Wish You Were Here

Luna arrived at her house before the sun and began to put away her belongings and erase the evidence of her rendezvous. She slipped into the house and crept back into her bedroom. Rob slept soundly in between the sheets. She watched as he slept so peacefully and wished her heart could just love one. She sat upon the mattress and sighed. How could she tell him? How could she ever?

“Babe?”

Luna turned to face him, but realized she could not meet his gaze,

“Yeah?”

What are you doing?”

“I was thinking…”

He grabbed her hand and pulled her into the bed. He curled her into him and rested his face by hers. Luna closed her eyes; she couldn’t bear to have him this close. It tore her heart in half, why couldn’t she just be content in his embrace? She felt him inhale her scent and release his warm breath around her.

“Did you go surfing? You smell like the ocean Luna.”

Luna turned and left his soft embrace,

“Yeah.”

“So early?”

“Yeah.”

“You can surf at night?”

“Anyone can.”

“Liar, where did you really go?”

“I needed to get some fresh air. So I went to the beach.”

“Without me?”

“You were sleeping so peacefully. Why wake you up, when I am the one with the insomnia?”

She watched him rise from the bed and raise the canopy curtains. He stretched his arms above his head and smiled at her.

“Where’d you go?”

“I went to Malibu.”

“So far?

“I wanted to see what all the fuss was about.”

“So was it all people said it was?”

“No…it was much more. It’s unbelievable at night.”

“It’s funny you know, that you decided to go to Malibu.”

“Why?”

“There’s a house looking out towards the ocean there and I think it would be prefect for the wedding.”

“The wedding?” she asked softly, her heart caught in her throat. It beat rapidly against her vocal cords making her voice shake as it escaped her mouth.

“Yeah babe, our wedding.”

Luna smiled meekly her heart erupting inside her chest. If she was ever to be with Brandon she had to tell Rob right now.

“Rob, I-”

“You don’t have to say anything. At least not yet, just see the place first. Please?”

“Rob.”

“We’ll go see it today if you want. I’ll just have to call this guy.”

“Rob…”

“Hopefully he’s awake. Look why don’t you hop into the shower while I call him.”

“All right,” she sighed giving up.

“Good,” he said as he kissed her swiftly before placing the phone to his ear. She walked slowly into the bathroom, pondering how she was ever to tell Rob before it was too late.

“The Shore House? I thought we were going to go see the house. Or is this it?” Luna asked as they pulled up to the curb.

“Hun, I thought we’d have breakfast first and then go see the house.”

“Oh.”

“Yeah. Plus Brandon claims he can’t function properly without his coffee.”

“Who?”

“Brandon.”

“As in…?”

“The Brandon you grew up with? The one you saw last night.”

“What?”

“At the ball remember?”

“Oh! Him…right.”

“Yeah, he’s coming. He knows the owner of the house and all.”

“Ah…I see. Is he coming with us to see the house?”

“Yeah. Is that all right with you?”

“Yeah…yeah it’s fine.”

Rob lifted her chin and smiled at her sincerely.

“I love you.”

“Oh, Rob,” Luna murmured softly. She looked away feeling wet tears collect around her eyes.

“It’s true.”

“ I love you too.”

Rob leaned towards her, as she caught a glimpse of Brandon standing a few feet away from them.

“Stop,” she said quickly placing a hand on his chest.

“What?”

“Brandon’s waiting for us,” she replied as Brandon’s eyes met hers.

“He can wait a little can’t he? Especially if I want to give my fiancée a kiss.”

Luna felt Brandon’s eyes burn holes onto her face as Rob’s lips met hers. A feeling that only increased with the embarrassment that followed.

“Let’s go shall we?” Rob asked oblivious to Luna’s inner dilemma. She left the black truck with her eyes hidden behind black sunglasses. It was now Brandon’ eyes she could not meet. She heard as both men greeted and exchanged small talk before directing their attention toward her.

“Hey Luna, nice to see you again.”

“Hi Brandon,” she said as they shared a polite embrace in front of Rob.

Breakfast came and Luna found herself sitting in front of Brandon, his eyes casually drifting towards her. A small smile playing on his lips.

“What made you want to get married in Malibu?” Brandon asked in between sips of his coffee. His eyes directed at Luna.

“It was that house you recorded Morning View in. I went to party there once, and I think it’s perfect for the wedding.” Rob replied making Brandon point his gaze to him.

“Is it perfect for you Luna?” Brandon asked, his feet tangled in hers.

“I haven’t seen it yet.”

“Oh, that’s right! Hmm we should start heading over there actually. I told James we’d be there around eleven.”

“Well in that case, let me just run to the bathroom and we’ll leave,” Rob mentioned.

“All right,” Luna replied watching him rise and walk away. Once out of sight, Brandon’s hands slid across the table toward hers. He intertwined her fingers in his and kissed the soft surface of her hand.

“I am sorry,” she whispered softly, leaning her face against their intertwined hands.

“Why?”

“Because I can’t find a way to tell him.”

“You have to and preferably soon. I wouldn’t want you to wait ‘til the wedding day to tell him.”

“I know… I just don’t want to hurt him.”

“You won’t not if you tell him now, before anything is set in stone.”

“I-”

“He’s coming.”

Luna pulled away and sighed, her hands now intertwined in her lap.

“I miss your mom Brandon.”

“She misses you too. We talked the other day. She wants you to come visit her as soon as you can.”

“That’s sweet, were you really close to Brandon’s mom?” Rob asked declaring his presence to the pair.

“She was like my second mom,” Luna replied.

“Basically, my family was like her second family,” Brandon added.

“And your house too,” Luna said laughing.

“JEEZE! There was one point where I really thought you had moved in!”

“So she spent a lot of time in your house?” Rob asked intrigued.

“She spent all her time in my house!”

“Could you blame me? I had a workaholic for a mother and you had a wonder gypsy as a mom!”

“Your mother was a gypsy?” Rob asked sitting back down.

“No but Luna thought she was. My mom was always very hippie-esque. Where as Luna’s mother was very much a yuppie. She kind of reminded me of Hilary Clinton now that I look back.”

“You’re absolutely terrible! My mother does not resemble Hilary Clinton!”

“She did in that red suit!”

“What red suit?”

“The red suit, with the shoulder pads she wore one time for Christmas!”

Luna took a moment to ponder before letting out an elongated, “OH MY GOD! SHE DID!”

“Told you.”

“Man, I totally feel lame. I got Hilary Clinton, and you got Mother Nature!”

“Hey! But you still got to enjoy the same perks I did as a kid.”

“True.”

“See there you go, you got a gypsy as a mom too.”

“ I remember, she used to pull me aside and ask me when our wedding was
going to be and I would just look at her and go EWWW!”

“Ha-ha, my dad used to ask me when I was going to propose to you.”

“Oh man…”

Luna and Brandon let out soft laughter as the reminisced their whimsical childhood and how even then, Brandon’s parents could sense the love they had for each other. Once their laughter had settled did they recall the details of where they were and with whom.

“Well uh we should go,” Luna said grabbing her sunglasses, a small smile still lingering on her lips.

“Yeah, we should,” Rob replied looking between the two.

As Luna rose from her seat and away from the table, Rob’s hand quickly found hers and pulled her towards him. Brandon noticed this and smirked. Rob was jealous.

“So you lead the way, and we’ll follow you.”

“Sounds good.”

“And try not to drive so fast.”

“Ha, I’ll try.”

“It seems like you and Brandon were really close growing up,” Rob stated once inside the car.

“Yeah, I guess we were. He was my best friend.”

“Was he your first?”

“Best friend?”

“No, you know your first boyfriend and stuff.”

Luna stayed quiet. She looked down at her hands and at the ring on her left hand.

“Yeah,” she said softly. “He was my first everything.”

“Why’d you guys break up?”

“Can we talk about something else?”

“Did you love him?”

“Are we there yet?”

“Not yet. Why wont you tell me?”

“Tell you what?”

“Tell me the answers to the questions I just asked you. "

“I don’t like talking about it. That’s all.”

“Did he cheat on you?”

“No, now stop inquiring Rob”

“What am I not allowed to know what happened between you two?”

“It happened Rob. That’s all you need to know.”

Luna crossed her arms across her chest and bit down on her lip. She didn’t like keeping secrets from Rob. He never kept anything towards her, but she couldn’t tell him about her and Brandon without revealing what happened early this morning.

“We’re here,” Rob said curtly.

She gazed upward toward the large white mansion as Rob followed Brandon into the driveway. Such an amazing home, with large open window that revealed the mansion’s entrails.

“Rob it’s beautiful,” Luna confessed only to get the door closed in response.

She looked at Rob’s side only to see him walking around the car to the house. Luna leaped out of the car towards him and grabbed his wrist.

“Robert look at me.”

“What!”

“Why are you upset? Because I wouldn’t tell you about Brandon and me? Is that
why?”

“Luna.”

“Answer me!”

“Yes.”

“Why!”

“I can’t tell you right now!”

“Why not!”

“Look Brandon and James are waiting for us. We’ll talk about this later.”

Luna let go of his wrist and let him walk a few feet in a front of her. Her eyes throwing daggers at his head.

“Everything all right?” Brandon whispered in her ear as Rob introduced himself
to James.

“Fucking peachy,” Luna hissed between gritted teeth.

“And this is my fiancée Luna,” Rob stated bringing her close to his side.

“That name certainly does suit you; I am James Barring, the owner of the
mansion.”

“A pleasure to meet you sir.”

“My god, I am a really that old to be called sir? Just call me James sweetie. And
the pleasure is all mine. Now let me show you the place!”

James led the trio through the giant oak doors and into the Foyer which was illuminated by a massive crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling.

“And this is my house,” James declared.

“It’s beautiful,” Luna replied walking out of Rob’ reach.

“You haven’t even seen the rest of it!”

“The back yard is pretty spectacular at night,” Brandon added flashing Luna a
wide grin.

“Let’s move on, or you won’t get to see the back yard ‘til night fall.”

The trio began to move behind the eccentric man as they maneuvered through all the rooms. Luna’s hand teasing Brandon’s by brushing against his through the halls.

“Brandon,” she whispered softly.

“Yeah?”

“Where’s the bathroom?”

Brandon looked at James, and back at her. He smiled childishly and grabber her hand.

“This way.”

Brandon led her through a slim hallway and to a door by the kitchen

“I lied,” she confessed into his ear.

“I know.”

They leaned against the beige wall, his fingers intertwined in her hair, their faces inches apart.

“He’s mad at me,” she whispered as she played with the buttons on his shirt.

“Why?”

“Because I wouldn’t tell him about us.”

“What do you mean?”

“He asked me if you were my first and I said yes. Then he asked me if I loved
you, and I didn’t reply. I couldn’t tell him, I don’t know why but I couldn’t and he got angry with me.”

“I think he’s starting to suspect.”

“Maybe but perhaps he’s just upset I am keeping this from him. We’re so open
about everything. So I guess this comes off as a betrayal to him.”

“Ha! If he only knew…”

“I know…it’s terrible.”

“Not entirely.”

“I guess,” she sighed looking up towards him.

“Cheer up,” he said giving her a smile, “and I’ll show you the entire back yard.”

“Fine, if you insist.”

“C’mon.”

Brandon laced his fingers around hers and led her to the back yard. It looked exactly the same way it had eight years ago. The lush green grass swayed gently in the oceanic breeze. He let her venture out into the yard and discover the grotto and pool.

“This house just gets better and better doesn’t it?”

“Pretty much.”

“You’ve must had a blast here, you all must’ve. I bet you guys threw parties all
the time.”

“Ha-ha we did indeed. But for the most part being able to stay in this house was like an unreal dream that at any moment could vanish.” Brandon leaned closer to Luna’s face and smiled, “very much like having you this close.”

“LUNA!”

Both Brandon and Luna turned at the sound of her name and looked into the eyes of a confused and betrayed Rob.

“I fucking knew it!”

“Rob,” Luna said softly as she slowly approached him.

“I can’t believe you’re cheating on me with him.”

“I am not cheating.”

“Then what do you call this?” Rob asked pointing at her and Brandon. Luna
watched as Rob’s brow furrowed across his broad forehead and let despair seep into his
features.

“I don’t know Rob, but I was planning on telling you. I swear!”

“When? After we got married? Or did you expect to wait ‘til you got knocked up?”

“Rob that’s enough!” Brandon growled pushing her behind him.

“You get out of this Brandon.”

“No! I am not going to let you yell at her like that. She was going to tell you, she
just wanted to find a way to tell you without hurting you.”

Rob paced back and forth, his hand perched on his temple, trying to restrain from lashing out in anger. He stopped and looked at her.

“I just don’t understand Luna. I loved you. I really did and you do this to me.
Why?”

“I never meant to hurt you Rob. I never intended to cheat on you or lie to you.
Please believe me. What Brandon and I have was never planed or expected. It was never suppose to happen. I was never suppose to run into him again or love him again. But I did and I do. And if it didn’t happen at the ball, it would’ve happened somewhere else.”
“So what you’re trying to tell me is that…”

“We’re meant to be. She’s my soul mate Rob,” Brandon declared, his hand
grasping hers.

“What a load of bull,” Rob hissed.

“Rob, I am -”

“Don’t. Don’t say it Luna. Just know, that one day he’s going to leave you and I
am not going to be there to put you back together.” With that Rob turned around and began to walk away.

“Rob wait!” Luna called out behind him. She caught up with him and grasped his hand. “ Your ring.”

Rob looked at the small object she had placed in his hand. “What does he have that I don’t Luna?”

“It’s not what he or you have or lack.”

“Then what? What is it? Why did he win?”

“It’s what my heart wanted.”

“Luna Daring, you are one devastating creature,” he sighed softly his eyes filling
up with tears, “all I wanted was to make you happy.”

“He makes me happy. And you deserve to find that happiness with someone. I’m sorry it wasn’t me.”

“Keep it,” Rob said placing it once again in her hand, “it was meant for you.”

“Rob, I can’t-”

“Think of it as an engagement gift from me to you.”

“Rob…”

“Shh, it’s okay,” he wrapped his arms her once last time and kissed her forehead. “Goodbye Luna.”

Luna pulled away and wiped away the tears cascading down her face.

“Goodbye Rob.”

Luna watched Rob walk away and vanish into the house. Her heart beat wildly inside her. It
danced in agony as it shed its skin and became anew.

“Luna?” Brandon asked softly as he touched her shoulder.

“He gave me the ring…” she confessed softly, her eyes still fixated on Rob’s
fleeting image.

“Are you all right?”

“I made the right choice didn’t I?”

Brandon held her tear stained face in his hands. He kissed her forehead, then both her eyelids and finally her parted lips.

“I can’t answer that for you Luna, only your heart can.”

She looked into his honey eyes and looked into his soul. She swam in the depths of his imagination and lost herself in the spirals of his love for her. Her heart fluttered in her chest attempting to flee from its bindings and fly into his chest. She brushed her lips against his and inhaled his perishing breath. He kissed her softly at first, then passionately, as he realized that Luna was finally all his.