I bounced on the foot of the bed with the remote control clutched in my hand as Howie leaned back against the headboard trying to read, the puppy climbing all over his lap.
“Nick get him off of me.” Howie said trying to turn the page of his book just as the puppy grabbed it in his teeth and ripped it out.
“Nick.” This time Howie was using his stern Dad voice so I leaned down and grabbed the puppy plopping to the bed, cross-legged with him in my lap. “Nick why don’t you just relax for five seconds. I swear to God you act like you are on a constant sugar rush.”
“It’s my birthday, I can do whatever I want to do.” I said in a snotty voice, clicking through the stations one right after another in an attempt to find some unscrambled porn.
“Why don’t you go and hang out with Brian.” Howie said looking over the top of his book at the mish mash of distorted arms and legs through the scrambled static on the t.v. screen.
“Because Brian and A.J. took off without me.” Tilting my head to the left I swore I could see some boobs?
“So go and bug Kevin then, I’m sure he’d love to hang out with you.” Tilting my head to the right I squinted my eyes up really hard as the scrambled lines jumped around on the screen.
“He’s down at the bar being cool.” I said kissing the puppy on top of its’ head. “You know you would think that somebody would want to hang out with me on my birthday.” I was still whining but I didn’t care.
“Yeah you would think somebody would, wouldn’t you?” Howie said tossing his book to the nightstand before yanking the covers out from under me. “But it isn’t going to be me Little Man, I’m going to bed.” Dropping the puppy to the floor I stood up and snapped off the t.v. set getting the hint.
“Okay, okay I’ll leave you alone to get your beauty sleep now.” I followed the puppy to the door turning off the light on my way.
“Hey Nick.” Howie called out in the darkness. “Happy Birthday Kiddo.”
“Yeah Howie,” I said opening the door and stepping out into the hotel hallway. “Thanks.”
* * *
Setting the puppy down I chased him up and down the hallways laughing at him as he tripped around like a crazy drunk only stopping long enough to take a whiz on a cart left in the hall by housekeeping. Stooping down to pat him on the head and survey the damage done to the cart I heard the voice of the woman in charge of the cart coming out of one of the nearby rooms.
Grabbing the puppy I whipped my key card out of my back pocket and slid it in the box that opened the door to A.J. and Brian’s room, ducking inside before the woman got wise to me, and my menacing whizzing dog, and had us thrown out.
Slamming the door behind me I pressed myself against the wall waiting until I could see the shadow of the woman and the cart making her way down the hall. Once I could tell the coast was clear I reached for the door handle to let myself out when suddenly I was aware of the sound of A.J. and Brian’s voices coming down the hall.
Pulling back my hand I looked over my shoulder into the darkness of the suite my heart pounding in my chest.
Shit, A.J. would be so mad if he knew I was dinking around in his room when he wasn’t there. One time he found me in one of his hotel rooms looking for an extra pair of socks. He was so pissed he dragged me around the room by one leg before throwing the comforter from the bed over my head and pummeling me until I screamed “Uncle” so this time I wasn’t taking any chances.
Placing my hand around the puppy’s mouth like we on some covert operation for the CIA I ran backwards into the dark hotel room fumbling along the walls for a closet door or bathroom door or anyplace where I could hide.
Just as my hand made connection with a doorknob the lights to the suite flickered on and I heard the door to the room slam shut as A.J and Brian made their way inside.
* * *
“Do you think anybody saw us?” Brian hissed. I could hear that they both had dropped something on the glass topped coffee table and then I heard A.J. speak again.
“You ask me that same stupid question everytime we do this and I give you same answer everytime. No Rok nobody saw us.” They both sounded fidgety and wired like I did when I had way too much caffeine.
“My hands are shaking.” Brian mumbled as I pressed my ear up against the closet door to better hear what they were saying.
“Mine are too man, but that’s the best part.” A.J. sounded different to me and it made my stomach feel strange.
“Let’s get the stuff out of the bags and into the suitcase. We have to meet Devin tomorrow morning before the tour buses leave so that won’t give us much time between then and now to get everything in order.” A.J. again.
“What time is it now?”
I flipped my wrist over and could see by the glow of my watch that it was almost 3:00 a.m.
“It’s almost 3:00.” Brian answered A.J.’s question and then I could hear lots of movement in the room and no more talking.
Pushing myself forward again to see if they were talking but I just couldn’t hear what they were saying I ended up squashing the puppy against the door, which caused him to let out a yelp.
“What the fuck was that?” I could hear A.J.’s angry voice and then beat, beat, beat of his fast footsteps making their way across the carpet to the closet door.
Suddenly the door flew open and I was squinting in the light and A.J.’s pissed off eyes.
“Holy shit Nick what the hell are you doing in here.”
* * *
I sat slumped down in the sofa the puppy in my lap, feeling like I was being grilled by the police for some crime I didn’t commit.
“What did you hear?” Brian asked me his eyes nervous.
“Nothing.”
“Bullshit Nick what did you hear?” This time the question came from A.J. He knew that he intimidated me a hell of a lot more then Brian.
“What is this good cop, bad cop?” I said in a smart aleck voice as I stroked the puppy’s head.
“I hate him.” A.J. groaned to Brian standing up and throwing a pillow at my head.
“Oh you don’t hate me. He doesn’t hate me does he?” I said turning to Brian who was pale and looking like he was going to puke.
“Nick what did you hear, seriously we need to know.”
I shrugged keeping an eye on A.J. as he made his way around the couch behind me.
“I heard you guys talking about doing something that you hoped that nobody saw?” Brian dropped his head back against the couch cushions with a sigh.
“And.”
“And I heard you saying that you had to get something in bags to meet some guy named Devin tomorrow.” I looked down at the two backpacks on the coffeetable. “Are you guys Colombian drug lords or something?”
The puppy growled as A.J. slapped me upside of the head. “Do we look like Colombian drug lords you dummy?”
At that very moment, looking the two of them over, I would have had to say yes. Both were dressed in head to toe menacing black with long black trench coats and knit caps pulled down low on their foreheads.
They looked like they were definitely up to no good.
Brian sat forward resting his elbows on his knees with a sigh.
“Look Nick, my advice to you is to go back to your room and pretend you never heard any of this.”
“What if I don’t want to?” I challenged.
“Then you are a bigger fool then I gave you credit for.” A.J. said from behind me.
“Nick go to bed.” Brian sat back rolling his eyes at me.
“I’m not going to bed until you guys show me what’s in the bags.” I pointed at the two backpacks.
“NICK GO TO BED NOW!” A.J. yelled in my ear pointing in the direction of the door like I was a dog.
“Why don’t you make me psycho.” Jumping up I grabbed for the nearest backpack and made a run for it, the puppy barking and nipping at my heels as Brian and A.J. ran after me in close pursuit.
“Nick, when I get a hold of you I’m going to kick your ass so hard you won’t be able to walk for a week.” Brian yelled as I made my way down the hallway towards the bedroom.
“You’ll have to catch me first old man.” I yelled. “Besides you’d never beat me up on my birthday.” I burst into the bedroom almost tripping on an open suitcase lying on the floor.
“You’re birthday was over three hours ago so your ass is free game.” A.J. slid around the corner into the bedroom tripping over the suitcase as Brian bumped into the back of him both of them hitting the ground.
Turning on a dime I jumped over them, the puppy still on my heels and headed back towards the livingroom of the hotel room laughing my ass off at the site of those two lying on top of each other like some blurry picture from my scrambled porn.
Making my way around the sofas I ducked down behind them lying flat on my stomach on top of the backpack, the puppy nestling close beside me. I could hear their heavy breathing as Brian and A.J. made their way down the hall.
“Where the hell is he?” Brian asked trying to catch his breath.
“I swear to God I hate him.” A.J. moaned as I giggled into my hand.
“Nick this isn’t funny anymore, give us the backpack.” Brian shouted as I popped up from behind the sofa a big grin on my face.
“Finders keepers.” I singsonged jumping up and making a run for the door.
A.J. came around one side of the room as Brian made his way around the other and suddenly I was trapped before I could hit the foyer, both of them pawing at me as A.J. grabbed hold of my hair.
“Owwwwwwww!” I screamed like a ten-year-old girl heaving the backpack into the air.
“Oh shit!” Brian and A.J. yelled in unison as the back arched high in the air and then hit the ground. Holy shit.
I watched wide eyed and open mouthed as the flap to the bag broke open and out spilled handful after handful of the most incredible sparkling jewels I had ever seen in my life.