Warning: nudity, adult situations, language. Reader discretion is advised.
Monte Vista, Present Day...
The next morning Cameron had a meeting with an estate agent. Now that he’d be splitting his time between Bridgeport and Monte Vista, he was looking into buying a second home in the provincial town.
He tried to get Michaela to come with him, after all they’d be sharing the new residence, but she declined. She wanted to head back to the commune and fix things with her band mates.She was convinced that a simple call to her uncle would resolve everything, undo the mess she’d made.
But a few minutes into her video call with Krisis, she knew there’d be no fixing this mess.
Michaela begged and pleaded with her uncle to draft another contract, but Krisis couldn’t, his hands were tied, she knew that O+ Records took on as many as five few new artists per year, and they’d already met that number with Devon.
“There has to be another way,” Michaela tried again, she was almost in tears now.
“Do you mind telling what’s going on?” Krisis stared at her intently through the screen.
“I made a mistake,” Michaela wailed, and it took Krisis a long time to calm her down and get the whole story from her.
“See, I need to fix this, I have to make things right,” she finished off as she quickly wiped away her tears with the back of her hand.
Krisis sympathized with her, but there really was nothing he could do.
“Mickey Mouse, you know I love you sweetheart, and there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you. But I run a business, and I gave you a chance. If I cut you a deal, I’d have to shatter someone else’s dreams, and that’s not how I do business.”
And with that, Krisis turned the webcam off before his resolve could crumble.
Over the next few days, Michaela tried to fix things with the band. She begged, pleaded and apologized. All three accepted her apologies of course, but the trust in their little group had been irrevocably broken.They couldn’t work with her if they couldn’t trust her. And they didn’t want to replace her, because they didn’t think anyone else could bring the same energy she’d brought to the group.
And so with heavy hearts, after a two month run in Monte Vista, the Drifters posted a message on their Facebook page and announced they were going their separate ways.
Their small fan base was devastated, but not as much as The Drifters themselves.
Two days later, Lowell and Hayden packed up their instruments and their bags. Michaela and Rene saw them off.
“We did say when the times comes, we’ll pack up our instruments and go our separate ways, I guess that time has come,” Hayden reminded them just before he got in the passenger seat; Lowell was already behind the wheel, impatiently drumming his fingers on the steering wheel, like he couldn’t wait to get the hell out of there.
Rene ran to him. He rolled down the window, and they shared a long kiss before the brothers sped out of the driveway.
Rene and Michaela watched the car race down the winding road, until it vanished in a cloud of dust…
The next morning when Michaela woke up, she found a note on her pillow. It was from Rene, and it read, “See you later, alligator. Never stop strumming!”
She raced downstairs, but she was too late, Rene was already gone.
Michaela drifted outside and she found Sofia in the garden. Her friend’s mom explained that Adrian had taken Rene to the airport; her flight to Sunlit Tides was leaving in half-an-hour. She’d never make it in time to say goodbye.
Back in her room, she called Cameron, and he was at the commune in no time.
To cheer her up, he took her for a picnic at the beach, but Michaela couldn’t enjoy it, her heart was heavy with sadness.
“I guess we’re going home,” Cameron said as they watched the sun set. Michaela shook her head.
“No. I can’t come home now.”
“Why not?” Cameron could feel himself lose it, and he forced himself to calm down, he disengaged their hands and put a little bit of space between them.
“Because I’m not ready to, I need to see the world, travel-” Cameron cut her off though. He was tired of waiting for her, exhausted from travelling to Monte Vista. If she had a band and she was launching her music career, he was willing to make it work. But she had nothing to stay for in Monte Vista, and everything to live for in Bridgeport. And he told her this, “The jet leaves at 10:00. I hope you’ll be there. But if you are not, I am done running after you. I’m done trying to make you see how much I need you.”
“Please don’t do this. Don’t make it harder than it should be. I’ll still see you!” she begged him. But he wouldn’t drop it.
“It’s not me that I’m worried about Michaela. I can follow you to the ends of the world if that’s what you want. But your parents are neck deep in shit. Your father is facing a possible death sentence and your mother came very close to losing your baby brother because she was worried sick to death about you.”
A sharp sound caught in her throat as she struggled to breathe, she felt like someone had struck her across the face.
“I didn’t know.” She shook her head, denying the truth in Cameron’s words.
"You would have, if you’d checked in more often!” Cameron told her quietly.
Suddenly it wasn’t just about her parents. It was everything. All his anger, all his hurt poured forth.
"You would have, if you’d checked in more often!” Cameron told her quietly.
Suddenly it wasn’t just about her parents. It was everything. All his anger, all his hurt poured forth.
“I get that you were hurting, but did you ever stop to think that I'm hurting too, that everyone around you is hurting, did it ever occur to you that I needed you? How do you think I felt knowing I couldn’t protect you?”
“Cam, I-” she tried to reach for him, but he held up his hands, he was through talking. He rapidly made his way to the car, and she followed him.
The ride back to the commune was tense; she kept stealing sidelong glances at him, only to look away when his gaze clashed with hers. She wanted so desperately to hold him, and comfort him, she wanted to promise him she’d never leave him, but every time she tried to reach out to him, he’d recoil from her.
At the commune, she invited him up to her room. She stripped off her clothes and promptly slipped under the covers. Despite his anger, he joined her a moment later. She wrapped her arms around him, and held him close to her.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered, hoping if she said the words long enough, he’ll start believing her.
“I know,” he told her as he enfolded her in his embrace.In the tense silence, surrounded by darkness, her mouth sought his to give and receive comfort. Her hands wandered over his expansive chest, trailing an uncertain path down his abs, to his hard length, her fingers encircled him the same instant he deepened their kiss, taking her breath away as a tide of emotions surged through her.
She rose above him, getting ready to join their bodies, but then she caught her reflection in the mirror, and for a while she couldn’t move, she was suspended in time, staring at the face she knew belonged to her, but didn’t recognize. She’d changed so much, and not in a good way.
Everything she’d done over the last few months had been selfish, leaving home, abandoning her parents and the only man who truly loved her, and lying to her band mates. This wasn’t her; she never used to be so self-centered.
“I don’t want to be this person anymore,” she cried, more to herself, but Cameron had heard her.
He pulled her down again, running his hands up and down her body; he placed soft kisses along her collar bone, making her press closer to him. She sighed his name loudly when his hands caressed her breasts, and his fingers lightly squeezed her nipples, causing them to harden with yearning.
He lowered his hand to the small of her back, and the other to her center, his fingers found her warmth, Michaela let out a quiet sob then, she rubbed herself on his palm, in rhythm with his fingers as he squeezed and tugged at her bud.
She whimpered loudly at the sensation, the sound breaking his last shred of self-control. In one swift motion, he pushed his hard length upwards, joining their bodies at last.
So slowly he moved at first, then he gradually quickened his pace, Michaela knew if they kept this up, she wouldn’t last long, so she leaned forward and kissed him deeply, forcing him to slow down.
Cameron broke the kiss, and pulled away, long enough to turn her around, and thrust into her from behind. She bit her bottom lip, trying to stop herself from screaming her pleasure, as he filled her completely.
Soon his grunts and growls mingled with hers as he pushed in and out of her in steady strokes, each quick thrust sent her closer to the edge, and at one point she didn’t know where she ended and he began, that’s how thoroughly enmeshed she was with him.
“I love you,” she screamed at last as she contracted all around him, her body writhing beneath his as he gave one final thrust and growled his release…
They fell back on the bed; Michaela nestled in Cameron’s arms.
“I’m so sorry I shut you out, it was so selfish of me. I don’t want to be this person anymore. I don’t want to keep hurting everyone I love.” She cried on his chest.
Cameron didn’t say anything; instead he kissed her temple and got up from the bed. With tears brimming in her, Michaela watched him get dressed.
At the door, he turned back and gave her a long look. “I love you, but I’m willing to let you go if that’s what you want. I can’t keep waiting for you to make up your mind. The jet leaves at 10:00 tomorrow. I hope you’ll be there. But if you are not, I guess this is goodbye.”
At 09:30 the next morning when Cameron boarded the jet, there was no sign of Michaela. His disappointment, burned hot and deep, like his heartache.
He pulled out his phone to check his messages, and he almost cussed when he saw she hadn’t tried to contact him.
He felt guilty about his ultimatum, he’d obviously pushed her too far, and it really wasn’t his intention, he just wanted her to come home that’s all.
At 9:55, just before takeoff, he turned off his cell phone, leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes, wishing he could fall asleep and forget the choices he’d made.
They were barely five minutes in the air when he felt someone nudge his shoulder.
“Is this seat taken?” Michaela smiled, tears shimmering in her eyes.
Cameron pulled her down on his lap, and kissed her long and hard, running his hands through her hair.
“How?” He asked when they finally came up for air.
Michaela explained she’d camped at the airport the whole night because this was one flight she didn’t want to miss, and at 9:00am the pilot and his staff were kind enough to let her on board, and she was still in the bathroom freshening up when he got on.
“You are crazy, you know that! Camping at the airport the whole night, who does that?”
“Someone’s who’s crazy about you.” She replied as she bumped their foreheads and tapped his nose with hers…
