Rating: PG
Disclaimer: I don't own Eric or Greta.
Feedback: kaybennett87@yahoo.com
Short Summary: Greta travels to the Bahamas to get away form her problems, but guess who she chances to meet?
Additional Notes: All the wonderful feedback I got from the first series inspired me to write another fanfic as quickly as possible. So, here it is. Enjoy :)

"What would you like to drink?" asked the nicely uniformed stewardess.
"Water please," replied Greta as she pulled her seat upright.
She gratefully accepted the cup and placed it on her tray. She was on a plane heading towards the Bahamas. Why? Everything. Everything in her life seemed to be heading downward. Eric, the love of her life, was happily with Nicole. She hadn’t found out anything about her mother, except that she really was dead. Everyone she knew was happy and leading normal lives, everyone except herself.
She could see the water below, sparkling and shimmering with radiance. She took in a deep breath, she couldn’t wait to get there. It was going to be sunny, tropical, and full of adventure. She could do her own thing without anyone in the way to bother her. She’d be there for two weeks, she’d only told the people she thought should know. And Eric was not one of them, if he cared about her at all, he’d figure it out by himself.
Eric. That was an interesting subject. They had gone to Paris, explored, and come back. Nothing romantic about it, maybe some flirting, but not the real thing. Nicole was still in his life and they were growing closer everyday. It had been so heart breaking watching them everyday that she was on the verge of an emotional breakdown. She had never felt this way about anyone in her life before, no one. And he didn’t even feel the same way.
She took a sip of her ice cold water and it slid refreshingly down her throat. The man beside her was asleep, snoring loudly. That always happens doesn’t it? She hadn’t really thought about going that much, just a spur of the moment type deal. Two days ago she had decided to go, gotten a ticket, and jumped on a plane. Her mind was getting ahead of her, she knew that, but it was a good idea. Getting away from everything and soaking up some rays. Maybe even finding a cute guy while she was at it.
A movie was playing on the screens, but she didn’t bother to buy headphones, her mind was somewhere else. Her life. What had she become? She couldn’t figure out what she was going to do with her life, nothing good had come her way. Why did her life have to be so frustrating? She was always coming to dead ends and having to turn around and start over. It was like a bad dream, she could feel herself running, but she wasn’t going anywhere. She wasn’t as lucky as Nicole was, that’s what she decided in the end.
She fell asleep, woke up, fell asleep again, then woke up again. She shook the emotions she was feeling and closed her eyes again. Eric flashed in her mind. Her eyelids shot open, she breathed a sigh of relief and shut them again. Her mother flashed in her mind. They flew open once more. She shook her head and grunted, pulling her seat back up.
" Hello, this is your captain speaking. We will be reaching the Bahamas Islands Airport within twenty minutes. Please fasten your seatbelts and return tray to their upright position. Thank you," he said.

Greta stepped off the airplane, the wind blowing in her face, her hair flowing wildly. She had a bag in both hands and was heading towards the baggage claim. The worst part of a flight. Having to struggle through the enormous crowd that piled around it. She had to admit though, the weather was gorgeous. The sun was high in the sky and not a cloud was in sight. The wind was pleasantly blowing and she could smell the ocean already.
She had all her luggage now and had gotten a rental car. A red mustang. Hey, she might as well live this vacation trip to it’s fullest while no one was around. Her hotel wasn’t far from the airport, maybe ten or fifteen miles. Bahama Breeze was the name, it sounded so exotic.

Everyone she saw was wearing some kind of tank top with short shorts. She felt so out of place in her pants and tee-shirt. She had been so cold when she left Salem she hadn’t thought about what it would feel like down here.
Swimming, that was the first thing she was going to do when she got there. Just run out in the ocean and swim. The crystal clear water looked so inviting from the car she accelerated a little. The sand was white and beautiful she could hardly wait to step onto it. She’d have to do this more often.
She arrived at the hotel a few minutes later and a bell hop took her luggage to her room. 1313. What a lucky number. But, that’s the way her whole life was, unlucky, unromantic, unforgiving. She forgot about it and quickly unpacked. She looked into the mirror and saw Eric. "My dear Greta," she replied for him.
"What brings you down here?" she asked.
"I’ve fallen deeply in love with you, let’s run away and get married," she said, laughing out loud. She fell onto the bed.
"Listen to yourself Greta. You’re obsessing over a man you could never have. Why do you hurt yourself like that?" she asked, the tears forming in her eyes rapidly. She quickly wiped them away and forgot about Eric. Soon, she’d have to forget about him forever, unfortunately.
She pulled her bikini on. It was red. Just plain red. Nothing fancy to it. She liked it that way, ordinary, but not too dull. She grabbed a towel and was out to the beach.

A few hours later she was laying on her towel, trying to get a tan she could never get in Salem. It felt good, inviting almost. She couldn’t force herself to get up. Pretty soon she would be burned. On the first day too.
The waves were huge and they loomed menacingly over the surfers who dared to ride them. Jet ski’s buzzed by, zooming by rapidly. Two little kids nearby were making a sand castle. Castles. Her mind flashed back to Paris. The Duke and Duchesses ball. She danced with Eric, they even kissed. A friendly kiss, nothing more. If it was anything more he’d be here with her now. They had spent so many nights alone in her mother’s castle, they had even slept by each other. Nothing happened though. Nothing would ever happen. Picnic. The picnic they had. They wrestled, rolled around, though she was hugging more then wrestling. She had to shyly admit that.
The one thing that bothered Greta the most about Eric was that he was not a virgin. He had committed his body and heart to Nicole and that disturbed her greatly. Commitment was a huge deal and Eric had done that to Nicole. They were so in love it hurt. Why?
"God," whispered Greta, "give me love, give me true love."
She wanted the kind of love where the man of her dreams would love her truly and madly and nothing would get in the way. A love with an automatic click and forever bliss. A man she could spend the rest of her life with and not worry about anything as long as he was there. Someone who would brush her teeth for her, make her breakfast in bed, and kiss her every night before she went to bed. She wanted to go to bed beside someone and find them right next to her the next morning. Heart to heart and soul to soul.
She was beginning to wonder if she would ever have that. No one had come her way in so long, or ever. She didn’t know how much longer she could keep going on. Everyone she knew was happy. Eric and Nicole. Bo and Hope. John and Marlena. Austin and Carrie. Was it her destiny to be alone? To grow old without someone she could be with? She shivered at the thought and brushed it away. She didn’t want to die unloved. That was her worst fear.
Beginnings. God knew she had had so many of those. Coming to the end of another epic interlude in her life and having to just start all over again with nothing to grab on to. Yet, there was no real ending, there was never any real true ending to anyone’s life. As long as there was a beginning and middle, that’s all you needed. You didn’t need to know how it ended, as long as someone else did. Her life was just a book, waiting to be written, that was neglected for years. It was sitting on the dusty shelf of an old author’s library, waiting to be finished. Waiting to even begin. Time was all she needed and she knew that. But how much longer would it be before that author lifted his pen and began writing?
She was lost, confused, and frustrated. The best part of her life was over and now it was time to begin the hard part. She was desperately seeking herself, trying to find the ‘me’ inside. She tried to reach into her heart and find who she was. She tried to develop herself, but that was wasteful. She couldn’t develop someone who didn’t exist. Greta Von Amburg. That was her. She wasn’t a heroin in a love story who was devoted to a dashing young warrior. She wasn’t Rose in Titanic. She wasn’t Scarlet O’Hare in Gone With the Wind. No one ever was. Especially her.
Running away never solved anything, she was well aware of that. If anyone asked, it was just a trip. A celebration of life. A get away. A total waste of time. She was already dragging around, hanging on to the past instead of setting her best foot forward. She was already re-living the painful memories of her old life. Why couldn’t she just forget about it? Why couldn’t she just move on? Why did things have to be this way? The answers to all those questions would be answered soon. Sooner then she could have ever imagined.

Greta had gotten back to her room and showered off, putting on fresh clothes. She didn’t know what she had planned for the night. Just stay in the hotel and watch television, she guessed. What else was there to do? She didn’t exactly want to go out and party, here heart was still healing, patching itself for the rocky road ahead. Partying was definitely out of the question. She could go out and have a nice, quiet dinner by herself. That would be great, tomorrow night. Tomorrow night I’ll go out and have dinner, she decided. Tonight, just relax, slip into your favorite pajamas and pig out from the mini bar. The was her plan, it wasn’t much, but it was good enough for her. She could dream sweet thoughts, only thoughts that were in her imagination. Dreams that only she knew about and longed for. Her pathetic dreams that would never come true. Wishing, dreaming, she didn’t believe in those things anymore. She hadn’t wished for so many things in her life and had never been blessed with them. She was a lost cause.
She put on her Mickey Mouse tee-shirt and a pair of boxers. She fell onto the bed and closed her eyes. A vision of Eric flashed into her mind, her eyes flew open in an instant, alarmed by the image. She took a deep breath.
"Maintain," she said quietly to herself.
She closed her eyes again. Eric flashed back in. This time, her desires took over. Suddenly, she appeared in her thoughts with Eric.
"You look lovely tonight," Eric said, taking her hand.
"You look very nice tonight also," she said. Eric smiled, wrapped him arm around her and spun her around. They danced quietly for a few moments. The touch of each other was enough.
"You know, Greta, Nicole’s gone," he said.
Greta was startled awake by the sound of a knock at the door. She stood up quickly and walked to the door and opened it. It was a bellhop. She felt embarrassed, him seeing her in her undergarments.
"Yes?" she asked, leaning up against the door.
"This letter came in for you tonight on overnight delivery," he said, handing her an envelope. She gratefully accepted it.
"Thank you," she said.
He tipped his hat and backed away, walking down the hall. Greta shut the door.
"Who knew I was coming here?" she asked herself as she sat down on the edge of the bed.
I only told Bo and Hope and they took a trip to Paris, she told herself. Hmm, I wonder who it could be. She eagerly ripped open the envelope and pulled the letter out. She unfolded the letter and read it. It read:

Dear Greta,

I heard you had come down here. Bo couldn’t keep his mouth shut, you know him, always trying to please everyone. Why didn’t you tell me? It would have been nice to get away with you. Life is hectic, as always, when is it not? How is it down there in paradise? Met anyone special? I’m sure you have, a pretty girl like you should have already. I’m still not believing you ran off without saying goodbye. Next time, tell me, maybe I’ll come with you next time. Great news! I couldn’t wait until you came back to tell you. Nicole got that modeling gig in Los Angeles, looks like she’s going to be chasing her dream. Bad news, I can’t decide whether or not to go with her. If I go, I leave behind my friends ( you ) and my family. If I don’t go, she might be heartbroken. Advice, please, quickly, now. I’ll let you get back to having your pleasure in paradise with whoever that lucky guy is.

Yours Truly,
Eric Brady

Greta held the letter to her chest. He had written her. He had found out where she had disappeared to, he had cared. He had been worried, tried to find her.
"Eric Brady, you do drive me crazy," she said to herself. That was the good part. The bad part, his news about Nicole. Could he possibly move away with her? She hoped not. She was now upset, at first she was pleased, now she was upset. How could he even tell her something like this?
She was furious now. She hated herself, she hated her life, she hated being lonely all the time. Eric had to tell her, he had to choose Nicole, she hated him for doing that. She ripped the letter up and threw it to the ground.
"How could you do this to me Eric? How could you turn the one true emotion I’ve ever felt for someone into something so forbidden?" she asked in between sobs.
She pushed her hair out of her tear stained face and looked at the torn up letter on the floor. Things were too complicated in her life. She fell onto the bed and rested her head on one of the pillows.
If only Eric could see how much I love him, then maybe things could be different. I love him, I hate him, I’m so screwed up. You never know what to expect from me. Happy, sad, angry, whatever, I’m a pistol waiting to go off.
She curled herself up into a small ball and fell asleep, dreaming dreams of a peaceful life all night long…

The next morning, Greta awoke slowly. The sunlight was streaming in through the half-parted curtains and she squinted at the first morning light. She closed her eyes and stretched to get up. The clock read seven thirty-four. She remembered last nights events and how she had gotten the letter. The letter. It was still on the floor. She walked over to the torn letter that was laying solemnly on the ground. She bent down and picked it up.
"Oh God, what have I done?" she asked herself, hurriedly trying to pick it back up. She rolled her eyes.
"You’ve done the right thing," she said, throwing the pieces of the letter into the wastebasket and brushing her hands off. She smiled to herself.
"Even though I can’t have Eric, doesn’t mean I can’t have anyone else," she said, " and Eric was right, I do need to find a new guy and have some pleasure in paradise."

Her plan had backfired. Totally and completely. The paradise part was there, but the pleasure part wasn’t shining through. Greta had dressed up, gone out, met some jerks, and come back. It just wasn’t worth it anymore, it was her destiny to be lonely. Horoscopes, fortune tellers, everyone told her so. It wasn’t like she didn’t try, she had. With all her heart, but her instincts were just set on Eric.
Eric, why did it have to be so hard getting over him? His smile, lips, voice, and everything about him were mesmerizing, but why couldn’t she forget about those things? Now she was even more depressed, depressed to no end. She had cried, sobbed, and sniffled into her pillow all last night. She didn’t feel like eating breakfast or lunch and soon dinner rolled around and she didn’t feel like eating then. The bed was her refuge, her temporary asylum. Times were hard. And it seemed like they were only hard on her. Like she was the only single person in the world, dying to know what it felt like to loved. Loneliness was always a friend of hers, a very close friend. Me, myself, and I. That was her motto now. Well, me, myself, and Eric. Eric Brady. Greta Brady. Eric and Greta. Greta and Eric. No matter how she put it, it didn’t sound right and she was beginning to wonder if it ever would.
It’s never easy to get through. Everyone went through it one time or another in their lifetime. You meet someone who you know is " the one", but find out that you aren't " their one ". Getting over your first love. The one person in the world that you would devote yourself to fully and give up yourself to be with. Accept to find that they won’t give themselves to you.
She felt as if she was stranded on a deserted island all alone. She was aching to get off this island of loneliness, but she just didn’t know how. Her brain kept telling her to swim, but her heart was urging her to stay where she was until the right man came. It could be hours, days, months, or never until he came. But, her heart belonged to one man, and one man only.
"I guess tonight, the heartache’s on me," she whispered quietly to herself, " I can love you better then Nicole ever could."
She turned to her other side, entangling herself further into the covers. Her face was still a bright red and her eyes were puffy from the crying. She had fallen asleep crying and she had rose with crying eyes. Her hair was a mess, flying every which way.
It was nearly nine ‘o clock by now and she hadn’t eaten all day. She had to admit, she was starting to get hungry and she didn’t know how long she would have to keep this act up. Moping around like there was no tomorrow. The sun had set and the moon was just now rising above the shimmering waters. How she longed to just run out onto the beach and let the waves carry her out to sea. She had told herself life was too short to worry about the small things. But she had also told herself that if tomorrow never comes Eric would never know how she had felt about him. It would take an instance for something to happen. Car accidents, robbery’s, they happened all the time, what if it happened to her?
What if one day she found out that Eric had died? It would be the biggest mistake of her life if she never told him how she felt. You'd move on, get on with life, and forget about him, right?
"What if Eric did die?" she asked herself, " would I move on? Or would I stay cooped up in this hotel bedroom the rest of my life?"
She shook her head and stumbled out of the bed for the first time in twenty hours. She was definitely a wreck and there was no way to hide that. She tripped over to the bathroom and locked herself in. She leaned against the counter and looked into the mirror, pushing her wild hair out of her face.
"Look at yourself. Greta von Amburg is much stronger then this. Pull yourself together," she told herself into the mirror. She quickly undressed and showered off. It felt refreshing to have the spray of water hitting her. She got out, got dressed into some old jeans and a t-shirt, and blow dried her hair.
She had no where to go. She could go out to eat, grab a burger or something, she was starving. Food sounded like just the right thing about now. She was still a little tired, disoriented from lying down all day.
On the elevator ride down there was a young couple in with her. It looked as though they had just had a fight. They were silent, standing next to each other, yet, not daring to say a word. It might have been her presence, but they never said anything. She felt sorry for them, she felt sorry for anyone who had to be alone as she had to be. But you don't have to be, she told herself, you don't have to be lonely. If you would just accept the fact that Eric has found someone and settled down into a happy life and you haven't.
She thought about the letter he sent her. Was he going to move with Nicole? She prayed he wouldn't, that would ruin any slim chance they ever had of ever getting together, if there ever was one.
The moon was full that night, hanging high and away. The stars shone bright also, billions and billions of them watching over the universe majestically. Her mother had told her a story when she was a little girl that the stars respresented everyone who had died. And every night the sky would seem a little more crowded. She always wondered if a star would be put up in that huge velvety sky when she died.
She had decided to walk, the burger place wasn’t far from her hotel, why waste gas money? The water was calm that night, rocking ever so gently in the ocean. The rolling of the waves and the smell of that fresh salt water had lifted her spirits somehow and she felt incredibly better. It was the perfect night. Perfect sky display, perfect water, perfect everything. The temperatures were just right and with the wind blowing it gave an added perfection.
Every now and then a car drove by, but not often. She didn’t blame anyone for not wanting to drive this late, there were practically no street lights, only the glow of the luminous moon above.
Greta looked up at the sky and spotted a nice, bright star which hung directly below the moon. She smiled up at it and whispered softly to herself, "Starlight, star bright, you’re the first star I see tonight. I wish I may, I wish I might, have the wish I wish tonight," she took a deep breath, " I wish that Eric could be here with me now and forever."
She focused her eyes back in front of her and continued walking. Wishes, she thought she had given up on them. Well, this was an exception. She gave a laugh.
"Eric Brady, coming down to the Bahamas, just to sweep you off your feet. Fairy tales and happy endings. Well, there’s nothing magical about your life,not even your royal background," she said bitterly to herself.
She came to the burger place, opening the door and walking inside. There was only one other person in there, an older man sitting in a corner booth. She ordered, took her food, and left. There was no point in staying, besides it was a beautiful night and she might as well enjoy it. She only had about a week left. She longed to stay there, just by herself. A place where she wasn’t known as Princess Gina’s daughter or even Greta von Amburg. She just wanted to be plain ole’ Greta for a change. And she could do that here.
She decided to walk along the beach and eat. It was too perfect not to. She munched contently on her double cheeseburger as the waves rolled onto her now bare feet. She’d come back later to retrieve her sandals. The scent of the water finally it’s way to her nose and she gladly breathed it in. This was one of those moments where you just had to let it all sink in, never wanting to forget it. Since it was late, there was practically no one on the beach. But every few minutes someone would pass by.
The sand was soft and wet, collapsing under her feet as she walked along. The water fought its way up to her toes and tickled them. The water was warm, warmer then the water in Salem or England.
She threw her wrapper away and just sat down on the sand, watching them roll in and out. It looked so inviting, so beautiful she could just run out there any minute. She fell onto her back and looked up at the stars.
"Doesn’t look like my dream came true tonight," she said to herself.
"What dream?" a familiar voice asked from behind. She sat up quickly, all systems alert, and turned around to see who this new person was who had been eavesdropping on her conversation with herself. And it was no other than the person she had wished about, Eric Brady himself.

Greta was immediately shocked, stunned to say the least. She couldn’t move, she couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t think. What was he doing here? Was it him? It looked like him, but could it be? Every muscle in her body tensed and she could feel herself shaking. She took a deep breath to calm herself down, but there was no denying it, she was way beyond the point of shock. It wasn’t like he had given her any warning, or notice he was coming. Plus, he must have followed her in order to know that she came down here. But why? What had motivated him?
"Don’t look so surprised to see me," he said casually, as if everything was alright.
"I have every right to be surprised. You just jump on a plane and fly down here, and why?" she demanded. Although her voice sounded gruff and she sounded upset, she was quite the opposite. She was more then happy to see him, she was practically overwhelmed.
"Are you upset?" he asked.
Greta swallowed hard. She wasn’t upset, why would she be? The only man in the entire world that she loved was with her now.
"No, but why are you here?" she asked.
He wasn’t going to get away that easily. He would have to answer the question sooner or later. Eric sighed and sat down beside her on the cool sand.
"Nicole. She’s really mad at me. I told her that I was really happy for her, but that I don’t think that I should move with her just yet. I told her that maybe we were rushing it," he explained. He was frustrated and Greta could tell.
"So, you broke up?" she asked.
"I’m not sure, I guess," he admitted.
And it was at that moment, everything he had ever wished for in her life was so insignificant. That this was the one thing that had turned out right in her life. That everything and everyone else was frozen, standing still. Everything that had happened in her life had built up to this and it was an absolutely amazing feeling. If her and Eric weren’t meant to be together, then someone was pointing her in the wrong direction. Time stood still and everything surrounding her felt as if it was awaiting the next move, word, the next breath. She was excited and her heart began pounding faster and it was the strangest feeling she had ever experienced. And anything she’d ever known depended on this moment.
"Um, so, you came down here to get away?" she asked.
She knew it hurt Eric to talk about it, but she felt it was the best thing to do in order to press it to the past and focus on a future. Maybe even together.
"Yeah, I guess," he said sadly.
"Do you still love Nicole?" she asked.
Maybe she was pressing too hard, maybe she was taking this too far. But her curiosity had gotten the better of her.
"I don’t know if I even loved her in the beginning. I guess I thought she was the right one for me, but I don’t know if I ever loved her. At least not the way she wanted me to love her. I don’t think I could ever do that," he admitted.
He was pouring out his inner most feelings to her, telling her things and feelings that he had probably never told anyone else.
"I’m sorry, Eric," she said gently.
"Don’t be, it’s not your fault. I guess it’s my fault that I couldn’t devote myself to her. I don’t think I could devote myself to anyone right now, not now. I’m just not ready for commitment, especially not with Nicole," he said.
Greta let this sink in. He wasn’t ready for devotion right no. Devotion. She assumed she wasn’t either. She did love Eric, she was in love with him. Devotion and commitment were something she would be ready for if Eric would give her the chance.
"I really need to stop feeling sorry for myself. It was my decision after all, and I shouldn’t regret it. I should just move on with my life, and meet other people," he said.
"Yeah, that’s exactly what you need to do," she said hopefully, "we can both move on together."
"Meet new people together."
"And have fun together."
They laughed. It felt so good to laugh. Greta hadn’t laughed in days and it felt great to be able to do it. And she wasn’t forcing herself, she wasn’t making herself, and this was the best part about it. She was with Eric and she knew everything was fine. Nothing to worry about, nothing to dread going back to, just being with the one person she felt like she knew heart and soul. It was as if she had known him her whole life. Like she knew his deepest secrets, like she could feel what he was feeling, like she knew anything and everything about him.
They both stood up and brushed the sand off themselves then started walking back towards the dock where Greta had left her shoes.
"I’m glad I came," he said with a smile.
"Really? Why?" she asked.
"Two reasons. One: It’s absolutely gorgeous and relaxing down here. Two: You’re here," he explained.
"I’m glad you’re here to," she replied.
"I’m glad you’re glad that I’m glad," he said jokingly.
Greta smiled at his joking. At least he felt good enough to joke around. At least he felt good enough to be here. She had to admit, he was doing better with the break-up then she was with the fact that he had been with Nicole.
They found the pier and she slipped her sandals on her small feet.
"How long had you been following me?" she asked.
"I was outside your hotel, getting ready to go see you and tell you why I was here. But then you came outside and I followed you. I didn’t disturb you because you looked so happy and so content," he said.
"You could have, you know. I wouldn’t have minded," she said.
Eric smiled and nodded, "I’ll remember that next time," he said.
They continued walking until they reached Greta’s hotel. Greta turned around to face him and she touched his arm gently.
"If you ever need to talk, just come to my room, okay? I’ll be there for you," she said softly. Eric nodded then turned her around and said, "Thanks. No problem. I’m right down the hall."
"What?!" she exclaimed.
"I got a room as close as I could," he explained, "that way we don’t have to worry about trying to drive to each other’s hotels."
Greta was silently thanking God. How had Eric known that she wanted him down here. This was a wish that had finally come true.

It was the next morning and Greta was just awaking from her peaceful sleep. She remembered last night and about Eric. She was so happy he had come she just couldn’t express her feelings. She smiled at the thought as she got up. It was a beautiful day outside, as usual. She loved being able to just wake up and know that everything was going to be alright during the day to come. It was a wonderful feeling.
She took a refreshing shower and got dressed. As she was tying her shoes, the phone rang. She reached over and answered it.
"Hello?" she asked, propping the phone between her shoulder and her ear.
"Will you accept a call from a Mr. Brady in Salem?" asked a voice on the other end.
"Yes," she replied.
There was a pause on the other end, then a familiar voice came on.
"Greta?" he asked.
"Bo, what are you doing calling me?" she asked cheerfully.
"I was just wondering if a certain someone had come down to a certain place to see another certain someone," he said.
Greta smiled.
"If you’re talking about Eric, yes he’s here. Safe and sound," she replied.
"You know Greta, Eric and Nicole aren’t together anymore," Bo edged on.
" Yeah, Eric mentioned that. It’s real sad," she said.
Bo smiled on the other end. Greta was always strong with everything.
"Listen, Greta, the reason why I called was because-"
There was a knock on Bo’s door.
"Um, Greta, there’s someone at the door, can you hold on a minute?" he asked.
"Sure," she said.
Bo got up and went to the door and saw Marlena standing there.
"Well Hello Marlena," he said, "come on in."

Meanwhile, there was a knock at Greta’s door also. She got up quickly and opened the door. It was Eric.
"Come in," she said, " I’m on the phone with Bo,"
Eric nodded as he entered and closed the door behind him.
Greta picked up the phone.
"Bo?" she asked.
"Hey, thought I’d lost you there for a second," he said.
"I was just letting Eric in," she said, glancing up at him.
"Well, I hate to cut this conversation short, but I’ve really got to go," he said, " oh, wait, Marlena says to tell Eric ‘ I love you,’ "
"Okay, I’ll be sure to hand that message off," she said, " I’ll talk to you later, bye,"

Greta hung the phone up and looked up at Eric. "Hand what message off?" he asked suspiciously.
"I love you," she said, then caught herself.
She laughed.
"I mean, Bo told me to tell you that Marlena sends her love," she said, "sorry about that," Eric waved his hand,
"It’s okay," he said, " but I was just coming by to see if you would like to come have breakfast with me,"
"I would love to," she said.
She grabbed her purse and they were gone.

"So, Shawn was all dressed up to go to the dance with Belle, right?" asked Eric, trying to contain a smile.
"As he was getting ready to leave, the doorbell rings and he goes to answer it," he said, " and it’s Belle. Which totally surprises him. He drops the glass that he was drinking and coke goes all over his tux. I mean, it’s beyond the point of recovery. Then you know what Belle does? She asks Bo if she can have his coke and she dumps it all over her dress,"
"Ah, how sweet," said Greta, "teenage love, sounds beautiful to me,"
Eric took a sip of his orange juice and wiped his mouth with his napkin.
"What did Bo say?" he asked.
"Nothing, just wondering if you got here okay," she said, " then Marlena came and so on," Eric nodded,
"What do you want to do today?" he asked. Greta shrugged, " I don’t know. It’s up to you," she said, "whatever you want to do is fine with me."
"We could go to the movies. Or we could just stay on the beach. Maybe we could go for a drive," said Eric, "there’s so many things to do in so little time,"
"Tell me about it," she said, "I don’t ever want to leave this place,"
"Really? Why not?" he asked, "aren’t you anxious to get back to Salem?"
Greta thought for a moment. She had to be truthful, she had to.
"In some ways I am, but in some ways I’m not. I don’t have any real family up there, you know? No one except my friends, which is great, I’m not denying that, but I just wish that I had some family that I was connected to. A mom, a dad, a husband even," she said.
"Well, you always got me," he said, "and Bo, and Hope, and John, and Marlena,"
Greta smiled, "I guess you wouldn’t understand," she said.
"Not understand, eh?" he asked, "okay, I know it has to be hard, not having family and all. But, bad things happen to good people,"
"You need to look in the mirror when you say that," she said.
"Who said I was good? There has to be something wrong with me if I can’t keep a steady relationship," he said.
"There’s absolutely nothing wrong with you. Nicole’s the crazy one for leaving you in the first place," said Greta.
"Really?" asked Eric, " why do you say that anyway?"
"Well, you’re a great guy. You’re charming and kind and sweet. Nicole needs to forget about herself for a minute and think about what you’re feeling and what you want to do," she said.
"If only I could believe that," he said.
"Eric, you are so many things that you don’t think you are," she said, " you need to give yourself more credit. You need to forget about Nicole and move on,"
"It’s not that easy, Greta. I mean, I thought I loved her," he said.
"But you didn’t," she said, "you didn’t. You would have committed to her, you would have moved with her, you would have given up everything to be with her. But you didn’t. You weren’t sure about anything with her. You didn’t know whether you wanted her or you needed her. Because needing someone is love. Wanting someone is temporary.
You wanted Nicole, you didn’t need her. You wanted someone because you were afraid of being alone. You were afraid of loneliness. But I’m here to tell you that being alone isn’t so bad,"
Eric studied this a moment. What she had just said was the absolute truth. It was exactly what he had been feeling. He couldn’t deny that.
"You’re right," he said.
"I am?" she asked.
"You hit everything just right," he said, " and I want to just say that you’re not alone and you will never be alone. Because, I will always be here with you."

" I’m glad to know that," said Greta. Eric reached his hand across the table and took Greta’s hand. He smiled at her as he squeezed it, which sent shivers down her spine.
" Let’s get out of here," he said as they stood up. They paid and left. They walked outside into the warm air and began down the street. Eric looked over at Greta and suddenly got an idea.
" How about we do something a little unordinary," he said.
Greta saw the sly grin he had on his face.
" Like what?" she asked.
He nodded his head over to the right and she looked over to where he had indicated.
" Sporting Goods store?" she asked.
He laughed a little, " No, look beyond that," he replied.
She squinted to see the sign beyond the sporting goods store that read:

Paintball Mania
Admission:
Adult……$10.00
Child……$7.50

Her eyes widened.
" I’m not sure," she said uneasily, " I’ve never done anything like that before,"
" You haven’t?" he asked surprised, " well, that’s alright, I’ll teach you,"
He grabbed her hand and they made their way across the street and to the sporting goods store. He pushed through the front door and they went up to the counter.
" How may I help you?" asked the man.
" Two for the paintball," he said, reaching into his wallet.
" That’ll be 21.56," he said, " now, come with me and we’ll get you suited up,"
They followed him to a back storage room and he showed them their uniforms and their goggles and went over safety rules with them.
" And you’ll each get twenty balloons, which you’ll keep in this bag which will be hung over your shoulder," he said, " and you, young lady, might want to pull your hair up,"
Greta nodded as she stepped into her suit and zipped it up over her clothes. She pulled her hair back and put her goggles on.
" How do I look?" she asked Eric.
" Like a scientist," he said, " or maybe a surgeon," She playfully punched him as she grabbed her bag and they went outside.
" Stay within this area," the man said, " have fun,"

He disappeared inside as Eric walked over to Greta. " Let the games begin," he said, slapping a balloon onto her back.
" Oh, you are so going to get it" she replied, chasing after him.
He ran behind a tree, stuck his tongue out at her as she hurled one towards him, hitting the tree instead of him. She looked around for where he might have gone, when she felt something bust on her head. Green paint dripped all over her hair and down her back. She squirmed and turned around to see Eric standing behind her. She through a balloon at his face and he was now covered in red paint.
" Victory is mine," she said with a laugh, as he chase after her.
But as she headed towards the haystack, to hide behind it, Eric caught hold of her uniform. They both slipped and fell into the hay, Eric on top. They were both breathing hard, pressed against each other.
" Sorry," he said breathlessly.
" It’s okay," she replied.
He put his hand on the ground, steadying himself as he tried to get up, but he was pulled down. He was pulled down by Greta, who kissed him hard on the lips. When she broke away, she creamed him with a balloon.

A Half Hour Later

They had gotten cleaned up and left the paintball place. Now heading back towards the hotel for dinner. There was an awkwardness between them, that neither of them had predicted. Greta now partially regretted kissing him. But it was such a great opportunity. She couldn’t have let it slip by. But maybe, he still had feelings for Nicole, which explained the reason he hadn’t taken advantage of the moment also.
" Greta," he said.
" Eric," she said at the same time.
" You first," they both said at the same time.
They laughed.
" You first," he said.
" No, I insist, you first," she said, " what you were going to say is probably more important anyway,"
" Ladies first," he said.
She smiled and sighed.
" Okay, Eric," she said, " I just want to say I’m sorry about what happened back there. I guess I need to respect your feelings too. I didn’t expect that to happen, it just did. Okay your turn,"
" Well, I wasn’t going to say anything," he said, " but rather, do something,"
And she took her in his arms and kissed her like she had kissed him. It was a slow kiss at first, but more frantic after a while. They stood there, in the middle of the street, practically groping each other.
" Eric," she managed to spit out, " we should go back to the hotel,"
" I agree," he said, pulling away.
An old woman walked by and stared at the two, " Children these days aren’t raised properly, all sinners…" she murmured.
They just looked at each other and smiled, holding each other’s hands and they started for the hotel.

After they had gotten to the hotel and up to Greta’s room, because it was that closest, they had sat down, side-by-side on the bed. They had their hands clasped in front of them. It was so surreal what had and was going to happen to them both .Their lives had just changed in an instant with some fate and paintballs. Like from a movie.

"Eric," said Greta, " we should slow down,"

He nodded quickly.

"Yeah," he agreed, " but we shouldn’t stop, right?"

She smiled at his worried look. It was cute.

"Definitely not, but I’m not sure I’m ready for this type of thing yet," she said.

"No problem," he replied, " but you are ready for this, right?"

He gently pulled her closer and kissed her softly.

"I actually want some more of that," she said.

"Oh yeah?" he asked, inching his face closer to hers.

"Oh yeah…" she said huskily.

They kissed again. The phone ringing startled them apart.

Greta jumped up to get it.

"Hello?" she asked.

"Accept a long distance call from a Bo Brady in Salem, Oregon, USA?" someone asked.

"Yes," she replied. Then she clasped her hand of the mouthpiece and whispered, " it’s Bo,"

Eric smiled and stood up to go over to the phone with her.

"Hello?" asked Bo.

"Hi, Bo, how are things?" she asked.

"Fine, just calling to see how you and Eric were," he said slowly and deliberately.

"Just fine, he’s here right now if you want to talk to him," she said.

"Put him on," Bo replied.

Greta handed the phone over and Eric began to talk, "How is everyone up there?" he asked.

"Good, good, and you two?" Bo asked.

Eric smiled the sweetest smile to Greta.

"Just lovely," he said, drawing the word lovely out.

"How lovely?" Bo asked, becoming more and more suspicious.

"Let’s just say, there’s a few surprises when we get back to town," he replied.

Greta grabbed the phone quickly, suddenly getting an idea.

"Oh and Bo, could you drop Nicole a line for me and Eric?" she asked.

"Um, sure," he said, " what?"

"Tell her we said ‘ Pleasure in Paradise’," she said Bo smirked through the phone.

"Why?" he asked.

Eric took the phone and said, "Let’s just say we found some."

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