Curls.

There've been changes beyond my grasp, things I'm sinking in. So keep me in your bed all day. Nothing heals me like you do.

It was a rainy, lazy Sunday afternoon, and Eric didn't have a place in the world that he had to be. He had been holed up in his bedroom for hours, alternating between taking cat naps, watching movies and messing around on the Internet. He'd found an online poker site last week while waiting for Vince at a fitting that seemed to kill his boredom, and the new Bruce Willis action flick had proven to be just like his last six. For a guy with the world at his fingertips, it was a pretty uneventful, nondescript way to spend part of a weekend.

The part that was keeping it from being a total lost cause was currently curled up in his bed. They were a million miles from anyone that knew that, and it was the first time in months when Eric felt like he could breathe. There were no pending deals, no meetings to take, no parties to attend, no interviews to do. It was the first time in years that they had time like this alone, where they didn't have to talk about business or worry about anyone but themselves.

Eric could spend an extra minute to watch Vince as he slept instead of worrying about the guys walking in on something they didn't want to seat. The need to be near him drew him to the foot of the bed, where the mattress barely dipped under his weight. Vince had fallen asleep after the Willis movie and Eric just didn't have the heart to wake him up. He was exhausted after the toll the Ferrari movie had taken on him.

A fond smile crept onto his face as he looked down at Vince. He always seemed almost innocent in his sleep, a far cry from the playboy he'd been before the last six months had changed everything – before Eric had ended his engagement with Sloan, before Ari had made a jump to the NFL, before Vince had considered retiring from acting. They were both so tired, but Eric didn't have to deal with the constant limelight. He just had to worry about keeping the light shining on Vince until he decided it was time to flip the switch off. But right, now he didn't have to think about that; his only focus was watching the man dream with a smile on his face. His black curls cascaded over the pristine white sheets, and Eric realized that Shauna was right – Vince would be a fucking beautiful Jesus.

They were in Vienna, a place that no one would ever think to look for them. Only Turtle and Johnny knew, and they were only to contact them if there was a family emergency. Vince hadn't bothered to check in at all, and amazingly, Eric had only rattled one email off to the guys when they had arrived to let them know the number of the hotel and that they had gotten there safely. Without the weight of business on them, they'd been like tourists – shopping in the city market, eating late dinners at restaurants, making love loudly in the mornings and doing all the couple things that Eric had missed for so long.

Vince and Eric had been out and proud from the beginning because that was what Vince wanted. Eric had readily agreed because he knew his best friend was terrible at lying. Besides, he felt more special than he had ever before when Vince's face would light up as he talked about them in an interview or how he held his hand easily in public. There were a few studios that had a problem with it, along with the usual conservative media outlets and their accompany audience. Vince really had never appealed to those people anyhow, so it didn't seem like a big loss.

And when somebody knows you well; well, there's no comfort like that. And when somebody needs you; well. there's no drug like that.

"Come here." Vince's quiet demand woke Eric out of his wistful train of thought, and before he knew it, a pair of sienna arms were pulling him down on the mattress. Vince curls around Eric's back, his cold feet tucked beneath Eric's warm calves like always. "How long have I been asleep?"

The words are quiet, even as they are spoken into Eric's ear. The thunder rumbles outside, interrupted every once in awhile by a quick flash of lightening. "Awhile," he replied, snuggling closer to Vince for warmth. "Do you want to sleep some more?"

"Nah, I think I've slept plenty," he answered between trailing kisses along the curve of Eric's neck and behind his ear. "We could go downstairs and have a late lunch. Magda mentioned something about soup this morning at breakfast." When Eric voiced his dissent, Vince smiled against the back of his neck. "What do you want to do, E?"

"I want to take a walk," he decided. "After the thunderstorm dies down, we could take a walk in the rain. It's not too cold, so you shouldn't catch cold. We have those rain ponchos from the airport still. There was that book store around the corner that I wanted to go by. They might have something for Ma for Christmas. She likes old books."

"I remember," Vince smiled, thinking about the book shelf full of aging texts and photos of Eric in his mom's den. It was one of the few expensive things she allowed the boys to give her. As a librarian at the elementary school in Queens, she had always had a fondness for reading. Vince wondered sometimes if that is what made E so smart. "There is this other place I wanted to take you, too. I saw it the other day when I went to get us coffee."

And so, once the lightening dies down and the thunder quiets, Eric and Vince put on their ponchos and venture out into the cool summer rain. They held hands as they look through the book store, carefully selecting a few first editions Eric knew that his mother will love. They found an old copy of Playboy that Vince got for Turtle and a great cookbook for Drama. Eric curled his arm around Vince's waist as they waited for the petite salesgirl to wrap up their packages and arranged to have them sent back to the hotel.

After the leave the book store, Vince led Eric around the corner to a small chapel he found that morning when he left in search of coffee. It was dimly lit with rows and rows of candles, and Eric paused to light one like a good Catholic as he came through the door. Vince watched him do the stations of the cross before kneeling at the front altar. Eric recited a short prayer before standing back up and looking up at Vince. "This place is gorgeous."

"Yeah, I thought you might like it," he replied. Eric's hair was wet from the rain and starting to curl slightly around his ears. Vince's heart swelled a little at the sight. "I've thought a lot about what I want to do when I get back to LA. I know we've talked about me stopping acting. I heard you loud and clear, but this is really what I want, E. I want to be the man behind the man. I've done everything that I wanted to do with my career."

"Vin, I can't ask you to give all that up..." Eric's voice trailed off.

"You're not, I'm offering," he whispered, reaching out for Eric's hand. "Take the job in London, E. I'll come with you. This is what you want, it's what you've always wanted. You put me first for a long time. I'm okay with you being selfish this once."

So they went home and Vince announced his retirement from Hollywood. He gave the house to Turtle and Drama and found a cozy loft for them in London on the Internet. They spend two weeks in Queens with their mothers, visit Shauna in Manhattan when she is in town to see a client and head to Park Avenue to finally see Ari's new office at the NFL Headquarters. Then, with no real glam and glitz, they fly to Heathrow and start a very nice private life with Eric as the bread winner and the head of England's biggest talent agency and Vince as a devoted house husband. He learns to cook, manages their house staff and spends a lot of time volunteering. And every night, they end their day like the ones they spent in Vienna, curled around each other safe in the arms of love.

And when I'm home, curled in your arms and I'm safe again, I'll close my eyes and sleep to the sound of London Rain.

Author's Note: Last chapter is coming up! I will have it posted tomorrow. The lyrics in this story is credited to Heather Nova from her song, "London Rain."