WILDFIRE
By Aysia Anderson (a.k.a. Nikki)

Chapter Nineteen: Walk On Water

Justin let his eyelids fall as Camille lay over him in a hammock strung up between two palm trees on Caribe Cay Island. Lightly she ran the Orchid petal between her index finger and thumb over the bridge of his nose as he tried to take in a catnap. They had just finished breakfast at the cottage along with their two friends whom had held questioning looks on their faces. They didn’t ask about the couple missing dinner the night before because they could only assume the reason, hence, majority of their dining time together that morning was spent silently amongst smirks and coy giggles.

“Still tired?” Camille asked, voice barely above a whisper, as she memorized the docile features of her resting mate.

Justin nodded his head slowly. It had been a long time since he could just lay around and relax. Whenever the opportunity arose he was all over it. A newlywed or not he knew that sooner than later either he or Camille would be thrust back into the limelight and the charades would begin all over again. He had to cherish this moment with her as if it would be the last one that they would have alone together.

“Am I boring you?” He asked sheepishly, forcing his eyes to open slightly so that he could see her expression.

“Not at all.”

“You sure you don’t want me to get up so we can go and do something?”

“Something like what?” She grinned at him. “We’re on a private island. There is nothing here but the three cottages and land. It’s meant for us to just lounge about and be happy together.”

“Mm, so are you happy?”

“What do you think?” Camille leaned down slightly to take his lips into hers.

“I think that now at least I’m happy.” Justin smirked up at her and let his eyelids close on him once again. “Tell me something.”

“What?”

“When we have babies what do you think we should name them? Boy and girl names alike.”

“You want a boy don’t you?”

“No, I want a girl.” Justin shook his head. “I need someone to spoil.”

“I thought you had that already.”

“Oh, I could never spoil you. I worship you. There is a difference.” He joked. “You were spoiled when I met you!”

“I was spoiled?” Camille scoffed. “You’re the one that runs home to his mommy every time feeding time rolls around!”

“Ha, ha! Point taken.”

“Uh-huh. Right.”

“So you’re going to fill in for my mom and cook for me now?” He asked, rubbing his hand over her leg peeking out from under her white sundress.

“Haven’t I already cooked for you in the past?”

“On special occasions.”

“I’m your wife now. I’m supposed to feed you.” Camille stated, returning to her task of tracing the orchid over his features.

“Hmm, I like the way that sounds. That makes me the bread winner then, right? I go out and bring home the bacon and you tend to the youngins?”

“Stop playing…that’s your job.”

“Sadly enough I have no problems with that.” Justin shook his head and licked his bottom lip.

“Ah, mami wears the pants in the house!”

“Whatever, woman.”

Camille listened to the silence that was about to roll in. “So…”

“So…?”

“I think you’ve passed on your sleepiness.” She yawned and leaned forward to rest her head on his chest.

“My evil plan unfolds perfectly!” He smiled and moved his hands to massage her back as she lay flat against him. Who needed a blanket when he had her around?

“Guess so.” She closed her eyes as the Orchid petal slipped from her fingertips and floated down gently to the sand below…

With a coy smile on her face Nastassia sat at Nelly’s side as he tipped over a bucket filled with white sand onto the beach. It had been a long time since she had been able to sit down and do something like this and she had to admit that she felt a bit awkward. Adults didn’t frolic across the beach and make sand castles. At least not adults from where she was from.

“I never imagined you as the type to make sand castles.” She commented as he lifted the tin bucket he had received from the gardener to reveal a nearly perfect cylinder-like mound of sand.

“We’ve all got our secrets, now don’t we?” Nelly smirked at her.

“Funny you say that.”

“Yeah, funny.”

Nastassia cleared her throat and eyed him suspiciously. “What’s up?”

“Nothing’s up unless you’ve got something to say.”

“What would I have to say right now?”

“Shorty, we’ve been dating for a really long time now and I still don’t know everything about you.”

“You know a lot about me.”

“I only know the things that you let me know, Nas.” He disagreed. “I don’t know what you were like when you were a little girl. I don’t know what you dream about at night. I don’t know anything besides what’s on the surface and that bothers me.”

Her eyebrows furrowed in contemplation. “How long have you been feeling this way?”

“For a while now, obviously. I mean, sitting here on this island with you, JT, and Camille makes me think about it ten times more. Those two have something great. It’s special, you know? I feel like we have something going for us too but it will never reach that magnitude, that level, if you’re not willing to let me in.”

“It’s not that I’m not willing to let you in…”

“Then what is it? What’s holding you back, babe? I’m here and I’m listening to you but you’re not saying anything.”

“I know that, it’s just…”

“It’s just what, Nastassia? You’ve got all of me right here. I let you in deeper than I’ve let any other woman. My kids want to call you momma and shit now. How does that look when I still can’t even say I really know you?”

“Then why are you still here? Why are you even fucking with me if you feel like you don’t know who I am?” Tears began to well up in her eyes for the first time in what seemed like forever. Nelly himself had never seen the woman get emotional like that about anything.

“Why am I still here? I’m still here because even though there is so much about you that I don’t know I am in love with the things that I do know.” He explained himself. “I look at you with my kids and it gets me to my heart. I look at the friendship that you have with Camille and I see that there is so much history there. I look at your beautiful face when I’m holding you and I know that you’ve got wifey material but you’re too afraid to let it all come loose.”

“What is it that you want me to tell you?” She turned to him, trembling slightly with her anxiousness.

“Everything. Anything and everything.”

“You want to know all of my secrets? You want to know the things that keep me up late at night?”

He nodded slowly though now wondering if she was about to tell him something that he really wasn’t prepared to hear. His eyes watched her shift around in the sand so that her whole body was facing his. He swallowed down the lump in his throat and gave her his complete attention.

“I grew up poor and on welfare in the hood, okay? I saw a lot of things that a child should never ever see and some of that still effects me to this day. I saw people get shot and beaten on the streets and sometimes its hard for me to deal with it inside of mind.” Nastassia began to explain though it pained her to go backward to recall the events of her life. “I wasn’t like all of the other girls in my neighborhood running around and being a ho because that was the only thing to do. I was really quiet and kept to myself but nobody messed with me. I didn’t really break out of my shell until high school when I hooked up with my first boyfriend and met Camille.”

“See, that brings me closer to you right there, baby.” Nelly reached out and took her hand into his. “You and I come from pretty much the same place. We’ve had those bad memories created in not so good living situations.”

“Oh?” She raised an eyebrow at him. “You think we’re on the same plain with this? I don’t think so! I had some royally fucked up shit happen systematically, back to back.”

“Nas,”

“No, you wanted to hear it so here it is, alright? The reason you’ve never met my parents? I don’t have any. My father was never around so fuck him wherever the hell he is and my mother was shot and killed in a liquor store hold up my junior year of high school! That’s why Camille and I are so close. That’s why her mother is like my mother because my own was taken away from me!”

Nelly felt his mouth go dry as his girlfriend continued to speak. He never knew all of the things that she had gone through. Everyone had their tragedies but in that moment he couldn’t think of one that was worse than the ones that she was sharing with him right now.

“You want to know why I’m so weary about children? I got pregnant that same year before my mother died and it broke her heart! She convinced me that it was best if I just give away my baby because I was too young to handle the responsibility…”

“Baby, you were pregnant?”

“I went to term with my baby boy! For nine months I was somebody’s mother! For nine months I carried a tiny soul inside of my body and the day that he was born my mother signed the papers for the adoption agency to take him away from me!” Tears streamed endlessly down her cheeks, her voice becoming hoarse as she struggled to continue on. “They let me hold him in my arms,” her arms moved as if she was cradling her baby. “They let me hold him and look into his eyes. I had just named him when they came in and snatched him away from me like fucking theives!”

“What did you name him?” Was the only thing that Nelly could think of to ask as he watched her breaking down unable to make his own muscles move.

“Treviyon Benjamin.” Nastassia laughed suddenly and smiled at her boyfriend. “I don’t know what I was thinking naming him that but it sounded good at the time.”

He nodded, reaching out for her and drawing her into his arms. “How long have you been keeping all of that in on the inside?”

“I don’t even remember. It’s been so long.”

Nelly kissed the top of her head as she sat leaning against him. “You don’t have any more secrets to share do you? I know I asked for all of that but if there is more lets just take this one day at a time.”

Nastassia laughed, “I think that’s all that I’ve got. I ended up living with Camille and her mother after my mom passed away and they both tried to help me locate my son but nothing ever came out of that. I’ve always wondered what he looks like now and what he’s all about.”

“How old would he be right now?”

“Three and a half.”

“Treviyon…” He smiled to himself. “You haven’t stopped looking have you?”

“I would never ever stop looking for my son. He’s my soul.”

/*/*/

“Hey, Butterbean?” Camille stood just inside of the doorway leading to the den where Nicole sat cuddled up close to her father watching cartoons. “I’m going out for a little while but I’ll be back soon. You be good for daddy, okay?”

“She’s always good with me.” Justin winked as he and his daughter both stood from the couch and approached her.

“Mommy, I want to go with you!” Nicole pouted as her mother squatted down to hug her goodbye.

“Sweetie, I won’t be gone for long and when I come back you and I will go out for mommy and Nikki time, okay?”

“Do you promise?”

“Cross my heart, baby.” Camille kissed her daughter’s forehead and stood up to see her husband patiently waiting his turn. “What can I do for you, sir?”

“Going out with your ladies?” He wiggled his eye brows at her.

“Yeah, you jealous?”

“Can’t lie and say that I’m not.” He moved to give her a hug and an innocent kiss goodbye. “Have fun, baby.”

“Can do.”

Nicole watched sadly as her mother walked away and headed to the door. She had grown used to having her around and all to herself in her father’s absence. Camille wouldn’t leave the house unless it was absolutely necessary. With everything that was going on she spent most of her time playing with her baby girl and writing new material for her next album.

“Hey, hey!” Justin bent down and lifted his daughter up and into his arms as Camille walked out of the front door. “Lets you and me have some fun together, honey. What do you want to do?”

/*/*/

Justin yawned lightly as his eyes opened to the bright sun shining day. The hammock was swaying back and forth lightly from the breeze and his wife was lost in her dreams. Just as he was about to settle back into sleep along with her he noticed a small creature floating through the air. Silently he observed it’s decent before it came to rest on Camille’s bare shoulder.

The wings of the butterfly spread out widely and waved its brilliant colors for all to see. Gold and blue designs were encased in black borders. It appeared to be watching him just as he watched it. It would have made a beautiful snapshot if someone had been around with a camera. There he lay with his beautiful wife asleep in his arms engulfed in beautiful natural lighting with one of nature’s most breathtaking creations displayed on her shoulder and no one would ever see it but him.

“No, no. Don’t move.” He whispered to her as she began to stir, waking up from her catnap.

“What?” she blinked slowly as her eyes readjusted to the light.

“Butterfly.”

“Is it on me?”

Justin nodded, still watching it. He knew that Camille got weird about any sort of bug being on her from lady bugs to this butterfly. He noticed her making a face, trying not to move as requested, and he grinned just as the butterfly decided to flutter away.

“What did it look like?” Camille asked, turning her neck so that she could prop her chin on her arms folded over his chest.

“Absolutely beautiful.”

“Hmm. Well, I’m going to go back inside, okay?”

“Why? I thought you were hanging out with me.”

“I was thinking that you should come with me.”

“Oh, really?” Justin’s eyebrow rose in contemplation before an evil smile spread across his face. “You want me to make up for your legs hurting from last night?”

“What do you think?”

****

“I deem this sandcastle in honor of our love.” Nelly cracked, standing up with Nastassia who was shaking her head at him.

“The water is just going to knock it all down eventually.”

“But it can be rebuilt. Just like the love that we have for one another.” He explained. “We already had something good but now it’s better.”

“Stop hanging out with Justin and his sappiness. You’re really starting to scare me.” She warned.

“Maybe you need to get a little uncomfortable some of the times. If you never do then how will you ever truly experience anything?”

“Don’t you think I’ve experienced enough?”

“Nah,” He disagreed and came over to kiss her. “You got a lot more to experience in this world.”

“Hmm, like what?” She couldn’t help but to smile at his flirtation. It had to be that they were on an island paradise.

“You have to experience all of the good things in life like the romance and the excitement of being wrapped up in the moment.”

****

“You want to do something completely scandalous right now?” Justin began to issue a challenge.

“Depends on what it is.”

“I’m just thinking why do we have to go back to the cottage to do this?”

Camille’s lips parted slightly. “Are you serious?”

“Very serious.” He directed her face down closer to his and tasted her lips. “Why not? There are no cameras around. Nastassia and Nelly are on the beach and the help are in their own cottage. What do you say?”

“Right here in the hammock?” Camille’s voice rose an octave as she felt two strong hands grip her ass.

“You got a better idea?”

“Have you considered the possibility of falling out of the hammock? What about these two palm trees waving at the world because of the motion between them.”

Justin laughed instantly. “Its our honeymoon. Fuck ‘em if they can’t take a joke!”

/*/*/

Camille was glad that when she arrived at the restaurant the other ladies were already there. This was her first public outing in a long while and she was still squeamish about it. Her name was on the lips of most everyone in the world and she wasn’t quite ready to face the questions. Going into hiding may not have been the bravest thing but standing in the forefront to take the assault was suicide.

As soon as she stepped out of her vehicle, handing the keys to the valet, and entered the restaurant she could feel all eyes on her. A hush seemed to fall over the diners as the maitre de escorted her to the table where a few familiar faces sat awaiting. Nicole Ritchie, Beyonce Knowles, Jessica Simpson, of course Nastassia, and her close friend and dancer, Ellie Morrison.

“We almost thought you weren’t going to make it, girl. How have you been?” Beyonce was the first one to stand up as they all hugged the young woman one by one.

“Hey, I wasn’t going to miss this. Our ladies nights out are so rare these days with all of us working.” Camille replied as they all took their seats, she sitting between Jessica and Ellie. “So catch me up. How has everyone been doing lately?”

“Well,” Nicole cleared her throat. “As you know, Tony and I called it quits a while back and I’ve been seeing a lot of other people, right? Well, he called me up the other night just to talk and now we’re going out again next week.”

“Tony was the dancer with the green eyes, right?” Beyonce questioned, unsure of just who this man was.

“Yeah,” Ellie chimed in with an answer. “He is crazy about Nicole. He tried seeing other people but it wasn’t working out for him.”

“How about you, hon?” Camille turned to her.

“Things have been getting better. Mom has been doing really well since the surgery and she says she feels a lot better than she has in all of her days so I’m keeping my fingers crossed.”

“Amen to that.” Beyonce nodded her head. “I was praying for her, Ellie.”

“Yeah,” Jessica agreed. “She’s a wonderful woman and has raised a wonderful daughter.”

“I hear that they’re renewing your show with Nick?” Nastassia lifted her menu to begin scanning it.

“They’re coming up with a new name and everything. We’re not newlyweds anymore and now we have a baby so they have to change a lot.”

“I can’t believe you let them in the delivery room with you, Jess.”

“I know, right?” The vibrant blonde chuckled. “I’m just glad that they didn’t show everything!”

“You’re bold, lady. Very bold.” Camille laughed with her as a young man approached the table from the other side of the restaurant.

“Excuse me?”

Camille and the other ladies all turned to see him standing at her side. “Hi.”

“Hey, yeah, I don’t mean to interrupt but I had to come over here to meet you all and to say to you personally Camille that you are doing a wonderful job.” He smiled warmly. “I know that the situation is a difficult one but you’re handling it in a very mature and responsible manner. I’m sure that in the end everything will work out for the better.”

“Aw, thank you. I really appreciate that.” She shook his hand as he nodded his head toward the other ladies and returned to where he had come from. “That was really sweet.”

“Yeah, that was.” Beyonce agreed. “I agree with him completely, Cam. We want to see more of you out and about though. Staying in the house forever isn’t going to solve the problem.”

Camille nodded that she understood and exchanged glances with Nastassia. The others didn’t know that Justin had come back home and as far as she was concerned they didn’t need to know that just yet. Things had to be rectified in the home before they could be set straight on the outside.

“I think she’s doing a lot better.” Nastassia spoke up for her. “It is a hard thing to deal with but she’s doing it and handling it a lot better than I would be.”

“Totally! Let Nick pull something like that!” Jessica laughed. “I’d be so broken!”

“Nah, we’d give him a Texas ass whooping.” Beyonce threw her a hi-five.

////

JC settled back into the chair in front of the cameras with VH1 and Gary. He hadn’t spoken much about the honeymoon on tape because it was private information. The only reason that he had divulged so much to Gary was because he was a part of the clique. He was friends with him, Justin and Camille. That was the only reason that VH1 was getting the chance to do the show at all was because of Gary’s connections.

“Needless to say, Justin and Camille had a very memorable honeymoon. They were at Caribe Cay for at least a month with a few people coming in and out. Nastassia and Nelly couldn’t stay the whole time so I made a guest appearance along with a few other friends before they finally came back home.” He started to tell the story from where he had left off. “I don’t really need to say what came out of their little escapade. The world knows about their daughter, Nicole…”

Then there was life...