3. Coop
COOP
In my Reflection Room, I center my morning meditation on welcoming the goodness of being able to replace my lost clothes.
I’m blessed to have a job that allows me the ability to go to a store and purchase whatever I want.
My build enables me to wear almost anything, so that is another point in the plus column.
The best part is I don’t need to make any real decisions, since a professional stylist will be guiding me.
These are all good things. Growing out of the very bad thing of losing my luggage.
Which contained—no, I choose to focus on the positive.
Relaxed, I return to my bedroom and slip into a UC tour shirt, one I swiped from the merch counter at the Oscars. At least it’s clean and not torn. Another positive.
The shirt smooths over my only pair of jeans, courtesy of Tris. Sitting down, I tie my sneakers, then put in my hoop earrings. Darren gave me these when we were signed. I doubt anyone else knows where I got them, but it doesn’t matter. Every time I wear them, I remember.
At least they weren’t in my lost luggage.
Locking up behind me, I take in the stillness of my Zen Garden.
The lines are as I raked them last night, in perfect parallel to each other.
One benefit to having this house in LA is it barely ever rains or is windy, so my garden remains in excellent condition year round.
I walk by the shrubbery and notice some leaves out of place, so I pluck the offenders and caress the rest of the bush.
A gorgeous butterfly flits by me. Everything is perfect.
Outside the garage, I toss the offending greenery onto the grass, then hop into my Range Rover. Before I do anything else, though, I pull out my sunglasses and put them over my eyes like I’ve been doing for years. Ever since Lillian was exposed.
My next order of business is to plug the address of the store Nese texted me into my GPS.
Assuming traffic remains as it is, I should arrive there in twenty minutes, which is ten minutes before our eleven o’clock start time.
With any luck, we’ll be done by lunchtime as Río and I have been to a fabulous Thai restaurant nearby.
With one last deep inhale, I place the SUV in drive.
The phone rings from my Bluetooth, which I accept.
“Hey, Río, surprised to hear from you. I thought you’d be shacked up with Hayden.”
“Yo, douche, she’s taking a shower. Any luck with your luggage?”
I sigh. “No, man. It never arrived. Luke did a search but it’s like the suitcases disappeared into thin air.”
“That sucks. Did you have anything of value in there?” I can hear our drummer banging on what I assume to be a table.
Dare I share? He’s my best friend and would more than understand. I suck in my breath. “Remember the picture you took of Darren and me in elementary school?” I fiddle with my hoop earring. “The one on the playground, right after he had his first lesson on keyboards.”
He whistles. “Damn.”
“Yeah.”
I drive in silence for a few bars. Then, in a low tone, he says, “I’m sorry.”
Following Zen practice, I try not to assign value to possessions, but this one cuts. Stitches required.
Focusing on the road and my current task, I change the subject. “I need to buy a whole new off-stage wardrobe.”
“I wouldn’t want to be you. Where are you going?”
I appreciate his rolling with my conversation. “Luke arranged for Nese to shop for me. I have to go along as the hanger and try things on.”
My best friend chuckles. “So you’re a clothes hanger today for a twenty-year-old? I wish I could get a video of this!”
“Ha ha asswipe. This should take like two hours max, then I’m going to the Thai place near The Grove.”
“Oh, damn. I love that restaurant. How about Hayden and I meet you there?”
“Thought that might get your attention. If I’m lucky, I’m thinking lunch there.” Or late lunch. This whole shopping thing better not last longer than that.
Background noise in the form of a female voice floats through his receiver.
“Hold on a sec, Hayden’s here.” While I hear him ask her if she wants to come to the Grove for lunch, I can’t make out her response.
A second later, Río gets back on the phone.
“Hey, no can do. Hayden reminded me about a meeting we have with a PI.”
Even as I make a right turn, my posture stiffens. “A PI? What’s that about?”
“Hayden convinced me to look into my biological mother’s story. As a precaution, ’cause I think I want to meet her.”
My eyebrows raise above my sunglasses. “Wow. Your fiancée must have some pretty powerful mojo to get you to do that. Your mother’s been out of the picture forever.”
“Yeah, well Hayden made me see some things I might have overlooked before. It’s worth exploring.”
“Good for you. Closure is important before you move forward into the next big change in your life.”
“Very true words, bro. For me, Hayden’s the one, you know.”
I smile. While love isn’t for me anymore, I can see how it’s benefiting my best friend. He’s so much more settled, less reckless, when she’s around. “Glad to hear it.”
“Well, Hayden’s doing a striptease with her towel”—in the background Hayden yells—“so I better scram. Good luck shopping!” To the sound of Río’s laughter, I disconnect the call.
Dick.
The GPS directs me to make a left, which promptly plunges me into traffic-light hell. To make the trip as upbeat as possible, I call 007, who picks up on the second ring.
“How are you doing, Coop? Did your luggage ever show up?” For the second time today, I tell the sad story of my missing bags, minus the precious lost photo—he doesn’t need another reminder of his best friend. He asks, “What’s your plan?”
My man knows I always have a plan. Or get one as soon as my mind can wrap around whatever the situation is. “Luke told Nese to buy me a new wardrobe.”
“Great solution. Will the stuff be delivered to your house?”
My finger taps the steering wheel. “A very good question. I asked it several times. But the answer is no—I’m required to physically shop with her.”
“Ouch. I know what you think of clothes shopping. But at least you’ll get a trendy wardrobe out of the deal.”
“Do you know me at all? Do I look like I want trendy?” So much for keeping my Zen.
“Well, no, but we all could use some help in the off-work department. You just got there first.” He pauses. “Except for Tris, of course. He’s our fashionista.”
“Lucky me,” I grumble. “At the expense of missing the first week of my retreat.”
“Oh shit. That sucks. You said there are several weeks, though, right?”
“Yeah. There are four. I was hoping to attend all of them, but I’ll definitely make it to the last three. Still will be good. Besides, I don’t have anything at all that fits me, so it’s not like I had any options.”
“Guess we should lay off on the M&M’s on tour,” 007 quips.
“And burgers and beer and greasy, fried food.” I smile. “Then, what on earth would we eat?”
“Damned if I know!”
My GPS announces I’m one thousand feet away from my destination, so I end the call with 007 and pray for a parking spot. I must’ve done something right in this morning’s meditation, because a spot in front of the store opens up as I approach.
Maybe this day won’t be as bad as I have been envisioning it.