“You’re a pop star. I hardly think you lead a boring life.”
“I didn’t say it was a boring life, just highly structured and hectic as hell. It just feels good to have nothing to do… nothing to worry about. I’m free.”
I studied him a moment, not sure what he meant by ‘free’, but it certainly seemed a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. I wondered what the burdens of a person who lived a sun-kissed life with money, talent, and unlimited women at his fingertips looked like.
“So, this free world you speak of… do you mean free as in ‘liberty and justice for all’?”
“No, free as in ‘I almost died so now I’m really going to live.’”
“Until the sun comes up and life goes back to normal,” I said, not realizing how pessimistic I sounded until Bodhi’s sails deflated. Deep in thought, he traced lines on the kitchen table with his finger.
I touched the moving muscles in the back of his hand, surprised by the quiver that sizzled up my spine. “Hey, I’m sorry.”
“I get where you’re coming from, I do, but here’s the thing, Breeze. I don’t want things to go back to normal. I’m done doing the same old shit. Why can’t we just be whoever we want to be?”
He could. There was nothing holding him back. Bodhi was an adult with loads of cash to make any dream a reality.
“I already am who I want to be,” I answered honestly.
Bodhi stared at me like I was some rare white tiger. “Really? You’re happy with your life?”
“Yes. I mean of course I hope there are surprises along the way, but overall, I’m happy. Why? You’re not?”
Pondering, his brows drew together. “I don’t hate my life, if that’s what you mean. I’m lucky to have experienced everything I have. But in the process, I think I’ve sort of lost myself. Tonight was a wake-up call for me. If I don’t take control now, I never will. So, no I’m not going back to normal… not until I’ve tasted a little bit of freedom anyway.”
Oh damn! Where did I sign up to be included in his liberation? Somehow I just knew it would be epic. “Damn Bodhi, you were only in the shower for ten minutes.”
“I know.” He shrugged. “I think fast.”
“Okay then. If you had unlimited freedom and no time or money restraints to hold you back, what would you do?”
“You mean like a bucket list?” Even as the question left his lips, he appeared to be giving it serious thought.
“Yes. For example, someday I want to rent a motorhome and drive across the states, visiting all the famous road trip attractions, like the world’s largest fork or the 30-foot long corndog.”
“Wh… wow, okay. That doesn’t sound fun at all - but good for you.”
I smiled at his diss. “Hey, you asked what was on my bucket list and that’s it. So tell me, Popstar, what could you possibly desire?”
“I want to go camping.”
“Camping?” I gawked at my handsome companion. “That doesn’t require time or money… hell, you could even get by without toilet paper for that one. I thought bucket list items were big, grand dreams fulfilled.”
He raised a brow at me. “And a 30-foot long corndog is a grand dream?”
I shrugged.
Appearing reflective, Bodhi admitted. “Every day for me is big and grand. I want to experience the small stuff.”
“Like?”
“I don’t know. I’ve been working my whole life, so sometimes I feel like I missed out on being a kid. I’ve never run through a sprinkler or flown a kite or even been on a swing. That’s what I want… the simple things in life.”
My smile wilted as I stared into Bodhi’s pretty eyes. While I was looking ahead to a future I hoped would come, Bodhi was looking behind at a past that never was.
Suddenly this guy who appeared to have everything might possibly be the least privileged of us all.
“What about your parents? They never did those things with you?”
