Pamela DeLongpre walks into her daughter’s bedroom. The lights and CD player are on, but her daughter is asleep. Rachel is lying face down on the bed, with her journal beside her. Rachel means everything to Pamela, there is no one and nothing more important than her daughter’s happiness and future. Pamela is spoiled, selfish, and could give Machiavelli a run for his money, but if she has a redeeming quality, it’s her love for her daughter.

Pamela was married to Rachel’s father for all of two seconds. They met at a New Orleans bar during Mardi Gras and they were convinced that they were meant for one another. He was a newlywed and she decided to have some fun and break up a new marriage. She succeeded and then got pregnant, married, and divorced in the span of a year, but she has no regrets because it all gave her Rachel.

Pamela walks over to the quilt chest at the edge of the bed and gets a folded down comforter from the chest, unfolds it and spreads it over her sleeping daughter. She walks over to the light switch, turns it off, and prepares to leave the room.

"Mom?" Rachel says.

"I’m sorry. Did I wake you?" Pamela asks.

"Don’t worry about it," she notices the comforter. "Did you put this on me?"

"Yes ma’am."

"You haven’t tucked me in since I was five," says Rachel.

"Yes I have. You were asleep and just didn’t know it," says Pamela. Pamela walks over to the bed and kneels beside her sleeping daughter. "Are you okay? I know you’ve been through a lot today."

"I’m better."

"Really? You wouldn’t be just saying that to make me feel better, would you?"

"No -- really, I’m better."

"I wish your first day here could have been special and unique," says Pamela.

"It was. I mean how many times does a girl discover a dead body?" The girl smiles.

"You are naughty."

"So tell me, what’s tomorrow going to be like."

"What do you mean?’

"What time is breakfast served? Is it formal?"

"I’m not sure if the family even eats breakfast together anymore — and it was never formal."

"Are you glad to be home?"

"Yes I am."

"Mom, why are we really here?"

"What?"

"I haven’t really said anything, but I know that there’s something else at work here," says Rachel.

"I don't know what you mean,"

"Mom. C’mon. I know this is your hometown and all, but you’ve stayed away for so long, and even though it seems like a great place, Persephone Pointe doesn’t exactly seems like your kind of town. So tell me Mama, what’s really going here? Why are we here and what are you up to?"

_____________________________________________________________

Ryan Blaisedelle’s party has been going on for about a couple of hours, and it seems as though the decibel and debauchery level rises each half-hour. Kids are skinny-dipping in the pool. Girls are being held up in the air, getting ready for upside down keg hits. The smell of beer and marijuana permeates the air. Rap music blasts from strategically placed speakers around the Blaisedelle house. The kids are having fun and there’s not a person over 20 in sight.

Emery Origen is doing beer bongs with a group of guys. The guys are yelling and shouting as Emery sucks down the cheap brew.

Ian Montgomery is making out with April Richards on one of the lounges around the pool. Ian massages the girl’s back, then runs his fingers through her hair.

Samantha Arlington has been cornered by Ryan Blaisedelle. She went into the poolhouse to change into a bathing suit, so that she could go swimming, but Ryan is standing in the door holding a flask of cheap bourbon and a joint, offering both to her. Samantha is trying to get back to Briggs, who agreed to go swimming with her. "You can’t leave until you pay the party host," says Ryan.

"C’mon Ryan, I wanna go swimming," says Samantha.

"A toke from the joint or a swig from the juke?" Ryan asks.

"Is this the only way you’re going to let me out of here?" Samantha asks.

"Unless you want to stay and renew our friendship," says Ryan trying to smile seductively, but because he’s so wasted, it comes out looking like he’s a stroke victim.

"Both," says Samantha.

"Wha?"

"I’ll do both. Pass the joint," says Samantha.

Briggs is sitting on the tanning deck that’s on the roof of the pool-house. He’s wearing a pair of Old Navy board shorts and no shirt. This is the first time all night that he’s been alone. Almost as soon as he got to the party, Samantha Arlington found him and has been his own private shadow. Briggs is a nice young man, and would never say anything to hurt the girl’s feelings and that’s why he can’t tell her that he’s not interested in her.

He’s still on his first beer. He volunteered to be ‘DD’ tonight for Ian, also, he’s really not that interested in drinking tonight because he can’t get Rachel Ontkeen out of his mind. Briggs doesn’t know who she is and anything about her, but from the first moment he saw her, he could tell that there was something about her. Something unique and something special.

He wants to meet her and get to know her, but first he has to find out who she is and where she lives. "Hi there." Briggs turns around thinking that it’s Samantha, but instead discovers Saga Eglasca standing behind him. She is wearing a red and blue J Crew Tankini. "So what are you doing up here all by your lonesome?"

"Hey Sahg. Nice suit," says Briggs.

"Thanks. Nice shorts," she says. "Even better legs." Briggs blushes at the last comment.

"Come take a walk with me," says Saga.

"I promised Sam that I’d go swimming with her," says Briggs.

"I saw her in the house doing bong hits. It looked like she’s going to be booked for awhile. We’ll be back by the time she gets back. I promise."

"Where do you want to walk to?"

"Just around."

"All right."

Emery Origen is pretty wasted at this point. His t-shirt is soaking wet from the seven beer bongs that he’s done tonight, not to mention the four upside down margarita shots. He sees Ian and April on the lounge making out and walks over to the couple.

"Don’t suck her face off I-dawg," says Emery. Ian and April stop kissing and look up to see Emery.

"Get lost freak," says Ian.

"Aw c’mon let me hang with y’all," says Emery.

"Em. We’re busy. Goodbye," says Ian.

"Where’s my loser brother?"

"Hanging out I guess. Goodbye Em," says Ian again.

"Fine. By the way, get her to do that tongue thing she tried on me last year," says Emery.

"Shut up Emery!" April says.

"Wha?"

"Buh-bye Emery," says Ian.

"Well we did make out April. You want to pretend we didn’t," says Emery.

"Em-"

"Fine. Buh bye," says Emery.

"Bye…Can you believe him," says April.

"He's just wasted. Besides, there are other things I'd much rather be doing then thinking about Emery," says Ian.

"Like what?"

"Like this." Ian begins kissing the girl again. April kisses him back and the two fall back onto the lounge and start to make out again.

"Who wants hang out with those losers anyway," says Emery stumbling around the party. Emery goes over to the pool and sits on the edge. Everything around him suddenly begins to spin. "Woah. This can't be good."

His stomach begins to churn. Some of the kids splashing around in the pool notice Emery and begin to laugh at the 'green' expression on his face. He starts to sweat, then grabs his stomach, then without warning, Emery starts throwing up.

_____________________________________________________________

Pamela, who was kneeling beside her daughter’s bed, gets up and walks over to the window. Her daughter sits up in her bed and watches her Mother.

"What do you mean — Persephone Pointe isn’t my kind of town?" Pamela asks her daughter.

"Don’t be offended, but Persephone Pointe is a quiet little fishing village. A quaint place to go antiquing. Now, in my opinion, I think it’s cool — what I’ve seen of the place — but, quaint isn’t exactly your scene. I don’t think they have a Rodeo Drive in downtown Persephone Pointe," says Rachel. Pamela laughs at her daughter’s last comment.

"There’s a lot you don’t know about your dear — young for her age — Mom. This is where I was born, this is where I was raised-"

"But, there’s no Dolce & Gabanna Boutique."

"Are you trying to say that I’m shallow?"

"No Mom. I’m saying that you’re more the ‘penthouse in Manhattan’ than ‘rustic bait and tackle shop’"

"This house isn’t exactly a two room shanty," says Pamela.

"No, it’s a small continent, disguised as a house. Tomorrow, I’m going to spend the day just exploring this place — be sure to send in the National Guard if I’m not heard from after about five hours. But, seriously I just want you to be happy."

"Darling, as long as we’re together, I’m happy." Rachel smiles. "There’s no agenda. There’re no hidden motives. I just wanted to come home and let you experience Persephone Pointe for yourself. I want you to know where you Mother comes from. I want you to know your birthright and get a sense for what, someday, will be yours. Remember, this will be yours one day Ma Chere. All of it." Pamela kisses her daughter on the cheek. "Go back to sleep."

"I love you Mom," says the girl.

"I love you to honey," Pamela leaves the room, shutting the door behind her. In the hallway, Pamela reflects on the conversation she just had with her daughter. Her daughter was right, there are other reasons than the ones she told her daughter, for her return to Persephone Pointe.

Tomorrow, her plans will begin to take shape. Tomorrow the real reason, she’s returned home will come to light. Tomorrow she will take the first steps to reclaiming what is hers and for those who get in her way, may God help them all.

___________________________________________________________

Emery has gotten sick directly into the pool. Some of his friends are pointing and laughing at him, while others are running to the other end to get away from Emery's calling card. Emery is now lying face down on the cement, with his face hanging over the side of the pool. He is coughing and moaning in pain and his eyes are teary, red, and swollen. "Oh God," he moans.

One of Emery's friends walks over to him and kneels beside him. "Are you all right dude?"

"This sucks," says Emery.

"C'mon dude, rally. You gotta rally," says the guy. The guy is drunk himself, but nowhere nearly as incapacitated as Emery.

"There are you happy?" Samantha asks Ryan handing him the flask.

"Do you know how you can make me the happiest guy on the planet?" Ryan asks.

"Not even if you were the last boy on Earth," says Samantha.

"Aw c'mon, help a brother out," says Ryan.

"May I leave now?"

"So you can go ride Briggs Origen's jock?" Ryan asks.

"Shut up. Now let me go," says Samantha.

"He doesn't want you."

"What does that mean?"

"It means he doesn't want you. Or at least he doesn't want you like I want you," says Ryan.

"Whatever, Ryan. Bye," says Samantha. She walks out of the house, contemplates Ryan's last statement, and then looks up to the rooftop tanning deck where Briggs was sitting. "He's gone…. Now where'd he go?"

"So what do you think, movies….uh…tomorrow night?" Ian asks April.

"Sounds like fun," says April.

"Then it's a date," says Ian.

"You want to double with Briggs and Sam?"

"Uh….sure…I guess. I was kinda hoping that it would just be the two of us though," says Ian.

"Well Sam really likes Briggs, and we're hoping that they can spend some more time together. A double would really help out the cause," says April.

"Well if Brig wants to do it, then fine," says Ian.

"Hey you two," says Samantha.

"Speak of the devil," says April. "Were your ears burning?"

"I don't mean to interrupt, but Ian have you seen Briggs?"

"He was on the pool-house roof, the last time I looked," he says.

"Yeah, I convinced him to go swimming with me, but when I got back from changing he was gone," says Samantha.

"Maybe he went to get another beer or something," says April.

"Yeah, probably," says Samantha.

"Hey -- Ian and I are going to the movies tomorrow, do you wanna double?"

"Sure that sounds like fun. I'll tell Briggs, if I find him," says Samantha.

"He's around here somewhere," says Ian.

"All right, I'll leave y'all alone. If you see him, tell him I'm looking for him," says Samantha.

"'Kay," says April. Samantha walks off and leaves the two alone again. "So has Briggs said anything about Sam?"

"I don't want to talk about Briggs and Sam, lets talk about you and me," says Ian.

"I can do that," says April. Ian kisses her again which makes her smile.

Saga and Briggs are sitting on a bench in Ryan's Mom's flower garden. Saga is sitting beside Briggs. When she first offered some wine to Briggs' he said no, but then she got him to change his mind. They are laughing and talking and Briggs is unaware of what Saga's real motives are.

"I love flower gardens. One day when I'm rich and powerful and live in a big ole mansion, I'm going to have my own private flower garden too," says Saga. Briggs hands her the wine bottle back.

"For a buck ninety-nine that's a pretty good wine," says Briggs.

"I wonder, if I switched this stuff with the expensive wines the DeLongpres drink, if they could tell the difference?'

"Who knows?"

"I hope I'm not keeping you away from something else," says Saga.

"No, of course not. This is nice," says Briggs.

"This is even wilder than Ryan's last party."

"I know. Didn't he get grounded for that last party?"

"I think so, cause didn't like somebody get alcohol poisoning or something?"

"Yeah, Alicia Horton."

"That's right."

"Isn't it a great night?"

"Yeah," says Briggs.

"My Mom says she fell in love with my Daddy on a clear night with a full moon."

"Really?'

"She can describe the night in vivid detail. She remembers each and every moment of the evening. That's how major it was."

"I'm sure you never forget something as important as falling in love," says Briggs.

"It's like one of the most important moments of your life," says Saga.

"It changes everything," says Briggs. Saga scoots a little closer to him. Briggs doesn't notice.

"You're right, it does change everything," says Saga. She looks at him with love in her eyes. "Everyone says that you're going to win best looking guy next year."

"Please. I hate stuff life that," he says.

"Well that's what everybody's saying."

"Well I hope they vote for somebody else."

"I don't understand. Why aren't you flattered that everyone thinks you're the best looking guy?"

"It's all arbitrary. What's their criteria? I'm just another guy and I'm no better looking than anyone else."

"You are amazing."

"What do you mean?"

"Not only are you beautiful on the outside, but your genuinely beautiful on the inside as well. Most people would get off on being voted best looking, but not you. You're one of a kind."

"That sounds like something my Mom would say," says Briggs.

"She'd be right." She brushes her hand against his. Briggs turns and notices how close she's gotten to him.

"You're just saying that."

"You smell good."

"What?"

"You smell good, what is that you're wearing?"

"Just soap."

"That's it? Nothing else?"

"That it and nothing else."

"Well you use good smellin' soap," says Saga.

"I try to shower regularly."

"I love your board shorts?"

"Yeah, I remember you mentioning that."

"What's that fabric? May I touch it?"

"Touch what?"

"Your shorts."

"Oh -- yeah -- go ahead." She puts her hand on the fabric and runs it between her fingers. The back of her hand rests on his leg and as she moves the fabric, her hand sort of moves back and forth on his leg.

"I like the way that feels," she says.

"You…you… uh….you should get a pair." He can feel the soft skin of her hand on his leg.

"The color of the shorts go very well with your tan. Your blond hair, those shorts, and that tan makes a pretty irresistible package." They are looking directly into the other's eyes.

"I'm lucky. I rarely burn."

"Something else we have in common. I never burn either. I get hot, but I never burn." She still has the fabric between her fingers, but now her hand is completely at rest on his leg. She wants him to make the first move. Their eyes are locked and their faces are moving closer and closer together. Saga's heart is racing and she can't help thinking that she's about to get everything she wants. She's ready for the kiss and she's ready for where that kiss could lead.

They are getting closer and closer and just as their lips are about to touch, "Brig." It's Ian. "I've been looking everywhere for you."

"What's going on," says Briggs.

"It's Emery. He doesn't look good. He doesn't look good at all," says Ian.

"What do you mean?"

"He's puking all over the place, his face is changing colors, and he's as cold as ice. We gotta take him to a hospital or something. I mean, dude, if we don't do something he's gonna die."