Andante

LXVIII

It was almost like he heard a sigh, beside him, but he couldn't be sure over the roar of the starting engines of the aeroplane. 
But then, softly, so softly and smoothly, the warm hand appeared in his own, filling him up with its warmth, sending the smile that formed on his face to all of the cells in his body. 
He gave Brett's hand a soft squeeze and settled a bit deeper into the uncomfortable seat. 
The seat may have been harsh, but everything else about this trip was pure bliss, as far as he was concerned. 
He smiled at Brett and Brett smiled back, but some unknown emotion flitted across his face. 
What the?
Was Brett okay? 
He bent over slightly so he could talk in Brett's ear without being overheard from the row in front, his brows furrowing. 
¨You alright?¨ 
Then Brett smiled at him again, so sweetly this time.
¨Yeah bro, I'm really good.¨
Eddy squeezed Brett's hand once more. He just hoped that Brett was telling him the truth, but there was something about the look on his face that had him worried.

When the little group wearily walked into the arrival's hall in Perth, quite a few hours later, they saw a man in a scruffy suit, holding up a sign with their last names on it. Eddy turned to Brett, forgetting his tiredness instantly and beaming again. 
So they had a driver, now? Specifically sent to the airport to take them to the venue, or their hotel or something? 
Whoa. 
They followed the scruffy suit silently. Eddy was seriously hungry by now, and his stomach growled angrily. Brett must have heard, because he laughed suddenly, jabbing his shoulder lightly.
¨Hungry, are we?¨ 
¨Some of us are growing, Brett.¨ he fired back, wiggling his brows up and down.
Brett and Todd both laughed. 
¨I can't help it.¨ Brett said then. ¨Wrong DNA.¨
Eddy smiled to himself. To be honest, he liked that Brett was shorter than he was. It meant that whenever they did hug, he could hold him so nicely. His arms wrapped around Brett's torso so easily, so naturally, and he felt like he could protect him from anything. So he was perfectly fine with it if the growth spurt that Brett had been hoping for didn't come, really.
Maybe he should tell Brett that at some point?

They all filed into a big white taxi that was waiting outside and the driver took them straight to their hotel.
To their hotel, and to their room. The thought of it sent a new wave of butterflies to Eddy's stomach. No one had even thought to question, of course, who was going to bunk with whom. It was only natural that Brett and Eddy would share a room, and Todd and Ian would share the other one. 
Only Todd had had any idea that it meant more than just two friends bunking together, and he'd given them a few funny looks and winks already whenever the topic had come up. 


Their room was small but pretty nice. It was mostly white, with a pale green wall behind the beds. There were two single beds with white linnen, which were quite close together because of the size of the room, and there were two green chairs by a small round wooden table in the corner by the window, which overlooked the parking lot. One of the typical hotel room landscapes hung on the wall above the bed and the bathroom was tiny but clean. 
Eddy smiled. All in all it wasn't a bad place to spend a week, really. 
They put their cases down and got ready to make their way downstairs, where Scruffy Suit had told them there would be a buffet style dinner going on. 
He seriously hoped there'd be some Asian food there. His digestive tract was definitely not ready for a whole week of European food. 

He turned to Brett, knowing no one could overhear them right now. 
¨You happy to be here, Bretty?¨
He used the nickname very consciously. No one had ever heard him call Brett that; it was theirs, and theirs alone. He'd never forgotten how much Brett enjoyed it when he called him Bretty, and he loved the look on his face when he did.  
Brett smiled at him and walked over. He blinked once at him, almost as if he were asking himself a question. Then he wrapped his arms around Eddy and pulled him into a tight hug. 
Now, this hug? This hug was no bro hug. No, this was a serious 'I want to be close to you' hug. 
Eddy sighed as he relaxed into the embrace, wrapping his own arms around Brett in that way he loved so much, and he stood there, his nose in Brett's hair, sniffing up the scent of him. 
He loved the way Brett smelled. 
When Brett spoke again he spoke very softly, very mildly. 
¨I'm very, very glad to be here, my lovely Eddy.¨