He really couldn't help his moist eyes, even if he knew that Todd would see, even if he could see Brett's glance at the periphery of his vision. He blinked hard as he got in the van and looked out of the window to wave to his mum. She was there, on their stoop, just like he had seen her so many times. She waved once, before turning around abruptly and going inside.
"You okay?"
He blinked again before he turned to Brett. Brett's hand was against his between their legs and he took it, intertwining their fingers automatically. He didn't trust his voice to hold, so he just nodded. Brett's hand was nice, though, real nice. He looked around him at the little cab and cleared his throat.
"Yeah. I'm okay."
They drove in silence through the busy traffic, everyone somewhere else in their minds. Maybe betwixt and between, like he was? Going from one home, to the next?
"Hi guys."
Ian was in the door opening and smiled broadly, more broadly than Eddy thought he had ever seen him do before. He looked different as well, somehow. Taller, even.
"Hey. You all installed?" Todd asked him as he got out and walked around to open the back doors.
"Yeah, pretty much. Just loads of crap to unpack."
Eddy smiled as he too got out.
"Thanks for fetching us last, I guess, Todd."
Todd laughed.
"I just know you too well, Eddy. I didn't feel like waiting in front of your house for half an hour until you could drag yourself out of bed."
"Yeah, yeah. Fuck you."
He picked up the first box and started lugging it up the flights of stairs.
It was strange, so very strange to walk into the bedroom with the view of the park. They had agreed that officially this one would be his, and the small one would be Brett's, with a token single bed in the corner of what would really be their music studio. He looked at the large, flat cardboard packs that were leaning against the wall. They would turn into their bed in a little while.
Their bed.
A wave of happiness crashed into him at that thought and suddenly he could have jumped up and down.
Our bed. Ours.
He skipped back down the stairs to get the next box.
Three runs up and down the flights of stairs and suddenly Brett was there at the same time he was, putting down his box, closing the door. Eddy had been heading back to run down the stairs again but he stopped dead when he saw Brett's eyes.
"Hi."
Suddenly the room blurred around him, and all he saw was Brett's face, Brett's lips, moist and inviting.
Bretty.
He stepped forward slowly, while Brett seemed to be stuck to the door. His eyes were unfathomably deep, so deep he could drown in them.
"Bretty." he whispered. "We're here."
Brett moved forward ever so slightly and brushed his lips against his.
"We're here."
He kissed him then, just gently, just for a moment, the connection between them at once a monumental step.
We're here.
He was just about to deepen the kiss, because how could he not? When a booming voice floated through the door from a ways away.
"Hi, Mrs. Chen! How nice of you to come so early!"
He could just see Brett's eyes opening wide as he was pushing himself away from the door. He shot over to the window and opened a random box in one movement, while Brett was quickly opening the door just a touch, just like it had been innocently ajar all along.
"Eddy?"
"In here, mum!" he called. He grinned at Brett and walked to the door like nothing had ever gone on. "You're here already!"
She was there when he opened the door and he beckoned her in.
"It's not much yet, and I still have to put the bed up. And I still have to carry six thousand boxes up the stairs."
She nodded as she looked around and walked further into the room, all the way to the window that overlooked the little park.
"Nice view." she said then in Mandarin. "I came because I thought I would help you unpack."
"That's so lovely, mum. Thank you. Shall I go grab more boxes then?"
He didn't even wait for the answer, he was already out of the door. Todd was in the living room, lifting one eyebrow at him as he walked past.
"Thanks for the save, Todd." he whispered.
Todd winked. "Any time."
Soon his legs were burning from lugging all the boxes up those flights of stairs, but his heart was burning with something else.
Yeah. Despite the fact that his mum was still managing to interrupt them, he was never going to forget their first kiss in their bedroom.