Maldives

                                    

                                          
¨Come on, slow coach! We're gonna miss our flight!¨
¨It would help if you'd tell me where we're going, finally?¨
Brett looked at Eddy hopefully.
¨Nah. Not a chance¨, Eddy said gleefully. 
                          
Eddy smiled as he looked at their living room. It was almost unrecognisable now that Brett's things were here, now that Brett was here full time. It seemed less stark, somehow. More like a real home. 
These last couple of months, as Brett gradually moved all his stuff over, as they'd found their rhythm again in recording, practicing and relaxing, had been the happiest of his life. 
There was a new normal, but a much happier normal. 
                          
¨Okay! Let's go!¨ Brett interrupted his daydreaming. 
They rolled their suitcases to the Uber and went off to the airport yet again. 
It was very different this time, though. For one, they were well rested and there was no stress. 
They had brought their violins and recording equipment, of course. But they didn't have to do anything: they had enough videos to post without recording any. The next two weeks were theirs, and theirs alone. 

Of course, he couldn't hide the destination anymore once they got to the airport. Eddy would have loved to blindfold Brett and put noise cancelling headphones on him, he'd wanted this to be a complete surprise for so long! But he figured such actions might be frowned upon by security. He sniggered lightly as he pictured leading a blinded Brett through the airport. 

The moment they joined the long line for baggage drop off, Brett saw the board. 
He turned around at him in shock, his eyes wide, his mouth open, speechless for a moment. 
Eddy smiled broadly at him, waggling his eyebrows. 
¨What!¨ Brett managed then, his voice barely a whisper. ¨We.... we're going to the Maldives? For real?¨
Eddy nodded. ¨For real.¨
¨I would hug you, hard, and kiss you...¨ Brett said, putting his hand meaningfully on Eddy's shoulder. 
Yup, that was part of the deal of being sort-of famous. If you wanted your personal life private, you couldn't go around snogging people in the airport. 
¨You can do that when we get there¨, Eddy whispered in Brett's ear. 
¨That, and some more...¨ Brett said, his own eyebrows waggling now. ¨I can't believe you arranged this and kept it a secret for so long!¨
¨A whole lot more, I hope...¨ Eddy breathed, before the line moved on and they could hand in their stuff. 

The plane ride was very long. God, Eddy had already forgotten how much he hated these long flights. He sighed, thinking he could have just planned the honeymoon to bloody Sydney or something. 
A warm hand closed around his own then, and when he looked left he saw Brett smiling at him. 
¨Wanna play a game?¨ he asked. 
Brett knew how Eddy felt about flying, of course. He was also the one thing that made it so much more bearable. 
Soon enough they were deep into a game, and the plane touched down quicker than Eddy had thought.
                          
----
                          
This time there was no key card, there was an actual key with a fob on it. Eddy looked at it and could barely contain his excitement. They were here! He almost skipped along the paths filled with tropical plants, Brett right next to him, while they tried to follow the directions the lovely little woman at the front desk had given them. 

And there it was. The beach, and their cabin. A little round white cabin with a thatched roof, directly on that magical beach, the sound of the calm waves in the air. 
It really was all Eddy had hoped for and he could feel himself beaming. It had taken him a while to get them to the promised beach on the Maldives, but here they were!
The sea was just as blue as advertised and the sand was just as white. And between those two trees over there, he even saw a colourful hammock. 

Brett looked at him with wide eyes again, as he grabbed his hand. 
¨Eddy! Oh my God, it's so beautiful! I can't believe you've actually taken me here!¨
Eddy bent down a little, to kiss him sweetly on the lips.
¨Only the best for you, my love. Now, let's throw the suitcases down and go swimming!¨

He guessed from Brett's next move that he was quite aware of what his playful tone meant, because he rushed into the cabin, and started taking his clothes off. 
Eddy laughed freely, and then ran after him to do the same.