World Tour

Brisbane IX

They spent the rest of the afternoon as close together as they could. Even in their studio Eddy pushed his chair right up against Brett's as they worked. The feeling of his elbow touching Brett's was like an elixir to him, it calmed him and it made him feel safe. 
After the one hundreth e-mail, or so it felt, he leant sideways, putting his head on Brett's shoulder. Brett put his arm around him. 
¨You okay, my love?¨ he said softly. 
Eddy was quiet for a moment. Was he okay? He still felt a bit raw, and the tears were not very far away. But he was feeling a lot better than he was before.
¨I don't know. I'm better than I was though.¨ he said, going for honesty. ¨Having you here helps a lot.¨
Brett's shake of the head was tiny, but he still felt it. 
¨Brett, stop beating yourself up, okay? It's all good.¨ he added. 
¨Thank you, Eddy¨, Brett said softly. 
He didn't say it, but Eddy knew he was feeling bad about himself. He saw it in his eyes, in his stance, he felt it radiating off him. He just wanted Brett to feel better, but he knew that there was nothing he could say right now to help that. But maybe there was something they could do?
He breathed deeply.
¨Maybe we should take the night off, yeah? Turn off our phones, go to a nice restaurant, recharge. How does that sound? Or we can order a good take out and play some old duets? Just for fun?¨
¨What, like chicken hotpot?¨ Brett said, an edge to his tone. 
Eddy couldn't help it, he had to laugh. Them and their eternal chicken hotpot. 
¨Sure¨, he said, getting up to go look for the Chinese place's leaflet. 
Brett pulled him back though and pulled him into a hug. He buried his face in Eddy's chest and put his arms firmly around him. Eddy put his head on Brett's and breathed in Brett's scent, that wonderful mix of fruity shampoo, a little bit of left over aftershave and the sweet smell of his skin. 
They sat there for a while in silence, until Brett slowly moved his head up and kissed Eddy softly on the lips. 
¨We're a mess, aren't we.¨ he stated, his voice deceptively soft. 
Eddy smiled wryly. ¨Yeah. But we won't be for long.¨

They turned their computers off, and after a last quick message to the editor Eddy turned his phone off too. Everything else could wait until tomorrow. Tonight was just for them. 
Brett was already ordering their take out, and when he came back into the studio Eddy was tuning his violin. 
¨Come on, slow coach. You look like you have four fine tuners or something¨, he quipped. 
Brett grinned and picked up his own violin. ¨What are we playing?¨
¨Whatever we want! Let's just have some fun.¨
Brett looked through the book case and pulled out a book of duets they had done once, years ago. ¨Remember this?¨ he said. 
¨I do!¨ Eddy said, a smile on his face. ¨Let's go.¨

They played until their doorbell rang, announcing the arrival of their food, and then they settled into the couch with their boxes of take out. 
¨Hmmm, this is so good!¨ Eddy groaned, taking the first bite of hotpot with his disposable chopsticks. He really couldn't ever get tired of this dish. 
¨It is! We've tasted this all over the world, but it still tastes great in Brisbane.¨ Brett replied, a small smirk on his lips. 
Eddy laughed. ¨So it does. Wanna watch a movie? Hugh Jackman?¨
Brett nodded. ¨Sure. You choose.¨ 
Eddy picked up the remote and found a movie, and soon they were snuggled side by side, his left leg over Brett's right, eating and watching an action movie. God. This evening was long overdue. 
¨You know what?¨ he said after a while, as their empty take out boxes stood on the coffee table in front of them. 
¨What?¨ Brett asked, his voice already quite far away. 
¨Maybe we should do this a bit more often. We've just been too busy.¨
¨I agree.¨ 
Eddy realised Brett's eyes were closing, so he turned the movie down and put his head on Brett's chest, letting his own drowsiness overtake him as well.