Fancy Meeting You Here

This provides some backstory to the below story:

"Well, well, well. Look who fell right into my trap."

Julianna almost jumped out of the chair. There stood Andy, but there was something that seemed so familiar.

"What are you-" Julianna cut herself off, feeling her heart sink in her chest. No. It couldn't be. She wouldn't fall for something so silly, would she?

"Truly, Julianna, I thought you were smarter than this" the man stated with a smirk. "But I set the trap and you took the bait; hook, line and sinker."

"Justin" Julianna muttered, closing her eyes, feeling stupid. It had all been a setup. Of course, she didn't know Andy was actually somebody else. Justin was just as private as she was; they prided themselves in that. But how she didn't recognize him was beyond her. Did he take over someone's identity? How did he manage to pull the wool over her eyes so easily?

"I'm not going to give you some elaborate speech on how I managed to fool you so easily. The answer is simple, and I think you know exactly why I fooled you, and you know exactly how I did this" Justin spoke slowly but surely.

"So, what. Are you going to kill me then?" she asked, no hint of emotion in her voice. He simply stared at her, an evil grin on his face.

This was going to feel good. He thought to himself, as he pulled the concealed glock he had from under his coat.

How did this happen? How could she be so stupid? She allowed herself to get trapped by the one person she knew best in the world; shouldn't she have seen this coming? She could remember the time they had first met; everything seemed to be flashing before her eyes.

At first, it had seemed like a tropical paradise; but now looking back, it had led her down a road she was now certain was destined to be her demise.

Four Years Previous

"Leave your worries behind, congratulations, you have won a trip for two to a romantic tropical island getaway!"

The words popped up on her screen, causing her to scoff. Of course, she would win this one week after she got dumped. She could hear the comments of her friends now. "That's a silly reason not to go!" "You should go anyway, it's a free trip!". In a way, they were correct; it would be silly to miss out on a unique experience just because she got dumped. But again, it was designed for couples; would she even have fun?

She sighed, typing in her information for the trip. This could end up being a huge mistake; or, she thought for a moment of optimism, this could be one of the greatest trips she's ever taken.

***

The first two days flew by. After arriving on the tropical island, Julianna found there was much to explore and discover beyond all the romantic activities they had planned. Couples' massages, couples' pottery classes, dance lessons... the very thought of it all made her want to vomit. But, at the very least, she thought with a small, she could enjoy free drinks with a lovely ocean view, occasionally dipping her toes in the warm ocean.

"I see you're here solo, too."

The voice almost startled her out of her seat. She jumped slightly, tipping the brim of her sunhat up as to see where the voice was coming from. A man had sat right beside her, and she hadn't even noticed.

"Oh, uh, yeah" Julianna mumbled back in response. She wasn't sure how he knew that she had come here alone.

"I assumed as much because you've been by yourself every time I've seen you since we arrived" the man commented. He must have been another one of the lucky winners. Anyone who had won the contest all travelled on the same plane; but she couldn't quite place him. Had he been on the same flight? "And you were alone on the plane." Ok, now he was starting to get creepy.

"That's not creepy at all" she couldn't help but laugh uncomfortably, vaguely wondering if she should be concerned for her safety.

"It's not creepy, just being observant" the man retorted, giving Julianna a moment to think. I guess it was true. She sat on the plane alone. She had avoided all the couple activities and spent most of the last two days exploring around alone; she would definitely be one to stand out.

"Okay, point taken." She answered back, leaning ahead in her chair. "So, what brings you to my chair then? I can't help but notice you're here alone too" she tried to sound mysterious when she said it, but by the look on the man's face, that was not the case.

"That would be obvious" he chuckled. "But 'e' for effort" he added with a grin. He sat back in his chair and stretched out, seemingly trying to show off his athletic appearance. Of course, Julianna immediately began to check him out; and she was painfully aware that he knew it.

"You must love this, don't you?" she asked, as her eyes made their way up and down his body. When he didn't respond, she continued. "Women always checking you out, with your perfect abs, your sandy hair, and those chocolate brown eyes..." she trailed off softly, feeling embarrassed she had even voiced the words aloud.

"You're not wrong, women do check me out a lot" he replied, lowering his voice as he did so. "But it's more of a curse than a blessing, in my line of work" he added, keeping his mysterious aura.

"How on earth can it be a curse?" Julianna scoffed, sitting up in her chair. She had removed her sunhat and ran her fingers through her hair before tying it up neatly in a loose ponytail. What on earth was this guy talking about? Here they were in a tropical piece of paradise, and he's complaining about women checking him out? And what did he mean in his line of work?

"I think you might be able to be a valuable asset to our team" he cut into her train of thought.

"I'm so sorry, what now?" Julianna asked, confused. "What team? What line of work?" she asked, and the man simply chuckled.

"I can only tell you if you're interested" he said, putting on his sunglasses, and getting up from his seat. "Something tells me you will be." He handed her a file and a card before leaving her alone once more.

"What is-" she cut herself off as she realized he wasn't going to turn back. She had half a mind to ignore what he had just handed her and simply move on with her life. But something piqued her interest. She opened it up and was surprised by what she saw.

Jeff. It was a file all about Jeff, her ex-boyfriend. It contained anything and everything you'd need to know about him. His hobbies, his interests. His addresses, family members, family tree. And his love life. Julianna scoffed when she noted she was listed as "one of" the girls he frequently was around. What a great way of saying he was cheating on her with multiple women.

Why did the stranger have this? And better yet, why did he hand it to her? There seemed to be no apparent motive behind why there was all of this information; was he some form of private investigator?

Getting up from her spot, she wasted no time heading to the resort. She had to find the man. She had to know more.

She didn't have to search long for him. There he sat at the bar, a drink in his hand, a smirk on his face. Like he knew she was coming.

"I need to know more" Julianna spoke swiftly as she placed the folder back in front of him but keeping the card on her. "Why were you looking into Jeff? What did he do?" she asked some of the questions she was beginning to have.

"That's all in due time" the man replied, gesturing for Julianna to take a seat. "Allow me to introduce myself. I'm Justin." He stuck out his hand for her to shake it. She smiled, not used to such a formally informal introduction.

"Julianna" she replied, shaking his hand.

"I think we're going to make a great team, Julianna" Justin replied, turning back to his drink with a sly grin.