".... Babe. Babe? Are you awake?" asks a male voice.

Daniella opens her eyes and takes in a business casual styled handsome man. He gives her a large toothy smile. He kisses her on the forehead.

"Why is someone kissing me on the forehead? I don't know anybody in that way except Luca!" she thinks to herself.

But as her eyes adjust to the surroundings, she realizes that not only she is no longer at the airport but she also realizes that the man who has just kissed her forehead is not Luca at all.

"Luke?!" Daniella exclaims out loud.

Yes, it is none other than Luke, the barista; Luke, the creator, and founder of the RESET app. Peaceful aura Luke. Yoga Luke. 

"Finally you're awake! Would you like a glass of champagne?" he asks her with a peaceful smile.

"Am I dreaming you again? Why did you kiss me?" asks a confused Daniella.

"Well babe if you call waking up in this yacht a dream, then yes! We are both dreaming!" he says as he leans over, hands her glass of champagne and pecks her on the lips. Daniella's face turns bright red immediately.

"Wow! It feels good to see I still have that kind of effect on you after 2 years together!"

Daniella almost chokes on her drink as she hears him talking. She gets up quickly and takes a careful and mindful look at her new surroundings. Her eyes widen as she realizes that she is now standing on a luxurious yacht floating something off the coast of... of...? 

"Where are we?" asks Daniella. 

"Babe... I love your sense of disorientation every time you fall asleep!" he chuckles then continues. "We are off the coast of San Francisco, Babe!"

"Oh! Lovely!" She quickly empties her glass of champagne and decides to explore her new location starting with herself. She is surprised to see herself wearing the latest designer swimsuit complete with a cover-up. She blinks her eyes and yarns twice. "Wow! I wonder why I'm so tired..." she remarks to herself then turns her full attention to Luke.

"Luke, how long have I been sleeping?"

"Not long... 15 minutes tops, why? It felt longer than that?"

"Well, it felt like I've just woken up from another life... I mean the dream I had felt so real..." 

She pauses and shakes her head. So that's why it must be! "It must have all been a strange dream where I kept on waking up from one just to fall into another dream until Luke finally shook me awake! Thank Goodness for him finally waking me up!"

As those thoughts simmer on the back of her mind, Daniella abandons herself in Luke's arms who then showers her with kisses.

"Finally, our well-deserved break! A break away from everyone and everything! It's just you and me! I promise you no calls, no contact of any kind except for more caviar and champagne... but I think we should have enough to last us more than a week cruising alone in total privacy... Are you more relaxed Babe?"

As she listens to him, she realizes that her and Luke the former barista now tech millionaire are together in this reality. But whose reality is this? His or hers? Or is it all a dream? Only The Universe knows!

While nothing is certain since she set out on her journey at this point, one thing is clear in her mind; her new surroundings are taking her breath away. Its beauty, its sheer luxurious feel and ambience alone is worth experiencing at least for the length of a surreal dream, if not for a lifetime. But is she really dreaming? 

Daniella starts to wander around. To her amazement, she is not just on a yacht but she is taking a break with her "Babe" on a lavish superyacht. As she makes her way around, she is greeted by stewards and stewardesses who all seem to know her very well. One of them approaches her and reminds her of her yoga session is happening within the next hour on the main deck. Daniella thanks her and keeps moving along. She can't help but be in awe of her super luxurious master bedroom cabin.

As she starts undressing and getting ready for dinner, she feels a pair of hands around her waist. She knows who they belong to. Her body has been very familiar with them for the past two years and she still gets tingles. Luke spins her around to face him. They hug each other and remind each other how much they love each other.

Hand in hand, the love birds arrive in the dining room cabin. The dinner table looks like a setting fit for royalty. Daniella starts to wonder that maybe this moment, this beautiful fine moment is really her real life. Maybe the other realities she experienced or was thrown into were just alternate versions of this one. Maybe everything she went through, was just a manifestation of her social-justice-oriented consciousness?

As she watches the superyacht stewardesses fuss around to give her and Luke an optimal and pure luxurious fine dining experience, she is more and more convinced that she was never at the airport. She was never at that airport spa, she never had to pick up a golden retriever and she certainly never had another man in her life going by the name of Luca.

"Are you enjoying everything on the table? The crew went all out tonight... Are you feeling better Babe?" Luke's sultry voice interrupts her mental odyssey.

"I'm sorry what?" Daniella locks eyes with him and blinks.

Luke smiles and repeats himself this time reaching for and kissing the back of her left hand. As he performs this tender loving act, Daniella's eyes are drawn to the massive rock on one of her left fingers. 

Yes! Daniella is engaged! She blinks rapidly, trying to control the euphoria rising in her body!

"OMG Luke! It's HUGE! This rock is the size of the moon!"

"Babe you deserve the best and you should get the best!" he says and winks at her and continues ."We're having an amazing year with the app and all of your ideas are golden! I want the whole world to know the girl and brain behind my success." He raises his glass to her.

"I knew it! I so totally knew it! That's why I've been experiencing all these things... My mind was only reacting to my lifestyle..." Daniella says to herself out loud earning a heartfelt laugh from Luke.

"Always so funny but no babe! Your mind is reacting to the two straight days of non-stop engagement parties. I can't believe you can still function... Maybe you are still able to function because of all the cat naps you've been taking... You're quite amazing!"

"I've been partying for two days non-stop? That could explain everything I've been experiencing!"

"I can't believe it all started with a chance meeting in a plane... I can still see the look on your face every time I see an Arnold Palmer drink! And now here we are, getting married in 7 months! The Universe truly works in mysterious ways!" Luke says as his fingers run circles over her fingers.

Daniella is shocked into silence with Luke's last sentence. "I. Am. Getting. Married. In. Seven. Months! Well now everything truly makes sense! Maybe what I thought were real experiences were actually drunken chaotic dreams... Oh my goodness! That makes much more sense now..." She inhales and exhales slowly as her mental monologue continues...

"Why does this reality feel so real? Why am I not freaking out even though I feel a lot more overwhelmed by the news of being engaged and more importantly getting married in seven months? This is it! I'm home! I am finally awake... It was all but real!" Daniella says to herself in a very low tone making sure no one can hear her.

"I don't think I have ever spoken to myself at any more time than... now! Everything is always happening in the now?"

Yes, Daniella is right about one thing for now. The past doesn't seem to leave any trace in her mind wherever she finds herself. Except that in this specific moment, all the other realities seem to be a mere recollection of dreams... maybe from her cat napping like Luke her fiance so perfectly put it... Only The Universe knows.

Daniella excuses herself from the table and makes a run for the nearest bathroom. As she steps into the over the top bathroom, it occurs to her that every corner of this yacht is very familiar to her. "I've been here before... I've stayed on this yacht before... Everything feels so natural and relaxing... so at home..." Her thoughts are interrupted by a beautifully arranged basket full of trinkets aesthetically displayed on the Italian marble sink. As she glances over the basket, one of the stuffed objects captures her attention. She picks it up and carefully examines it.

"No way! What are the odds? How?... Wow!"

Daniella is staring at a cute stuff dog wearing a silver collar with a hand-stamped plate reading "Luca - The Sweet Teddy Dog"

She reads the inscription on the silver plaque out loud. "What, that's a thing?"

Forgetting all about the reasons she went to the bathroom in the first place, she grabs the stuffed "teddy dog" and runs back to the main cabin where Luke is patiently waiting for her.

Pointing at it she says "Honey, does this mean anything to you?"

"Don't you just love it? I geeked out when I saw it too! One of the stewardesses told me it was delivered by your assistant who insisted on placing it where you found it..."

"So it was sent specifically for us?"

"Yes for you... It's a fun souvenir from last year's retreat in the French Alps. Remember that golden retriever who followed you everywhere for a week... Its owner sent this stuffed animal, along with the basket of treats and we thought you would get a kick out of it... I wonder what that dog is up to now... who else he is following around that French village?" Luke's facial expression is covered with a glowing heavenly aura as he fondly remembers their time in the French Alps.

"Oh my goodness! Luca! I've almost forgotten about this dog! It was so cute the way he followed us around," Daniella remarks outloud.

"No babe, he was not following us! He was following you and only you! Do you remember when he wouldn't let anyone come near you after you fed him some treats?"

"Right! It was weird and entertaining all at the same time... Gosh I wished I could bring him back with us..."

"Well babe... now you have a stuffed version of him..."

"Do you think he will remember me if we ever go back there?"

"Are you kidding? Based on how sad he looked when we were leaving... I'll say he will forever remember you..."

"Awww... you're so sweet, honey!" Daniella kisses the stuffed teddy dog and wraps her arms around Luke's neck. He responds immediately by wrapping his arms around her waist. He sweeps her off her feet and spins her around multiple times before crashing his lips onto hers. Daniella's giggles spread throughout the dining area all the way to the ears of the busy stewards and stewardesses.

"I love you so much babe!" he whispers tenderly in her ears.

"I love you more, Luke! And I can't wait to call you my husband!"

Her words fall like dewdrops from heaven in her fiance's ears. "Oh, babe! You've earned a thousand kisses!"

Luke picks her up bridal style to a private upper deck away from everyone else. Carefully laying her on the lounge chaise facing the blue pacific ocean, he kisses her forehead once more before giving her lips his undivided attention. Lost in pleasure, Daniella lets herself go with the flow of ecstasy and abandon herself to this romantic moment. She closes her eyes as the sensations spreading through her body intensify. In the height of ecstasy, she falls deep in a wonderful abyss, feeling like a lifetime of jubilee. She slowly wrinkles her brows as she wonders why Luke is running his tongue against her forehead.

Something feels new! "LUKE! YOU NEVER KISSED ME LIKE THAT BEFORE! IT'S WEIRD... BUT I LIKE IT!" 

A tickled Daniella giggles out loud. Something feels amusingly off... then another memory flashed through her mind.

"THE NOTE!!!!" she exclaims out loud. 

To Be Continued... 

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

Author's Note: Thanks for reading! Enjoy, Vote, Comment, Share, Follow, and Stay Tuned! Love hearing from you! Please comment!