Allegro con fuoco

LII

To be honest, Eddy only felt worse about himself, leaving Brett to unpack in the hotel room as he shot into his shorts and shirt and pulled the door shut behind him. 
This wasn't fair, was it? He should be there, with him, allowing him to fulfil the promise that he made earlier, about showing him how adorable he was. 
Adorable. 
That word seriously wasn't doing it for him. He crossed through the lobby of the hotel and he was running by the time he hit the street. He didn't know his way around, but how hard could it be? He would just run in a straight line. He was sure to find his way back, and to be honest by now he was past caring whether he got lost. So he ran, and ran, his feet pounding the pavement, pushing himself, leaving all of the stale energy behind. His lungs were working hard, now, not accustomed yet to the moist, tropical air of Singapore, yet he pressed on and on, his heart pumping so loudly that it drowned out the chaotic dream, drove away the pesky thoughts that had plagued him, until he felt so tired that he couldn't think anymore anyway. He had no idea how long he had gone for when he eventually came to a stop at some high rise building, bending forward so he could lean on his knees, trying to catch his breath. 
"Fuck!" he shouted suddenly, turning around and stomping the building with his flat hand as if it could help it. 
When he turned back around some Singaporeans were eyeing him in shocked surprise. 
"Sorry." he said meekly, casting his eyes down. Crap. Now he was making a spectacle of himself? Please, just walk on. he thought urgently. Leave me be. Just move on. 
A pretty girl with super long straight black hair, clearly not a mind reader, stepped forward and looked up at him worriedly. 
"Are you okay?" she asked.
He stood up straight and managed to smile apologetically. Now he was feeling even sillier, for making strangers worry too. 
"Yes. I'm sorry. It was a long day."
She nodded once. 
"If you're sure."
"Yes. Thank you. Sorry again, I'll head back now."

It took him forever to find his way back. The relative calmness he had felt before he punched the building was long gone now. And he had thought he would be able to just get back, because hadn't he basically just jogged from the hotel in a straight line? He couldn't help the little bit of panic that was bubbling up in him as he ran through one street after the other, and everwhere looked exactly the same. He had left his phone in the hotel room, of course. God, he wished by now that he hadn't, even if calling Brett would have been expensive. He kept looked around him for cues as to where he was, but even every building looked the same. Tall. Concrete. Busy streets, people everywhere. Pedestrian crossings. There was nothing to tell him anything. 
He was still running in what he thought was the right direction, but wasn't this pointless by now? And to be honest he was ready to give up here, ask somebody, inconvenience yet another person today, maybe even call a cab, but just as he was looking around for someone he could ask he saw a familiar shape in the distance on the right. 
Wait. Was that their hotel? It was, right? His heart skipped a beat.
"Thank God." he whispered and ran towards the building at speed. 
God, he was tired. His legs were hurting, his calves cramping. And to be honest his head wasn't any clearer now than when he left. Which he was absolutely positive Brett would see the second he got back in the room. 
Double fuck.
What exactly had been the point of this whole exercise then? 

Brett's sober eyes were on him as he sheepishly walked into the hotel room. They were wide, worried. Shit. How long had he been gone for? He checked the clock on the wall quickly. It was getting very late, way past dinner time. 
"Are you okay?" Brett asked softly. 
Eddy nodded. What was he going to say?
"Yes. So sorry. I got lost."
Brett nodded once, then he stepped forward. 
"Okay. Eddy. Enough. Tell me what's going on with you. Please. Now."