makes me want to confess everything to you. I just want to tell you my every emotions, my every thought,” Mark confessed with a sigh. “What I wanted to tell you is…you make me feel…complete. It feels as though I have known you my entire life- and in life times before. You make me feel so differently now- and that’s a good thing. You make me feel as though I am floating on cloud number nine. I have one question though, and that is, ‘why did I just meet you yesterday?’”
“Mark, that’s so sweet. It’s flattering beyond compare. But I have some questions too. I keep thinking why are you so sweet to me? Why do you even talk to me or how can you even look at me after the way I’ve treated you. And now, why do you feel as though we’ve known each other our entire lives?”
“To be quite honest…I don’t know. It’s just that when I saw you yesterday, I saw a sad young lady, who looked like she was hurt…deeply. And now… when I see you today, you’re full of life, full of happiness, full of strength…and anyone who can hold Bryan’s head in their lap for more than 2 minutes is strong, physically, and mentally…and you’re definitely stronger than yesterday. I just hope that I am part of the reason for your happiness,” Mark said the last bit extremely faintly.
“Oh Mark, you didn’t just say that. Now I’m gonna get that stupid song by Britney Spears stuck in my head- and that’s the last thing I need! ‘Cuz now I’m stronger, than yesterday. Now it’s nothin’ but my way. My loneliness ain’t killin’ me no more, Iiiiiiiii’m stronger!’ Just great! I’m singing it now! There, are you happy?” Isabelle interrupted the sweet atmosphere with laughter. All Mark could do was throw his head back and laugh at the sight of Isabelle singing to him.
“See Belle? I…rest my…case! But let me warn you right now! Never, and I mean never talk about Britney Spears like that in front of Kian. He’ll murder you!” Mark exclaimed in between laughs.
“I won’t promise you anything yet!” she responded slyly.
“Just promise me more hugs and kisses,” he said timidly. After they had their little talk, they finally decided to get off the lifts and do some skiing. This is where they had a great fall. It was just the first of many which they would encounter that afternoon. Mark got out of the ski lift first and held out his hand for Isabelle. She took it without hesitation, but when she did, Mark lost his balance and they both fell to the ground. The two of them were laughing like mad and just got back up and brushed themselves off. Another fall occurred while the two of them were fooling around. Mark was insisting that Isabelle should go down the slope first and then he would follow her; however, Isabelle was refusing to do so. Isabelle gave Mark a gentle push trying to back away from his reach which sent him falling on his back, but he immediately grabbed her by the arms and pulled her down with him. Mark landed on the snow on his back and Isabelle fell on top of him. They found themselves looking into each other’s eyes once again. However Isabelle made the first move and started to rub snow in Mark’s hair while he leaned forward and gave her a quick kiss on the lips before they both got up again. They kept doing that all afternoon; falling down and getting back up. At one incident when they both were on the ground, Isabelle heard a faint cry of distress.
“Shh, Mark do you hear that?” Isabelle asked as she placed her finger on his lips and motioned him to listen attentively.
“Hear what?”
“Can’t you hear that? It sounds like someone is crying out for…help. Here, listen carefully.”
“Now that you mention it, I do and it sounds like it’s coming from over there,” he said, pointing in a direction, which was scattered with trees. Just as Mark finished talking, Isabelle had already undone her skies and was running in the direction that Mark had described. Mark then got up and ran right behind Isabelle. He was so close that she could hear him literally panting for air. Boy, was he in bad shape, especially for a pop star! But Isabelle didn’t pay too much attention to his breathing and concentrated more on the cries. Just as they got closer to the sound, they could see a little figure forming in front of them. It was actually a little boy who was leaning against a tree with his legs pointing outwards; a ski lying off in the distance; his left hand was covered with his right and he was crying in pain.
“Oh my God! What’s wrong?” Isabelle questioned.
“Oww! Oww! It huuuuurts!…Make it stop!” the child managed to say in between sobs as he unveiled his left hand. Isabelle was shocked at what she saw, which was a deep cut in the palm of the boy’s hand and his right glove was drenched in blood.
“Okay, Isabelle, calm down, for the boy’s sake! You’ve done this before! You have your certificate!” she thought to herself. “Okay Mark, I need you to divert his attention off the pain. Just ask him some simple questions while I try to mend his wound,” she whispered.
“I’m on it! Hey there buddy, what’s your name? No, wait! Let’s see if my psychic powers are working today. Your name is… um…it’s Michael…No no! That’s not it! It’s…Patrick right?” The little boy was amused by Mark’s so-called ability that he started to laugh.
“That’s not it. Mommy says not to tell strangers my name. She says not to talk to them.”
“Ah darn! Well I’m Mark and this is Isabelle and she’s gonna fix you up, okay?” Mark looked up at Isabelle and she looked back at him with an expression on her face that said ‘you’re doing good! Keep it up!’ When Mark said this, the boy realized that he was hurt and was shaking now from shock. Mark noticed this and diverted the boy’s attention.
“Well, what’s your favourite colour?”
“Purple!”
“No way! That’s my favourite colour too!” Mark exclaimed with joy. Unfortunately, the little conversation was interrupted. Isabelle had wrapped her scarf around the his hand and then placed her glove on top of it, and was in need of another one.
“Mark, can I borrow your scarf?” Isabelle whispered hoping the boy wouldn’t hear her. Unfortunately the boy’s attention was now on his wounded hand again and he looked as though he was about to cry once more. Mark immediately gave his scarf to Isabelle and changed the subject by quickly asking the boy another question.
“ So what’s your favourite TV show? Mine’s the Teletubbies!”
“I don’t like them but my brother likes to watch them.” While Mark kept the conversation going Isabelle took Mark’s scarf and tied it around the boy’s neck to treat his shock and warm him up preventing any hypothermia.
“All done!” she interrupted Mark and the boy again. They were so into their conversation that they were surprised when she spoke and they just looked at her. The little boy looked down at his hands and saw that his blood- stained glove was now replaced with a scarf and Isabelle’s glove. “Let’s get you to your parents now.”
“But-but I can’t move my legs! I think they’re broken,” the boy was about to burst into tears again. Fortunately Mark cut in.
“That’s not a problem! I can take care of that! I can carry you back to the lodge.” Without any stalling, Isabelle picked up the boy’s skies; went back to theirs and got them as they made their way to the lodge.

~~ Chapter 12 ~~

“Colin! Oh my God! My baby, are you all right?” the three were greeted by Colin’s mother who was running to them. Just as she got to them, she took Colin out of Mark’s hands, and overwhelmed her child with hugs and kisses. This left Mark in a state of shock. Just imagine it; returning back to the lodge only to find the child in your hands being snatched away before you can even realize what’s going on. “Oh my poor baby! What happened to you? Oh my God! Are you hurt? Why are you’re hands covered like that? Oh God, tell me you’re all right!” Colin’s mother rambled on hysterically.
“Um…excuse me ma’am, but you might want to be a bit careful. He has a cut on his left palm, which I’m pretty sure was caused by the blade of his ski, and he said his foot- right foot, he couldn’t move it. But I’m guessing he meant his ankle. He probably twisted it or something of that sort. It would be a good idea to call a doctor and get it checked,” explained Isabelle as she was holding the tears back because she got emotional after seeing the mother and son reunite.
“Thank you so much! I don’t know what I would have done if you didn’t get back when you did. I reported Colin as missing and the ski patrols are already out looking for him. I’m just thankful the two of you showed up when you did.”
“It was no problem,” Isabelle replied back as she looked at Colin and smiled.
“I just don’t know how I could let this happen. I told Colin to stay in the lounge for two minutes while I went to go tell his father that we were going to go skiing. I told you to stay here. I told you not to move a single muscle until I got back! Why did you do it?” Colin’s mother explained as she looked at Colin who was in her arms. “I’m just glad you’re back, but you do know that you’ll be grounded…probably for the rest of your life! But thank you oh so much!” she said with a giggle which made it obvious that Colin had inherited her genes.
“It was no problem, really. Especially since he was such a strong and brave boy,” Isabelle replied as she gave a little brush to Colin’s hair. Colin looked up at his mom and gave her a look that said ‘I was strong and brave.’
“Well, I sure learned my lesson. Never leave this menace alone, not even for a split second especially at a ski lodge.” Isabelle just laughed at that comment and smiled at Colin. “Is there any way I can repay the two of you? You just name it and I’ll see if it’s possible for me to do. Anything you want. You need a reward for what you’ve done for me,” Colin’s mother questioned with insisting eyes.
“Oh no, that’s not necessary. Just the sight of the two of you happy is all the reward we need. I’m just glad that you are relived from all that worrying,” Isabelle replied refusing anything from Colin’s mother.
“No, really. I’ve said ‘thank you’ but there must be something I can do for you. It’s the least I could do.”
“No thank you. Truly and honestly. The safety and happiness of the two of you is all I need. But thank you.”
“Are you positive? I mean, I would feel awfully guilty if you didn’t take anything from me.”
“I’m 110% positive. And please, don’t feel guilty. I would just like to know how Colin will be doing after a doctor checks him. That’s all.”
“All right then. But thank the two of you so much. I guess I should go and call a doctor and tell the ski patrols that Colin is back,” Colin’s mother replied, as she was ready to walk away. She gave Mark and Isabelle a great warm hug before she left. After taking a couple steps, she turned around to face Mark and Isabelle and said, “And by the way, you two are going to make great- extremely wonderful parents one day. That is completely obvious after the way you handled Colin and the whole situation.” With those last words she walked off. This left Isabelle in shock. She had to repeat the words in her head a couple times before she actually comprehended what Colin’s mother had said.
Mark stood next to Isabelle and just shook his head back and forth in disbelief, while looking at Isabelle.
“What?” Isabelle questioned curiously.
“Amazing, simply amazing. You’re as amazing as they get. I just can’t believe that the boy’s name was Colin. That’s my younger brother’s name. This Colin must be around the same age as my brother as well but my brother’s probably a bit older. And I just can’t believe the way you treated him. I keep thinking, what if that was my little brother injured in the cold? You would have helped him and I would be just as grateful to you as Colin’s mother was to us. This is why you’re so amazing. You just help anyone. They don’t have to be someone you know you just help anyone in need. And what she said about the parenting thing….y’know what?…She’s right. You’re going to make an extraordinary mother one day,” Mark remarked as he came out of his shock. He then wrapped his arm around Isabelle’s waist and pulled her close to him.
“Hey! C’mon now! You helped too. I could have never done that all by myself. I mean, I would never be able to bring Colin back to the lodge alone. And if I did, he might have hypothermia or something and who knows what else might have happened. Don’t just give me all of the credit, you deserve some too y’know. We did it together,” Isabelle confronted Mark as she put her head on his shoulder. After the final words came from Isabelle, the two of them just stood there, watching Colin and his mother disappear into the distance.

~~ Chapter 13 ~~

“Hello Cassandra, Filan,” Kian greeted as his two friends approached him and Yasmine, who were sitting on a couch in the lounge.
“Hello Kian, hey Yasmine,” Cassandra replied as she took a seat next to Kian and as Shane sat next to Yasmine.
“Bry and Angelina went to the Chalet to reserve a table, but where’s everyone else?” Kian questioned while looking around the lounge.
“Well, we just saw Monique and Nicky heading this way, but Marky and Isabelle? Haven’t seem ‘em since this afternoon,” Shane answered Kian with a grin and a look that said ‘what could Marky be up to?’
“Oh well. They’ll be here soon. Let’s just wait a bit. Besides, I haven’t seen Belle this happy in ages. Live and let live,” Yasmine remarked as she tried to remember the last time she saw her friend as happy as she was with Mark.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right. I haven’t seen Mark this happy since….Hell! I’ve never seen Mark this happy!” Shane blurted out which was followed by many laughs from everyone.
“Umm…I don’t mean to pry, but why did Isabelle seem so hurt yesterday? That was the first thing I noticed when we all met yesterday. I just didn’t think it was appropriate to mention anything then,” Kian asked shyly. You could tell he kind of regretted asking that question because he started to blush and it was really obvious.
“Well, it’s not my place to tell or say anything about it, but let’s just say…Mark doesn’t seem to be like her previous boyfriend who was a cheating fool and a miserable bastard!” Yasmine could feel that anger building up inside of her. All of the girls were really close and felt empathetic about each other. This was why Yasmine got so worked up at the thought of Isabelle’s ex-boyfriend. That, and she was pretty violent too…*hehe*. *
“Oh…I…see…well I’m awfully sorry I brought it up. I just wanted to know why Isabelle seemed so hurt. I guess men can be such…such…”
“Dumb Arses!” Shane filled in Kian who was apologizing like a true gentleman.
“Well not the exact words I was looking for, but it’ll do.” As Kian finished his last comment the four friends who were sitting on the same couch were waiting (and getting impatient mind you,) for the other four to arrive. Finally, in the midst of the conversation and laughter, Nicky and Monique arrived.
“Hello everybody. How are all ye?” Nicky said as he approached the group.
“About time. What took you two so long? We saw you as we were coming,” Cassandra joked as she looked at her watch.
“Well sorry,” Monique said sarcastically.
“Yeah, we’re sorry. Did you miss me mate? I missed you. How are you feeling now that I’m back?”
Nicky teased Shane as he went over to where Shane was sitting and squeezed his way onto the couch, giving Shane a big hug.
“Oi! Get your filthy hands off me! And I’ll tell you how I feel now. I feel like beating you down with a yardstick if you don’t move. But then again…if I do that, Georgina won’t be too happy.”
“Okay! Okay! I get it! All you had to do was be polite y’know!” Nicky laughed.
“Hey everyone! What’s up?” Isabelle greeted as she and Mark approached the group.
“Boy am I happy to see you, Belle. You just saved me from this mad man! He’s out to kill me!”
Nicky said in his heart melting Irish accent as he pretended to hide behind Isabelle. After Shane saw this, all he could do was throw his head back and laugh.
“Hello everybody. Um…where’s Bry and Angelina?” Mark said with an Irish accent which was just as charming as Nicky’s.
“They’re gone to get a table. It’s not easy finding a table for ten people you know,” Yasmine joked as she filled Mark in.
“Oh, I see…well I guess we should go then. Besides, I’m hungry. Saving someone sure can make my stomach growl,” he responded leaving everyone other than Isabelle confused.
“What the hell are ye talking about?” questioned Shane once he had calmed himself down from laughing.
“Never mind. We’ll tell you over dinner. We’ll tell all of you over dinner,” Isabelle replied.
“Oh sure. Take his side,” Nicky blurted out trying to make Isabelle blush. This obviously worked because she could feel her cheeks getting warm. Isabelle didn’t reply to Nicky’s answer, but she just looked to the ground. Mark who was standing beside her wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close to him trying not to make his action obvious to everyone. Unfortunately, they all noticed and ‘awwed.’
“Okay people, let’s move before Bryan eats all of our food,” Shane announced as he got up from his seat. Everyone agreed and before they knew it, they were headed for the chalet for a nice warm meal.

~~ Chapter 14 ~~

“Hey guys! Over here!” Bryan waved his arm to his friends while yelling across the whole chalet.
“How could we have missed you Bry?” Nicky teased as he pulled a seat at the table.
“Ha ha Nicky! Very funny!”
“I try.”
“Okay, that’s enough boys! We’re not in kindergarten anymore. Let’s just have a nice dinner, okay?” Isabelle spoke up sounding so much like a teacher. The two guys stopped their joking around; looked at Isabelle; then looked back at each other and burst out laughing! Everyone took their seats and ordered what they wanted. Mark obviously sat next to Isabelle and he moved his seat as close as he could get to her. Everyone was having a blast. They were talking about their day, they were telling jokes, and laughing like they would never laugh again. There was one incident where Nicky might have laughed a bit too much. He was laughing so hard that he choked on what he was eating. Luckily Monique was sitting right next to him. Monique noticed how he was coughing like mad and she took her hand and smacked him on his back. She smacked him so hard that he flinched forward so hard, he nearly fell into his plate! Now for all of those who know Monique, you know that being smacked by her feels like being tackled by a whole football team!
“Oh God Nicky! That was hilarious! You flinched so much you almost-” but Shane couldn’t finish his sentence, he started to choke from laughing at Nicky! This time it was Yasmine’s turn to smack somebody. Cassandra was sitting next to Shane but she could never find it in her to smack anyone, not even if it meant saving his or her life. So Shane was lucky that Yasmine was on the other side of him!
“You were saying Shane? I believe in karma what you give is what you get returned!” Nicky replied quick-wittedly as he sang the last bit of his comment.
“Oh shut up you Savage Garden wannabe! As for you Canadian birds…how did you ever get to be so strong and where’d you learn to smack like that?” Shane snickered.
“A little cranky now aren’t we?” Nicky teased.
“Okay guys. I take it both of you are all right now,” Cassandra cut in stating the obvious as she tried to avoid any argument between Nicky and Shane. After that little comment from Cassandra, everyone started joking and laughing again. All of them were eating their dinner and laughing amongst themselves, creating the ruckus they were beginning to be known for. All of them were having too much fun to even realize what was happening around them.
“Hello again. I thought I’d find the two of you here,” said a familiar voice. Mark and Isabelle turned around to see that Colin and his mother were standing behind them.
“Oh hello! How are you?” Mark said standing up as he gave Colin’s mother a handshake All of the others around the table seemed to be confused to what was going on, so Isabelle explained what happened that afternoon and how they knew these people.
“Well, I’m sorry to interrupt your dinner. You seem to be enjoying yourselves,” Colin’s mother remarked.
“Oh that’s quite all right. Here, take a seat,” Isabelle gestured for Colin and his mother to pull up a chair and join them.
“Oh that’s okay. I won’t be too long. Besides, Colin’s father is getting our table,” Colin’s mother refused, but Colin had already taken the offer and climbed into Isabelle’s lap, making her heart melt. Isabelle was surprised by Colin’s actions and just looked at Mark with a smile on her face. Mark looked back at Isabelle with the same gleams in his eyes that he had earlier that day. “Yes, well I just thought I’d come over and thank you once again. I also came to ask you something. It’s really quite embarrassing for me, but I realized afterwards that I hadn’t asked for your names or given you mine for that matter. That was quite stupid of me, I mean can you imagine ever doing that?” Colin’s mother spoke as she blushed when she looked at Mark and Isabelle. Isabelle and Mark looked at each other and just smiled.
“Oh, don’t worry. That’s happened to me quite recently. Don’t feel bad. Well I’m Isabelle.”
“And I am Mark.”
“Well thank you Isabelle and thank you Mark. I will say thank you a million times if I must. Anyway, my name is Elizabeth Carey, but I’d prefer you call me Elizabeth. Well, anyway, I just wanted to come and return something,” she said as she took two wrapped up boxes out of a bag and gave one to Isabelle and one to Mark. They were both confused and didn’t know what was happening. They opened the box and just giggled to themselves when they realized what was in them.
“Thank you very much, it’s gorgeous,” Isabelle thanked Elizabeth as she pulled a beautiful scarf out of the box and tickled Colin’s nose with the end of it. “You really didn’t have to do this.”
“Yes, thank you. It’s brilliant,” Mark exclaimed as he pulled his scarf out.
“Well, when the doctor checked Colin, he removed the two scarves. One was covered in blood and the other wasn’t too bad. I figured they were yours and I thought I would return them- replace rather. I hope you like them, it’s not much but it’s the least I could do.”
“Oh I love it. Thank you!” exclaimed Isabelle.
“I picked them out myself,” Colin spoke as he looked up at Isabelle with sparkling eyes.
“Ahhh! That’s why they’re so cool! You know what? The next time I go shopping-which I hate doing; I’m taking you with me. You can pick out my whole wardrobe for me, okay? Is that a deal?” Isabelle said to Colin in a cheerful voice.
“It’s a deal!” Colin exclaimed as he went to shake hands with Isabelle. Just then Isabelle noticed the cast on his hand.
“So I see your hand is hidden under a cast eh?” Isabelle said to Colin in a casual tone. “Are you feeling better now though?” she asked as she gave him a little hug. (Remember that he’s still sitting in her lap.)
“Yeah, I feel better. It doesn’t hurt that much. I didn’t even cry when the doctor wrapped the cast around my hand. I was brave!”
“Yes, that’s true. He was such a brave boy. I think I cried more than he did all day,” Elizabeth said with a giggle. “The doctor came and he cleaned up the wound in his palm so it wouldn’t get infected. He also checked Colin’s ankle and said that it’s just twisted a little. He put two splints and immobilized it. He said Colin should recover in no time. I’m just thankful you brought him back because it could have been worse.”
“You’re very welcome,” Mark replied to Elizabeth as he gave Colin a ‘thumbs up.’
“Do you…um...want to maybe…sign…my cast?” Colin asked shyly as he looked up at Isabelle with hopeful eyes.
“I thought you’d never ask!” Isabelle said cheerfully once again. Colin’s face completely brightened up when he heard Isabelle’s response. She grabbed a pen from her purse and signed Colin’s cast. Colin then went around the table and got everyone to sign it. Elizabeth just looked at her son with admiring eyes as he went around to everyone. Once everyone signed his cast, he returned to his mother and showed her what everyone wrote. They were both so happy, Isabelle nearly cried again.
“Colin, you’d better keep the cast because you never know how much some of those signatures might be worth some day,” spoke Isabelle as she looked at Mark and gave him a wink.
“I will,” he said timidly.
“Well I guess I’ll let you guys get back to your dinner. Thank you so much once again,” Elizabeth said.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been thanked this much in a day,” Mark joked causing Elizabeth and Colin to giggle. “Hope to see you again Colin and Mrs. Carey- I...uh…. mean…Elizabeth.”
“Yes, I hope we meet again. Until then, take care,” replied Elizabeth.
“You take care too, and you especially little buddy. And remember our deal,” Isabelle said as she leaned forward and gave Colin a little hug. “See you soon.”
“Bye everyone,” Elizabeth said as she waved to the whole table just before she and Colin left. The group just watched the two of them walk off. They could also see that Colin had a little limp when he walked, but they also knew that he would be fine.
After Elizabeth and Colin left, the group continued on with their laughter. They all got along pretty well and just laughed at anything. Finally Monique spoke up.
“Would you please excuse me? I’ve got to visit the lady’s room. Anyone else gotta go?”
“I don’t have to go but I’ll come,” Isabelle offered as she got out of her seat. It was that girl thing where girls never went to the washroom alone.
“Yeah, I’ll come to!” Bryan exclaimed at the thought of going inside the ladies’ washroom.
“Nice try, Bryan, but no. But when you get a sex change, then maybe,” Isabelle replied quick-wittedly. This surprised everyone, especially Bryan.
“Oh that hurt, Belle. I never knew you had that in you,” Bryan replied pretending to be hurt.
“What can I say? I’m unpredictable,” Isabelle responded as she gave Bryan and apologetic kiss on the cheek. That surprised Bryan as well. He pointed to his cheek and looked at Mark with a big grin on his face trying to annoy him. Fortunately Mark kept calm even though he probably felt like beating Bryan with a baseball bat.
“Is anyone else coming or what?” Monique questioned. She seemed to be getting a bit impatient.
“I’ll come too,” Cassandra said as she got up from her seat.
“Okay, c’mon then. I wanna get back before my chocolate mousse cake gets here.” With that, the three girls left for the washroom.

“Aren’t you glad we dragged you out here?” Cassandra asked Isabelle while they were in the washroom.
“Yes, thank you so much,” Isabelle replied in an ecstatic tone. “I’m having a great weekend now.”
“Oh really? So what’s the 411? Details sista’!” Monique squealed as she walked out of the stall and headed for the sink where Cassandra and Isabelle were standing.
“Oh my God! Where do I begin? Mark is just…oh bless him!”
“I take it he’s nothing like…well you know who,” Cassandra suggested.
“Oh no Cassey! Mark is nothing like that creep! No word in the English dictionary can describe my hate for that scumbag! But Mark on the other hand…he’s just what I need right now. He makes me feel complete and he said I make him feel complete. I know I just met him, but that’s the strange part. We feel like we’ve known each other forever. Thank you Monique for telling me to get out there and meet new people. I probably would have kicked myself later if it weren’t for you.” Monique and Cassandra looked at Isabelle and then looked back at each other with concerned looks. They were both thinking that Isabelle was moving a bit too fast and had no idea what she was talking about, but neither of them wanted to be the one to break it to her.
“Well I’m glad he makes you happy,” Cassandra said, trying to hide her concern.

“Yes, he does make me happy,” Isabelle replied in a daze. “That’s good to hear. Finally…Isabelle won’t be moping around now! I thought I was gonna have to smack some happiness into you if Mark didn’t show up,” Monique said teasingly.
“Speaking of smacking, where did you learn to smack like that? You almost made Nicky cough up his lung! It was hilarious!” Cassandra blurted as she remembered what her friend did earlier that evening.
“I dunno. I guess it’s a gift,” Monique said as she shrugged modestly.
“I don’t care. Gift or no gift, you gotta teach me!” Isabelle joked.
“Sure thing Belle. But how ‘bout we get back now? I don’t want Bryan to eat my cake, and we don’t wanna keep your lover boy waiting, now do we?” Monique teased Isabelle causing her to go red.
“I dunno what I would do without you guys! Thank you so much!” Isabelle said and giggled.
“Well you definitely wouldn’t have met Marky Warky that’s for sure!” teased Monique as she gave Cassandra a wink.
“I sense a group hug coming up!” Cassandra laughed as she, Monique and Isabelle did exactly what she predicted. After the girls had their little moment, they headed back to the group.

~~ Chapter 15 ~~

As the girls returned to their table, they noticed that the lights were dimmer than they were when they first entered the chalet. They also noticed that the guys were gone.
“Hey, where’d everyone go?” Cassandra asked curiously as she sat down. Angelina and Yasmine just had huge smiles on their faces.
“Turn around and you’ll see,” Yasmine said with a grin as she pointed in the direction the girls were to face. Isabelle sat down and turned around in her seat only to find the lights turn off completely. She was pretty anxious to find out what was going on and she seemed really excited, but she was confused at the same time. Just then she heard soft music starting to play, and she heard a gentle voice saying,
‘It’s every little thing…’
Isabelle was really curious now and she was literally squirming in her seat, as well as giggling to herself. She kind of figured out what the guys were up to but she didn’t know what to expect. Before she had any time to think she faintly saw that at the front of the room, on a miniature stage, there were five figures with their backs to the audience. They were all in a line with the person in the middle standing a bit to the front. She could see this because five spotlights started to come on, but this was happening really slowly. Just as the spotlights came on all the way, the music started to get a little louder. Just as the music got louder the figures started to turn around ever so slowly. When they were all turned around, she could see that Mark was in the middle (obviously,) and she could hear that soft voice starting again. Mark had started to sing and he was to be accompanied by the others singing in the background, as well as Shane singing lead.

Hello, let me know if you
Hear me
Hello, if you want to be near
Let me know
And I’ll never let you go

Hey love,
When you ask what I feel,
I say love
When you ask how I know,
I say trust

And if that’s not enough…

It’s every little thing you do
That makes me fall in love
With you
There isn’t a way that I can
Show you
Ever since I’ve come to
Know you
It’s every little thing you say
That makes me wanna feel this
Way
There’s not a thing that I can
Point to
‘Cause it’s every little thing
You do

Don’t ask why,
Let’s just feel what we feel,
‘Cause sometimes,
It’s the secret that keeps it alive
But if you need a reason why…

It’s every little thing you do
That makes me fall in love
With you
There isn’t a way that I can
Show you
Ever since I’ve come to
Know you
It’s every little thing you say
That makes me wanna feel this
Way
There’s not a thing that I can
Point to
‘Cause it’s every little thing
You do

Is it your smile or your laugh
Or your heart?
Does it really matter why
I love you?
Anywhere there’s a crowd,
You stand out
Can’t you see why they can’t
Ignore you?
If you wanna know
Why I can’t let go
Let me explain to you
That every little dream comes
True with every little thing
You do

It’s every little thing you do
(Yeah)
That makes me fall in love
With you
(Yeah)
There isn’t a way that I can
Show you
Ever since I’ve come to
Know you
It’s every little thing you say
(Yeah)
That makes me wanna feel this
Way
(Yeah)
There isn’t a thing that I can
Point to
‘Cause it’s every little thing
You do

It’s every little thing you do
(It’s every thing, every thing you do)
Makes me fall in love with you
(Makes me fall in love with you)
There’s not a way that I can
Show you
(Oh yeah)
Ever since I’ve come to
Know you
(Ever since I’ve known you)
It’s every little thing you say
(It’s every thing, every thing you say)
Makes me wanna feel this
Way
(Makes me wanna feel this way)
There isn’t a thing that I can
Point to
‘Cause it’s every little thing you do

It’s everything,
Everything you do
Makes me fall in love
With you,
It’s everything,
Everything you say
That makes me feel this way

It’s everything,
Everything you do
Makes me fall in love
With you,
It’s everything
, Everything you say
That makes me feel this way

As the song finished, Mark was standing in front of Isabelle holding her hand in one of his hands and holding the microphone in the other. They were in their own world because they had their eyes locked and they didn’t even notice that the whole chalet was filled with thundering applaud. Isabelle had her eyes filled with tears because that was the sweetest song she had ever heard. Monique and Cassandra looked at each other with tear filled eyes and just smiled because they were happy to see Isabelle happy. Yasmine and Angelina were just as surprised, even though they were in on the whole thing. It was really an unplanned thing. After the three girls had left to go to the washroom, the manager came up to the boys and asked if they wanted to do some karaoke unaware of what he was in for! Anyway, Mark was still holding Isabelle’s hand when Shane came up behind him and patted him on the shoulder which was a ‘that was brilliant, mate’ pat. Mark finally snapped out of it and realized that everyone was clapping at the performance.
“That was magnificent boys! Let’s give ‘em a round of applause. Have you guys ever thought about making a career out of singing? Just marvellous,” the manager of the chalet spoke into the Mic that was on the stage. “Now, who’s going to be our next performer?” The manager continued on, but no one in the group was really listening. Obviously someone volunteered, but the group of friends were too shocked to even pay attention.
“That was amazing you guys! Now I know what the DJ meant when he said you guys are UK’s top sensation! You people in the UK have damn good taste!” Cassandra said as the guys came back and sat down.
“DJ? What DJ?” Bryan asked confused.
“Oh that’s right. You guys weren’t there. It doesn’t matter, but what matters is that you guys are…Whoa!” Cassandra replied to Bryan.
“Thank you. We hope to copy that success all around the world,” Nicky said while turning red. He was blushing to Cassandra’s comment and it was really obvious too.
“Well, you guys will do it! With talent like that, I wouldn’t be surprised if you took over the universe,” Angelina commented with a laug
h. “Thank you very much,” Kian said graciously.
“That was magnificent. You were unbelievable,” Isabelle whispered in Mark’s ear as he sat back down. Mark too now was blushing.
“Thank you,” he responded timidly. “I guess that’s what I was trying to tell you today in the ski lift,” he continued quietly while looking Isabelle in the eyes.
“Wow you guys! That was the bomb! I was completely blown away,” Monique spoke up.
“Well thank you Monique!” Bryan said cheerfully.
“Yeah…I kind of feel bad about not mentioning it earlier but…I’m sure you guys know that I’m having my birthday party tomorrow. Well, I would really like it if you guys would come,” Monique said a bit embarrassed because she hadn’t said a word about the party to the guys.
“Oh, you mean we weren’t invited before? Oh well, we were gonna crash it anyway,” Bryan teased.
“No, no! It’s not like that! I thought you guys would be coming anyway. I just wanted to invite you more formally. So you guys better come!”
“We will. I was only kidding Monique. And if you’re lucky, we might even do a little number just for you,” Bryan said as he gave Monique a little wink.
“Okay! That’s good. Because I thought I’d have to beat you over the head with a hammer and drag you there!” Monique teased Bryan. “Well, now that we’re formally invited…would you…maybe…umm… I dunno…like to go…as my…date?” Mark whispered to Isabelle. He especially said the last bit very faintly. “I mean, just to make it official.”
“Um...I don’t know Mark. I’m gonna have to think about it. I don’t know if I’m ready yet. Lemme sleep on it, ok?,” Isabelle replied quietly. Just as she said that, she saw Mark’s smiling face turn completely disappointed. He lost the gleams in his eyes and looked really hurt. Isabelle couldn’t bear to see him like that so she spoke up, “ I was only kidding Mark. Of course I’ll be your date. I’d be crazy not to. And plus, when’s the next time a huge pop star is gonna ask me to be his date?” Isabelle said with a giggle.
“I hope I’m the only one who does that,” Mark said quietly. He changed his expression so fast it was actually quite cute. He was smiling like a small child on Christmas morning. Isabelle gave him a little kiss on the cheek just to make him blush. “So you’ll be my date?”
“Couldn’t you tell by that kiss?” Isabelle said just to remind him what he had said earlier to her that day. Mark was beaming now and everyone’s heart just melted by watching the two.
“Aww! You guys! That’s so cute! How about we get outta here now? I don’t really feel like eating my chocolate mousse cake anymore,” Monique suggested to the group.
“Yeah, I never thought I’d say this, but I’m not really hungry for my dessert either,” Bryan said as he placed his hands on his stomach to show how full he was.
“I guess there’s a first for everything!” Shane teased Bryan.
“Ha ha Filan!”
“Okay, well I’ll pay the bill and then we can leave,” Yasmine insisted.
“NOT A CHANCE YASMINE! PUT YOUR PURSE AWAY AT THIS INSTANCE!” Bryan shouted nearly giving Yasmine and himself a heart attack. Fortunately, no one else in the chalet heard him, because they were too busy laughing at whomever it was making a fool of themselves by singing karaoke.
“Okay Bryan. No need to be rude,” Yasmine shot back at Bryan.
“I’m sorry. But I’ll pay for this.”
“No you won’t mate. I’ll do it,” Mark insisted pushing Bryan’s hand aside.
“No, no. I’ll pay,” Shane joined in.
“Boy, when one of you doesn’t want to pay, none of you want to do it. But once someone insists on paying all of you want to pay. Men! Some things I will never understand!” Isabelle joked as she reminded the guys of what happened that afternoon over lunch.
“That’s why I said I’d do it,” Yasmine mumbled as she took out the money from her purse. Bryan saw this and immediately brushed her hand away. He quickly took out his money, called the waiter for the bill, and paid before anyone else had the chance to do so. With everyone ready to leave, they all got up and headed back to the lounge for a while.

~~ Chapter 16 ~~

“Go! Go! Go! SCORE! Yes!” all of the girls screamed as they jumped up from their seats on the couch in the lounge. They were watching hockey on TV and their team just scored a goal. The girls were all standing up and giving each other ‘high-fives’ and the guys were just shocked by their behaviour that they just sat there staring at them in disbelief.
“All right! That was a sweet goal!” Angelina exclaimed as she calmed down and sat back down.
“Never in my life have I seen girls go this crazy about sports! Not even Gina!” Nicky said as he shook his head in shock.
“Yeah, I agree with Nicks! You girls went mad!” Kian defended Nicky.
“But didn’t you see that goal?” Angelina questioned in an ‘are you blind or something’ tone.
“Of course I did. I just didn’t expect all of you to jump outta your seats and go wild,” Kian mumbled timidly.
“Yeah, well, we did! You guys sure look- Oh my God! Fight! Fight! Fight! More violence!” Monique didn’t finish her sentence. She was diverted to the fight that had broken out on the ice. “Shane, remember over dinner you asked where we Canadian ‘birds’ learned to smack? Well, there’s your answer!” she said to Shane as she pointed to the fight.
“I wouldn’t doubt that one bit!” Shane said as he laughed at the scene on the television.
“The youth of today! What is this world coming to?” Bryan said as he threw his hands over his face and pretended to be disappointed by shaking his head in disgust. “What kind of a sport is this anyway? I mean, any eejit could stop a little black rubbery thing from getting inside of a net. Footie on the other hand, now that’s a real sport!”
“Oh really Bryan? Well first of all, that little black rubbery thing is called a puck. For heaven’s sake, get it right! And secondly, isn’t hockey like ‘footie’ in a way? I mean any fool could stop a huge ball from getting inside of a net,” Yasmine questioned Bryan making him feel stupid.
“Hey! It’s a very hard job of stopping that huge ball from getting in the net. I’ll have you know that I was a goal keeper at Leeds!” Nicky stood up for himself.
“Well, I rest my case,” Yasmine teased Nicky. “Like I said, any ‘fool’ could stop a huge ball!” This made Nicky blush so much, he just looked to the ground.
“So Nicky, how did you get from being a goalie to a pop star? I take it you’re a better singer than you are a goalie?” Cassandra questioned Nicky making him blush even more. He was literally burning. His pale face was covered with red and it showed without a doubt.
“Well, firstly Cassey, it’s goal keeper. And secondly, I guess you could say that.”
“Ah, goalie, goalkeeper, same difference,” Cassandra said as she brushed his comment off to the side.
“So Belle, what’s your favourite footie- oh wait…it’s soccer here isn’t it? Well, what’s your favourite ‘soccer’ team?” Kian questioned Isabelle trying to get her involved in the conversation.
“NO! Wait Belle! Don’t answer yet! Let’s see if you and Marky, here, have something else you can add to your ‘Things in common’ list. When I count to three, both of you yell out your favourite team, okay?” Bryan suggested the idea.
“Well, this should be interesting!” Mark said with a smirk.
“Yeah, it should!” Bryan agreed.
“I meant, it should be interesting to see you count to three, Bry,” Mark laughed making everyone else laugh.
“Hey! Watch it Feehily! Another comment and I’ll have to snog Belle just to teach you a lesson!” Bryan replied quick-wittedly.
“I’d be sorry for the poor girl if you ever snogged her!” Mark shot back.
“I’m warning you Feehily!”
“Okay! Can we continue with Bryan’s idea?” Isabelle cut in. She was so confused with their slang she just looked at their faces. How was she supposed to know what ‘snog’ meant?
“Yes! Let’s! As I was saying, I will count to three and the both of you blurt out your teams, ok?”
“So wait Bryan, lemme see if I got this right. You count to three and then I… What do I do again?” Mark teased Bryan even more. Bryan just shot Mark an evil look and continued.
“Okay… 1…2… 2 and a half…2 and three quarters…3…”
“LIVERPOOL!” they both screamed at the top of their lungs. It was such a hilarious sight. Everyone in the lounge was staring at them but they didn’t care. They just bursted out laughing and so did the rest of the group.
“Whoa! You guys sure you’ve never met before- not even in a previous life? I mean, you guys are really starting to freak me out!” Bryan commented in disbelief. He wasn’t the only one that was shocked. Mark and Isabelle were just as surprised.
“Oh just great, Belle. First you’re a Gemini just like him, but do you have to have the same favourite footie team as him too? I just told you I played for Leeds and you choose Liverpool anyway,” Nicky pretended to be really hurt so he crossed his arms and sat next to Isabelle with a pout. He looked like an adorable child when he was mad. It was so cute!
“Aww! I’m sorry Nicky! It’s just that number 10 on Liverpool, you know Michael Owen, he’s just so cute. I bet his a good soccer player too, but I don’t pay too much attention to that,” Isabelle giggled as she gave Nicky a little hug.
“Oh I feel much better,” Nicky said with sarcasm. “So now you’re saying that I’m not cute! Thanks a lot Belle. I thought we had something special? I guess I was wrong,” Nicky continued to pretend. He was just having a laugh with Isabelle and she knew it too.
“No, I didn’t mean it like that Nicky. You’re cute too!” she said as she gave him a little kiss on the cheek.
“Hey! I’m sitting right here y’know,” Mark remarked from across the couch. He, Shane, Kian and Bryan were sitting on the couch on the other side of the coffee table from Isabelle, Nicky, and the other girls.
“I can’t seem to make anybody happy today. Anything I say gets totally blown outta proportion!” she remarked as she threw her hands in the air and shook her head back and forth in disappointment.
“Welcome to our world!” all of the ‘Lifers said at the exact same time. They all looked at one another and threw their heads back and started to laugh. It was like they rehearsed it or something. It was just too funny; guess you had to be there to see that. The laughter continued on for another 15 minutes or so when Monique spoke up,
“Well guys. I think I’ll be heading to bed now. I gotta wake up early tomorrow and prepare for the party. Goodnight everybody,” she said as she got up from her seat on the couch.
“Wait up Monique. I’m gonna head to my room too,” Yasmine said as she quickly got up too.
“Now that you mention it, I’m gonna be off too. It’s time for my beauty sleep,” Bryan commented in a feminine voice as he left the couch as well.
“I hate to break it to you Bry, but a year’s worth of beauty sleep wouldn’t do you any good!” Kian teased his ‘mate.’ “Bryan, you’re gonna be a minger for life!”
“Ha ha Egan! I may be ugly, but at least I don’t have that problem our friend Mark does.”
“What the hell are ye talking about, Bryan?” Kian asked very confused. Mark was just as curious to hear what his friend had to say about him.
“Well, let’s just say, you don’t wanna walk into a room after Mark’s had beans!” Bryan grinned and laughed. This made Mark really embarrassed. He never thought that his friend would say such a thing in front of a girl that he really fancied. Mark was so embarrassed he couldn’t even look at Isabelle’s face; he just looked down and played with his rings.
“Bryan, isn’t it past your bed time? You gotta wake up early tomorrow if you wanna hit the slopes. And even if you don’t I’ll come and personally wake you up bright and early just for the hell of it! So I suggest that you head for your room now!” Isabelle shot back at Bryan after noticing the affect that he had on Mark. She wanted Mark to know that she didn’t think any less of him just because of that comment.
“Yes Ma’am,” Bryan said with surprise as he saluted Isabelle and walked off with Monique and Yasmine.
“Well I’m tired too. I think I’m gonna have a good night’s sleep tonight only so I can Par-tay tomorrow evening! Goodnight everyone!” Angelina announced excitedly.
“That sounds like a good idea Angie. I guess I’ll head for our room too,” Cassandra agreed with Angelina.
“I’ll walk you two lovely ladies to your room. Goodnight lads, goodnight Belle,” Shane volunteered and left with the girls.
“Well I guess it’s just the four of us then,” Nicky said as he looked at everyone.
“Actually, just the three of you. I’m leaving too,” Isabelle declared as she got up from the couch where she was sitting next to Nicky. She patted Nicky’s shoulder and then walked over to Kian as gave him a hug.
“Goodnight Marky. I thought I’d call you that since everyone else does,” she whispered as she gave him a light goodnight kiss on the cheek. “Goodnight Nicky, my cute goal keeper,” she said lastly as she winked at Nicky and walked away.
“She must be the most beautiful person I’ve ever met, physically and internally. I wish I met her before you Marky,” Kian confessed as he said ‘Marky’ mocking Isabelle’s sweet voice. The two of them just stood there watching Isabelle disappear into the distance.
“Yeah I know, she’s really something. Where was she for the last 20 years of my life?” Mark questioned without moving a single muscle.
“Gee thanks mates, now I know what to tell Gina the next time I see her…whenever that’ll be,” Nicky said disappointedly as he watched and listened to his friends talk.
“Soz Nicky. It’s just that she makes me feel complete. You don’t think it’s a bit too early to say that, do you?” Mark questioned as he turned around to face Nicky.
“Um…No comments,” Nicky replied but Mark wasn’t too interested in what Nicky was going to say for he turned around once again to make sure Isabelle was out of his view.
“Well I’m knackered! My arse is sore from falling,” Kian announced as he rubbed his bum. “I’m gonna hit the sack.”
“Kian, I have had more falls than you today yet my bum is fine. I’m telling you, you gotta listen to Belle,” Mark insisted as he thought about Isabelle’s advice.
“Okay mate. I’ll remember that for next time. Goodnight lads,” and Kian just like Isabelle walked off into the distance.
“What a party pooper! Well I guess it’s just you and me Markus.”
“Nah Nicky. We should go to bed too.”
“Oi mate! I can’t believe you just suggested that! I’m not like that. I never knew you were!” Nicky teased.
“No Nicky! I didn’t mean it like ‘that.’ You sleep in your bed, and I sleep in mine. You’re sick-minded Nicky. No wonder Georgina calls you an animal,” Mark defended himself as he laughed at what he said. Nicky couldn’t help but laugh either. The two of them finally got up and started to head in the direction of their room. However, they were still laughing like mad. They were your typical Irish men- better yet, you typical drunken Irish men (drunk on laughter thank you very much!) who walked off for a good night’s sleep.

~~ Chapter 17 ~~

Monique had lived up to her plan when she said she had to wake up early in the morning. She got up at 8:00 a.m. and gave herself an hour to get ready. She tried to make the least bit of ruckus because she saw that Isabelle was still sound asleep. Just as she stepped out of the washroom after doing her business, she heard a light knock on the door. She was just on her way out and wondered who it could be that early. She casually walked up to the door and opened it.
Oh, hi Nicky. Hey Mark,” she replied trying not to wake Isabelle up as she realized who was on the other side of the door. She opened the door completely and gestured the guys to come in, but she placed a finger on her lips to advise them to keep it quiet.
“Good morning Monique. Happy Birthday!” Nicky whispered as he gave Monique a warm hug and a kiss on the cheek.
“Yes, Happy Birthday! And may your day be filled with love, peace, and happiness,” Mark said as he gave her a hug as well.
“Mark, don’t take this personal, but you sound like a Hallmark card!” Monique giggled but realized she was being a bit too loud.
“Well, I never! Here I am, wishing you a happy birthday and you completely insult me! Well I guess we know your birthday beats are gonna hurt!” he said pretending to be offended. The three of them started to laugh amongst themselves but then calmed down avoiding waking Isabelle.
“Well, I was just going to go for breakfast right about now. What are you guys doing up anyway?” Monique gave the guys questioning looks.
“Well, I couldn’t’ sleep and I figured you’d be up, so I thought I’d take you to the chalet for a Birthday Breakfast,” Nicky said as he flashed Monique that gorgeous smile of his.
“Aww, that’s so sweet Nicky. I’d love to join you for brekkie. I also have to go check if everything’s all right for the party tonight,” Monique exclaimed. She then looked at Mark and was waiting for his answer.
“I couldn’t sleep either,” Mark said in a dazed tone while he turned his head to look at Isabelle.
“Lemme tell you. This boy wouldn’t shut up all night. He kept talking, ‘Isabelle this and Isabelle that!’ I was so tempted to suffocate him with his pillow!” Nicky whispered to Monique as they watched Mark watching Isabelle. Monique’s heart melted but she quickly changed the topic.
“Well how ‘bout we leave for breakfast now?” she proposed. She thought that Mark would refuse and would want to be alone with Isabelle for a while.
“Yeah, that sounds good to me,” Nicky replied while he and Monique headed to the door. “Aren’t you coming sham?”
“Nah, I think I’ll stay here for a bit. I’ll catch up with you in a minute.” Monique was completely right about Mark and felt proud of the fact that she was right.
“You sure mate?” Nicky was a little confused. What could his friend possibly be up to? But Mark didn’t have time to answer because Monique nudged Nicky with her elbow and motioned him to leave. Just before she closed the door behind them she gave Mark a wink and whispered, “Have fun.” This made Mark laugh to himself. Once the door was closed and Nicky and Monique left Mark slowly approached Isabelle’s bed and sat down gently at the edge of it. He just sat there and adored her like he did when she wasn't sleeping. He then thought to himself ‘even when she’s asleep she’s an angel.’ He started to caress her back and to stroke her hair. He also ran the back of his fingers against her soft cheeks and smiled at the thought of who was in front of him. While Isabelle was sleeping, a small smile spread across her face. She was probably having a sweet dream. Even when she was dreaming, she was smiling! Mark just watched her sleep peacefully with love-filled eyes. Then, while gazing at her, he began to sing a song very faintly, (literally whispering) which he felt expressed his emotions during this incident. (It was so weird how one song could be used in two different ways…but we won’t get into the actual meaning of this song.)

I would die for you
Lay down my life for you
The only thing that means
Everything to me
‘Cause when you’re in my arms
You make me prouder than
Than anything I ever
Could achieve
And you make everything
That used
To seem so big
Seem to be so small
Since you arrived

On angel’s wings, an
Angelical formation
Angel’s wings, like letters in the
Sky
Now I know no matter what
The question
Love is the answer
It’s written on angel’s wings
(Ooh)

And I often wonder why,
Someone as fraud as I
Deserves to be as happy
As you make me
(Oh yeah)
So as the years roll by
I’ll be there by your side
I’ll follow you wherever your
Heart takes me
Cause you make everything
That used
To be so big
Seem to be so small since
You arrived

On angel’s wings, an
Angelical formation
Angel’s wings, like letters in the
Sky
Now I know no matter what
The question
Love is the answer
It’s written on angel’s wings
(Oh)

Now anyone who’s felt the touch
Of heaven in their lives
(Felt the touch of heaven)
Will know the way I’m
Feeling looking
In my baby’s eyes
That’s why I can’t bear to be,
Too far away
I know that God must love me
Cause he sent you to me on
Angel’s wings

An angelical formation
Angel’s wings, like letters in the
Sky
Now I know no matter what
The question
That love is the answer
It’s written on angel’s wings
Love is the answer
It’s written on angel’s wings

Just as Mark got to the last chorus Isabelle awoke and fell in love with what he was singing. She slowly opened her eyes and gave Mark a smile.
“That was so beautiful,” she whispered graciously with her eyes half open and half closed.
“A beautiful song only comes from beautiful inspiration,” Mark replied, as he took Isabelle’s hand and kissed it. This caused Isabelle to blush first thing in the morning.
“Thank you,” she managed to say softly after blushing. She was looking up at Mark who was sitting very close to her and still stroking her hair with his other hand. She felt as though she could look into his dazzling blue eyes and get lost for eternity.
“Did you sleep well sleeping beauty? You had a smile across your face a while ago. Having a sweet dream?” Isabelle then snapped to reality and sat up in her bed.
“I’ll say. Like a log. But then again, I can do that anywhere. And, I wasn’t having a dream, well not that I can remember anyway. I think I was smiling just sensing the fact that you were near,” she replied as she patted Mark’s hand and smiled even more. This time it was Isabelle’s turn to make Mark blush. He was beaming from ear to ear. He was like a little child who didn’t have a worry for the world. After the last comment from Isabelle, there was that moment of silence. That awkward moment of silence. Isabelle finally said something to get the conversation going again.
“Um, where’s Monique?” she asked Mark as she looked around her room only to find the two of them there.
“Oh, she and Nicky went to the chalet for breakfast. We can go too if you want,” Mark suggested as he explained to Isabelle. However, his eyes weren’t too enthusiastic about the idea. He looked as though something was bothering him but Isabelle didn’t feel brave enough to bring it up. She just looked at Mark and refused.
“Nah, but I think I’ll go get dressed soon. So what are we gonna do today?” she questioned cheerfully trying to make Mark just as cheerful.
“I dunno. We can do whatever your puney little heart desires,” he replied teasing Isabelle.
“Hey! My heart’s not puney. It’s HUGE! I’ve got room for your farting ‘arse’ in there don’t I?” Isabelle replied with laughter. She then regretted what she said because she thought Mark would feel hurt after what Bryan said about him the previous night. To her surprise, Mark was laughing at the comment and looked as though he was ready to jump Isabelle and tickle her.
“Well I guess you have a point. I do have a farting arse… but shhh, don’t tell anyone!” Mark joked with Isabelle as he cupped Isabelle’s cheek with one hand. “So you decide what we’re gonna do today? We can join Nicky and Monique for breakfast. They didn’t leave too long ago. If you get dressed quickly, we can maybe make it in time before they leave,” Mark was now actually thinking of joining the two. He thought it would be best for Isabelle and him to have a nice breakfast so that they could bear the day ahead of them. Isabelle quickly agreed to the idea and went to get dressed. She left Mark waiting in her room while she ran to the bathroom to do her business.
“Please let us have a wonderful day. I just want to see her smiling one last time just like she was yesterday,” Mark said to himself as he looked at the closed bathroom door. He obviously had something bothering him, but he didn’t want to mention a thing to Isabelle. After she was ready, the two of them headed for the chalet, hand in hand.

~~ Chapter 18 ~~

“Come on Kian, show me what you’ve got!” Bryan’s shouts for action were the only noises heard that brisk afternoon. The whole group had decided to go outside and have a snowball fight, and enjoy the freshly fallen snow while they could, before the party that evening. Monique had confirmed the plans with the staff of the resort and had decided to join the snowball fight as well.
“Watch out!” Cassandra exclaimed as a snowball passed Kian close by. The group teamed up for a massive snowball fight and was filling the air with laughter. The first team consisted of Kian, Angelina, Nicky, Isabelle, and Cassandra, while the other had Shane, Monique, Mark, Bryan, and Yasmine. The only way the players could avoid the snowballs was either by ducking or hiding behind the beautifully snow-covered evergreen trees that scattered the area.
“Thanks Cassey!” Kian shouted as he just missed the snowball that was thrown by Bryan. Soon the snowballs were being thrown everywhere aimlessly and hitting anything or anyone.
“Bryan! I’m on your team remember?!”
“Sozness Shane!”
“Hey Mark, catch!” Isabelle shouted as she threw a snowball towards him.
“Ha! Ha! Missed me!” he teased her just as he moved to the side, avoiding the snowball.
“No I haven’t!” Isabelle shot back as she threw another snowball, and this time it hit Mark right on the bum. He looked at Isabelle with a surprised look and rubbed his bum. Isabelle took a bow and Cassandra gave her a ‘job well done’ pat on the back.
“SNOWJOB!” Angelina yelled as she and the others ran towards Nicky, burying him in the snow. Shane was really determined to cover Nicky, so he started to kick snow on him and he fell on top of him, not letting him get up.”
“Oi Shane! You weigh a ton! Get off you fat horse’s arse!” Nicky whined as he pushed Shane off of him and brushed the snow that was on his jacket onto Shane.
“Here Kian! Have some snow!” Yasmine yelled on top of the laughter as she threw a snowball at him. Kian quickly grabbed Isabelle who was standing near him by her arm; put her in front of him and hid behind her as the snow hit her hard right in the stomach.
“Ow! Yasmine!…KIAN!” Isabelle shouted furiously even though she wasn’t mad. She just got even. She took a huge snowball and threw it right at Yasmine, but Yasmine ducked and it hit Mark…again! Isabelle couldn’t help but laugh out loud at the fact that she hit Mark again. She stood there with her hands on her stomach and laughed. She had her hands on her stomach because it was hurting more from laughter than it was from the snowball that hit her there.
“Oh that does it! It’s your turn Belle! Let’s give you a taste of your own medicine!” Mark shouted as he charged towards Isabelle causing the both of them to fall on top of the snowy ground. Mark landed on top of Isabelle, and the rest of the team came and fell on top of Mark.
“Belle sandwich!” they all yelled at the same time as Isabelle got pushed deep into the ground.
“Holly mother of pearl! I can’t breathe dammit!” Isabelle shrieked out of breath from under her nine friends. “You guys better get off or Mark won’t be able to have kids!” They laughed at that comment and finally got off of her but Mark remained and didn’t budge. He looked deep into Isabelle’s eyes with his concerned eyes and cherished the moment. Isabelle felt that he had something on his mind and made a mental note of it to ask him later.
“Hey you two! Get a room!” Bryan yelled as he brushed the snow off of the arm of his jacket.
“Um, Mark…Can you please…get off me? I still can’t breathe…and I’m kinda cold,” Isabelle spoke