Night Shifts Black (33 page)

“You did this,
Callie,” Casey whispers, tears in his eyes. “Don’t ever tell me you’re no one.”

Speechless, I swallow
hard, and gaze back at the booth.

∞∞∞

It’s a long day for them, but completely
overwhelming for me. Every second, every experience, was so rich and saturated
that my brain seems ready to explode by the time they wrap up the session.

Jon plays the track
one last time for us, and I think it sounds amazing, but apparently it’s not
even done. They still have to mix and master it, although not today. The guys
want to celebrate, and even my exhausted brain can appreciate why that would be
a necessary conclusion to this incredible day.

“We don’t have to stay
long,” Casey assures me as the car pulls up to the entrance of a club. There’s
a long line snaked to the door, but Eli and Sweeny don’t seem deterred in the
least as they saunter toward the entrance.

“You sure you’re up
for this?” I ask Luke as we climb out of the car, and am surprised when he
smiles at me.

“No, probably not, but
it’s kind of mandatory, huh?” he asks with a knowing glint. He understands I’m as
(not) excited about this as he is.

The bouncers let us in
without even a second of hesitation, and I wonder how everyone else on the
planet is able to recognize these guys except for me. No wonder they found my
ignorance so amusing.

Casey seems
uncomfortable for some reason, and I see him constantly glancing at Luke. I do
as well, and notice he’s stiffened quite a bit, a huge change from his smile
just a moment ago.

“It’s not the same
club as that night,” Casey whispers, leaning close to my ear so I can hear him.
“But it’s similar.”

I meet his gaze,
concerned, then look back to Luke. “Should we go?” I ask Casey, suddenly
terrified for some reason. “Is he ready for this?”

“I don’t know. We need
to keep an eye on him.”

We’re both studying
Luke now, and relax a bit when he requests a table. The club is packed, so I’d
be shocked if they have any available, but the hostess consults with some
colleagues, and before I know it, we’re being led past more security and up a
set of stairs to a secluded balcony. There are maybe five other tables
surrounded by couches up here, and the hostess shows us to the empty one.

“Please let us know
what you need,” she says, and Sweeny recites a surprisingly extensive list.

She smiles and
promises to have that sent right up.

“You good?” I ask
Luke, dropping beside him.

He gives me a weak
look. “I don’t know yet,” he says, staring through the railing at the packed
dance floor below.

I loop my arm through
his and lean against his shoulder.

“We got you, kid,” I
say, and can feel him relax.

I sense Casey’s gaze
and reach over with my other hand to grab his. He squeezes back, and the three
of us sit in silence while Eli and Sweeny take off to one of the other tables.

“You know them?” I
ask, and cringe at Luke and Casey’s amused grins.

“Do you not have any
relationship with pop culture? Like, at all?” Casey asks in disbelief.

I shrug with a
sheepish smile, and he shakes his head.

“That’s Andis Carver
and Kendra Malkin, hon,” Luke explains, his expression mirroring Casey’s.

My jaw drops. “Wait,
the real Andis Carver and Kendra Malkin? Like, the movie stars?”

Luke laughs. “Yes, the
movie stars.”

“Wow. I can’t believe
I’m ten feet away from them!”

I can feel Casey and
Luke’s looks of disbelief and turn to them defensively. “What?”

“What?” Casey asks in
exasperation.

Luke is laughing so
hard now, I don’t know what to do except stare in utter confusion. Casey is
just shaking his head, obviously just as confused by me.

“What?” I repeat,
totally lost.

“Callie! You’re best friends
with Luke Craven, freakin’ dating Casey Barrett, superstars from rock sensation
Night Shifts Black, and what finally impresses you is that you’re at the same
club as Andis Carver?” Casey cries.

I laugh, finally
starting to understand, and shrug with a grin. “I suppose I can see your
point…” I grab a napkin and hold it up. “So does that mean I’m not allowed to ask
for an autograph?” I tease, and Casey pulls me down and kisses me instead. I
giggle and settle against him.

“No autographs,” he
mutters, and I can actually feel the moment when he rolls his eyes.

∞∞∞

Luke, Casey, and I spend our entire time at
the table laughing and talking. It actually turns out to be a fun night,
definitely more than I expected when we pulled up, and despite the potentially
awkward start, even Luke seems relaxed and in good spirits when we leave. As
usual, we lost Eli and Sweeny somewhere along the way, so the three of us
return to the suite alone.

“How you feeling, rock
star?” I ask Luke, after we’re safely back in 403.

He smiles at me.
“Good. Better than I thought I would, if I’m honest.”

“Yeah? Good. I’m glad.”

I give him a quick hug,
then take Casey’s hands.

“And what about you,
my super famous and disgustingly talented boyfriend?”

He shakes his head
with that signature Casey Barrett grin. “Knock it off. We get it. You. Don’t.
Care.”

I shrug. “Well, I
mean, maybe I would if you’d been in a few B movies and almost got nominated
for an Oscar a decade ago.”

“I have an Oscar,
sweetheart,” he returns, and I laugh.

“Point, Barrett,” Luke
calls from the fridge. “You two want anything while I’m here?”

I squeeze Casey’s
hands and lead him toward the couch. “Just water for me. How about a movie,
guys?”

Casey nods. “I’m in.
Luke?”

“Depends. You
lovebirds aren’t going to make-out the whole time, are you?” he mutters, and I smirk.

“I don’t know. Casey’s
mad at me, so you’re probably safe.”

Casey shakes his head,
and I laugh as he wrestles me to the couch.

“Yep, that’s what I
thought. I’m out,” Luke jokes as he rounds the corner to join us.

“Oh, stop and sit
down,” I bark, patting the cushion beside me.

He smiles and hands me
my bottle of water while Casey and I adjust to more practical positions. I pick
up the remote, but hesitate when I sense there’s more that needs to be said.
Luke has that far-off look again, but there’s something different about it this
time.

“You ok?” I ask,
studying him for any of the usual signs.

He surprises us when
the wistful look spreads into a content smile. “You know, a year ago I wouldn’t
have been able to do what we did tonight without getting wasted and making a
dick of myself. Six months ago I wouldn’t have been able to even make it through
those doors at all. And then tonight…” He looks at me, and my heart swells. “I
think I’m a different person now.”

“We all are, man,”
Casey says quietly.

I nod, and search
Luke’s eyes. “We are. You don’t have to be a ghost anymore.”

The Next Day.

We all fall asleep on the couch this time. I
know because I wake up a few times during the night to see Luke asleep on the
vertical side, while I share the horizontal piece with Casey. But by the time I
get up the following morning, Luke is gone. I wonder if he moved back to his
room, since I don’t see him anywhere in the main area of the suite.

I force myself up and
stretch, feeling nervous for some reason, but not wanting to totally give in to
such an irrational feeling. We had a great night. We’d found an Andis Carver
classic, and Luke was in good spirits throughout the movie, joking and laughing
with us. So why is my heart pounding in my chest just a few hours later?

I almost laugh out
loud to myself at this ridiculous rush of adrenaline as I move to the hallway.
The guest room is empty. The office. The extra bathroom. Of course they are
because Luke is in his room. Asleep, maybe showering, and I’m going to disturb
him because I suddenly can’t breathe and feel like I’m suppressing a scream. I
swallow and knock.

No answer.

I knock again.

Nothing.

My hands are shaking
now and suddenly I know why. My heart stops as the alarm takes over. What did
Elena do with her last breaths? Remind the people she loved most how important they
were.

No. No!

I shove through Luke’s
door, completely frantic now.

“Luke!” I cry, sudden tears
burning my eyes. “Luke, where are you?”

His bed is empty,
still made from room service the day before. His bathroom is dark. I turn the
light on, but it’s empty, too.

“Casey!” I cry,
running from Luke’s room back to the hallway. My frantic screams have startled
him awake, and he bolts up from the couch, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

“What? What’s wrong?”

“It’s Luke! He’s
gone!”

Casey looks confused.
“What do you mean he’s gone?”

I shrug helplessly,
not even sure where to start. “I don’t know. He’s not here! I was worried about
him and went to check on him and he’s not in his room, not in the office!”

“Ok, calm down. Maybe
he just left to get breakfast or something,” Casey says, but his own voice is
wavering.

He puts his arms
around me, and we hold each other for a moment, trying to piece together what’s
happening and what to do with it.

“Oh, god, Casey. What
if he was saying goodbye last night?” I whisper, the words oozing out like
venom on my lips. I’m having trouble breathing.

I can feel Casey tense,
and hold him tighter.

“No, he wasn’t. He’s
fine. He has to be fine.”

I nod, completely
numb.

“I’m going to call the
front desk and see if they can give me any information. Callie, it’s going to
be fine, ok? I’m sure there’s an explanation.”

I can’t even muster a
nod this time as he gently pulls away and moves toward the room phone. While
he’s doing that, I call Luke’s, but I’m not surprised when it goes straight to
voicemail. I try a text, but that doesn’t go through either. His phone must be
off.

“Hi, this is Casey
Barrett from Room 403. We’re trying to get in touch with Luke and are wondering
if he mentioned where he was headed this morning on his way out…sure, yeah, I
can wait…” He glances over at me. “They’re going to ask the lobby employees if
any of them saw or spoke to him.” His face changes and he turns back to the
phone. “Yeah, I’m here…uh-huh…yeah…wait, what? Really…did he say where he was
going or what he was doing? Ok…thanks…um, no, that’s ok…thanks for your help.”

He hangs up the phone
and stares at me. There’s nothing I like about the look on his face.

“What is it?” I ask,
my voice barely audible.

He clears his throat.
“They said they saw him leave about an hour ago carrying an old chair. He
didn’t talk to anyone.”

I pale. I can feel the
blood draining from my face and instinctively rush toward the office. I throw
open the door and, sure enough, The Chair is missing. All that’s left are four
small indents in the carpet serving as a grotesque monument to its powerful
presence. And now, devastating absence.

“It’s gone,” I whisper
as Casey comes up behind me. The tears start to fall now, and I inexplicably
find myself getting angry more than anything. Furious at Luke for making us
love him, coming so far, only to give up at the finish line.

“Callie…” Casey’s arms
wrap around me again, and I turn to settle into him. We stand in silence for a
long time, having no idea what to say, what to do. We don’t know where to start
looking for a suicidal man with a chair, and the cops would just laugh at our
“emergency.” So we do nothing because after everything we’ve done over the last
month, there’s nothing left to do.

Then, suddenly, a
crash.

I straighten, and
Casey and I exchange a shocked look before running toward the kitchen. Our door
is opening, and before he can even get through it, two roommates are tackling
Luke in the entryway.

He laughs at us and
almost drops the cup carrier and bag he’s holding.

“What’s this?” he
asks, but I’m not ready to let go.

“You were gone,” I
whisper. “We were so scared.”

He shakes his head in
disbelief. “I went to get breakfast,” he gasps, holding up the evidence for our
review.

His face changes as he
studies us. “Wow, you guys were really scared.”

I nod and wipe the
tears from my eyes. Now, tears of relief.

I step back and search
his face. “The chair was gone. The lobby employees said you left with it.”

He almost seems
embarrassed as I let him go, and he drops the food on the counter.

“Yeah. I returned it.”

I stop. “You returned
it?”

He nods. “To Jemma’s.
I shouldn’t have stolen it in the first place.”

“But…”

“I don’t need it
anymore, Callie. It’s not who I am, like you said.”

I close the gap and
give him another giant hug, this time making sure he knows that no matter how
bad things get, he is never going to be allowed to leave us. That he is loved
too much to be a memory. I still can’t speak, but Casey can.

“Dammit, Luke. Can you
leave us a freaking note next time?”