Noah had fallen asleep. He had no idea for how long, but it was the best sleep he'd had in days.

For now, the worry over Luke was greatly lessoned.

For a second he thought he'd dreamt it, but then he opened his eyes to Luke's. They said nothing for quite some time; just lay peacefully welded together.

Noah was the first to move, his hand pressing lightly down the centre of Luke's chest, making Luke sigh contently. He bent his head upward to kiss Luke, sweet and slow, feeling how relaxed Luke's mouth was under his.

He nuzzled his forehead into Luke's shoulder, breathing in the raw, ripe scent of him, of them.

"How long was I sleeping for?" Noah asked; his nose still buried within the contours of Luke's neck.

Luke stuck a palm under his head and looked up at the thatched ceiling, "About an hour I guess."

"Did you sleep at all?"

"Some."

"You're worried that I'm here, aren't you?"

Luke nodded. "Worried… and… happy."

"Same here. There's no place I want to be but with you. Always with you."

It was Luke's turn to lean in for a kiss. He lightly nipped at the corners of Noah's lips. Then he moved suddenly, spinning over and pressing the heat of his body on top of Noah.

Noah shuddered under the feel of him.

"Show me."

Luke brought Noah's hand down and pressed it between his legs, murmuring against Noah's mouth until Noah was completely overcome and rolling them heavily over; nudging Luke's legs apart with his knee.

Luke cried out and bit hard into the skin of his shoulder when Noah took him again; reigniting that pleasant burn that was still present there.

...

It was still dark when they were woken up by the terrible crowing of a nearby rooster. Noah felt like he was floating somehow; still tired and disorientated from emotion and the effort of the past few days.

Luke shifted next to him, groping around in his sleep until he found Noah's waist and turning to curve himself behind him; belly to buttock.

There was no possible way for Noah to describe the frightening depth of the intimacy between them. There were no words for the ache of tenderness he always felt when Luke cried out and quaked in his arms; the protectiveness he felt.

Moments like these; when the outside world would vanish like smoke from a fire; had a certain power to them he could never hope to explain. And no matter what was going on in their lives he would revel in it; soak it in; store the memory away.

Because with Luke he could never be sure it wouldn't be their last.

He was just thinking these things when Luke kissed the back of his neck and then rose to leave.

"Wait," Noah grabbed at Luke's wrist to pull him back down, "Where are you going?"

Luke smiled, "I'll be right back."

He glanced deeply into Luke's eyes.

"I promise."

Noah's chin curled upward, his brow furrowed, "Better…"

Luke kissed his frowning forehead; relit the kerosene lamp; and stood up to cross the small round room.

Opposite them there was a large iron jug and a matching wash basin. He brought the wash basin over to the side of the mat on which Noah lay and returned to fetch the Jug. In Luke's nakedness it was to Noah as though he was watching an oil painting come to life.

Noah lifted himself up on his side, head elevated by his elbow and watched as Luke poured water from the jug into the basin. A yellow sponge inside the basin floated to the top.

"What are you doing?"

Luke laughed. "It's the African version of a bath."

"Oh." Noah nodded, realising. Of course with no indoor plumbing they would have to either wash in the river, which at the moment was a mere trickle, or like this.

Luke lifted a small ceramic saucer from the wooden table. On this was a large bottle-green shapeless lump of what Noah assumed was soap.

His assumption was correct. Luke lifted the sponge up, waiting for the larger drops to fall before squeezing out the excess water. He anointed it with the soap which awakened the crisp and clean scent of herbs and began to run it over Noah's body; obviously enjoying Noah's damp and smooth curves.

"This is… different…" Noah smiled with interest.

Luke laughed and brought the sponge down onto the warm skin of Noah's stomach, gently soaping him up. He was careful to use very little water, so that the mat remained dry.

Noah closed his eyes and sighed at the amazing coolness and enjoyed the texture of the sponge as it softly tickled his skin clean.

"I love your body." Luke whispered and when Noah opened his eyes he realised Luke was trancelike; speaking his thoughts aloud.

Noah closed his eyes again, relaxing and leaving Luke to his work. He felt the sponge travel over his chest, his neck and under his chin; providing welcomed relief from the heat of the air. He heard as Luke dipped the sponge into the basin and rang it out, before continuing the cleaning process by running it down Noah's one arm and then the other; paying careful attention to the armpits.

The air was so hot that Luke didn't need a towel. Noah's skin would dry almost as soon as Luke was done in that area.

Finished with the upper body, Luke turned his attention to Noah's legs; Noah laughing as Luke tickled his inner thigh.

Luke joined in and stopped for a minute to press a smiling kiss to Noah's lips.

"Love you."

"Same here."

Noah took in a shape breath as the cloth lowered to the dark hair below and Luke spent some time cleaning him up there.

They took the task in turns, enjoying the closeness of each other; speaking little even though they both knew there was plenty to say.

Done with their baths and believing they still had some alone time before they had to let the real world in; Luke clasped Noah down to his chest and thoughtfully rubbed his thumb in circles over the palm of Noah's hand.

"I know you so well." Noah whispered; halfway between wakefulness and sleep, "That morning I knew…" He snuggled closer into Luke's hair, growing drowsier. "I just knew something like this was going to happen."

"Okay," Luke said softly, also giving way to the tiredness, "I admit it. You were right."

Fogged with sleep Luke's voice fell away and Noah sighed contently as he drifted off, but a moment later he was yanked from bliss as Luke's voice sliced through his consciousness.

"You mean the afternoon right?"

"Hm?"

Luke shifted suddenly, leaving Noah's arms empty and glaring down at him with suspicion.

"You said morning. But you mean the afternoon at my office, right?"

"Ah… I…"

"You. Mean. The. Afternoon. At. My. Office. RIGHT, Noah?"

"It was…" Too late Noah realised his mistake. Immediately he wanted to lie. To say he had made meant the afternoon but he couldn't and wouldn't lie to Luke. Not like that. Not after a direct question.

But by taking so long to answer he gave Luke all he needed to know anyway.

"You knew." Luke said; voice just above a disbelieving whisper but sounding loud to Noah's guilty ears. "You KNEW about Tony. Didn't you?"

Luke was sitting right up now, anger clear as day.

"No," Noah began, trying to regain control of this sudden and unexpected situation, "I mean… yes… but-"

"How long had you known?"

Noah sat up and brought his knees up to his chest. "I found out a week before."

Luke's eyes bulged, "And you never thought to say anything?"

Luke stood up and snatched at his pile of clothes on the floor.

"Hold on." Noah begged, "Luke… I can explain…"

"Sure, explain! I want to hear how you explain this!"

Luke was furious, but he did stop his rummaging for clothes long enough to hear Noah out.

"Okay, okay." Noah stood up too. "I did see a news article. But I-" He took a deep breath, searching desperately for the words that might help Luke to understand. "-I knew there was nothing you could do but that you'd still try."

"What are you talking about?" Luke asked him, pulling his white t-shirt back from inside-out and jerking it over his head. "Of course there was something I could do. I could write. And maybe that's a small thing, but it's something I. CAN. DO!"

"Yes, Luke." Noah nodded. "You can write. And maybe that does help in some way, but… but you cannot single handily save every gay person in this country. It's too much a part of culture here. You can't change any of that in an instant; certainly not by putting yourself at risk to write one small news story."

"You don't know that for sure. If there are enough of us writing then…?" But deep down Luke knew the truth and Noah could hear the pain in his voice; that huge part of him that just wanted the world to be a fair and safe place. The part that Noah had always loved and hated with equal measure.

"Listen, Luke. If I had seen that article and thought for one second that there was anything we could do for Tony and Kizza then…" he sighed, not knowing what he would have done. "It wasn't easy for me to keep that from you. But I didn't want you to go."

Noah's eyes found Luke's.

"I didn't want you to go. I didn't know what or even if there was any danger in you coming here or if you'd eve come. I just knew it didn't feel right. And… God! I couldn't, Luke… I couldn't risk you getting hurt."

Luke stood stiff a few feet from Noah; still only half dressed in his t-shirt and breathing heavily.

"It wasn't your place to make that choice for me." Noah watched as Luke clenched his teeth. "No matter what you thought." Luke shook his head, "You knew I was worried about Tony and you found out at least some information on what happened to him. You found out something so important – Noah, how could you keep that from me?"

The tone of betrayal in Luke's voice was too much for Noah.

"Damn it! I was afraid, Luke! Afraid that if I told you, you'd do just what you have done!" Noah chocked on a sudden sob, "You'd leave me! You'd try to come and find the answers for yourself. And now look at us! Look at what happens, Luke! EVERY SINGLE FUCKING TIME! Now both of us are stuck here in the godforsaken place full of people who hate us!"

Emotion seemed to catch up to Noah then in a single blast. Quickly he set to work finding his own clothes from the floor, tugging on his jeans as he continued his tirade.

"Days," he yelled, "of sweat and terror! Days of worry and fruitless searching!" He pulled his shirt over his head, marched over to Luke and shoved him hard, catching him off balance to that he landed with his naked backside to the floor. "Days of wondering whether you were dead or the police were hurting you! Only to find you singing and laughing in some bar in the middle of nowhere!"

It was Luke's turn to look guilty and it was clear that he was uncharacteristically speechless.

"Did you even think about me at all?"

Luke whispered something which might have been "every day" but Noah was done with listening to him. He struggled into his shoes.

"Did you even once think about what I was going through? No phone calls; not at your hotel; no-one's seen you and you don't fucking show up on your flight?"

"Noah, I-"

"And don't try to tell me it's because there's no phone signal out here! If you cared enough you would have found a way to send me a message!" He hated that he could hear his own tears in his voice, "Just one fucking message, Luke!"

With that he whirled away, reaching for the door and jerking it open before Luke could stop him. He stood hesitant for a moment, silhouetted in the doorway, dark strands of hair blowing in the wind; reluctant after everything to leave Luke but at the same time so angry he thought he must.

He left as soon as he heard Luke call his name.

...

Somehow he found himself seated under the same willow tree as the night before. It looked completely different in the early morning light, but he could still make out the patterns in the ground where they had lain.

"Hello."

The voice made him jump. He looked up and recognised the man Luke had been speaking to by the fire the night before.

"You are Noah."

Noah nodded, "How did you work that out?"

"You mean besides the yelling I just heard?"

"You heard that?"

"Just the end. You were very loud."

Noah nodded, turning his attention back to his hands which were busy shredding a blade of grass.

"I met with Kigongo in the village. He was very worried about you."

Noah sighed, berating himself for forgetting about his friend.

"It is okay. Kigongo explained who you are and I told him you went with Luke."

"Thank you."

"May I sit?"

Noah nodded and the man took a seated stance next to him on the dried up willow leaves.

"My name is Lutalo."

"I know." Noah smiled. He'd already worked that out.

"Hungry?" For the first time Noah noticed the folded cloth in Lutalo's hands. "I have food."

Lutalo placed the cloth on the ground between them, un-wrapping it to reveal several bread rolls and some cheese, obviously all homemade.

Noah didn't even wait to respond, he dived at a bread roll and stuffed it in his mouth, barely chewing and feeling a burn as the two large chunks dropped down his throat.

"Thank you." He tried to say with his mouth full. Until he'd seen the food, he'd actually forgotten just how hungry he was.

They ate in a companionable silence for a while. Lutalo allowing Noah to still the hunger pangs which Noah now realised were part of the reason for his elevated anger and irritation toward Luke.

"It is impressive. The risk you have taken to find him. That is a strong love I think."

Noah sniffed and nodded, wiping the crumbs from his fingers on the sides of his jeans.

"So now you have found him… you are just going to leave? As his friend I must ask you to stay and not be so angry."

Noah laughed almost bitterly. "I can't leave him. And he knows that. That's why you're the one out here begging me to stay and he's still over there at the hut."

Lutalo smiled and nodded, seeing Noah's point.

"He could not call you, you know."

Noah turned to face him again.

"He could not call you. He has been with the police all this time. We only rescued him yesterday."

"Rescued him?"

"He was very sad. He knew you would worry. He wanted to contact you but I told him we would send word today and I asked him to come to the bar. Because he was not happy. He was telling me stories about you… it is the only time he smiles like that… with the shimo."

Lutalo pressed both forefingers into his cheek.

"Dimples?"

"Yes! That is the word…"

Noah couldn't help a slight smile as he stood then, shaking the leaves from his behind.

"What did you mean just now, Lutalo? What did you mean when you said you rescued him?"

Lutalo was just about to reply when a third voice interrupted them by frantically calling, "Lutalo? Lutalo? Je hapa?"

At first Lutalo held a hand out over Noah's chest as a sign for him not to move. But finally he seemed to recognise the voice and he stepped out from the cover of the willow tree.

"Mimi hapa." He called and a young boy with a green bandana arrived.

The child was flustered and totally out of breath.

"Police hapa!" He said earnestly pointing back toward the village. "Wanatafuta kila mahali!"

Noah did not like the look that statement in Swahili put on Lutalo's face. "What is it? What did he say?"

Lutalo took one look at him, thinking quickly, "Come!"

Noah followed Lutalo and the boy back toward Luke's hut; not through the town; the way Luke and Noah had travelled the night before; but around the outskirts of the village, hidden by some heavy thorn-bush growth.

They heard the commotion before they even reached the hut. Voices were yelling, dogs were barking, people were screaming and they could hear doors being banged in.

Terrified Noah began to run faster, until he was passing Lutalo. He reached the hut just in time to see two police officers dragging a struggling and handcuffed Luke and shoving him into the back of their cruiser. Another officer pulled on the lead of a vicious looking dog which kept straining inches from reaching the skin of Luke's arm.

"Luke!" Noah shouted and made to run forward, but heavy arms pulled him back into the shelter of the bush. He fought and struggled desperately. Realising that Lutalo had now been joined by another of his friends. Both men and the boy worked to hold him down. He knew Lutalo was talking to him but at first he couldn't hear a word of it. His ears were roaring with fear.

"You cannot!" Noah finally realised Lutalo was saying. "I'm sorry! They must not see you here!"

Gasping but stopping in his struggles, Noah turned his head and, through a gap in the bushes, watched wide-eyed as the car, with Luke inside, drove out of sight.

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