Free Sunrise in Bali - Across the Pond Trilogy (Book 1) by L.A. Shorter Page A

from the beach like
sparkles in the night sky, showing intermittent flashes of partygoers
sprawled across the sand. Jenny looked over the scene with an element
of trepidation, but was determined to enjoy the night more than she
had the last.

    When
they reached the shore it became even harder to believe that the two
islands were so close together. Gili Meno had been so relaxed and
chilled, a wonderful place to watch the world go by. Here, however,
it was manic: groups of young revelers were darting this way and
that, loud music shot out from all along the coast, and bright
flashing lights illuminated the night sky. “Now THIS is what I'm
talking about!” shouted Todd as he turned to the group. “Where to
first Marky Mark?”

    Mark
seemed to be leading the party, and so started plotting a course down
along the beachfront to what was apparently the most active part of
the island. He'd been the one taking instruction from Andy on where
to go, so everyone left it to him to lead them to the source of the
action. What Jenny didn't realize at this point, however, was that
Gili Trawangan was also known for its drugs, and magic mushrooms were
a common appetizer for those seeking an eventful night out.

    It
didn't take them long to reach what appeared to be a very popular bar
down on the edge of the beach. It was large and circular, surrounded
on all sides by decking with chairs and tables. The crowds spilled
out down onto the beach, some chatting away in large groups playing
games, others dancing together or alone. There were people with fire
sticks creating magnificent red and orange patterns against the black
sky, while others could be seen covered in face paint and glitter. It
was a wild scene, full of color, music, and movement, and something
that Jenny had never experienced before. She turned to Sarah, “this
is crazy!”

    “ I
know,” Sarah shouted back in her ear... “I love it!”

    By
this stage Mark had made the decision to stick it out there for a
while, at least to 'warm up', as he'd said. They found a table large
enough to accommodate them all and Mark went to get drinks with Todd.
Jenny could see them at the bar, thick as thieves, plotting
something. She looked over at Andrew, who was entertaining Emily with
this Irish wit, and Sarah, who was chatting away happily with Henry,
perhaps trying to extract some information about Mark.

    Soon
enough Mark and Todd were back, passing around a shot each and
putting two large cocktail jugs onto the center of the table. “Right,
here are your glasses,” Mark passed out a glass each, “it's time
to play a little drinking game!”

    The
next hour passed by in a flurry of downed drinks and unexpected
confessions, both owing to the drinking game 'never have I ever'.
Sarah was forced to tell the story of her run in with the athletic
coach at high school, while Todd dished the dirt on some wild times
he'd had on drugs back in London. The most revealing story, however,
for Jenny at least, came from Henry, when Mark got him to talk about
his experiences with his ex girlfriend, who'd he'd only recently
broken up with. He didn't seem happy talking about it, but was bound
by the rules of the game to 'spill', according to Mark, Todd, and
Andrew. After his reveal he quickly absented himself to the bar to
fetch another batch of cocktails.

    Jenny
looked over at Henry at the bar, and saw him retreat somewhat into
his shell. She began to realize that he was recovering from a broken
heart as well; that he'd been suffering just as she had. She suddenly
felt an ever closer connection to him, like they were following the
same path. His journal, his pensive nature, this entire trip...maybe
it was all a way for his to escape as well?

    Henry
returned just in the nick of time with the refills, and the drinking
game began to change track. Mark seemed to have noticed that Henry
was less than pleased with talking about his ex, so quickly changed
the game to something less personal. After a couple