EPISODE 1

    "You better keep your doors locked at all times because we don’t have a clue when this guy is going to strike." said Officer Tyson Russell. "But I can assure you we will find the man that has been stalking your daughter and get justice for all of the terror he has put your family through."

            Eve and Carl Jones are not comforted whatsoever by the words coming from this police officer’s mouth. The man they speak of has been spotted snapping pictures of Melissa and other members of the family. Just a week ago, Melissa received a package which contained various love letters to her and the pictures that he took. The family has to be under constant surveillance of their surroundings. They never know when this man will get the urge to snap another picture of them, or even worse, make his presence truly known.

            "Look, officer. All that I care about is the welfare of my family. Don’t come back over here until you have the good news that this psycho has been caught and is locked behind bars!" Carl’s patience has been really tested as of late by the incompetence of the SBPD to find this man.

            "Carl, please settle down. They are doing everything possible to find him." Eve is always there to keep her husband balanced out. She has always hated confrontations and she doesn’t want the cop’s visit to their home to escalate into one.

            The African American cop wears a face of determination as he continues, "I’m sorry this has taken so long. I know you guys don’t deserve this wait. You are a much respected doctor in this town, Carl. We don’t want to let you down. Now if you don’t mind, I am going to head back to the police station to see if there are any leads on this stalker’s whereabouts. Now you two have a good time at the New Years Ball." With a smile the officer begins to make his way out of their home.

            Carl watches as the front door closes and he then studies his wife’s face. "I’m glad you were here to set me straight, Eve. I’m just so worked up over this whole thing that it has been clouding my judgment. I care for my family so damn much and I just can’t take all this waiting."
           

She walks up to her husband of twenty-nine years and embraces him into a comforting hug, "That is why I love you so much, Carl. You would die for your family. I have never met a man with such compassion and love."

 After saying this, Eve feels a stab of guilt as she recalls two years ago when the truth was made known of an affair she had with resident rich man Gary Jackson. Carl was completely devastated when he learned the truth. She felt like taking her own life for betraying her husband so deeply. However, Carl remained the true man he always was and forgave her completely for the affair that occurred so many years ago. Ever since then, the two of them have had a renewed vitality in their marriage and are closer than ever.

            Suddenly the door flies open. In walks their twenty-seven year old daughter Melissa. Her husband Tom and three year old son Philip file in behind her.

            "Hello mom and dad. We decided to drop by to see if you wanted to all leave together to the New Years Ball tonight. I think it’s best if we all stick together, taking the situation we’re in." She gets the chills as she thinks about a man watching her as she goes about her day. It leaves her with a sick and bitter feeling.

            "Of course, honey. It’s best to stay in a group. Anyway, where is Philip going to be staying while we go? Do you have a babysitter lined up?" Eve ruffles the child’s hair and smiles. Philip just giggles.

            "Yeah, I got a babysitter. Tara’s sister Nicoleoffered because she is just healing from an ankle injury and its best that she doesn’t go to something that’s going to require her to dance." As Melissa says this, Tom approaches her and suddenly plants a kiss on her cheek.

            Melissa smiles and then looks into her husband’s eyes, "What was that for?"

            "Just take it as a sorry for earlier." Tom leaves it at that but Melissa understands Tom completely as she flashbacks to the small argument they had:

            "I just don’t understand why you couldn’t have been honest with me all along about this!" Tom says with a tinge of hurt in his voice. "I love you so much and I want you to be honest with me about everything that goes on in your life!"
     

       "Tom, how many times do I have to tell you? I was ashamed of what happened to me. It’s nothing about not trusting you enough to tell you. Jeez, I thought you were more decent than this, Tom." Melissa forces herself not to get emotional about the events that are in question--her getting raped at 16. She decided to finally come clean to her husband about what happened to her. She lost her innocence forever that night. 

            "Would you please not mention it again!? Tom, I am trying to get over all of this! What happened when I was 16 has been a burden upon me ever since and I regret getting an abortion but it’s in the past and I would like it to stay there! Please, why can’t we just forget about it for at least one night and have a good time at the Ball?" Melissa holds back her tears and quickly returns to putting on her makeup.

            "Melissa? Hello? Are you there?" Eve snaps her fingers in front of her daughter’s face.

            "Yeah, I’m here…I was…I was just thinking about something." She gives Tom a quick glance and he knows exactly what she was thinking about. This causes him to be overcome with a guilty feeling once again for acting so rude about her past earlier.

            "Well I guess we better get going. You look beautiful, by the way." smiles Carl as he looks at his daughter.

            "Thanks, dad." says Melissa with a genuine smile. She is wearing a long white dress that is decorated in blue flowers. The outfit is accented by a white purse that hangs from her shoulder. "By the way, where is Cassie?"

            Carl and Eve exchange looks. Eve is then the one who responds, "Cassie already went to Keith’s place. I guess she couldn’t stand to wait for him to pick her up. You know, I just hope that Keith doesn’t break her heart again. We all know that he still has feelings for Annie Lansing. That is why they broke up the first time."

            "Maybe he really got over Annie. Have you ever thought of that?" Says Melissa as she tries to inject positivism into the situation.

            Eve and Carl don’t look so convinced as the group of them head for their cars. Tom keeps quiet because Keith is his identical twin brother and he doesn’t really want to talk about the whole situation.

            The whole group piles into their separate vehicles. Before enter, Melissa swears she feels somebody’s eyes penetrating her. She quickly brushes the thought away, wanting tonight to be full of fun and not worry.

            "Annie, I can’t believe I actually said yes to you." Says Luke Jackson as he shakes his head while intently trying to put his bow tie on.

            "You know why you said yes to me? -- Because you love me oh so dearly! Aren’t I irresistible?" smiles the fiery red head as she adds drama to each of her words. "Look, Luke. Just think of this as a huge favor to a friend."

            "A favor? Ok. I guess you could call trying to make someone madly jealous so they’ll come back to you a favor." He rolls his eyes while he says this and Annie senses the entirety of his humorous tone.

            "Keith will finally realize what a tart of a blonde Cassie is. We all know that he has feelings for me. He’s only staying with her out of guilt." Annie begins to apply ultra-red lipstick that matches the color of her hair. "Besides, I’ve been doing a huge favor for you ever since that one night in Hawaii ."

            "What are you talking about?" Luke suddenly looks very confused. He doesn’t notice his bow tie dropping to the floor.

            Annie quickly bends down to pick up the fallen bowtie and she begins to put it back on him while saying, "Quit acting like you don’t remember your big confession that one night."

            It all comes back to him as a light bulb looks like it has been turned on in his head, "Oh, that!"

            "Oh, that!! Uh, huh. You are so cute when you act clueless, my little bisexual Barbie doll." Annie has a cutesy tone in her voice as she says this.

            "Bisexual Barbie doll?! Where in the hell did you get that?" Luke doesn’t know whether to burst into a laughter fit or disown her as a friend.

            "I’ll start calling you that in public if you don’t go along with my little plan tonight to make Keith jealous." Threatens Annie with a humorous tone. "What would your father think if he learned that his eldest son was bisexual? I think he would be furious, to say the least."
            "I don’t give a damn what my father thinks. You know that." Luke’s tone grows serious quickly as he thinks about his father Gary. The two of them never got along and they never will. Gary looks down on Luke because of his lack of interest in power and money. Luke looks down on his dad for his complete ruthlessness and disregard for how he hurts his family by his obsession to be in control. Luke feels that one of the greatest things to happen was when his mother Elaine finally divorced his dad’s ass.

            Luke and Annie used to be an item for about a year. That was until the whole truth about Keith and Annie’s feelings came bubbling to the surface on a trip to Hawaii a year ago. Luke was furious with Annie when he learned about it and wouldn’t talk to her at all for a few months. Eventually, Annie managed to "work her magic" and the two realized that they were actually more suitable as friends.

            "Well we better get going. So how do I look?" Annie spins around to give Luke the complete impression of her look. She is wearing a tight and revealing black dress that was meant to turn heads--Keith’s head specifically.

            "You look alright. I’ve seen better, though." Luke tries to keep a serious face, but ends up laughing.

            Annie playfully punches him in the stomach, "Don’t you push my buttons tonight! Now let’s go!" She grabs his hand and drags him out the door.

KEITH HETRICKE’S APARTMENT

            Cassie Jones studies Keith’s expression as she tries to read him like a book. Why are you so worried that Keith is going to leave you for Annie, Cassie? He obviously chose me over her. See, I’m the one wearing this beautiful dress and I’m the one he is taking to the Ball. For a moment, she feels like a high school teenage girl fretting over her date to the prom. However, the date tonight matters so much more to her than her date she took to prom so many years ago.

            Cassie has been insecure all of her life. For some reason, she always felt that her parents loved her twin sister Melissa more than her. It has been a darkness that has followed her for the longest time. Things got to an all time low with her about four years ago when she tried to kill Melissa. Fortunately, she failed at doing so and was able to cry out for help. Eve and Carl had her committed for a year and it helped immensely. She now has no hard feelings towards her sister and wants nothing more than to have a happy life with Keith. However, as of late, her thoughts have been plagued with thoughts of losing Keith to Annie Lansing. She already took Keith back after finding out about his feelings for Annie.

            "I’m sorry I seem to be off in space, Cassie. I just have a lot on my mind tonight." Keith says to Cassie.

            "Are you thinking about Mason and what he did to you and Shayla all those years ago?" Cassie knows that this ordeal from his past has been plaguing his mind ever since the mystery man started stalking Melissa and the rest of the family.

            "I swear I saw Mason, Cassie. I have every reason to believe that it is him who has been stalking your family. I know how he destroyed my life so many years ago when Shayla was having an affair with him. Shayla ended up dead because of Mason and I am vowing to get revenge."

            Cassie wishes she could totally obliterate the burden of Keith’s past. Shayla was the wife of Keith’s who he loved so dearly. She can sense that Shayla will always have a place in Keith’s heart but she wants more than anything for Keith to finally move past Shayla and focus on her.

            "Look, don’t think about that tonight. It is not your fault that Shayla ended up committing suicide. How could you have controlled her fate? And when it comes to saying that Mason is the one stalking our family--well, you don’t know that for sure."

            "I do know it, Cassie! I have this overwhelming gut feeling that it is indeed the same Mason from Melissa’s past who raped her. Look, I know that this is a huge coincidence being that both Melissa and I have been affected by the same man in our life. It’s possible and I am completely sure that it is true." Keith then breathes in a deep breath. "Look, I’m sorry about how I am acting. Tonight is supposed to be a night of celebration."

            Cassie pulls him into a kiss. When they break from it, she dreamily looks into his eyes and says, "Don’t worry about it. I love you and care what’s on your mind. Don’t ever worry about putting me down. I want to talk with you about what’s bothering you."

            Keith studies her eyes. His mind suddenly wonders to Annie. Cassie is so in love with me. How did I ever let things get this far? I do have feelings for Cassie but at the same time--How in the hell can I completely ignore how I feel for Annie?

            Cassie then glances at the clock, "We better get going."

            Keith forces a smile. "Of course. Let’s get out of here." He grabs Cassie’s hand and leads her to the door.

Later on, everyone has arrived at the New Years Ball…

            "Oh Tom, I’m sorry about how bad of a mood I’ve been in lately. I know you care about me and want to keep me happy. The truth is, I just have been thinking about the past so much lately and that’s what’s been getting me down." Melissa states into Tom’s ear gently as they embrace for a slow dance.

            "Honey, I know. I get you. It has been wrong of me to yell at you about it. But I do care about you and that is why I’m so concerned. I just hope you understand." He gives her a quick kiss on the lips and smiles. "Let’s just forget about the past and all of our arguments. Let’s focus on the music and our bodies touching."

            She lets out a little giggle, "Later we can really let our bodies touch, if you know what I mean."

            His laugh is a little louder as he says, "I’m very afraid I do!"

            They let Whitney Houston’s voice guide their bodies to the rhythm of the song. When they listen to the lyrics they indeed believe they will always love each other. The two remember everything that they’ve been through and understand in their hearts that they will make it through their latest misstep.

            Derek Anderson and his fiancée Tara Smith make their way over to Tom and Melissa as the slow song ends and erupts into a dance beat with Kylie Minogue’s "Come Into My World". This annual New Years event is more like a dressy dance club event than a fancy Ball.

            "Melissa, your dress is so stunning." Tara says gleefully as she looks at Melissa’s beautiful dress. "You showed me that picture of it two days ago but it looks so much prettier in person!"

            "Your dress is very pretty, too. White is definitely your color." Says Melissa as she walks around to get every angle her friend. She then grabs Tara ’s hand and drags her toward the snack and punch table. "I’m thirsting to death!"

            Derek and Tom laugh as they watch the women they love have such a fun time. Derek then turns to Tom and has a serious tone, "So Tom, any word on if they found that psycho that’s been watching over you guys?"

          "They haven’t caught him if that is what you’re asking but they have reason to believe that he’ll try something here tonight. There are cops and security watching this place like hawks tonight. He better not try anything or he’s history." Tom says while watching Tara and Melissa, who are scooping some punch into cups. 

            Derek notices Keith and Cassie approaching, "Well here are your twin brother and Cassie."

            Keith and Cassie greet the two men and talk along the same lines of Derek and Keith’s conversation about the mystery stalker. Cassie tightly holds onto Keith’s left arm. I feel like I don’t ever want to let go of him…

            Cassie suddenly feels a tap on her shoulder. She turns around and is shocked to be looking into Annie’s face. Keith notices Annie as well and tries to stay nonchalant.

            "Cassie, could we please go somewhere and talk? I really want to clear a few things up with you." Annie’s tone is sincere but Cassie can’t help but notice the redhead’s longing look towards Keith.

            "What is it that you want to talk about?" Cassie questions though knowing very well what the chit-chat will be about.

            "Just come outside with me for a little bit." Annie’s tone is more firm. She once again gives Keith a dreamy look and then leads Cassie out into the warm night air of Sunrise Bay , Florida .

            "So tell me about how you want to have Keith all to yourself and that you don’t think he is right for me. That is what you drug me out here to say, isn’t it?"

            Annie is a little taken aback by her straightforwardness and pauses then says, "Cassie I didn’t bring you out here to beg you to give up on Keith because he is right for me. I just wanted to tell you that I hope that you aren’t getting yourself into something more than you bargained for. I know that love is blind and I don’t want you to make yourself blind to what’s going on with Keith."

            "When did you ever care about me and Keith having a nice relationship together, huh? Annie, I see right through you. You still care for Keith and you want to just snatch him away from me by any means possible. By placing these doubts in my head, this is just your way to start your big plans to break us up!"

            "Look Cassie, believe what you want. I’m just trying to give you some good advice. I wish we could still be friends but I know that there is no damn chance of that. Keith is hell bent on finding that man who caused him and Shayla so much grief. That has affected him more than you think. And I bet you are going to ask-- How in hell do I know that? Well, he and I have had endless talks about Shayla and his past. Believe me; he’s never going to let it go. And with that anger problem of his--"

            "--SHUT UP!" Cassie screams in annoyance, "You are so transparent! You are trying to place seeds of doubt into my mind and it’s not working! Keith and I also talk about his past and there is nothing wrong with our lines of communication." Cassie folds her arms and turns her back towards Annie.

            Is she trying to convince herself? I know that I’m more right for Keith and in time Keith will see that. Besides, he’s slept with me and I don’t think he’s ever gotten intimate with Cassie. Heck, I bet she’s never got it on with anyone in her life. Annie thinks with a laugh. "Well Cassie, I guess our talk is going nowhere. I’m going to see what my hot date Luke is up to. He is a hottie, isn’t he?" She lets out a laugh as she heads back in the ballroom.

            Cassie rolls her eyes and stays in her spot a little longer and turns to look out at the ocean. It looks like a huge blue blanket. Keith and I will be fine after they find this man and lock him up. Keith will forget about him and his past and focus his attention on me. And no matter what Annie says, there is no way Keith will leave me for her. He’s made his choice. She lets out a sigh and slowly heads back into the building. She quickly scans the crowd for Keith.

"So, did you and Cassie have a friendly talk about how Keith is the perfect guy for Cassie?" Luke humorously questions Annie as he puts a cheese cracker into his mouth.

            "Yes and I went on to offer to be her bride’s maid at the wedding as well!" Annie says laughing.

            "So how did the talk actually go on?" Luke questions.

            "I just told her truthfully how I think Keith is too caught up in this psycho stalker thing and his past to be a true boyfriend to her. I also said that she’s going to be getting more than she bargained for. Look, Luke. I know you think I’m such a horrible person for wanting to interfere with Keith and Cassie but I can’t help it, those two are so wrong for each other. I should be with him. That’s just how damn simple it is!" With that, she scoops up a handful of cheese crackers and stuffs her face as she heads toward the dance floor. "Besides, I think he’s staying with her out of guilt. Oh, that’s right. I never told you that part." She meanders her way back to Luke. "I slept with Keith a little while back."

            Luke begins to cough. "You did?"

            "Is it so damn hard to believe? Yes, right in his apartment. I came over to visit and he was in nothing but a towel and well, --"

            "Stop it right there! I don’t need any details." Luke grabs a cup of punch and drinks it quickly. "So did you sleep with him when they were going out?"

            "No, it was when he was all confused between his feelings for me and so called feelings for her. I don’t know how I was ever friends with her, she’s so naVve and way too damsel in distress." She rolls her eyes. "Oh well, he’ll find his way back into my arms in time. The very near future if my plans go right." She scans the crowd of dancers until she is gazing at Keith. Keith moves his sight from Cassie to her and they lock eye for a moment. He gets a guilty look on his face and turns his eyes from hers and back to Cassie.

            Annie giggles on the inside. "I may not even have to do anything to get Keith to be mine. I think he’ll come running right back to me when he realizes what a tart Cassie is."

            Luke shakes his head in complete disapproval while saying, "Come on, let’s stop talking about your evil plans and get down!" Luke drags Annie out onto the dance floor.

Annie begins to dirty dance with Luke while stealing glances of Keith every now and then. Oh yeah, he’s so jealous! smirks Annie, while she and Luke dance ever-so-close to each other.

OTHER END OF THE BALLROOM…

            "That’s right, my business should be up and running in a few months. Intense construction is going on right now at the moment." Elainesays to Eve and Carl as she takes a sip of wine. "So how has your family been these days?"

            "Well, besides being on the lookout for a psycho we can’t complain." Replies Eve. "I just wish these cops would get this guy behind bars before he does anything to hurt any member of our family or someone else!"

            "I’m completely with you, honey. I’m paranoid to leave any of my family alone." Carl states. "Well I’m going to go chat with Tom for a bit. I’ll leave you two alone."

Carl gives Eve a quick kiss on the cheek and walks off.

            Elaine gets lost in thought as she witnesses the kiss. In her head she imagines having a man who cared so dearly for her like that.

            "Elaine, hello, are you there?" Eve says as she waves her hands in front of her face.

            Elaine snaps out of it, "Oh, I am so sorry! I must have got lost in thought there." She finishes her glass of wine and swallows. It has just hit her that her divorce with Gary has had a stronger effect on her than she believed.

            "You are so lucky to have a wonderful man in your life like Carl. He seems so sweet and caring."

            "Not to mention that he is very forgiving. He forgave me for hiding my affair with Gary many years ago." Eve then continues, "I know I don’t deserve your forgiveness, either. I should have been honest about it so long ago."
            "We already discussed this. It’s in the past and all is forgiven." Elaine says with a warm smile. "Besides, I wasn’t any saint and also hid an affair from Gary . So we all have done things we regret. We learn from our mistakes and try to live on. It’s the cycle of life."

            "Elaine, I just realized how amazing of a person you are. You’ve been through so much in your life yet you still hold your head on high and keep at it. I honestly respect you for that." Says Eve.

            "Thank you. No one has ever said that to me. You know, how about meand you go out and talk over a cup of coffee or dinner sometime? Get to know each other a little better. What do you think?"

            "I would love that." Eve says happily. She never realized how good a friendship her and Elaine could have until this very moment.

Meanwhile, Mason has Tom and Melissa in his sights outside the building. He has managed to escape suspicion from the cops and security guards and has every reason to believe that he’ll manage to carry out his sinister plan.

            "I will have you, Melissa. Just like I had Shayla years ago."He whispers with a creepy smile. He pulls out a cell phone and quickly dials a number. "So do you have your 9 mm ready? I want you to shoot him very soon."

            "Yes, I’m very prepared." Says a man dressed in all black as he paces on the outskirts of the dancing crowd. He carries a 9 mm in his pocket and it is a matter of minutes before he is going to use it...

THAT CONCLUDES THIS EPISODE OF SUNRISE BAY!

Episode 2