Wind.
The Santa Anas always left all of Los Angeles feeling a little bit reckless, and the four boys from Queens were no exception. They had been fighting incessantly for the past few days, tired of being cooped up together after years of doing everything as a foursome. Even though Drama had been living in the condo for a few years and Eric had spent most of last year in that rental, hardly a day had passed since Vince's time in Mexico where the four of them hadn't been together. It was starting to wear on all of them, and the annual winds were just another catalyst to the fire that was brewing.
"We have got to get out of Los Angeles," Vince grumbled as he came down the stairs one morning for breakfast. Drama was already at the stove, commandeering a spatula as he worked his culinary magic on an omelet. Eric blindly handed his best friend a cup of coffee from his spot behind the counter. Turtle's face was buried in his arms at the table. "Look at the four of us. The weather has been amazing, and we have spent the last week here together instead of going out. I think a change of scenery would do us good."
"Can't, Vin, I got midterms next week," Turtle shrugged without looking up at his friends. He was overwhelmed with school these days and barely had enough time to sleep between all the studying he had been doing lately. He hadn't been out of town since Italy. "You guys should go without me, though. I'll be studying, so it's not like I'm going to even be around if you're here."
"Nah, man, I got that television movie next week," Drama reminded the three of them. He had been going on an on about the movie for weeks because he was going to be working on with one of those girls from High School Musical. He had failed to mention that he would be playing the starlet's father. "I couldn't go now even if I wanted to go."
Eric rolled his eyes at Vince, sharing a private moment like they always did when it came to the detriment of Drama and Turtle. "Yeah, Vince, you might as well count me out, too," he agreed. "Things are really busy at the agency. I don't really have time to get away right now."
None of these answers suited Vince at all. He was used to being the center of the group and having their lives dictated by his schedule. It might seem selfish, but he loved all the time that he got to spend with his friends. It was why he worked as hard as he did to build his career. "I can't believe that my two best friends and my big brother can't find time to spend a week with me," Vince pouted. Turtle looked up from his business textbook and shrugged while Drama mostly ignored him to add ingredients to the breakfast. It was only Eric that really seemed to take it seriously when Vince walked out of the kitchen.
He followed Vince out of the house and onto the deck. Vince was leaning over the railing of the porch, looking out over the sparkling city. The sun reflected off his sienna skin; he really was a living Adonis. "Hey, Vin, you okay?" Eric asked, causing Vince to only glance over his shoulder and shrug. Eric came over beside him and rested his hand on his back. "I know that being cooped up here is starting to get to you, and it's not that we don't want to go. We all would love to get out of here, but it's just a busy time right now. You're going to be starting on that new Mendes movie in a few weeks."
"It's not just that, E," Vince shook his head. "I know that we're together all the time, but I don't feel like we're all really together anymore. Ya know? I just wanted us to have a great week outside the city."
Vince sounded almost genuinely sad and that was enough to break E's fucking heart. "Alright, look, there is no way that Turtle or Drama can go right now, we're just going to have to accept that. I can probably rearrange my schedule and get away for a few days though. Where'd you want to go?"
"Italy." Vince hadn't been back there since he had wrapped the movie last year, the same summer where Eric had gotten engaged and then had his heart broken. The guys had come back the minute the film wrapped, only to find their friend on the downside of a month-long drinking binge. Other than going to work and calling his mother every Sunday like a dutiful son, Eric hadn't done much in their absence other than drink cheap tequila and expensive scotch. "You should have come with us last time. Why don't the two of us go back so you can see what you missed?"
And so, that was how Eric found himself now, sitting on a mezzanine and sipping a vintage Chianti with his best friend. They were about fifteen sheets to the wind at this point, appreciating the "bellos donnas" and the live music being played on the plaza below. However, it wasn't the beautiful women or the talented musicians that held Vince's attention; rather, he was completely focused on how happy his best friend was. Eric had even managed to pick up a tan and shed about twenty pounds of tension off his back in Italy, two things that were no easy feat by any stretch of the imagination.
Once they had finished dinner, Eric found himself being steered back toward their hotel. Vince's hand rested on the small of his back, and for a moment, they were just two ordinary guys visiting Italy. The residents of the small Tuscan town where they were staying didn't seem to care who Vince was. It had been a long time since he had been able to take a vacation that felt normal. Being here with E like this was the most normal feeling he could imagine, and maybe that was how his hand found Eric's on the way back to their suite.
Eric didn't say anything when Vince's fingers slipped through his. He just squeezed Vince's hand in response and smiled up at him sleepily. They stopped at a busy corner to wait for traffic, and Eric's head rested against Vince's shoulder. "This is nice," he murmured dreamily. Vince smiled in response and nodded, afraid to say too much in case it would wake Eric from his dreamy haze.
The truth was that this was exactly what Vince had in mind when he had asked the guys to go away with him. He knew that it would look strange if he asked just Eric to go with him, but he needed to get his best friend out of Hollywood. He had been waiting nine months to have this conversation with E, ever since the night when Eric had drunkenly kissed Vince after they'd seen Sloan out with a Gucci model at a premiere party. Something had woken up in Vince that night, but they hadn't talked about it since. Now that Vince was just a few weeks away from starting a project that he thought might change his career, he wanted to get his personal affairs in order and make certain that he had E by his side for the entire ride.
However, talking seemed to be the last thing on Eric's mind because as soon as they were in the elevator, he leapt on Vince hungrily. Even though he had at least six inches on Eric, Vince was rendered useless as E attacked him. He was pressed back against the wall of the lift, Eric's hands grasping everywhere as he attempted to swallow Vince whole. Vince couldn't do much other than sigh contently and give up control to Eric.
As quickly as he had been on Vince, though, Eric broke away and gathered himself enough to step off the elevator as if nothing had happened. He fumbled with the keycard nervously, his hands shaking so badly that Vince had to snatch it away to get the door open. When they were inside, Vince threw the card and his wallet on the counter before grabbing Eric by the lapels and pushing him back against the fridge. Eric started to protest but Vince silenced him with a kiss. "No thinking now, thinking later."
For the remaining six days of their trip, that became Vince's mantra. They spent their days shopping visiting museums and seeing the sites and their nights eating food, drinking wine and making love. Whenever Eric tried to sneak in a conversation about what it meant, Vince would shut him up with those five words and a long kiss.
Yet, it wasn't that easy when the plane touched down at LAX. The Santa Anas were still blowing, and it made Eric feel crazy again as soon as he stepped foot in Los Angeles. He couldn't reach for Vince's hand like he had all week to ground him. Instead, he had to hide behind his sunglasses until they were in the backseat of the dark SUV driven by Turtle. Vince could barely stand his twitchiness, so he threw his hoodie on the seat between them and reached for E's hand beneath the plush cotton fabric. Eric seemed to calm down a little as the other three fell into an easy conversation about the trip.
That night was the first time in a week that Eric had slept without Vince wrapped around him and it felt lonely. He thought about sneaking upstairs but then he'd have to get past Turtle's room and he had mentioned something about having to study for a test in the morning. He was too restless to just sleep though, so he decided to go outside to look at the night sky. Maybe some fresh air would get him centered again.
He probably should have been surprised to find Vince sprawled out on one of the loungers but he wasn't. The way he always seemed to end up wherever Vince was seemed to be innate at this point. He collapsed on the end of the wrought iron chair and looked up at Vince's bright blue eyes. "Couldn't sleep?"
"Missed you," Vince replied, reaching out to draw Eric back against his chest. It felt so natural that Eric couldn't help but wonder why they had waited so long to find it. "The winds always make me feel a little restless." Eric nodded against Vince before turning his face slightly to reach up for a kiss. "I wish we were back in Italy."
"Not me," Eric decided. "We have to figure this out eventually. We've waited a long time. I don't want to lose even another day with you, Vin."
That was all the conversation they needed to know that they were going to be together, long after the winds had died down and life had returned to normal. They talked for awhile and then made out a little and then just eventually fell asleep on the deck snuggled together. It was the best night's sleep Eric had probably had his entire life, with no alarm to wake him up or telephone to interrupt their intimacy or room service to bring their breakfast. It was just the two of them together...at least until Turtle burst out onto the deck with a confused, "What the fuck?!"
