Roadmance

Chapter 8

That answers that. Rebecca had almost worried that Colby wouldn't get back to the hotel in time for the castle bus. Then she worried that his claim of going to the store was simply an excuse and wondered if he had actually taken his bag and left early. But then he returned, nearly breathless and almost losing his grip on his small bag, and he asked if he had enough time to drop the bag off in their room. Rami, their unofficial organizer, said he did, so Colby had hopped on the elevator and returned a few minutes later, breathing steady and his smile almost innocent. "Did they have the calling card you need?" she asked. She had used plenty of euphemisms for condoms before, but she never thought she would add 'calling card' to that list.

Colby nodded as he joined them in the foyer. "Yeah. The clerk asked why I needed so many minutes when we're leaving tomorrow, but whatever."

Is 'minutes' a euphemism now too? Rebecca wasn't sure and she didn't get a chance to ask, because a bus came into view down the road. "Rami, was the bus on the pamphlet bright green?"

"Yeah. Why?" Rami leaned over to look out the window. "That's it! Come on!" He tugged impatiently on Kevin's sleeve, dragging his friend along.

Rebecca and Colby followed, close enough to avoid suspicion but far enough away that they could safely whisper. "Any problems?" she asked. That was vague enough that even if Kevin or Rami did overhear, they wouldn't assume anything.

Colby shook his head. "Nope. Upstairs in my bag. You have...?" He trailed off as they got closer to the bus stop.

"Yeah. In my purse." Rebecca grabbed her wallet and pulled out enough money to cover her ticket, subtly tilting her purse so Colby could see the condoms near the bottom. There were a few other people on the bus, so they sat behind Kevin and Rami. Flirting and planning could wait until later.

As castles went, Rebecca had seen better, but she knew she was fortunate in that regard. Old buildings were commonplace to her, but Kevin, Rami, and Colby had grown up in North America, so castles held a different novelty for them. Rami took pictures of everything, usually from multiple angles, and even gruff Kevin got into the spirit, going through the keychains in the gift shop with gusto. There weren't many opportunities to sneak off, but she and Colby did manage to steal a few kisses here and there. The bus was busier on the way back, so the four of them ended up sitting across from each other, which limited any flirting she and Colby could do, and by the time they got back to the hotel, they barely had time to pack their bags and get on the tour bus. "Longest day ever," Colby muttered when they entered the arena. Rami had gone ahead already, hoping to talk with the promoter, and Kevin had followed to keep his friend out of trouble.

Rebecca looked out at the seats and grimaced. None of their shows had drawn particularly large crowds, but this looked like it might have been the worst of them. There couldn't have been even a hundred people in the stands, and it was a venue built for thousands. "Maybe they'll cancel the show if there aren't enough people?" Even as she said it, she knew it wouldn't happen; the promoter would want his money, even if it wasn't much. How much of that would end up trickling down to the wrestlers was anyone's guess.

Colby grinned. "I'm cool with that. Means we could get back to the hotel sooner and still have time to chat with Kev and Rami before...."

"Yeah."

The show went on, of course, even though the crowd was small and scattered and mostly drunk or bored or both. Even Rami, who was normally a beacon of positivity, looked defeated when they all got on the tour bus at the end of the night. "Well, the next tour has to be better, right?"

Normally when they got back to the hotel, they would at least take their bags upstairs before sprawling in the courtyard, but this time Rami headed straight for the communal couches. "His talk with the promoter didn't go well," Kevin explained, "and... well, he doesn't want to be the one to break it to you, but we're probably not getting paid."