Allegro con fuoco

LIX

Okay, but Brett seriously wasn't exaggerating about this place. Wow. He craned his neck to look at everything. Flowers were drooping from high places, with gorgeous architecture above them. The atmosphere was even hotter and more humid in here, it seemed, and his shirt stuck to his back, but he didn't care. 
"Wow, Brett. It's so beautiful. I can't understand how they managed to make this."
"I know, right? How are they getting everything to bloom at the same time?"
"I couldn't begin to tell you."

They were quiet for a good while as they wandered through the beauty together. Eddy kept glancing from Brett to his surroundings. Looking. Watching. Waiting. There was the bay, right? Close? They could walk to it? Would that be a good spot? There were people everywhere here. There was no way he could give him the ring like this. Just no way.
They came to a long bridge with yellow wooden railings, with more gardens beyond, full of tall  metal shapes full of flowers. 
"Whoa, what are those?"
"The tree like things? Architectonic shit, I think. I've seen pictures in the dark, they're lit then. Really pretty."
His hand touched Brett's as he pointed and he pulled it back, almost in shock. An excited shiver seemed to pull through him now, because he could see the bay from here. A glittering, long stretch of water, reflecting the light coming from above so brightly it was hard to look at without sunglasses. The sun was beaming on them as they walked on, heading to the water without even agreeing it, and suddenly that still vastness was like a mirror of them, of everything they had been and everything they were going to be. Eddy swallowed convulsively, now incredibly glad that he hadn't yet eaten that second croissant. Why hadn't he just given him the damn ring in the privacy of their hotel room? Why had he been so adamant to do it somewhere romantic, even though they were in a country that wasn't welcoming to romance between blokes? He took a deep breath and tried to quell the nausea that was coming up. 
"Wow." Brett said as he stepped out from under a big tree-like thing full of flowers and looked out over the water. You could just about see the other side. "Do you know this used to be sea?"
"No?"
"Yeah." Brett nodded. "It's reclaimed land, all of it."
Eddy scooted a bit closer to him as he waited until the coast would be clear. Nobody should be here, nobody should see them here. He could have screamed at the people over there, a small group of Asians, oohing and aahing in Mandarin over the flowers around them and the water, pointing to the right, where he knew the marina was.
Go to the marina then. Just leave us be.
Had they heard his thoughts, somehow? The tallest guy glanced in his direction as the whole group turned around, slowly meandering over to where he had wanted them to go. 

This was it, wasn't it? He looked around him quickly, and he couldn't believe his luck when he saw that it was all quiet now. And they were pretty well hidden, behind the tree-shaped architectonic thingmejig, from anyone coming from the bridge.
He took a deep breath and took his backpack off, opened it quickly and smiled at Brett as he produced his bottle of water. He took a swig and then offered it to Brett, who took it gratefully and took a long draught. 
Long enough for Eddy to slide his hand in the back bit. Long enough for his fingers to grab the box, pull back and keep it hidden. 
"Thanks." Brett said as he gave him back the bottle. Eddy put it back in its place and let the backpack fall to the ground. 
"Shit." he said, unconvincingly even to his own ears. Another glance around, just to check, then he was down on one knee. He looked up at Brett and took his hand in his left hand, holding out the box in his right. 
"I've been wondering what to tell you, after last night." he said hoarsely. Brett's eyes shone with shock, his free hand flying to his mouth. Eddy swallowed again and carried on. "And then I knew. I knew, because you're my life. You're everything, and you'll always be everything. I want to walk all my days with you by my side. And I know this won't be official, because laws and shit, but still... my sweet Brett, will you sort of marry me?"