For the last few days the three of them, or five if you counted the animals, had been following a small path that had lead steadily higher into the mountains, with giant trees gradually giving way to smaller ones and the air becoming notably thinner and cooler. The days were warm enough in the humidity of the rainforest but at night they were now always lighting a fire. The three of them slept huddled together with Chel in the middle, who was starting to shiver in her light clothes.

It was clear to them that they needed to find a way downwards again soon and go back into the warmer valleys but for now the path had stopped ascending and seemed to go around the mountain and so they kept following it, taking turns leading Altivo at a slow pace when the ground became steep and him carrying all of them at a gallop through the ferns and bushes when it wasn't.

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They seemed to be on the right track or at least a track that was right for them when it began to slightly descend again, joining a river coming from another direction and running parallel to it. Soon they could hear the faint roars of what they knew were waterfalls in the distance. It became steadily louder until the path finally found it's way through a small gorge between high walls of red stone.

With Tulio and Chel sitting on Altivo and Miguel holding the bridle they walked around the bend in the trail and were rewarded with a truly magnificent sight: They were standing on a mountain ridge facing a sheer cliff a few hundred meters to the side of the river they had seen through the trees; an immense canyon opening up before them. White water was rushing down in hundreds of cascades of all sizes; pooling together again to a river that was visible only as a small, glittering band barely the width of their fingers.

Narrow hanging bridges were spanning over, under and sometimes through the waterfalls in a zig-zagging pattern, leading down to the bottom of the valley.

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The valley was even more beautiful after night had fallen, with the waters sparkling in the light of a million stars and their steady roar being strangely soothing despite the volume.

After freeing Altivo from his reins for the night, knowing he would not run off, they had lit a fire and Miguel was expertly preparing their dinner with Tulio lounging about watching him.

Chel had wandered off for a bit and climbed across the first of the many rope bridges connecting mossy ledges protruding between the individual streams flowing down into the gorge.

Her ledge was a large one, slightly protected from the spray of the waterfall by an overhang and a lone tree growing on it.

„Tulio! Miguel! Look! You can see the whole sky from here! It's beautiful", she shouted over the sounds of the waterfalls. She waved at the two men to come join her, a mere shadow in the darkness under the tree.

Miguel and Tulio glanced at each other. There was a certain expression in Tulio's eyes.

„I think I need to watch the fish, so it doesn't burn.", said Miguel and turned his attention back to the fire.

Tulio frowned sightly but got up and braced himself for the rickety rope bridge of doom and deadly terror. By the time he reached Chel his knees were shaking but she was kind enough not to mention it.

„Miguel's watching the fish", said Tulio and wrapped his arms around her from behind, putting his head on her shoulder. She silently raised an eyebrow.

Together they looked at the sky stretched above them, black velvet sprinkled with a thousand diamonds. The milky way clearly visible. Tulio searched for constellations he knew but he did not find any. Was it really the same sky here, reaching all the way back to Spain? Chel shivered in a slight breeze and he hugged her tighter, covering her folded arms with his own.

„It's beautiful", she whispered again and pressed closer to Tulio.

„Not as beautiful as you", he said and pressed his lips to her shoulder lightly.

Her eyes grew wide and she blushed, bowing her head slightly. Nobody but Tulio had ever said such things to her before.

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They were sitting with Miguel's legs dangling over the edge and Tulio leaning back on his arms. It was the crack of dawn but the view before them was worth every second of lost sleep. Before them stretched an endless sea of red mountains and green treetops shimmering golden in the first light of the rising sun and the river meandering through it all like a silver snake. Flocks of tiny birds in all the colours of the rainbow were flying over the canopy, their chirping and tweeting carrying just wide enough for them to hear it.

Miguel took a deep breath and sighed contently, drinking it all in with his eyes while Tulio had just closed his. Feeling the wind tousle his hair and listening to leaves rustling in the morning breeze and the gurgling of the waterfalls he was simply enjoying the moment for now, something that did not come easily to him yet was as natural to Miguel as breathing.

Chel was not sitting with them this time. Glancing over his shoulder Tulio could just about see her legs out of the corner of his eye. She was still asleep, peacefully curled up on the ground like the armadillo she was holding and they did not have the heart to wake her, not even for a beautiful sight like this. There would be another sunrise tomorrow.

„You know partner, if you want to be alone with Chel sometimes you just have to say so.", said Miguel, snapping him out of his tranquil state.

Tulio sputtered some unintelligible words before he settled on: „What? What do you mean, why are you saying that?"

Miguel turned towards him and put his arm around Tulio's shoulder.

„Well, you seem to be a lot more comfortable kissing her or touching her when you think I'm not looking. Or even there. And you look away when I do anything with her." He paused. „I mean, I know you mind an audience more than I do but...it's not like we've never seen that before. Back in Spain, when one of us had a girl over we just told each other that we needed the room and that was that. What's going on, Tulio?"

Tulio felt his face flush. He hadn't noticed Miguel noticing. Not quite looking at him he took Miguel's hand that was dangling over his shoulder in his own and started playing with Miguel's fingers absentmindedly.

„It's just...well, you know.", he mumbled and looked away.

„Actually, I don't.", replied Miguel and looked confused.

Tulio whipped his head around incredulously.

„You don't know?!", exclaimed Tulio in the same tone of utter disbelief he had used on the beach back then, when he had found out that Miguel still had the bloody map.

Tulio turned, grabbed a dumbfounded Miguel by the shoulders and shook him.

„You, you...", was the only thing he could say. He abruptly let go of Miguel again in order to collect himself. Something he had to do regularly around his partner. „Ok, ok. I'm fine.", he said and put his hands up when Miguel tried to say something.

„Has it occurred to you that", Tulio said very deliberately and moved his hands in a vague swirling motion in the hopes of getting Miguel's thoughts going. „Miguel, I've almost lost you forever because you've been jealous of Chel!", he blurted out.

„Oh come on, Tulio!", snapped Miguel loudly and waved an arm about. He knew Tulio was derailing, that this wasn't the real reason for his sudden shyness but some things you didn't just let go like that. „That isn't even remotely what happened! I was never jealous of Chel, I was mad at you because you were being a dick and broke our promise and you know it!"

„Fine! Fine, I was being a dick.", admitted Tulio, rolling his eyes and making placating gestures with his hands. „And while we're at it; why don't you admit", he began, throwing an arm around Miguel and pulling him close. „that you were being an immature idiot about it? How about that?", he said and poked Miguel in the chest several times.

Miguel grumbled, folded his arms and tossed his hair back.

„What? What was that?", said Tulio holding a hand up to his ear.

„Fine, Tulio, I was being an immature idiot about it. But I thought we were past this. I thought we were partners again.", said Miguel in a slightly dejected voice.

„We are!"

„So why are you weird about seeing me and Chel or me seeing you?"

„I'm not...you're the one being weird about it!", said Tulio and threw his hand up in exasperation. A thought crossed his mind. He narrowed his eyes. „Wait a minute...you just want to watch, is that it? You little pervert!", he guffawed.

„I... I'm not a pervert!", protested Miguel but Tulio could see that his ears were reddening.„How dare you impugn my honour!", he shouted and sprung up pointing a finger at Tulio in mock offense.

„Your honour my ass!", said Tulio who had followed suit and shoved him. „That's what this is about, isn't it. You just want to watch me fuck Chel.", he said and doubled over with laughter.

But Miguel was not to be subdued so easily.

„Oh yeah? As if you don't usually love to watch me fucking! So what's different this time?", he asked with raised eyebrows. „Someone being insecure about being directly compared? Usually the girls don't stay long enough to do that.", said Miguel and smirked.

„Oh, you...", said Tulio, finger pointing angrily. „Low. Loooow blow." But something in his eyes or his tone must have conveyed regardless.

„Hang on, I've struck a nerve there, haven't I!", said Miguel gleefully but when he saw the expression on Tulio's face he dropped the friendly banter. „Is...is that it?", he asked put a hand on Tulio's shoulder, lowering his voice back to a normal level.

Tulio squirmed under Miguel's questioninggaze, looking at everything but his partner. „Maybe a little bit?" He ran his hands through his hair. „It's not...it'll just take some time for me to get used to it, alright? And it's like you said: usually the girls aren't here to stay.", he said, scratching his neck in embarrassment and finally catching Miguel's eye who was smiling at him with a look in those damn, charming puppy eyes that just understood. It was almost as bad as The Face.

„You know, Tulio", began Miguel and snuck an arm around Tulio's waist, who put his arm across Miguel's shoulders. Together they looked out into the valley again where the sun was almost visible in it's entirety now; with Tulio shifting his weight to one foot and leaning on Miguel as he so often did.

„I can usually hear you two even if you do it way off." He shot Tulio a sideways glance. „I don't think you need to worry about your performance."

Tulio raised a corner of his mouth in a lopsided grin, caught Miguel's eyes and then rolled his own when he saw the glint in them.

„You already watched didn't you?", he sighed, his voice the epitome of capitulation.

„Hey, Chel said she didn't mind.", said Miguel and the look on Tulio's face was worth at least half of Spain.

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When the sun had gone up completely the two men turned their backs to the valley and walked arm in arm back to Chel who was sitting cross-legged in the grass, her head bent and combing her hair with her fingers. They stopped dead in their tracks.

„You've heard everything, haven't you.", said Miguel.

She didn't answer but behind the curtain of silky black hair her shoulders were shaking like rattles from her efforts not to burst out laughing.

„Oh for f- ...We were having a moment here!", said Tulio and threw his hands in the air.