“You have our numbers,” I say.
“And you have mine,” he says.
We stopped by the concierge to get pads of paper just for this purpose. Exchange of phone numbers.
“I’ll text you as soon as my phone has some charge,” Alka says. “Call when you land in Los Angeles. I’m going to need to hear your voice.”
Ruby sighs. “I will.” We’re quiet for several minutes before he adds, “This really kinda sucks.”
“It does,” I agree, “but we’ll figure it out.”
Ruby nods. He pulls one of his arms out from between us and wraps it around me as well.
“We’ll get together often,” Alka promises. “Once school starts and everything is settled, we’ll plan our first visit. Okay?”
Ruby sighs again. “Yes. I think I’m going to enroll online so that frees me up for some travel, but I might need to get a job. I can’t keep spending my brother’s money. He worked hard for that.”
“We’ll pay for travel too,” I tell him. “I get that it’ll mostly be you doing a lot of the back and forth because Alka’s work is stationary. Since you’re mobile, you’ll be the one coming and going, so we’re happy to pay for that.”
“I appreciate it, but it’s not just the travel. My brother has paid for a whole lot over the last year, and I really don’t want to keep mooching off him. Again, I have no idea what I’m going to look for since it feels like a catch 22. If I want to make decent money, I need to commit and not choose a bottom of the barrel, anyone-can-do-it job, right? But that means dropping out of school, and if I do that, I’ll probably never go back. The number of people who return after they ‘take a year off’ is so slim!”
“You’ll figure it out,” Alka assures him. “And we’re happy to talk about careers and alternate careers with you. There’s a ton of shit you can do in the world.”
“I think you’re doing the right thing by trying to find your passion,” I add. “We’re fortunate to be able to do things we love, but so, so many people don’t follow their passions and their mental health suffers because of it.”
“It’s hard not to be passionate about a job where orgasms are at the heart of getting paid,” Alka teases.
Ruby laughs. I grin.
There’s a knock on the door, and Alka’s arms tighten for a minute. I kiss the side of both of their heads and release them to answer. “Zip up the last suitcase, okay?”
Alka nods, but he doesn’t move as I leave the room.
I’m not surprised that I find a bellhop or whatever the Kala-equivalent is since we ordered one. “Hello, Mr. Lennon,” he greets with a smile. “Are you ready?”
“Yes,” I tell him. “My husband is just closing up our bag. We have someone with us who’s going to ride to the gates, if that’s okay. Will you bring him… wherever he wants to go once we leave?”
“Of course. I’d be happy to,” he says.
“Thank you. I’ll grab them and our bags. Just a minute.”
He inclines his head, and I leave him where he is to return to my guys. Alka is just setting the suitcase on the floor. Ruby’s on his feet, hugging his memory book to his chest as he watches, lip between his teeth.
I sling my backpack onto my back and take both suitcases’ handles, nudging Alka back to Ruby once he has his pack on his back as well. The bellhop is where I left him, and he takes the suitcases from me.
Alka and Ruby are behind me as we follow him out. There’s a golf cart waiting, and he sets our bags onto the back behind the rear seats. The three of us squeeze onto the back seat together.
We’re quiet as the man drives us to the front gate, carefully maneuvering around pedestrians in the way. It’s only a fifteen-minute ride or so, and far before we’re ready, the ride is over. We’re parked right outside the primary entrance where we’ll pick up our electronics and take a shuttle to the plane.
There isn’t an airport so much as something enormous with tons of planes, long security lines, and first-class lounges. It’s a small tarmac that only sees half a dozen planes a day. They’re on regular schedules, andnothingcomes or goes from Kala outside of those times.
We climb out as the bellhop sets our bags on the ground. He climbs back into his cart but doesn’t pull away.
Alka and I wrap Ruby in our arms again. It’s difficult not to be overcome by emotion. We’ve spent every day together for nearly five weeks. Okay, I didn’t have all five weeks, but it feels like I did. It feels like we’ve already spent a lifetime together, and now we’re being forced in separate directions.
There aren’t any words to say, though I think, like me, bothAlka and Ruby try to think of something. I can tell because they keep taking breaths like they’re going to speak before abandoning whatever it is they thought about.
“We’ll get through this time apart and be stronger for it,” I promise.
