“Who would’ve thought,” Liam muttered, almost hearing my thoughts. “It seems like forever ago when Oliver Masters was this untouchable god at Dolor who I despised.”
A laugh sputtered from my lips. “Untouchable god?”
“People listened to you, looked up to you. We were locked inside a world of criminals and users, but you …” he shook his head, “You have no idea, do you?”
“No, mate. I have no idea what you are talking about.”
Liam looked back at Jake before sinking into the passenger seat. “You inspired a lot of people, Jake included. He talks about you, you know. All the fucking time,” he exaggerated. “How you were the first person to talk to him and accept him. When we first got together, I was jealous, which I can admit now. But if it weren’t for you, Jake wouldn’t be going back to school to teach or stand up to his father. Hell, he looked up to you, mate. He saw the way you were with Mia—with Zeke, Bria, Maddie—and grew balls and a new outlook on life. You made a positive change inside Dolor, and it still blows my mind.”
“Being kind can go a long way,” I quickly pointed out.
“Sure, there’s kindness, but then there’s genuine compassion. You have a spark for people and life. You’re a good man, Ollie. You sure as hell make me want to be a better one for Jake.”
“It’s a never-ending journey.” I didn’t like talking about me, so I switched gears. “Moments will come, and life will happen, but no one is perfect. We’re all going through this life expecting everyone else to think, walk, and talk like us, but that’s where we get it wrong as a society, because different just works. Individuality needs to be embraced. So if Jake fucks up, don’t be so quick to turn your back against him, and vice-versa. Choose each other. There’s my Ollie Lesson of the day.”
Liam laughed. “Thanks, mate.”
The conversation rolled smoothly after that, and five hours later, we reached Madrid.
In Spain, dinner wasn’t until around nine at night, and we stopped at a skivvy petrol station so I could fill up the tank, and so the two bums who slept the entire ride could freshen up and change. Mia returned to the SUV wearing ripped dark denim, so tight it could break the skin, with a casual grey tee partially tucked into her waistband, leather jacket, and combat boots. My heart stopped when my hand on the gas trigger didn’t, overflowing out of the tank and over my shoes. Jake barked out a cackle as he slid inside the backseat with a bag, popping candy into his mouth. “Every time,” I mumbled to Liam, placing the nose of the nozzle in its resting place. “That girl gets me every bloody time.”
“HELLO, MADRID!” Jake shouted out the window from the back seat, fist pumped high in the air toward the tops of the city buildings. “It smells like this city never sleeps!”
I glanced at Ollie beside me. “And what does that smell like?”
Jake pulled back inside the Suburban as Ollie made a left down a busy, narrow street. “Like sewage, onions, and garlic,” he dragged in a breath through his nose, “Yeah, it smells like someone dropped New York City right in the middle of Italy.”
“You’ve never been to New York or Italy,” Liam reminded him through a laugh.
“Hey, I heard about it.”
The four of us walked through the doors of Cacao Restobar, where Edison light bulbs wrapped and dangled around tree trunks from the ceilings, and the walls curved in natural brick. The other side gave the illusion of a cave, and we found a table against an iron-bar-covered window overlooking the city. I tapped the window with my finger. “This reminds me of Dolor.”
Liam rolled his eyes. “Fuck Dolor.”
Ollie surprised me, being the only one who knew a lick of Spanish, and he ordered all of our drinks and food after insisting we trust him.
“That was impressive. How the hell do you know Spanish?” I asked, arching a brow.
Ollie pressed his lips together, fighting a humble smile. “How was I supposed to travel the world and talk to people without learning how they speak?”
Liam leaned into the table across from him, intrigued. “How many languages do you know?”
“Started teaching myself a long time ago, I know a tad here and there. For the most part, it’s all similar once you master one, the rest comes easy. Spanish, Italian, Greek, French … I can understand it, but I’m rusty speaking since I don’t speak them often.”
Liam’s eyes bugged out, and he dropped his fingers over his head and made a bomb sound, mimicking his mind being blown.
Our drinks arrived, decorated with fruit and flower garnishes. Ollie clutched on to his glass of water, and we all toasted to Madrid, friends, and Ollie’s Spanish speaking skills.
After eating traditional tapas and pinchos, we walked down the colorful Cava Baja street with multi-colored banners and cloth draped above us. The locals strummed their guitar strings, beat their drums, playing hypnotic rhythms up and down the crowded alleyways as people swarmed around us, dancing and enjoying the night.
“Just drink, mate,” Liam said over the music to Ollie. “We’ll get a hotel here tonight. It’s your vacation. Enjoy yourself.”
Ollie turned to me and shook his head.
“Oh, for Gods sakes, Ollie.” Clutching his hand, I yanked him to the nearest outdoor bar and ordered him a mojito to loosen him up.
And an hour later, Ollie had a permanent smile coasting between his dimples. In black jeans, a long-sleeve gray shirt, and bright white trainers—what he’d call them—Ollie danced behind me, his hands moving down my sides and clutching my hips, pulling my backside against his groin. The beat of the music surged through our movements and echoed down the festive street. As if he were an extension of me, Ollie matched my every rock and sway. Breathing grew heavy, sweat licked our skin, and I turned in his arms when his forehead dropped to mine. With our buzz heavy and alive, Ollie licked his lips as I rolled into him. “Ah, bloody hell, love.”
Giggling and stumbling through a hotel, we took an elevator up to a rooftop bar where a glass bridge laid above the city of Madrid. Fresh cold drinks frosted our hands, and the four of us admired the skyline, having complete three-sixty views. Strong October winds hit us from all directions, and my hair blew wildly. “Don’t look down,” Liam announced, and the rest of us looked down against his instruction through the glass bridge. People, cars, and lights scrolled under our feet as if the world had flipped upside down, and stars twinkled from below.
“This is incredible,” I whispered. “You can see the world from up here.”
Liam wrapped his arms around Jake, and I’d never seen Jake’s blue eyes so captivated, but he wasn’t looking at the view. Jake was staring into Liam’s eyes. It was my favorite view tonight thus far.
And in our only night in Madrid, we claimed it as ours.
The following morning, we all woke up in the same hotel room, moaning and groaning. Liam fell asleep beside the toilet over the bathroom floor while Jake slept comfortably in the second queen-sized bed. During the entire hour, we all took turns in and out of the shower while Liam and Jake comically ignored one another.
Liam stuck to Ollie’s side at the front desk while Jake and I fetched the SUV. “You should just talk to him. He’s mad you left him in the bathroom,” I explained as Jake pulled the car up to the entrance of the hotel to wait for Ollie and Liam.