43 Commander 8x8

Nico waved his identification and other papers at the woman and he began speaking with her like he was representing the whole group for a diplomatic meeting.

I was amazed how Nico could be so professional with the way he spoke that I almost forgot he was that drunk and crazy guy that subtly asked me to be his woman last night.

He waved at our group and reached out to his pockets to show the woman some real backstage passes.

I heard him say something about 'checking equipment', 'making sure everything was fine', 'tuning instruments' and lastly 'backstage practice'.

He was talking so fast and in such an eloquent and well-read manner that I began to suspect Nico wasn't at all that crazy of a guy who lavished and splurged on whatever he likes.

He was amazingly well-versed and knows everything right to say when needed.

Eventually, the woman began to accept Nico's explanations and did one last check on his identification, passes, and other papers before she passed it on to the burly man behind her.

"Alright then. You and the others may pass, make sure to carry with you your identifications and passes everywhere or else security personnel would immediately kick you out thinking you could be trespassers." The man told Nico as he returned the items he inspected with scrutiny.

"Righty then! We'll be off to our side of the camp and thank you for being so accommodating!" I was confused whether Nico was actually serious or if he was just a sarcastic asshole.

But the way he walked away with the goofy grin plastered to his face, I would probably bet he was just a sarcastic asshole.

The whole event area was a lot of mess.

It looked like there were many things that the organizers had been trying to work out and get done with the short span of hours until opening day tomorrow.

Tents were built here and there, sound systems and electrical connections were checked. There was a woman that was practically yelling all of the words that came out of her mouth while her assistants clambered to plaster everything together quickly.

"Fucking bastards! Work faster!" I heard her scream like her life depended on it. "This is an epic comeback of Coachella after the lockdown so move your asses and show me the most lit stage ever!"

We had been walking – but more like dodging - in the chaos of the event area when Nico guided us towards a little corner where a van was camped. By far, it looked so much bigger than the rest of the camper vans out here that I actually asked Nico if he was mistaken.

"This isn't what you meant by already taking care of the accommodation during Coachella, right?" I asked him, pointing a finger at the absurd size of the camper van that looked like it could actually be used for war.

Knocking on the hard metal, I could sense that it wasn't any ordinary camper van at all. Not to mention it was so shiny and smooth!

"Nope, we are exactly where we need to be. Ladies and gentlemen, let me introduce you to Commander 8x8." Nico looked so happy with his van that he actually did a chef's kiss.

"No inch is underutilized in this baby and yes, this is ours for the rest of Coachella. And mine until I decide to buy myself something much nicer. Probably a race car but yeah, later."

The girls squealed in delight while Bash kissed Nico on the cheeks like he won the lottery. "Sweet mother of all camper vans. This is a beauty right here, Nico!"

I could see the excitement of a car enthusiast in his eyes and I couldn't help but feel a bit taken back to the old days when those same eyes were directed at me.

"Well, hop on in. I'll give you a quick tour before we take a look at the other displays and whatnots in Coachella Valley." Nico waved and bowed after he inserted his keys and opened the door like a butler. "After you mademoiselle."

Suzy giggled while Ali rolled her eyes as we entered into the two-story camper van Nico provided.

Everything was nicely done, from the cozy furniture to the tiny kitchen and posh bathroom. Upstairs there were beds that had individual windows and a huge flat screen TV at the end.

"I'm beginning to be confused if I should be more excited to party and waste myself in Coachella or to get comfy in here and watch Netflix the whole weekend." Becky gushed.

"Babe, at least watch our performance before you chill in here." Zeke pleaded jokingly and everybody laughed.

After we had our bits of fun inside the camper van, everyone got out and Nico said, "Alright then. My men have already made sure our equipment and all necessities are taken care of so that we can have all afternoon until 4pm to go around and have fun."

He handed us our passes and then continued, "Just be reminded that thou shall never touch and destroy or sabotage anything. Or else, organizers will ban us from the festival."

All bobbed their heads in agreement and Nico smiled cunningly. A chill ran up my spine and I shivered as I began to feel like he was on to something I would probably not like.

"So, I suggest we break off into two or three groups and meet back at the entrance by 3:30pm. How does that sound to you guys?"

There was a series of nods, grunts, and agreements and Nico pulled out a few strings in his pocket and I stared at it, confused what it was meant to be or what its use is.

"There are three different colors at each end of the strings. Pick out one and which color you get, that's the group you will be going to. I've put in some extra strings so the group might not be equally distributed but - "

"Oh, shut it already Nico. Let's get going and see what else we can find here." Bash grabbed a string while the others and I followed right away.

"Alright! Who got blue you all with me!" Zeke said.

"Yes! We are meant to be babe, look!" Becky excitedly pushed her blue tipped string in front of Zeke to which he beamed her a wide smile.

"I'm blue as well."

"Me too... wait this sounds kinda sad and funny at the same time."

Suzy and Ali frowned as they realized they had to put up with the lovebirds.

"You wanna escape when the opportunity shows itself?" Ali jokingly whispered to Suzy.

"I got a red tipped string!" I said, "But hold on, what is this -"

I stared intently at my string and noticed the end wasn't actually dangling like the others.

Quite funny, it looked like it was tied to another string and as I traced the other end, I found myself staring at Bash's face who was equally shocked.

Slowly, realization dawned on me and I began to somehow feel a chill all over my body.

"Guess we'll be stuck together for the remainder of the afternoon." He devilishly smiled.