DUSK ( THE GECKO BROTHERS )

IX. IM IN MEXICO FOR THE HORCHATA

CHAPTER NINE
( IM IN MEXICO FOR THE HORCHATA! )

RICHIE HAD A PINCHED LOOK ON HIS FACE AS HE DUG HIS BITTEN DOWN NAIL INTO HIS TEETH. Adelaide and the rest of the group didn't notice though, and they carried on walking.

"That sweet is stuck in my teeth, it would be good with some horchata" Richie groaned, digging his finger deeper into his mouth. Adelaide couldn't help but roll her eyes at how ridiculous the usually intimidating man looked.

"Horchata?" She questioned confused but didn't look over at him, her eyes inside roaming the bustling crowd.

"Yeah the drink" He said, his brow creased; his attention obviously not on talking to her, "It's like a milkshake, it's Mexican. You better get used to it now we're here"

He said 'we're' as if they were sticking together and if they had planned all along to go to Mexico. Like some family holiday trip.

"Hate to break it to you Richie, but horchata isn't the reason I'm here" Adelaide huffed with a slight laugh, squeezing between a couple of large men and trying to escape the Gecko brother but instead he followed her; completely oblivious to her determined pace.

"What is the reason you're here?" He asked, finally giving up on trying to free the shard of lemon sherbet from inbetween his teeth and now just sporting the grimaced look, like it was second face for him.

She just ignored him and continued walking, picking up her pace now. She didn't owe Richie an explanation, plus what would she say- she'd came all this way in a hope Carlos would still remember her and give her a better life?

It even sounded ridiculous in her head so she most definitely wasn't going to say it out loud, especially to this man. So she just rolled her eyes with a huff and made a sudden turn, ready to dart away into a cluster of people in hope she'd lose the tall, weirdly curious criminal.

"Where do you think you're going?" His tone was hard as Seth stopped Adelaide from roaming the mysterious place with his arm resting solid in front of her on her stomach.

"What the fuck is wrong with these brothers?" She muttered harshly under her breath with a clenched jaw before raising her green eyes to Seth's, which stared back at her, hard.

"Back across the border, I've seen enough of Mexico and I'm bored now" She said deadpan to him with a slight smile which was obviously fake. He narrowed his eyes and tilted his head, waiting for her serious reply.

"Why does it matter?" She asked, clenching her jaw again so her teeth began to ache like Richie's and holding herself back from ducking under his arm.

"Because" He pondered as if thinking of an excuse. She didn't need protecting and she didn't mean anything to him "Because I said so"

Like that was an appropriate answer. She scoffed and his eyes squinted even further until she could hardly make out his dark irises. He moved his suit jacket slightly to show the gun peaking underneath. Now she threw her head back with a laugh and showed him her own. She wasn't scared of him.

"Well move, because I said so" She retorted back and before he could say anything more, she quickly ducked beneath his stick straight arm and weaved herself through the drunk crowd; leaving the Gecko brothers in her dust.

She'd searched every public inch of the bar and it felt like it had been ages since she arrived; her breath had began to become laboured and sweat started to layer on her forehead and down the tanned slit of her spine. The smell of alcohol and sweat was so heavy it was beginning to make her feel lightheaded and choking. Alcohol was a scent she couldn't stand, it was conditioned to make her feel physically sick. She had to leave before she threw up or passed out, but she still hadn't found Carlos and she was beginning to feeling worried and doubtful that he was even here. She was positive that The Titty Twister was the place but now only a small part of her was clutching to that idea. She pushed that to the deep bottom of her stomach.

She'd fumbled her way to the bar and braced herself on it with outstretched arms, inhaling deep, toxic breaths.

"Alright little miss surprise?" Seth chuckled, mirroring her stance and smirking at the bottles behind the bar as he waited for the bartender. But when she didn't reply and he tore his gaze over to her face, his face softened and showed a weird look that didn't suit his usual expression towards her. But it seemed to fit easily on his features. Was it concern? Was it worry? It definitely wasn't smug or annoyance. He moved closer to her and leaned in a little to see her properly, "Do you want a drink?"

She raised her eyes to look at him and her mouth frowned as she tried to figure out the expression on his face. She couldn't do it. So she just nodded and he nodded in reply before moving away back to the bartender.

After he'd spoke in loud shouts to the man behind the bar who was cleaning a glass rapidly, Seth slid down the bar slightly so he was closer to her, "Are you sure you're alright?" -

"I'm fine" She meant to snap but it came out as a deflated sigh and she didn't even convince herself. He moved his hand as if to wrap it comfortably around her back.

She let out a heavy breath and rolled her eyes to the other side of her - the Sethless side. This sudden moment of tender vulnerability and comfort was weird. She found it funny, how it was between them two - the criminal Adelaide Roujas and Seth Gecko who didn't seem to like each other at all - and on the backdrop of The Titty Twister. Adelaide had to diffuse it quick.

"Why do you even care?"

He thought about it for a second and for some reason Adelaide felt herself perk up, waiting too eagerly for the answer. But before he could reply the bartender set down the glasses harshly with a gruff, the frothing liquid bustling over the sides at the hard slam and coating the already sticky counter. Adelaide jumped, straightening and Seth cleared his throat. She grabbed her drink without even muttering a 'thanks' and spun on her heel, leaving the Gecko behind to carry the rest of them.

She headed to the wooden table that held the rest of the unlikely ensemble, Seth slowly trailing behind her as if purposely trying to keep his distance.

She sat with the group at the table and they all spoke to one another, but she blocked them out, focusing on her rapid heart beat and the tears that began to burn the corners of her eyes and her doubt of Carlos being at the Titty Twister and the worry of what that meant; for her, for her future.

But she was torn out of her thoughts when Seth nudged her, his face etched with that same look from before at the bar. He must have been speaking to her but she just looked at him blankly not having heard the words that had escaped his lips. She looked at his lips trying to suss what he had said, but she found herself watching them intently instead of focusing on the words. Before he could repeat them, a loud voice announced the next dancer on the stage. Adelaide tore her eyes from Seth's reluctantly as if they had been stuck together. As they roamed over to the stage she caught the sight of another man, one way more familiar that Seth Gecko.

From across the room she could see Carlos. He hadn't changed and she could not forget that face. He was tanned with dark hair, she had to admit he was good looking but she had never looked at him like that. She remembered that face, she saw it so many times. The face she saw behind her eyelids, offering a better life, offering her hope. It was the face she had been looking for, but for some reason as they stared at each other from across the room she wasn't so sure she was glad she'd found him.