Epilogue
Darius
Darius leaned in the doorway to Fix’s back room and watched Luis run a loving hand over a mid-century credenza he’d gotten at an estate sale the day before.
“Never thought I’d be jealous of a piece of furniture,” he said, “but you’re practically caressing that thing, and it’s kind of turning me on.”
Luis glanced up and gave him a wicked grin before stroking his fingers along the surface. “I was thinking about how it’s going to look in our new place.”
“Yeah? I thought you got this for the shop.”
“I did, but now that I look at it, I think I want it for our place. What do you think?”
“Whatever you want, chico, you know that.” Darius looked down at his watch. “But if we don’t get a move on, Rosa’s going to kill us.”
“Don’t want to have that, do we…” Luis sidled over to Darius and wrapped his arms around Darius’ neck. “…husband.”
Darius grinned. “I will never get tired of hearing you call me that. Or of calling you husband. Or of this.” Darius bent his head and kissed Luis until they were both light-headed and panting.
They’d gotten married in a small ceremony on the beach earlier in the week, but today was the big family celebration at the Herreras’. Darius’ parents were going to be there, along with his brother and his brother’s family, and as many of Luis and Darius’ friends as were available. Ricky had a flight, but Paul, who had recently retired from flying, was going to be there. Greg and Holden were flying in from Denver, while Jake and Micah were driving down from San Francisco, as were Ry and Cart and their two kids.
While Darius was looking forward to the party and seeing family and friends, he was truly eager to be able to thank Ry in person for untangling the mess with the female passenger. It had been Ry who’d found the purchase of a bottle of vodka from the duty-free shop, which substantiated Darius’ claim that the woman had been drunk at the time of the incident. After confronting her with the receipt from the store, she admitted she didn’t remember what had actually happened on the flight with any clarity and that the charge of assault had been her lawyer’s idea. She’d withdrawn her lawsuit against the airline and Darius.
By the time the whole thing was resolved, Darius had quit his job as a flight attendant and was taking business classes through the UCLA Extension and helping Luis, Xander, and the other co-op members set up Fix in an up-and-coming trendy corner of the Los Feliz neighborhood.
“We could just be fashionably late,” Luis suggested as his hands dipped toward Darius’ waist. “We are the guests of honor, after all.”
“And get teased by Micah and Greg? No, thank you.” Darius caught Luis’ hands in his own. “We. Need. To. Leave.”
Luis harrumphed and pouted. “Married less than a week, and you’re already turning into an old fuddy-duddy.”
“There is nothing fuddy or duddy about me,” Darius said and swatted at Luis’ ass. “Let’s go.”
“Fine. The front all taken care of?”
“Half an hour ago.” Darius watched as Luis began shutting down the back room and putting things in order. Luis let his fingers trail over the credenza one last time before picking up his messenger bag and heading toward the back door. “By the way, I sold Xander’s bracelets today.”
“Seriously?” Luis set the alarm and then held the back door open for Darius. “Both?” Darius nodded. The bracelets had been fashioned out of disks of ebony and koa that were held together with gold. They were intricate and elaborate, and Xander had asked seven thousand for the pair. It was a nice windfall for Fix as well as Xander. “I can’t wait to tell him.”
“He’s going to be over the moon.”
“I know.” Darius also knew that the sale brought Luis one step closer to being able to quit flying, something they both wanted.
They reached Luis’ pink Mini Cooper, which still had “Just Married” written across the back window. It had been Ricky’s gift to them before he had to leave for his flight, and Luis refused to clean the window. Ricky had moved out of the condo six months before—right after Greg moved to Denver—but he stayed in touch, joined them at Neon occasionally, and had finally become something of a friend.
Darius thought Luis missed Ricky more than he let on, though it could have been the double-whammy of both Greg and Ricky’s departure and the suddenly very empty condo. Not that either Luis or Darius were complaining about the privacy or the extra space—the second bedroom was now Fix’s auxiliary storage space—but it did sometimes feel as if their place was haunted by their previous roommates.
Shaking off those morbid thoughts, Darius got into the car and took hold of Luis’ hand to give it a quick squeeze before he fastened his seat belt.
“Seat back in an upright position?” Luis asked as he started the car.
“Yup. And all items are securely stowed. Ready for takeoff.”
As Luis pulled out of the parking space, Darius reflected that he’d probably be able to recite the safety speech until he was old and wrinkled. He didn’t regret the years he’d spent flying. It had kept him and Luis close, and that was how Darius always wanted it to be. Side by side. Sharing everything that happened in their lives. Forever.
“I love you, mi amor,” Darius said.
Luis reached out and took hold of Darius’ hand. “I love you, too, cari?o.”
Half an hour later, they pulled into a parking space and walked the block to the Herreras’ hand in hand. Over the past year, they’d done this many times, but today, it was something special because it was their first time as spouses, and Darius couldn’t keep the smile off his face. Life was so good right now, and he was happier than he’d ever been.
The gate was drawn across the driveway when they got to Luis’ house, and the reason for that became apparent as soon as they stepped into the yard. A giggling, dark-haired toddler ran across their path, followed closely by a sandy-haired guy who scooped him up and held him upside down, both of them laughing until Cart lifted him right side up.
Darius instantly knew it was Ry’s husband, Cart, and their son, Xian. He held out his hand. “Cart? Hi, I’m Darius.”
“Oh, hey!” Cart shifted the struggling toddler to one side and shook Darius’ hand. “Nice to meet you in person. Xian, can you say hi?” The toddler went instantly shy and buried his face in his father’s shoulder. Cart shrugged, then turned to Luis. “And you must be Mr. Herrera-Williams.”
Luis’ shocked face made Darius laugh. “He is,” Darius said to Cart, “but we’re still getting used to the new names.”
“Yeah. I remember that feeling. Same thing happens when you have kids and they start calling you Daddy. Or, in our case, b?bí and b?bá.”
“There you are.” All of them turned as another man came around the corner of the house. His face was very familiar to Darius after spending hours on Zoom calls with the lawyer. “I was wondering where this little monster had gotten to.”
Xian held out his hands and started saying, “B?bí. B?bí. B?bí.”
Ry laughed and took Xian from Cart’s arms, then turned toward Darius and Luis. “Hi,” he said. “I’m Ry.” He held out his hand.
Darius grinned. “Sorry, man, a handshake isn’t going to cut it.” He opened his arms slightly. “Can I?”
A moment’s hesitation on Ry’s part, a look that passed between him and Cart, and then Ry nodded and accepted a hug from Darius.
“I can’t thank you enough,” Darius said to him as they stepped apart.
“Me either,” Luis said. He held out his hand, and Ry took it. “What you did for him…for us.” Darius watched Luis’ eyes tear up as the front door to the house opened.
“Ay. There you are!” Rosa said, motioning with a hurry-up gesture. “Come on. Come on. Everyone is waiting for you.”
Darius put a hand on the small of Luis’ back. “You ready, chico?”
“As I’ll ever be,” Luis said, but he was smiling as well as he reached for Darius.
They followed Rosa into the house and through the living room to the kitchen. Once again, Darius was struck by how many times his feet had walked this same path, how much of his life had been spent within these walls. He squeezed Luis’ hand and took a deep breath as Rosa opened the door to the backyard and announced them.
“They’re here,” she said. “Mr. and Mr. Herrera-Williams.”
Darius thought his heart was going to burst as everyone in the backyard clapped and cheered. His eyes blurred their faces into indistinct shapes, but it didn’t matter. The love and joy he felt coming from all of them was exactly the same, and it was perfect. Just like the man standing next to him. Without thinking, he pulled Luis into his arms and kissed him, which made their friends and family go nuts with catcalls and whoops, plus showers of confetti and streamers that draped themselves over Luis and Darius’ heads, but that was perfect as well. He bent Luis backward in a swoony, romantic kiss.
A few hours later, Darius was feeling very content. The party was in full swing, friends and family were mixing well, and, best of all, Luis had been by his side the whole time. When Micah performed a few romantic ballads for them, Darius took Luis into his arms and swayed with him in the center of the people they loved the most, but he only had eyes for Luis.
“I love you,” he said.
“Love you, too,” Luis answered and lifted his chin while tugging Darius down for a kiss. Like Darius was ever going to say no to anything with this man he’d loved his entire life.
A little while later, Luis went into the house to use the bathroom. Darius continued talking to Greg and Holden about their new place and the inn Greg’s parents owned near Aspen.
“You guys should definitely come visit,” Greg said, and Holden agreed.
“We’ll make sure you end up in the Founder’s Cabin.” His eyes twinkled as he looked at Greg. “It’s quite the romantic hideaway. Very private and special.”
The blush that colored Greg’s cheeks told Darius there was a story behind Holden’s words, but he was distracted by a conversation going on behind him. When he heard Andrés’ name, he turned and saw Luis’ father and uncle talking a few feet away. Without being obvious, he listened to their conversation and found out that Andrés had been arrested again. This time, it was for bringing drugs and underage girls across the border, and he was facing time in a federal prison. Darius tried not to feel a certain amount of satisfaction in that, but he failed miserably. That was when he noticed Luis hadn’t come back outside, and his heart beat harder for a different reason than it had all day.
Over the past year, Luis had been seeing a therapist and was doing a lot better with his triggers and anxiety. The nightmares were getting fewer and further between, but they still happened, and every time, Darius wanted to beat the shit out of Andrés for the pain and fear he’d caused Luis.
Darius’ path through the house felt familiar, but for a different reason than it usually did. Now, he was retracing his route to Luis’ bedroom with a sense of foreboding, remembering the night of Marissa’s quincea?era party, reliving some of it because the sounds from the party outside were the same. The music. The voices. He dreaded finding Luis curled into a ball on his bed, dreaded Luis having a flashback to that terrible day when all his alma gemela should experience was joy.
The door to Luis’ bedroom was closed. Darius knocked lightly, then turned the knob and pushed the door open, holding his breath at what he might find inside.
“Hey.” Luis turned and smiled. He’d been standing in the middle of the room but looked relaxed and happy.
“Hey.” Darius closed the door behind himself. “How are you doing?”
“Me?” Luis asked. “I’m fine.” He reached out and pulled Darius to him. “I take it you heard.”
“Yeah. Your dad and uncle were talking about it. You?”
“Mom and Tía Marta.”
A burst of childish laughter came from the yard right outside Luis’ window, and Luis smiled, which made Darius relax slightly. “And you’re okay?”
“I am.” Luis nodded, then shook his head. “I’m glad he’s going to jail. I hope it’s for a long time. But I’m not hoping that he’ll be hurt or anything like that.” He shrugged. “He’s not a part of my life. He’s a part of my past, and he has no place in the future I have with you.” Luis kissed him on the cheek. “I was remembering the night of Marissa’s party, actually. That’s why I came in here.” Turning, Luis took both of Darius’ hands in his. “I can acknowledge the bad that happened that night while also knowing that one very, very good thing came out of it. That was the night I knew I loved you.”
“Chico,” Darius breathed as his eyes filled with tears. “I love you so much. It’s always been you in my heart.”
“And you in mine.”
When they came together, the kiss was gentle but so powerful Darius felt it to the core of his being. He wrapped his arms around Luis and felt Luis’ arms encircle his waist, and it was perfect. Just like the man he loved.
The party was winding down. Ry and Cart had left with their kids more than an hour before with promises to meet up for brunch at the condo. Jamal and his family had also departed, Darius’ niece crying when she found out Ry and Cart’s daughter wasn’t going to be coming home with them. The two girls had bonded almost immediately, so Darius extended the brunch invite to Jamal as well.
At this point, the only people in the backyard were Luis’ immediate family and Darius’ parents in one group, and Darius, Luis, and the flight attendants and their partners in another. Paul had just finished telling them a story about one of his most disastrous flights when his phone buzzed with an incoming message. Then Luis’ phone buzzed, then Micah’s.
“Shit,” Greg said as he pulled his phone out of his pocket, and the screen lit up with an incoming message.
Darius leaned over Luis’ shoulder as he thumbed the screen to life and saw the message was from the flight attendants’ group.
“Oh, my God,” Greg whispered, fear turning his voice into a ghost. He reached out for Holden.
“Fuck,” Micah echoed and showed Jake his screen.
“No. No. No way,” Luis said as he scrolled through the message. “Oh, no.” He put his hand over his mouth. “Ricky’s plane went down.”
THE END