Photograph
Summary: After an argument with Don over his lack of impulsiveness, Charlie makes a decision to prove him wrong. And so starts the journey of a lifetime, as documented through a series of photographs. C/A
Rating: PG.
A/N: Hey there. Well, being the poor, lonely and overworked University student that I am, I decided that I needed something sweet and fluffy to keep me going through the distinctly unsweet and unfluffy life I am living: and so here I am, writing an aimless, sweet, fluffy story when I should probably be studying. Now, I can't promise you weekly updates. Hell, I can't even promise updates, period, seeing as how dependent most everything in my life is on how many assignments I have due in any given week and how much they're weighted, but I can promise that, at some stage in the next year, this story will be finished. Also, please note how very little I know about how airports work. Well, I hope you enjoy my story, as we follow Charlie and Amita on the adventure of a lifetime.
Chapter One: At the beginning with you
We were strangers on a crazy adventure
Never dreaming how our
dreams would come true
Now here we stand, unafraid of the future
At the beginning with you
-'At the Beginning With You' by Donna Lewis and Richard Marx
Alan yawned, walking down the stairs blearily, still wrapping his dressing gown around himself. It had been a long, dreary few months for the older man since his younger son had left. Dragging himself into the kitchen, he absently started to make himself a coffee, rubbing the back of his neck as he puttered around the kitchen, recalling the day when all this started, just 2 months earlier. Charlie had come home, flushed and smirking, with an apprehensive looking Don just behind him.
"Whatever he does is not my fault," Don had said, backing out of the house quickly as Alan turned a questioning stare on him.
Just a few hours later, Charlie had come bounding down the stairs, flushed and triumphant, and clutching two slips of paper in his hand.
"Hey Dad, I'm going to take off for a while, OK?" he had said, grinning happily as he flopped onto the couch next to his father. Alan looked at him from the corner of his eye, before sighing and turning to him.
"Define 'a while'," he remembered saying, trying to hide his apprehension at the look on his son's face.
"I don't know," Charlie had replied joyfully, shrugging.
"Pardon?"
"I don't know, maybe a month, maybe two. I'm going to ask Amita to travel the world with me," he recalled Charlie's exultant declaration.
"You are?" Alan had choked out, trying to hide his shock unsuccessfully. "Uh, where are you going?"
"Wherever the wind takes us. But first, Mexico," he said, waving the slips of paper in the air. "Two first class tickets to Mexico City, leaving at 2 o'clock tomorrow afternoon."
"Isn't this a little…?"
"Impulsive?" Charlie had offered with a slightly evil grin. "Yes, I do believe that it is! So, can you look after the house while I'm gone?"
"Of course I can, but…" he had stammered,
"Thanks, dad. Got to go pack! Oh, and don't tell Don please. I'll let him know my own way. Thanks dad, see you tomorrow!"
He chuckled dryly as he remembered how he had sat on the couch for most of the rest of the night, trying to comprehend what had just happened. And, true to his word, Charlie had called a cab at 10.30 the next morning, hugged his father and threw his bag and laptop in the trunk, before taking off. The more cynical half of Alan was expecting Charlie to return by the end of the day, having been told 'no' or had some sense talked into him by Amita, but, instead, got a phone call that evening from the pair, obviously enjoying themselves as they hit the town in Mexico City. Alan shook his head and moved to the lounge room with his mug, rubbing his eyes as he looked around. The house seemed dull, deflated somehow, without the sound of Charlie typing or scratching equations or talking at a million miles an hour about something Alan couldn't even follow, yet alone understand.
Still sipping his coffee, he furrowed his brow at the sound of a car pulling up in the driveway and moved across the room to pull back the curtains slightly, startling at the scene that greeted him as Charlie and Amita got out from the cab, laughing hard and with lei's around their necks. The cabbie helped get out their many bags, joking with them about something, before shaking Charlie's hand. Grinning, Alan moved quickly to the door to throw it open to greet them.
"Dad!" Charlie yelled, hugging him tightly as Amita waved enthusiastically to the cab driver as he backed out.
"You should have told me you were coming home! I would have – I don't know, gotten dressed or something," Alan rebuked, hugging his son. Charlie laughed again, and, pulling back to examine him, Alan was pleased to note the healthy glow his son had attained over the previous few months. "And you!" Alan said, turning to Amita with open arms, who, much to his surprise, stepped into his embrace easily, grinning.
"Hey, Mr Eppes," she said, hugging him almost as tightly as his son had. Pulling back, he shook his head in disbelief.
"Amita, please call me Alan," he pleaded, looking over the pair of them again, before bursting out with: "You two look fantastic! Come on in, and we'll have breakfast," he offered, moving to help them with their bags.
"Ah! Be careful with that one, dad!" Charlie said, moving forward as Alan reached for a large, black case. Hearing the urgency in his sons tone, he dropped his hand quickly. "I'd better take it, actually," the young professor said with a sheepish grin.
"Why? What's in there?" Alan asked, intrigued by what could have triggered such a response.
"You'll see," Amita said mysteriously, picking up several bags and moving into the house. Alan, picking up their suitcases, followed.
"How much did you take?" he asked, amazed by the sheer volume of their things, following Charlie's shout of laughter through to the lounge room.
"A bag, a suitcase and two laptops!" he said, placing the black container carefully on the ground, and grinning at Amita, who had her lei caught up in one of the bags, before moving to her side and helping her untangle it.
"Why thankyou," she said coyly, using his lei to pull him into a brief kiss, much to Alan's shock.
"Come on, there's more stuff outside," Charlie said with a cheeky grin, swatting her behind as she turned, and laughing at the look of mock indigence that she threw over her shoulder. Alan shook his head and moved out with them to get in the last of their things, observing the pair as they interacted with each other, gently teasing and joking as they gathered their new belongings and moved back into the house.
"So what have you guys been up to since you've been gone?" Alan asked, leading them into the kitchen, where he immediately started preparing breakfast. Amita and Charlie exchanged a quick look, and Charlie moved to make coffee.
"Oh, this and that," he replied, winking at Amita. Without turning around, he held up a hand to silence the protest he knew was coming from his father. "We'll explain later, I promise."
"Want me to call everyone, amore?" Amita asked, getting out her mobile and raising it slightly.
"Yes please honey. It's going to take most of the day just to explain this once," he said lightly. Alan turned and surveyed the pair, his breath catching at the sheer happiness that shone from their forms as Charlie grabbed her free hand to plant a kiss on her palm before handing her a cup of coffee.
"OK, I'm going to make those calls. 10 o'clock sound good for you guys?" Amita asked casually, smiling tenderly at Charlie as she slipped off the chair.
"Sounds great, hon," Charlie assured her as she moved to go outside to make the calls. "Oh, which suitcase has our regular clothes in it?" he called after her.
"Um…. The green one? Maybe? Don't quote me on that," she warned, moving out the door and dialling a number. Charlie smiled at her as she started talking into it, laughing. Sighing, he got up and moved to the lounge room, popping open the green suitcase and flinching at the bright array of colours that greeted him. Flitting his gaze over them, he reached for the least colourful- a pale green t-shirt that declared J'étais amoureux à Paris - and, grabbing a pair of jeans, moved to go upstairs, only to find his father standing between him and the staircase.
"You're not getting anything out of me until everyone else is here," he said with a grin, and was surprised when, instead of trying to get information, Alan merely stepped forward and embraced him again. Confused, he hugged him back.
"I'm so glad you've finally found that happiness doesn't have to be in numbers," Alan murmured into his son's hair, kissing his temple tenderly. Charlie smiled and blushed, though it was much harder to see than a few months before, due to his darker skin.
"Yeah, so am I. She does make me happy, dad," he confirmed, pulling back with a happy smile.
"I noticed," Alan said gently, ruffling his hair before grinning and saying: "To the shower with you!" Sighing, the older man marveled at the many changes that he had already seen in his son as he watched him stride away with a confidence in his step that he'd never before possessed.
"Alan?" Amita called a few minutes later, and he turned to face her, smiling. "Do you want me to check on breakfast?"
"Damn!" he said, racing through to the kitchen, grateful to find that the sausages were cooking nicely and that, in his earlier daze, he'd forgotten to turn on the fry pan. "Thanks, Amita, I guess I got caught up thinking."
"I wondered where Charlie got that from," Amita joked quietly, her dark eyes, normally lurking with something Alan couldn't quite name, completely calm and soft. "Would you like a hand?"
"No, thank you anyway," he smiled turning back to breakfast.
"In which case, would you mind if I went up and grabbed a quick shower after Charlie? It was a long flight," she said, laughter flickering across her expression.
"Of course not. Uh, the green suitcase was holiday clothes, so you know," he informed her as she left the room with a smile, making her poking her head back around.
"He's not wearing that awful shirt from Cairo, is he?" she asked, suddenly worried.
"No, I think it had something written on it in French," Alan assured her.
"Oh, the amoureux shirt. That's all right then. Thanks, Alan. Oh, and Don, Meghan, Colby, David, Larry and a friend of mine are going to be here in about two hours, is that OK?" she called from the lounge room.
"Of course it is," he reassured her, as she ducked back through, smiling gratefully.
"I really am sorry to just show up like this with no warning, but we were going to head back to Italy for a few days until we saw that the flight was cancelled, so we just got on the first plane home. I guess we're so used to not calling when we leave for somewhere, it didn't even occur to us," she apologised. Alan left the fry pan for a few moments to walk over and grasp her by the shoulders.
"Do not apologise for bringing my son home happier than he's ever been, Amita," he said softly, smiling at her.
"Still, we should have called," she said, flushing with pleasure. "Anyway, I'm going to head upstairs. Thanks again, Alan." And with that, she walked out of the room, blushing furiously, to start up the stairs. Alan shook his head as he heard laughter drifting down from upstairs, smiling to himself as he revelled in the difference that having the pair home made to the house, which seemed to be getting brighter by the moment.
A few hours later found the three relaxing in the lounge room, and catching up on events in Alan's life while they had been gone. Amita was reclining into Charlie's side on the sofa, with her feet tucked under her and her hair tied up in a simple ponytail, as he drew patterns on the flat of her stomach with his hand. However, in the middle of Alan's description of his date with a woman who volunteered with him at the shelter, they heard a car pull up. Smiling, Alan got up to start making coffee for everyone, as the front door opened.
"Where's my baby brother?" Don called loudly.
"In the lounge room," Charlie yelled back, pressing a final kiss to the crown of Amita's head before getting up to greet Don, who wrapped him in a bear hug. Charlie laughed and returned the embrace, as David reached over to hug Amita.
"Whoa, buddy, you look good!" Don said approvingly, ruffling his much shorter hair. "The time away agreed with you!"
"That it did," David agreed, pulling away from Amita to shake Charlie's hand whilst Don embraced Amita. "With both of you," he reiterated, before going to help Alan with the coffee as he came into the room.
"What's with all the bags?" Don asked, gratefully accepting the offered cup of coffee from his father and sinking into the chair across from Charlie. Amita laughed and rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, you try travelling the world and see how much you accrue," she teased lightly, resuming her previous position and accepting her cup from David with a smile. "Seriously, you won't believe the sheer amount of stuff that resides in those bags." Don laughed, his eyes taking in the comfortable and intimate position his brother and Amita were in. David sat cross legged on the ground, leaving the spare chair for Alan.
"Anyone home?" Meghan called from the front door.
"Come in, Meghan," Alan called, smiling as Larry and Meghan arrived. Heaving a sigh, Charlie helped Amita to her feet and jumped to his to greet his friends.
"Charles, Amita! It is highly pleasant to see you two again, I was beginning to believe that you had ventured into a separate dimension," Larry grinned as Charlie pulled him into an embrace, whilst Amita and Meghan hugged.
"Well, we did go to Europe, which is close enough, trust me," Charlie grinned, winking at Amita, who laughed.
"Ok, Larry, you've hogged him long enough, let me get a hug," Meghan said, playfully jostling him out of the way to embrace Charlie, leaving Larry to kiss both of Amita's cheeks chivalrously.
"Hey whizkid!" Colby called from the doorway, as Charlie pulled away from Meghan. Grinning, he reached over to shake Colby's hand. "It's good to have you back. You too, Amita," Colby said with a genuine smile, leaning over to kiss her on the cheek, before pulling back to and opening his mouth to ask a question.
"Amita Ramajuan, I'm going to kick your pretty Indian arse!" a feminine shriek cut across him as a pink blur sped across the room, almost knocking Amita from her feet. Charlie laughed as Anna embraced her friend fiercely. "And yours too, for taking her away for so long," the young woman said, jabbing a finger at him before pulling him into a hug too. For a few moments, she stepped back and looked at the pair. "Oh, you two!" she burst out, pulling them into a group hug. Amita laughed happily, hugging her back.
"Hey, chica," she said quietly as Anna pulled back, wiping her eyes surreptitiously.
"Coffee, everyone?" Alan called, bringing through a fresh pot, along with milk and sugar. A murmur of affirmation rippled around the room as Charlie sat down, pulling Amita down onto his lap, where she quickly made herself comfortable, turning to kiss him lingeringly before reaching for her coffee.
"So what's been happening in your lives while we've been away?" Charlie asked, winding an arm around her waist to pull her close.
"In our lives? We're more interested in yours at the moment! You're the ones who have been travelling the world!" Don laughed, as Meghan sat next to Larry, placing a hand on his thigh.
"Yeah, but ours is going to take up most of the rest of the day, so we're asking now," Amita said with an impish grin.
"Well," David said, clearing his throat. "I got engaged."
"Oh my God – seriously? Congratulations!" Amita said with a wide grin, as Charlie gave David a thumbs up.
"That's fantastic, David," he grinned. "And I'll shake your hand at some point, I promise." David grinned tightly and looked away, obviously uncomfortable at the amount of attention being paid to his personal life.
"Yeah, well," he mumbled, taking a sip of his coffee.
"We'll have to have her around at some point for a barbeque," Amita said quietly, before looking around. "What else?"
"I moved in with my boyfriend," Meghan said innocently. Charlie choked on his coffee, his position not being terribly contusive to seeing where Meghan's hand lay.
"Oh?" he managed weakly, as Amita let a slow grin spread over her face as the pieces fell into place. Meghan had been emailing her with the fast progress of her relationship with the mystery man she referred to only as 'L', but the last Charlie had heard, Larry and Meghan had gone on one rather shocking date, with the night ending with Larry in hospital and Meghan having to fast talk her way out of being arrested.
"Yeah. Just this week, actually," she said, enjoying Charlie's expression and squeezing Larry's leg to let him know to play along with the game.
"That… that's really great, Meghan, really great," he forced a smile and hoped it looked genuine. Amita glared lightly at her friend, who winked in return. "So, uh, what about you, Larry?" Charlie asked, desperate to change the subject in case Larry was upset over Meghan's announcement.
"Well, other than Meghan moving in, nothing major, really," he said with a vague smile, squeezing his girlfriend's free hand.
"Oh thank God, that could have been severely uncomfortable," Charlie said, letting out a sigh of relief, as everyone in the room chuckled lightly. "That was evil, Meghan!"
"Thank you, thank you, I'm here until Thursday," Meghan said with a small grin.
"Ha ha," Charlie returned dryly. "Ok, news, people."
"Terry moved back to LA," Don announced calmly, draining what was left in his mug. Everyone in the room turned to look at him, gaping. "What?"
"Seriously?" Amita asked, with a small smile.
"Yep. Been assigned a team over here, and arrived yesterday," he informed them, avoiding everyone's eyes and smoothing his trousers in a nervous gesture that Charlie recognised from their childhood.
"Oh? Where is she now?" he asked, taking a sip from his coffee and somehow managing to keep his voice even.
"Sleeping off the jet lag," Don tried to deflect the question but, seeing the look in his brother's eye, added softly: "At my apartment."
"Ha! I knew it! I so win!" Charlie grinned, punching the air and grinning at Colby, who groaned and reached for his wallet.
"What the hell is this?" Don asked in shock, watching as Colby handed over several notes to his brother.
"I bet that Terry would be back and in your apartment within a year of her leaving, Colby had from 12 months on," Charlie grinned, before rolling his eyes at Don's look of righteous indignation. "Oh come on, you can't tell me that you aren't all waiting for us to reveal when we got together so you know who won your pool."
"Hey! That's…. When was that, again?" he asked sheepishly, finally seeing the humour in the situation.
"Nuh uh, not until later," Amita grinned. "OK, what about you, Colby?"
"Working, sleeping, eating on occasion, catching the bed guys, etcetera," Colby grinned wryly from his seat on the floor. "In other words, I got married to the job. That's basically it. I don't lead a particularly interesting existence."
"Anna?" Charlie asked, turning his attention to her.
"Nothing. Well, work, but mostly nothing," she said, pretending to mope. Amita plastered a look of sorrow on her face, reaching for her friend, who smiled in spite of herself and batted the hand away.
"Well, if we're all done, can we turn our attention to these two please?" Don stressed, grinning.
"Sheesh, impatient much," Charlie grinned. "Hey, Colby, can you pass me that brown box please? Yeah, that one," he confirmed as the agent held up a shoebox and passed it over via Alan. "OK, now, I don't know how many of you know the circumstances behind Amita and my rather… sudden departure, so I'll very quickly explain. Or would you like to, Don?" he asked innocently.
"Never challenge a genius," he said flatly, earning him a withered look from his father and an amused one from his brother. "I told him that he wouldn't know how to be impulsive. They were on the plane the next day." David let out a shout of laughter at that, whilst everyone else laughed appreciatively. "Now, continue. What's in the box?"
"Photos. Lots and lots and lots of photos," Amita said, lifting the lid and bringing out several piles of neatly labelled photographs. Untying the ribbon on the first, she smiled at the image of the two of them, arms around each others shoulders, grinning madly at the camera. Charlie was wearing a Mexican get up and they were both wearing sombreros. In the background, several people were looking at the pair strangely.
"This was before we'd even left," she laughed, handing it around. "We were at the airport…"
Flashback – June 10th
Amita sighed in boredom, flicking through the channels restlessly. The first few days of summer break had, as always, been great, with the majority of the student population going out to celebrate the end of another school year. However, almost everyone had gone home, leaving those who couldn't to find their own sources of amusement.
"Amita, you home?" Charlie's voice asked from the other side of the door, and, with a furrowed brow, she made her way over to the door to open it.
"Hey, Charlie, what… whoa!" she yelped, as he grabbed her around the waist and spun her around. Pulling back slightly, she choked on her laughter – Charlie, jeans and t-shirt Charlie, was in full Mexican dress, sombrero and all. Fighting down her laughter at his attire, she raised a hand to her mouth and tried to find the words. "Um – there is, of course, a reason why you're dressed like that, right?"
"Yep. Go get packed," he said, grinning madly as he produced another sombrero, placing it on her head and laughing at her shocked expression.
"Packed? Why?" she asked distractedly, waving at her neighbour over Charlie's shoulder, and grinning as the elderly man huffed and closed the door quickly.
"We are going to go travelling," he announced, digging around in his pockets to triumphantly produce two tickets. Amita reached up to take them from him, studying them.
"Mexico? We're going travelling to Mexico?" Amita clarified, still grinning.
"For starters," Charlie admitted. "But that's simply because that was the only flight that was available to any place interesting today." Amita raised her eyebrows and opened her mouth as if to ask more questions, but was cut off when he started pushing her down the hall. "Go, go, I'll explain while you pack!"
"Good!" she said laughingly, as Charlie pulled out her suitcase and opened it. Laughing, she opened her closet and looked inside. "So, is there any reason behind this trip?"
"Don said I should be impulsive once in a while," Charlie grinned, bouncing on her bed. "So I went looked up what flights were available and booked the seats."
"That's hilarious. 'Be impulsive – travel to Mexico!'" Amita laughed. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she recognised the insanity of the situation, but suddenly found herself too caught up in the moment to care. "And what made you so sure I'd be able to come?" she asked teasingly, holding up a white summer dress to her body and raising an eyebrow seeking affirmation.
"Perfect, and because you've been complaining about having nothing to do for the summer for the last month," he explained, snatching the dress from her and folding it quickly into the suitcase.
"OK, I'll give you that," she said, picking out several shirts and chucking them at Charlie. "So what are we going to do in Mexico?"
"Be anyone but us!" Charlie grinned, folding them into the suitcase too. "Then, when we get bored of Mexico, we'll see where the next flight leaves for and get on that."
"Are you serious? Charlie, that's insane!" Amita said, though she still had a massive grin on her face.
"I know! Isn't it fantastic?" he asked, jumping into the air briefly.
"Yes!" she admitted, throwing several more articles of clothing at him, mostly jeans and skirts. "Do I need cold weather clothes?" Charlie thought about that for a few minutes.
"Actually, don't bother packing any more. I'm planning on having fun for a couple of months, at any cost - we'll buy tourist clothes," he said with mock seriousness, doing air quotes around the word tourist and startling a laugh out of Amita.
"Wait, wait!" she said as he went to close the suitcase, grabbing up the entire contents of her underwear draw and shoving them in the suitcase, along with her toiletries bag and anything else that looked relevant. He watched her for a few minutes, suddenly overcome by how beautiful she looked, rushing about with flushed cheeks and a sombrero.
"All right, let me call my roommate, then I'm done," she announced suddenly, pressing the sombrero more firmly onto her head
"Oh, this should be good," Charlie laughed as she dialled the number.
"Anna? Yeah… uh, actually, I wanted to talk to you about that… yeah, listen, can you look after the apartment this summer?... Charlie just showed up with tickets to Mexico…. This afternoon, I think…. Yes, I'm going… Yes, I do… Anna!" she laughed, blushing. "Can you, or can you not, look after the apartment while I'm gone?... Yeah, I'll wire you through the rent from wherever we happen to be…. No, apparently we're just going where the wind takes us…. Yeah, yeah… love you too, chica… see you in a couple of months! I'll call! Bye!" she hung up and turned to Charlie with laughing eyes and a large grin.
"When do we leave?" she asked happily, picking up her suitcase.
"Flight leaves in 3 hours, you got your passport?" he asked, stopping briefly.
"Yep!" she answered, grabbing her laptop as they moved out outside, where a cab was waiting for them. Throwing the suitcase in with Charlie's laptop and bag in the trunk, she clambered in to the backseat with a big smile.
"Thanks for waiting, Justin. To the airport thanks," Charlie grinned.
"Sure thing, Dr. Eppes," Justin smiled, as Amita bounced in her seat, clapping happily.
"You know, 15 minutes ago, I was sitting around feeling sorry for myself, and now I'm on my way to the airport, bound for Mexico. This is madness!" she laughed ecstatically as they pulled away from the curb.
"I know. Want to help me tell Don what we're doing?" he grinned, holding up his mobile.
"Hell yeah!" she laughed, shifting closer as he dialled the number, pressing the speakerphone button.
"Hey Don," they chorused as he answered with his usual "Eppes."
"Hey guys, what's up?" Don asked slowly, not used to such an enthusiastic greeting.
"Well, you know how you told Charlie to be impulsive?" Amita said slyly, grinning at Charlie.
"Yeah…?" Don replied guardedly.
"Well, I'm impulsively on my way to the airport with Amita," Charlie explained, laughing at Amita's exuberance as she giggled at the sudden silence.
"What?" Don asked, his voice strangled as the words hit him. "You're what?"
"I booked tickets for Mexico last night online. We leave in a couple of hours. Just thought we ought to let you know. Oh, and the best way to contact us would probably be via email. I know for a fact that there are a lot of places without cell reception around," Charlie winked at Amita.
"In Mexico? There aren't that many…" Don started in confusion, still trying to catch up with what was going on.
"Oh, well, we're only staying in Mexico until we get bored," Amita interrupted, enjoying keeping the normally unflappable agent off kilter.
"Bored?" the amazement in Don's voice was almost too much and Amita had to cover her mouth with her forearm to stop her laughter.
"Yes, bored. Then we're going to go the airport and pick a flight to get on," Charlie explained, as Amita buried her face into his shoulder to hide her laughter.
"Are you mad!" Don yelled, and they could hear Meghan in the background, obviously trying to calm him. "You can't just… take off like that!"
"Watch me," Charlie countered, calmly. "I mean, seriously, what is there really binding us here? We've both got two months off work, I've sent emails to all the alphabet groups telling them I can't consult during that time, and I've told dad what's going on. What's the problem?"
Don spluttered, trying to come up with a valid reason, before finally settling on: "But Mexico?" Charlie grinned evilly and declared:
"I'll email, Don. Adiós, hermano!"
"Charlie!" Don yelled, but Charlie flipped the phone shut.
"I am going to pay for that at some stage," he informed Amita calmly, turning his mobile off to filter the many angry phone calls he was sure he was going to get from his brother.
"I'm sure you will," she agreed through her laughter, bumping the top of her sombrero against the roof, making her laugh harder as Charlie helped her get it off.
"So, any specific countries or cities you want to visit?" Charlie asked casually.
"I don't know! Oh, Rome and Paris - and India, of course. God, this is insane!" she repeated, smiling widely and launching herself into his arms to give him a hug. "Thank you for doing this," she said happily as she pulled back, kissing his cheek.
"I'd say anytime, but…" he trailed off, giving her a final squeeze before letting go. She sat back, still grinning.
"So, you're going to keep your sombrero on?" she asked innocently, as Justin took the exit that would take them to Los Angeles International Airport. Glancing up, he plastered a look of shock on his face.
"Why not?"
"Because… Well, no real reason, actually. I mean, the other people on the plane might have something to say about your fashion sense, but other than that," she smiled.
"You raise a valid point, but I get to keep the rest of it!" he said, sighing dramatically as he took off the hat. For the next few minutes, they sat, tossing ideas for where they wanted to go back and forth with Charlie's suggestion of Antarctica being the only one shot down immediately, until Justin pulled into the airport. Getting out, he got out their luggage and shook Charlie's hand.
"Have a good trip, Dr. Eppes," he said, as Charlie gave him a $100 note to pay for the fare. "I'll just get your change."
"Don't bother, Justin. Consider it a tip," Charlie grinned as he picked up his stuff and, with a small wave, started into the airport with Amita.
"Dr. Eppes! What did I tell you about leaving tips larger than the fare?" Justin yelled at him, shaking his fist in mock anger as Charlie turned, waving enthusiastically. Amita laughed and jumped up and down as they got to the customs line.
"Hey, you want to stay here whilst I go grab something?" Charlie said suddenly, spotting a duty free shop.
"Sure," she agreed readily, as he swung his laptop onto his shoulder and put his bag down at her feet. "Just don't be long."
"10 minutes, max - and you'll thank me for it later, I promise!" he called over his shoulder. She waved him away, waiting patiently in line as a man several people in front of her kept trying to explain to the customs officers that, yes, he was going to keep setting off the metal alarm, and, no, he wasn't going to use the metal pins in his leg for anything untoward on the plane. Shaking her head, she looked around, scanning the people around her interestedly, until Charlie showed up, grinning madly and holding up a new digital camera and memory chip.
"Oh, nice!" she said, reaching out to examine it as he started spurting numbers and facts about the model, and helping her with the bags as they moved up the line.
"Sir, ma'am?" a customs officer said, and Charlie stopped talking abruptly, turning to smile at the man.
"Yes?"
"Can you place all of your metal possessions in this tray and place your bags on this belt here please?" he asked, eying Charlie's attire warily. Charlie and Amita emptied their pockets, Amita quickly reaching up to unclip her necklace at the last moment, whilst Charlie removed his belt and bells. Placing their laptops, bags and sombreros on the belt, they walked through the metal detector, breathing a silent sight of relief when it didn't go off. Collecting their possessions again, Amita had to laugh as Charlie looked at all the things in his hands before shoving them in his pockets whilst he put on his belt again. Showing the customs officer their passports, they moved off, the metal in Charlie's pockets jingling merrily and making Amita laugh as he tried to find a gait that would least disturb them.
Stopping briefly in the departure lounge, Charlie put batteries into the camera, inserting the memory card as well. Amita, still giggling, sat next to him and watched. Finally, he made a small noise of triumph and held it aloft, before looking around. A man in a smart looking business suit sat a few seats down and Charlie went over, clearing his throat quietly.
"Excuse me, sir. Would you mind taking a photo of my friend and I before we get on the plane?" he asked pleasantly. The man looked up, the look of surprise on his face almost comical, as he stammered his assent to the crazy looking man in front of him.
Grabbing their sombreros and Amita's wrist, Charlie placed the hat on her head and put his arm around her shoulders after making sure his was on firmly as well. She laughed as the business man fumbled with the camera, before finally working it out and saying:
"Say queso!"
"Queso!" the pair chorused, smiling widely as he took the photo. Charlie grinned and strode over
"Thanks for that," he said, shaking the man's hand and taking back the camera. "Have a good trip."
"You too," he said, still eying Charlie's clothes as he walked back to his things.
"Come on, you. We have to get going," Charlie grinned, picking up their luggage and moving off.
"Wait, isn't this the departure lounge?" Amita asked in confusion.
"It's one of them," Charlie agreed, moving towards a smiling stewardess, and showing her their tickets.
"Of course. Enjoy your flight, Dr Eppes, Dr Ramajuan," she said pleasantly, opening the door into the first class lounge.
"You did not!" Amita gasped, hitting him lightly. "First class?"
"I've been spoiled for life by those alphabet groups. They fly me first class everywhere," Charlie explained.
"May I take your luggage, sir, ma'am?" a man asked, coming up to them.
"Yes thank you," Amita smiled, handing over her suitcase, as Charlie did the same with his bag.
"Thank you," Charlie said as the man moved off. "You want something to eat or drink?" he asked her as they moved to one of the couches, their laptops still over their shoulders. She shook her head slightly, smiling tightly. "Hey, what's up?"
"Nothing, it's just… hitting me, I guess. We're actually just about to get on a plane bound for Mexico."
"You OK?" he asked in concern.
"Yes!" she assured him quickly. "Yes, I am, it's just… a bit of a shock, is all." Charlie reached over and grasped her hand in his, smiling at her until she grinned back weakly.
"We are going to have the most fun of our lives," he promised quietly, drawing her into a hug, which she returned after a moment.
"Yes, we are," she agreed, with a smile. "I know we are. Now, what are we going to do when we get to Mexico?"
"So you actually just showed up on her doorstep, told her to get packed and took her to Mexico?" Meghan asked in shock, as Don took the photo from her and grinned.
"Basically," Charlie agreed lightly.
"And you just agreed?" she said turning to Amita, her voice betraying her astonishment at her friend.
"Well, look at it from my perspective – an attractive, intelligent man arrives on your doorstep and offers to whisk you around the world for the next couple of months. What do you do?" Amita asked, with a cheeky grin.
"I see your point. I see it well," Meghan admitted. Don waved the photo at them.
"Where the hell did you get those clothes, buddy?" he asked, laughing. "A Halloween shop?"
"Yes, actually," Charlie admitted sheepishly. "I went and bought it that morning. But, don't worry, I did get changed on the plane."
"That's good, because you'd have been murdered if you hadn't!" Colby chuckled, taking the photo from Don again to study it.
"So, what happened when you got to Mexico?" David asked, holding his hand for the photo.
"Oh, that's when the fun really started!" Amita laughed.
"Do tell!" Anna said, leaning forward eagerly.
"Well…" Charlie started.
A/N: Hate to be a cliff hanger writing evil authoress, but I have to sleep before I fall sleep at the computer! I've been studying all day and writing all night! So see ya bai! Enjoy and review if you like it. It gives me incentive. MWA!