World Tour

Maldives: the morning after

The scream woke Eddy up with a shock.
Brett was shouting: ¨Out!! I need out!!!¨ 
He was tossing and grunting, his arms flailing, the nightmare gripping him. 
¨Brett!¨ Eddy said, putting his hand on Brett's shoulder and shaking to wake him up. ¨Brett! Mate! Wake up!¨
Brett inhaled sharply as he woke up and he looked at Eddy with eyes wide with terror. 
¨Hey¨, Eddy said soothingly. ¨Hey, it's okay. You're safe in bed with me.¨
Brett closed his eyes, and Eddy guessed he was trying to calm himself down. His rapid breathing slowed a bit. 
Then he shook his head and groaned. ¨Fuck, Eddy, I'm so sorry for waking you.¨
¨Don't be silly¨ Eddy said, while he took Brett in his arms. ¨Do you want to talk about it?¨
¨Nah. Just a stupid nightmare. I'm fine¨, Brett said, but Eddy got the feeling he was trying to convince himself as much as Eddy. 
¨Come on, I'll hold you¨, he said softly, and he stroked Brett's hair and his back. 
Brett groaned again, but this time it was a good groan, and Eddy smiled a bit. Thank God he was lying next to him.
With Brett safely in his arms he sank back into sleep quickly.

Brett's soft noise seeped into Eddy's consciousness. His eyelids felt so heavy that he would have preferred to keep them closed for the foreseeable future, but he needed to know why Brett was groaning so he forced them open.
¨Hey¨, he whispered, his voice thick with sleep. ¨You okay?¨
Brett grinned. ¨You tried moving yet?¨
What? What did he mean?
But as soon as he moved he felt it. Oh my God. His leg felt like it was going to tear off! 
He had to laugh, as he stretched and groaned in his turn. ¨Oh my God, I've never been so sore in my life!¨
¨I know, right?¨Brett said, laughing too now. ¨I feel like I ran a marathon and then got run over by a truck!¨

¨Okay¨, Eddy said, still grinning. ¨I gotta have a shower, Imma get up¨. He rolled over and got up slowly, but he couldn't stop himself from limping as he walked to the bathroom. He turned around and raised his index finger warningly.
¨Sing 'dance of the sugar plum fairy' once and I'll...¨
He didn't get to finish his sentence, because Brett burst out laughing, and he could still hear him as he closed the bathroom door behind him. 
He turned on the tap, still smiling to himself as he stepped under the warm water. 
Oh, but that was divine. He could feel the warm water unknotting his tired muscles and he breathed deeply. 

When he came back into their room, moving a lot more freely now, Brett was sitting on the bed, his feet on the floor.
¨Wanna go for a walk, get some breakfast, get the muscles loose?¨ Eddy asked.
¨Okay. Just let me have a quick shower too¨, Brett answered, getting up, grunting as he did. 
¨Oh my God, Bara is right, we really are two tired old men¨, he mumbled as he wobbled off to the bathroom. 
Eddy grinned. ¨A shower will help, I'm feeling a lot better already.¨

He had gotten some clean fresh clothes on and he was feeling a lot more human again when  Brett came walking out of the bathroom, a towel around his waist.
¨Hmm....¨ Eddy said, letting his eyes roam appreciatively over his husband's body, ¨you're looking especially handsome today. Must be all those new muscles you built hey? You look like a Greek God or something.¨
Suddenly, without warning, Brett pulled Eddy into a tight hug. 
¨You're my rock¨, he whispered in his ear. 
Eddy pulled away slightly so he could look at him. 
¨Are you sure you're okay, Brett?¨ he asked. ¨You seemed really terrified in the night. Is there anything I can do?¨
¨Nah¨, Brett said softly. ¨To be honest, I'm embarrassed I've been such a wuss. Thank you for having my back.¨
Eddy shook his head. ¨Please, Brett, don't be so hard on yourself. Of course I have your back, just as you have mine. You don't have to be strong all the time, okay?¨
Brett nodded. 
After a thought, Eddy added: ¨You're the one who has made me stronger, Brett. I love you.¨
Brett smiled as he pulled him back into the hug. ¨I love you too. Hey, do you mind if I just play for a few minutes before we head out?¨
Eddy smiled. ¨Of course not. I'll walk off to the beach, okay?¨

Music was always their best friend, their confidante, the thing they turned to. And as his feet hit the sand and he heard Brett start tuning behind him he knew that Brett had everything he needed to feel better, right there.