50 Shades of Drake 5 and 6

More Life: Chapter Twenty-Four

    Carlos was waiting for him when he returned to his suite. 

    "What are you doing here?" Aubrey asked curtly, waving his room key card in front of the electronic door lock.

    Visibly perturbed, Carlos stalked after him into the room. "You're welcome for helping you with your crazy search Carlos, you're welcome for keeping you sane Carlos, I'm getting ready to explain what the fuck just happened at the video shoot, Carlos."

    "All of that," Aubrey allowed, making a beeline for the hotel room bar so he could pour himself a drink.

    Watching him in silence, Carlos raised his hands to his hips. "It was her, wasn't it?"

    Aubrey slid a glance at him before taking a swig of champagne. The bubbly drink was always a guarantee of lightening his spirits and helping him to see the silver lining in any given situation. 

    "You can play the silent game all you want. I know it was her. No one else would've made you freeze like that. No one else would've made you chase them like that."

    Aubrey offered him a glass.

    Carlos shrugged and went to sit in one of the arm chairs facing the television in the room. "Are you going to tell me about it?"

    "It was her."

    The Latino's eyes widened. He mustn't have expected Aubrey to be that direct. "Seriously? And you weren't imagining her?"

    "You saw her, didn't you?" Aubrey returned.

    Stunned, Carlos sat in silence. He accepted the drink when Aubrey handed it to him. "She spoke to you?"

    Aubrey didn't know how safe his hotel room was. Apparently, he didn't know much. Everything he had thought for close to the past year had been a lie. "The FBI staged her death and funeral."

    "Fuck!" Carlos shouted unexpectedly. "I knew it!"

    "Points to you," Aubrey allowed. "You did call that."

    "What else did she say?"

    "They wanted me to continue thinking she was dead, so I didn't give Palmer's crew any suspicion of her being alive. If anyone catches wind of that, both of our families, along with all of us, could be in danger. I was considering letting Chubbs in on this, because he has a great head for investigative shit, but she told me that no one else could know." He paused. "She...knows that you know. And she knows you're here."

    Carlos wiped at his tears before Aubrey even realized they were there. He bobbed his head up and down. "She's really alive. No bullshit, she's really okay."

    Aubrey nodded.

    Carlos stood from his chair and walked over to hug him.

    Because Aubrey needed it, he allowed it. It was in his nature to be careful about who he allowed to touch him. In this case, though, it was warranted. They'd both experienced a major loss that turned out not to be a loss at all. "I touched her," Aubrey mumbled into Carlos's shoulder. "She was fucking solid. Real. She's okay. She's...better than okay. She was alert and sharp. She knew when to break things off and retreat. Whenever we could hear people getting close, she kept a close monitor on that shit and left."

    "Damn. She's acting like an FBI agent herself."

    Aubrey laughed and wiped at his eyes. "Yeah. She really did sound like some sort of operative."

    "When we were all watching you two, I kept hoping she would just...get a little closer or step into the light," Carlos remembered. "A part of me had to see that it was her. I wanted to believe it was her. You know? You accused me of being skeptical, but that was a defense mechanism for myself. In a way, it was easier to believe she was really gone, rather than get my hopes up about her being here and then having those hopes crushed."

    "That's why I didn't tell you the real reason for this island visit at first," Aubrey confessed. "Just in case I was wrong. But she's here, being watched over by the FBI who believes that her life is still at risk."

    Carlos frowned into the drink Aubrey had prepared for him. "So...now what?"

    "I don't have the slightest," Aubrey admitted.

    "If that's the case, can we take tomorrow off from all of the detective bullshit? The bartender guy from your video asked me out on a date, and I'm into him."

    Aubrey's brows shot up. "I mean...yeah, of course."

    Carlos took down the liquor in his glass in one swallow, then set the glass on the nearest end table. "Thanks, Aubs!" he called with a wave of his hand as he left the room.

    Aubrey stared after him. He didn't know what he'd expected...maybe a bit of a crying session. More talk. A determination to find where Destiny was stationed and a dedication until they found her. He wasn't sure. What he hadn't expected was for Carlos to leave the room so suddenly once he'd received confirmation that his best friend was truly okay. 

~~~~~~

    As soon as Carlos cleared the threshold and the door at his back was closed, he collapsed to the hotel hall floor. With his palms pressed together, he uttered many thank yous to the Lord above. "I'm still unclear how you feel about the gays," he said, shaking his finger towards the ceiling. "But you looked out for my girl and had her back. You looked out for my man crush and had his back. You've allowed me to see him shirtless multiple times throughout this entire trip, which leads me to believe that you're at least halfway okay with the gays. And you got me a date with one of the hottest guys I've seen on the island thus far. So..." He made a flamboyant gesture and gave the ceiling a look. "I'm just saying. If you're okay with us, can you let the fucking zealots know, so they can leave us the fuck alone? I'm just saying. Oh, and thank you for saving my friend's life. Amen. Or some shit." 

    He stood up, sighed, dusted off his pants, and sashayed to his own hotel room before dropping onto his bed as if he were a hundred pounds heavier than he was. 

~~~~~~

    Day 2 of the video shoot went off without a hitch. Aubrey had an issue with his own mind wandering, but that was the only concern. Everyone else, including the hired model from NYC, were on their game for that day. 

    A fancy boat had been chartered and cruised the seas with Aubrey, his crew and the selected talent on board. His music was played over loudspeakers and everyone looked cheerful and merry for the camera. The footage made the event look like what it was: a party. People drinking and dancing, hanging onto the rails with safety personnel tucked away nearby, the yacht pool full of vibrant people eager to be on camera. 

    Aubrey was in a mode of trying to redeem himself for the previous day. The film crew had requested professionalism from the talent, and he'd shown anything but. He made sure to interact with the talent more than he had the previous day, joked around with them and gave them positive encouragement. Only when he found Chubbs giving him a weird look did he wonder if he was pouring on too much positivity. He was pulling a complete one-eighty from yesterday. It was a drastic demeanor change. This is probably why the FBI was so concerned about me knowing Destiny is still alive, he realized. There is a lightness to me that wasn't here yesterday. There is a more carefree nature that is the complete opposite of how I felt yesterday. I can't be quite this happy and energetic. I need to tone it down.

    So he did. He did a gradual course correction. Still interacted with the talent, just not quite as buoyant. He snuck off several times to steal moments for himself, moments to breathe and get himself through the shoot. Then he was back topside, dancing and rapping to the camera while his talent cheered him on from behind.  

    When the shoot was done, he retired to his room and scrolled through old photos of him and Destiny. He lovingly stroked those photos, touched the long dark hair she'd had. Sure, she looked different now...but she was his Destiny. The same woman. A little more hardened, because of what she'd been through. He always knew how to soften her up, though. He had a natural knack for guiding women towards appreciating their own femininity. Whatever it was she had been through left her feeling like she had to be tough right now. It was an understandable response, considering the fact that she'd nearly been killed. As soon as she returned to the safety of his arms, though, he was going to make sure she knew that he was tough enough for the both of them.