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[byrned]

Comments

[cravating]

How to do the washing. Where to put the dishes. What programs are any good to watch.

[He rattles off the list with a little, teasing smile.]

[byrned]

Oh yeah yeah, whatever you say. You know that trash you watch will rot your brain, right?

[ Unlike Matt's dvd collection of porrn ]

[cravating]

They're documentaries for Christ's sake. [He says with a laugh.] Which you would know if you stopped to actually sit and watch them with me.

[byrned]

Look it's not my fault they bore me to sleep. Get something with a bit of action, then maybe we'll be in business. I see you watching any of that shit while we're away I'm turning the electric off. You'll have to entertain yourself in other ways.

[cravating]

I'm not sure this place we're going to even has a television, honestly. Guess we'll be stuck entertaining each other.

[byrned]

Yeah? [ Really, it would be the most apt place to insert a comment about the fact Nate is gay. But as it happens? He doesn't. ]

Well I'm sure we won't get bored. Threw my keyboard in the boot, get the music flowing. [ There's a pointed look there, like he will get you singing, Nathaniel. ]

And if we do well we'll just have to get creative.

[cravating]

[Nate glances down. Get creative. God, when Matt says shit like that, it just sounds downright suggestive. But Matt wouldn't mean it like that. And if he did, he wouldn't be serious about it.]

I brought a sketch pad. Hoping there's some views from our room.

[byrned]

You can draw me. [ He smirks as he speaks, and glances over to him, before reaching over with a hand and pushing him against the arm. ]

What do they call it? Life?

[cravating]

I'm not going to a cottage in the country just to draw you. [He says with a roll of his eyes.]

[byrned]

Well not just no. [ He smirks again. Oh he's hilarious. ]

You know what I thought I might give a go while we're there though? Composing. Think I might try and write something.

[cravating]

Yeah? [His smile grows a bit.] That's great, Matt. Seriously. I think you'd be good at that sort of stuff.

[byrned]

Yeah well don't hold onto your hat just yet. But I've got a module on it next year and I thought I'd try and get a head start. Maybe being away from everything I'll get a bit of inspirations. Maybe from one of your drawings or something.

[ Because he is undoubtedly his inspiration ]

[cravating]

Hopefully we can both get a little inspired.

[Nate keeps his eyes on Matt, gaze lingering a little longer than normal. Eventually he glances back at the road.]

How far now?

[byrned]

[ Matt doesn't see it. He has no idea. If he did, maybe it would change things, or maybe it would just make him crash the car. Really, it's a toss up. ]

A couple of hours? If we do well with traffic. Depends on those little windy roads when we get to them. But I have the address on a bit of paper in there. I was going to hire the sat nav but they wanted an extra fifty quid.

[cravating]

Waste of money, that. We'll sort it on our own.

[He tries to sound more confident about it than he really is. Not that he doesn't trust Matt's navigation skills, but he's a little out of his element out here.]

[byrned]

[ Famous last words.

Two and a half hours later, they are well and truly lost. Well away from any city, well away from where they're supposed to be. The last time they saw a building was about twenty minutes ago. Matt knows remote. Home in Ireland is pretty remote, but this? Well this is just lost.

Eventually, he pulls up at the side of a road on the crest of a hill, looking out into the darkness outside. ]

Yeah we're fucked.

[cravating]

[Nate tries to hold out hope, tries to give them the benefit of the doubt, but the further they got, the more he can tell that this is not going as planned. As Matt stops the care, Nate rubs a hand over his face.]

Shit. What are we going to do?

[byrned]

I dunno, but I've been driving on fumes for the last half an hour. We're out of petrol. [ He looks at the needle on empty. This really doesn't help. ]

We can't be far, right? I mean we followed the thing they gave us, didn't we? I mean I think we did. Fuck knows now. [ He's angry, annoyed, pissed off at himself. This is supposed to be their little getaway, and he's fucked it up before it has even started. ]

I need some fucking air.

[cravating]

Air? Matt, it's bloody freezing out there. There's air in here. [He knows Matt well enough to know that he's going to need to do this his own way, though. Nate doesn't blame him. They were both following directions, after all.]

[byrned]

Yeah well I'll get fucking cold then won't I.

[ He unhooks his seat belt and opens up the car door, stepping out and slamming it behind him. Outside, he takes a couple of steps, moving towards the edge of a patch of grass where it falls over the hill. The light is fading, making it colder still.

He sighs and shakes his head before stepping back to the car, and opening the door. ]

It's going to be properly dark soon, and if it is we'll be well and truly buggered. And not in the way you enjoy. What if I go and walk and find somewhere. It can't be far away now, right? I'll find a petrol station and get some petrol. Enough to keep us going. You can stay here and keep warm.

[cravating]

[Nate watches as Matt heads outside, chewing nervously at his thumb nail, trying to sort out just what they should do. When Matt comes back, Nate immediately sits up in protest.]

You can't just-- [But it's not like they have much of an option. Someone should stay with the car. And they can't find their way back without more fuel.]

Just... take my scarf, at least. [He pulls it off his neck and holds it out.]

[byrned]

[ Matt gives the scarf a look, and considers acting the big man and saying he doesn't need it. But it's fucking freezing, and so he takes it, wrapping it around twice and tucking it into his jacket. ]

My mobile's only got one bar, so I'll turn it off and put it back on when I find something. I'll try not to be too long, mate. Just entertain yourself. There's those ham sandwiches in the bag if you want one.

You gonna be okay on your own, yeah?

[cravating]

I'll be fine. [He says, trying to sound reassuring about it.]

Be quick. Longer you wait, the colder it's going to get.

[byrned]

Yeah yeah, don't I know it. I'll be back as soon as I can, okay?

[ And on that, he moves back, moves towards the road. It can't be far, right? It can't take long.

45 minutes later, he's still walking, and he's starting to realise that maybe this might not have been that good an idea. His hands are froze, and he feels like his bits might have shrunk up in fear and retracted back into his body.

Thankfully, there's a light ahead that he's been following. Good, really, given it's pitch black now. The light gets bigger, like a mirage in the sky.

It's only a bloody pub. ]

[cravating]

[Nate stays inside for about 20 minutes. Guilt eats at him more and more, and eventually he can't stand it anymore. All he can think about is Matt out there in the cold while he's sitting there, away from the harsh wind. It's not exactly warm, but he knows he's much better off than Matt.

So it's guilt that makes him unfasten his seat belt, guilt that gets him to open the car door, and guilt that gets him out into the cold air. With his coat wrapped tight around him, he looks down the road, as if he might squint and see Matt coming back.

He doesn't, of course. He tries to ignore how nervous he is about the whole thing. Turning in a slow circle, his eyes shift upward and he notices the first few stars that have already started to appear in the darkening night sky. It's the sort of beauty that can make you forget anything.

Well, almost anything.

But it's pretty enough that Nate wants to surround himself with it, so it takes him no time at all to climb on top of the car, laying back on the roof of it with both hands tucked behind his head. It doesn't taken long for the sky to be full of them, more stars than he ever thought possible. He's never seen anything like it, honestly.]