“Guh…” the man holding his stomach moaned, “I hate planes…”
“Me too, AJ…” the girl who held her stomach replied.
“Really?” the girl looking out the window questioned, “I love ‘em.”
“Me too,” the other man chimed in.
“It’s so high…” the first girl whined.
“And all the turbulence,” AJ nodded.
“It’s beautiful,” the second man comment, “Soaring above the clouds is like a dream.”
“Then there’s always the chance the plane will crash…” the first girl sniffed.
“Why am I related to you?” the second girl questioned.
The first girl hugged her, “That’s because we’re twins, Ashie…”
“I know,” she grimaced.
“Putting that aside, Ashley,” AJ put his hands in his lap, “Why are you related to me? We’re nothing alike.”
“If you two are so alike,” Ashley smirked, “Why don’t you go be brother and sister?”
“Because I… love… you…” the first girl hugged Ashley.
“Get off me, Deanna!” Ashley pushed her away.
AJ began to laugh cheerily.
“Hey…” the second guy started.
The three of them turned to him. “What Howie?” AJ questioned.
“Is this your first time to Mexico, Ashley, Deanna?”
Deanna nodded and clenched her fists, “Yeah! I’m really excited.”
So… Just why were they in Mexico? Begin flashback…
AJ sat in a navy armchair in his living room. He leaned back against it holding a phone in his hands. “You want me to come to a resort town with you?”
“Yeah,” the voice on the other end of the line smiled.
“Won’t you be there with her though?”
“Well… umm… sure, but… I invited everyone else to come,” the voice stammered, “It wouldn’t be fun without you.”
AJ rubbed his chin thoughtfully, “Well, I’ll admit it’s not a party without me…”
“Of course,” the voice chuckled.
“But…”
The voice took a blank tone, “But. What do you mean ‘but’?”
“My cousins are visiting me right now, I can’t just leave them.”
“Your point? Bring them with you.” They paused, “Unless they’re really small…”
“They’re 24.”
“See, bring them with you.”
“Are you paying?”
“Well, no…”
“Do you think I’m made of money?”
“Well, no…”
“Then I’m going to stay here.”
“No! Tell you what…” they paused, “I’ll pay for half… How many are there?”
“Two.”
“Just two? That’s not a lot at all!”
“Then you’re paying for both of them?” AJ smirked.
The voice laughed, “No way.”
End of flashback…
Deanna smiled, “It was really nice of your friend to invite us though, AJ. What are they like?”
Howie chuckled, “He’s a real…” Howie put his hand to his chin, “Is ‘pain in the butt’ what I’m looking for, AJ?”
AJ nodded, “Unfortunately.”
“A boy!?!” Deanna squealed.
Ashley put her hand to her head, “If he’s male and breathing, she’s very happy…”
AJ blinked, “They’re all boys…”
Deanna clapped her hands, “They’re all boys!!!”
“What are you, two?” Ashley snorted.
Deanna poked Ashley’s forehead, “I like hanging out with men.”
“Don’t you mean hanging out on men?” Ashley poked her back.
Deanna glared at her, “Let’s not discuss that here, huh?”
“Actually, one of them is bringing his wife and the other is bringing his girlfriend.” Howie interjected.
“Yahoo! The rest are single!” Deanna cheered.
“How many people are coming AJ?” Ashley questioned.
“Well there’s me, the four other guys, the wife, the girlfriend, and you two.”
“Aww….” Deanna whined, “Only two single guys…”
“You don’t need more than one,” Ashley rolled her eyes and laughed a bit.
“Look, we’re here!” Howie pointed out the window.
A giant hotel loomed above them. It seemed to kiss the brightly sparkling sky and lay just off the ocean. A grand circular driveway led to the hotel. The whole front entrance was littered in gold, velvet, and silk.
“Wow…” Deanna and Ashley gasped as they stepped outside the taxi.
“Big, isn’t it?” Howie chuckled.
“AJ!!!! HOWIE!!!!” a male voice called.
The four of them turned around to face a young man running toward them. His blonde hair bobbed as he ran. He was pretty tall and wore a sweatshirt, jeans, and tennis shoes.
“Hottie at two o’clock,” Deanna grinned.
“I’m sure,” Ashley rolled her eyes.
“You don’t like blondes?” Deanna blinked her eyes.
“Of course not.”
“Why are we related?!”
The boy had finally reached them. His blue eyes sparkled as he smiled, “Hey.”
“Nick,” AJ smiled, “Ummm… you do not it’s summer in Mexico, right?”
Nick blinked, “What do you mean?”
AJ pointed at Nick, “You’re wearing a sweatshirt.”
Nick blinked, “I don’t get it…”
“You are dressed a little warmly.” A woman appeared behind Nick and grabbed his shoulders. She had long blonde hair and blue eyes and wore a tightly fitting tiny red dress.
Deanna’s happy smile fell, “Darnit,” she muttered under her breath, “He’s the one with the girlfriend.” She held her hands up to her face, “And no wonder… She’s so gorgeous…”
“What are you blabbering about?” Ashley questioned.
“She’s so beautiful…”
The woman smiled, “Yes, I know.”
Nick grinned, “This is my girlfriend, Paris.”
Deanna blinked, “Isn’t that a city with a big tower?”
Ashley put her hand to her head, “The Eiffel tower, stupid.” She pointed to Paris, “But that’s a person.”
Nick chuckled a little, “And these are your cousins, AJ?”
AJ put a hand on each one’s head in turn, “Ashley. And Deanna.”
“Hello,” they both smiled cheerily.
Nick put his hand behind his head, “Kevin and Brian and Leighanne should be here soon…”
Howie smiled, “I can’t wait to see them, it’s been a while.”
AJ looked up at the hotel, “So Nick, what made you decide to come here? You’re not exactly a resort kind of person…”
Nick blinked, “I didn’t tell you?”
“No.”
Nick grinned, “You’ll love this…” Nick’s eyes narrowed, “There’s been talk on the internet…”
“It’s a good place to get your jollies on?” AJ laughed.
“No,” Nick glared at him, “And don’t interrupt, you’ll wreck my story!”
AJ laughed, “Please continue then.”
Nick’s eyes narrowed again, “There’s been talk on the internet… There’s a beautiful place with a dark secret…” Nick put his finger to his lips and grinned, “But no one knows what it is…”
Howie groaned, “Nick… What are you chasing this time?”
Nick turned and looked up at the hotel, “Murders, my friends, murders.”
Deanna shivered, “M-murders?”
AJ put his hand to his head, “How can you say it that way…?”
“This is a ghost hunt, gentlemen… And ladies…” Nick continued.
“G-ghosts?” Deanna shivered again.
“On the internet… They say, ‘The Mayan Princess is the scene of unexplainable mysteries’…” Nick turned back to them, “They say people are being killed mysteriously...”
Deanna put her hands to her face and shivered violently.
“Shining see-through shapes… Bleeding walls… hundreds dead… Murderous laughter… The air is filled with death and blood…” Nick began to laugh maniacally, then broke into a big grin, “So I came to check it out.”
AJ and Howie turned to each other, “I don’t know whether to laugh or sob uncontrollably…”
Ashley rolled her eyes. “What are you an idiot? Who would believe stupid rumors like that anyway?”
Paris laughed a little, “She’s right. They’re just silly stories, Nick.”
Nick crossed his arms and scowled.
AJ grinned, “All I care about is whether they have good food, not killer ghosts.”
“Oh my god!” Nick exclaimed, “Behind you!”
Deanna shrieked and latched on to Nick. Nick stared at her blankly. “Umm….”
“It’s a murdering ghost!” Deanna cried.
Ashley grew annoyed, “I see… I found the person who believes those stupid rumors…”
Nick smiled, “You’re scared of ghosts too, huh?”
Deanna sniffled, “You too?”
Ashley put her hand to her head, “If you’re scared of ghosts, why are we here?”
Nick blinked, “I like getting scared… As long as it’s not gremlins biting my toes, I’m just fine.”
“You’re scared of puppets…” Ashley stared at him blankly.
Deanna giggled a little, “I like that movie. They’re so cute before they get fed.” She unlatched herself from Nick.
Nick smiled, “It is a good movie, huh?”
Deanna frowned a little. Too bad… If you didn’t have a girlfriend… We’d really get along…
“Anyway,” Nick shrugged, “If it’s just a story like you guys were saying, then we don’t have anything to worry about.” Nick nodded. “Besides, all I was trying to tell you was that Kevin, Brian, and Leighanne are here.”
