173:  WTF!

            “Brian!”  Robert shouted, as he rushed up to him coming inside the door of the gay club called Sweet Ambiance in New York City.  Robert had two other gentlemen with him.  “Glad you found the place – okay.  Well, these are my roommates,” he started the introductions, “Alejandro and Ryan.  Guys, this is Brian (whom I told you all about).”

“But call me Alex,” Alejandro told Brian, “Everyone does.”

“Hi,” everyone chorused, and then Brian had to joke, “The three of you live together – a man of Black, Hispanic, and Asian ethnicity – really cool, guys – what do your neighbors call you – the coalition of solidarity brothers – or something?”

“And, you’re the White man.  Now, we are complete, “Alex humored, “I think I’m going to like Brian,” he then said to Robert.

“Really?  Tell me again (later) what you think of him after only five more minutes of breathing the same air with him; but to hate Brian is to love him,” Robert kidded.  “Shit!  Let’s party now!” 

The four men then headed for the dance floor together.  Alejandro and Ryan danced together, while Brian and Robert danced all on top of each other (right alongside them).

******

            “Dr. Raines, do you think you’re good enough to close this little missy back up (all by your lonesome)?”  Clay said to the student surgeon, after the co-surgeon and he had done all the hard work, and at that point all that the patient needed was just stitching back up.

“I’m good, Dr. Taylor-Masterson,” the student surgeon replied.  “I’ll manage just fine by myself.  You both can go on now,” he said to the more experienced surgeons.

“Thanks, Charlie.  I’m sure we’re leaving the little girl in good capable hands,” Clay encouraged the student doctor, and then he and other doctor abandoned the student doctor as they hurried out of the O.R., removed their surgical headpieces and masks, and headed over to the nurses’ station. 

“Hi, Clay and Victor,” one of the surgery nurses (who was covering the desk) greeted the doctors. 

“Hi, Pepper,” they greeted her back.  “Do you have the little girl’s file there?”  Clay then asked.

“Yes.  I got it ready for you, doctor,” the nurse said, and then she handed a folder over to the surgeon.

“Thanks,” Clay thanked the nurse.

“Clay, I’ll see you inside your office in about ten?” the co-surgeon confirmed with him, and then he hurried away.

“In ten,” Clay barely mumbled, as his attention was immediately drawn to a TV set that was playing in the waiting area there.   “WHAT THE BLOODY FUCK!”  He alarmed, and this time he was not only stunned by what he heard by what he also saw in the broadcast. 

“Is something wrong?”  The nurse barely got that question out of her mouth before Clay’s long legs started rushing away from the desk and started trotting fast stead to his office.

“What’s with him?”  Several staff at the nurses’ station chorused altogether.

“I don’t know,” Pepper said, “But it seemed that something in the news got his attention, and he became really hyper for some reason – but I don’t suppose it was necessarily in a good way.”

“What was in the news?”

“I dunno – seemed he got excited when they flashed a picture of some Wink Van Winkle character up on the screen or something… beats me why he got so excited about it.”

Everyone then shrugged the event off and returned concentrating on their work.

*****

            “Hello, Clay darling,” Justin tried to sound upbeat, but he it was quite the strain because his new husband and him have been having their amount of troubles ever since his unfaithful night in Berlin.  In fact, the first opportunity Clay had to return to Brussels and do an operation, he took the job, and Justin knew that he didn’t have to. 

Justin was beginning to wonder if Clay suspected something, but he couldn’t figure out why he would suspect anything. 

“How did the surgery go?” Justin asked next.  “How soon will you be able to fly back this way?  I’m really missing my new husband, and my tour is Berlin is almost done now.  If you return back here really quickly, we can fly back home to Paris together.”

“The surgery went well, Justin.  However, I’m calling to let you know that I won’t be able to make it back home anytime soon.”

“Oh, why not?  Come on, Clay, give me a break, will you… give us a break, damn it.  It seemed you did a 180 that night we returned to Berlin.  We’ve only been married two weeks, and you’ve been aloof ever since.  Whatever it is that’s bothering you, can you just put it out on the table for discussion, and let us resolve it already, so we can finally move pass it.”

“Justin, I have a job to do (like everyone else) – a very demanding one.  I thought you were aware of that when you married me.”

“I know you have a job, Clay, but you did just say the surgery went well.  So obviously your patient didn’t have any complications or anything?”

“No.  It was a simple routine surgery (like I said), so the co-surgeon and the student doctor can very much take care of the patient now.”

“Fine then, so why can’t you just come home now and just be my husband for a while?”

“Because I have another matter at hand that needs taken care of – that’s why.  However, it requires that I travel somewhere afar, so I’ll be flying out of here and will be gone for several days.”

“Gone where, and what kind of matter?  Clay, we never fully completed our honeymoon.”

“Umm…” Clay became rather standoffish.  “You know, I can’t go into detail right now.  However, the matter is quite urgent, so I have to hurry and board the plane now.  I’ll call you.  Bye for now,” Clay said and abruptly disconnected.

“Fuck that shit!”  Justin bitched, and he called his husband right back, and he was appalled even more when his call went directly to voicemail.

******

‘Inspector Paul Drakes?’  Clay silently vexed to himself, as he stared alarmingly and apprehensively at the name and number that displayed on his phone (immediately after he had disconnected with Justin). 

Inspector Drakes was the mysterious man whom he had left the wedding with Clay that day, and they stood outside on the sidewalk in front of Justin’s house in Paris and briefly conversed.

“Inspector Drakes?”  Clay finally collected himself enough to answer.  “If you’re calling me right now then...”

“Oh, I gather you saw that really brief news report, Dr. Taylor-Masterson?”  Inspector Drakes asked, cutting Clay off.

“Yeah.”

“Sorry about that.  Your sisters-in-law and I tried our best to keep it out of the press.   However, the media knows very little – not much at all – really.”

“My sisters-in-law?  OH MY GOD!  Then it’s true!  But this can’t really be happening!  Are you absolutely sure!  And, what happens now? I panicked the moment I saw the report, and thought I should book myself a flight out of here, but in actuality, I don’t know where to go.”

“Don’t worry about it.  Arrangements to fly you out there have already been made; and to answer your question:  I’m quite sure it’s happening, doctor.  It turns out your sisters-in-law Elizabeth and Dolores were indeed right (after all)!” 

“Ohhhh, SHIT,” Clay highly agitatedly stressed, “Where do I meet this plane?”

“Your sisters-in-law anticipated that you would be just this anxious when you hear the news.  So, we made all the preparations to immediately fly you there.  There’s a charter plane, all ready to go, and waiting for your arrival to the airport.  Do you need us to send a car to pick you up and transport you to the private jet?”

“No, I have my own car here at the hospital.  So as soon as I change out of my surgical scrubs, I’ll drive myself to the airport.  See you in a hop and holler.”

 “Actually, you won’t see me there.  My work is done.  However, someone will meet you at the taxi stand and escort you to the plane; and your sisters-in-law are there waiting for you,” Inspector Drakes said and then disconnected.

“Shit!  WTF!”  Clay accentuated, as he slapped his forehead, and then the handsome doctor hurriedly changed from his scrubs into his street clothes, and then he rushed to the co-surgeon’s office and converse with him for a few moments, and then he left the hospital, got inside his car and drove himself to the airport to take that charter plane to his destination.

******

            “Hey, Shemar!!!!”  Brian teased Robert, as his booming voice reached over the loudness of the music in the club, and yanked the physical therapist out of his moment of immense distraction.  “Why did you stop dancing?  What got you in such a daze?  What do you see pass my shoulders?”  Brian then stopped dancing and looked behind him.

“Oh nothing,” Robert smiled hearty.  “I just thought I saw someone, but I was mistaken.”

“Saw whom?”  Brian turned back around and asked.

“No one,” Robert blushed, and that quickly Brian had guessed whom.

“Him again?  Your phantom subway lover?  The man with the alluringly dark eyes and mole?  Still sounds like you described one of my…”

“Never mind, Brian.  I know how silly you think it is.”

“Much,” Brian taunted.  “Time to FINALLY move pass it, Bob.”

“Yeah,” Robert exhaustedly sighed.  “I guess you’re right, and I suppose if you can move pass the ex-husband and the love of your life Justin, I can get over some guy who dark orbs I only glanced into for a mere one-second during a brief encounter inside a subway.”

“Exactly,” Brian further mocked.  “So let us both go and get ourselves laid,” Brian suggested.  “You and I are probably the handsomest two studs in here.  I’m sure we will have our pick of the place, especially with you looking like Shemar Moore, and everyone’s been telling me lately that I look a lot like that new actor named Gale Harold.  I sure we can turn this place upside down with attributes like those.”

“Who?  Some actor named Gale Harold?  Who’s he?”

“Never mind, Robert.  I did say that he’s new.”

“Yeah sure,” Robert said, “But, Brian, I’m kind of tiring of casual sex.”

“Don’t dare say that now, Shemar.  I’m starting to learn that casual sex is the BEST kind.”

“Whom are you trying to kid, Brian – me or yourself?  I know you don’t really mean that.  If Justin became available right this moment…”

“But WHAT THE FUCK – he’s not, is he!”  Brian abruptly cut Robert off.

*****

            “Hey!”  Clay got on the intercom and got the pilots’ attention.  “Is it okay for me to use my cell now!”

“Sure, it’s safe, but unfortunately it might not be possible though.”

Clay then made several attempts to call Justin then but couldn’t get through, and then he complained to the pilots again.  “What kind of place is this that I can’t get a signal on my cell?”

“I warned you that that would happen,” the pilot said, “Because we are in the middle of nowhere.”

“Will I be able to get a signal when we land?”  Clay asked.

“No.  Down on the island, it’s even worse than up here,” one of the pilots replied back to Clay.

“But the inspector called me from there on his cell?”  Clay pondered.

“No, he didn’t.  He wasn’t calling you from the island.  He called you from someplace else after he had already left the island.”

“Fuck!”  Clay cursed.  “I wished you had been more considerate and had remembered to tell me the moment it was okay for me to use my phone.  I needed to get in touch with someone.  Now I don’t know how long it will be before I can call him.”

“I apologize again, doctor.  However, please put on your seatbelt now.  We are just about there.  We are flying over the island now, and we will be landing shortly.”

Clay then buckled up.

******

            “Clay, damn it.  Where are you?  I left several messages, so why haven’t you gotten back to me yet?”  Justin sat up in bed and vexed out loud to himself.

“Daddy,” Justin then heard J.C. called out to him, and he could hear his pattering little feet running that way.

“I’m in the bedroom, J.C.  Come on in, son,” he yelled back to him.

J.C. then hurried into the bedroom and jumped into bed with Justin.

“Hey big boy,” Justin delighted in his presence and gathered him up in his arms and smothered him with kisses.

“Can I sleep with you, daddy?”  J.C. asked.

“You most certainly can,” Justin said, as he tucked the little one in, and that made him think of all the times he used to have sleepovers with his mother when they had lived in Seattle together and they were kids then.  Oh, how he missed Daphne at times, and that was one particular time he’d definitely wished he could call her.  However, having her son there was the second best thing.

******

“No one can,” Elizabeth said to her brother-in-law.  “This place is really in the midst of nowhere.  If you need to make a phone call, you need to physically leave this island to do so, just like Inspector Drakes did when he left to call you.”

“How am I going to keep in touch with Justin?”  Clay asked.

“Do you REALLY want to keep in touch with him NOW?”  Lolita asked.

“Lolita, why don’t you shut the hell up!  That’s a really mean thing for you to ask him?”  Elizabeth reprimanded her.

“I really don’t think that’s so vile, Liz, particularly under the current circumstances,” Lolita fired back at her sister, and then she turned to her brother-in-law.  “What the FUCK do you think, Clay?”

“I don’t know what to think, old girl; and it shouldn’t surprise you how overwhelmed I am at the moment.  My God, I still can’t believe this is for real.”

“It’s most definitely is real, Clay,” Lolita coldly stated.  “You should have never married that Justin Taylor person.  We warned you!”

“Lolita!  Do you ever watch your tongue!”  The older sister snapped at the younger one.  “Try being a little more sensitive, damn it!  You know this couldn’t be easy on Clay.”

“Well, he’s not the only one who this is not easy on!”  Lolita fired back.  “It’s about time he stop thinking of just himself.”

“Do you really feel that way, Lolita?”  Clay asked his sister-in-law.

“No,” Lolita bowed her head in shame and then looked immediately back into Clay’s face and apologized to her brother-in-law.  “I’m sorry, but you know me and my snappy tongue.  I can’t help myself.  I know Elizabeth is right and I can imagine how much pain you are in now.  Sorry.”

“Thanks sis.  Knowing you, I’m sure that something you wouldn’t say unless you were sincere about it.”

“But Clay,” Lolita said, “This is what we’ve been trying to convince you about all along, but you always refused to consider it.  But Elizabeth and I had great faith and knew it to true.”

“We didn’t know anything for sure, Lolita,” Elizabeth disputed her.  “We just weren’t resting until we knew for sure – that’s all.”

“I should have had faith too,” Clay said, and then he trailed off the subject and said, “Inspector Drakes told me that the press knows very little.  Is that true?”

“It’s true,” Elizabeth answered.  “They only know as much as they do now because the conservationists told them.  However, the inspector (before he left) had us relocated on this island (giving the press the slip) before they even saw Lolita and me.  Luckily for us too, because had they seen us they would have definitely figured it all out; however, we wanted to be the very next person to know and ahead of the press.  We’re sorry you had to hear even that little in the press, but we were told you were in surgery and nobody could speak with you until you were done in there.  So, we’re sorry you had to find out that way.”

“It’s okay, because I couldn’t believe what I was seeing on the news anyway.  It wasn’t until the inspector called me that I started feeling sure about it, but still I’m not absolutely sure now, or it hasn’t completely sunk in yet.  What happens now?” Clay then asked.

“Well…” Lolita said, but Elizabeth feared she might say the wrong thing and she cut her off.

“Clay,” Elizabeth answered.  “We already informed our parents, and once Lolita and I take you back there to the hut, you’re know for sure then.  So, I guess sometime soon after that, we can talk to the media and let them in on it.”

“No – not yet,” Clay pleaded with the women.  “Come on, sisters, you know if we affirm everything with the press, they’ll be over it; but are you overlooking something… or someone?”

“Huh?”  Both women seemed puzzled.

“How about my new husband Justin, damn it!  How do you think this news will impact on him?  I don’t want him to find out about this through the media!  I want to be the one to tell him so I can break it to him gently.”

“But you know you can’t make that call from this island,” Lolita reminded him.  “Our cell phones are no more than fancy flashlights out here.”

“I know that already, Lolita, and I don’t particularly want to tell Justin this over the phone anyway!”  Clay snapped at her.  “There’s no doubt that this is going to impact severely on our relationship, so I rather I be inside the same room with him and talking face-to-face.”

“How severely do you think it will impact on him?”  Lolita boldly asked.  “I gathering you are going to dump him?”

“Dolores Sebastian!” her sister scoffed her, “Do you have any scruples about yourself?”

“Whatttt,” Lolita whined.

“Clay, screw her!” Elizabeth tried to sooth him.  “You don’t have to make a decision as profound as that one right now.  We’ll do all we can to keep the press at bay, until you’ve met with Justin.”

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.  Are you ready now to go to the hut and see for yourself?”

“Yeah, but…” Clay sounded hesitant, and his sisters-in-law noticed his nervousness.

“You’re really nervous about this thing?”  Elizabeth asked.  “It’s only normal that you would be,” she sympathized with him.

“Yeah, but regardless, I don’t want to waste another moment, so take me there.”

“Follow us,” the women instructed, and escorted him there.