"Is this okay?" Avi asked when he put his arms around Scott's neck.
Scott swallowed dryly. "Yes." He gave in when the bearded man tugged on him, pulling him down just enough so he could connect their lips in a tender kiss.
It was a chaste kiss and it felt as if they were both just testing out the waters.
When their lips parted moments later they both opened their eyes but stayed close. "Avi" Scott whispered.
The bearded man smiled slightly. "Scott. Was that..."
"Wonderful" Scott said. He put his arms around Avi's body and held him. His gaze shifted from Avi's eyes back down to his lips and then he leaned down to kiss the bearded man right now, this time holding it for longer. Avi's beard tickled him in the best way possible as he tasted the sweet wine on his lips and smelled the coconut-scented oil he used for his beard and hair.
Lost in their own world the two men forgot everything around them. They didn't care that their friends were watching, they just didn't want the moment to end.
And Kirstie, Mitch and Ben just grinned at one another but didn't comment. Only Aliki chuckled. "Maybe it was easy after all," she said.
A while later, Christos and Aliki steered the ship into the harbour of Mykonos. Avi and Scott were still standing at the nose of the ship together. They had stopped kissing and were watching the lights of the city together. Neither of them dared to talk, fearing that they would break the moment.
Only when they had docked, they broke apart and joined their friends. They thanked Christos and Aliki for the day and left the ship.
"I'm going to book a cab," Mitch said when they were back on land.
"Um... I think we'll walk" Scott said, looking at Avi. "Or not?"
Avi nodded. "We should," he said.
Kirstie smiled brightly. "Good. Do you want us to take your bags?"
Scott nodded. "Would be good," he said and handed his bag over to Kirstie while Avi gave his to Ben.
They both faltered, wanting to say something while not knowing what to say.
Mitch rolled his eyes. "Off you go," he said. "Have a wonderful rest of the night. If I'm not there once you get home, the Dutch guy said he'd be at the bar. He's leaving tomorrow and I might spend the night with him."
Scott smiled. "Have fun."
"You have fun, too," Mitch said. "And now shoo."
Scott turned around, but Avi smiled at Kirstie. "Thank you," he said before he joined Scott.
They walked in silence for a while, only when Avi's hand brushed Scott's, accidentally, the blonde cleared his throat. "Okay?" he asked as he took the smaller man's hand.
Avi nodded. "Yeah," he said. They walked along the seafront, feeling the soft breeze on their skin. Neither of them said anything else, even though they both knew that they should talk eventually.
So Scott stopped when they were at a bench in a secluded corner with a view of the sea. "Let's sit down here for a moment?"
Avi nodded. "Sure," he said.
Once they were sitting, Scott cleared his throat again. "You kissed me," he said.
Avi nodded. "I did. And then you kissed me..."
Scott nodded slowly. "I just had to do it again. Had to know if it was real" he said. "And it was."
Avi smiled. "I hadn't planned it, but it just happened. It felt right, at least to me."
"I... I think it felt right to me as well" Scott agreed. "I really like being around you, Avi. It's just... complicated."
"Can you try to explain, Scott? I mean I know that you just broke up with Nick, but I want to know where I'm at" Avi asked carefully.
"I really like you, Avi," Scott said. "And I really want to be close to you. You're drawing me in with your kindness, your presence. I don't know how to put it into words, but ever since we were on tour I wanted to spend more time with you. But I was still with Nick and wanted the relationship to work. And now I'm not in a relationship anymore and we're here, you're wonderful, you feel so good inside my arms. But I don't know, Avi. Mitch asked me if I had feelings for you the other day and I just didn't know how to answer."
Avi listened closely. "I get that, Scott. It's a lot and maybe it happened faster than you think it would" he replied. "But do you know how to answer now?" Avi felt his heartbeat quicken when he uttered the question carefully.
"Avi, I... my brain is trying to tell me that it is too early, that it would be wrong to just settle for someone new. But my gut wants me to try and get closer to you" Scott looked down at his hands. "I want to be with you, Avi. But I think I need time to adjust to the new situation."
Avi chuckled softly. "I don't mind, Scott. I've been patient for such a long time, I can wait for longer."
Scott looked up at the bearded man. "What do you mean, Avi?"
Avi grimaced. "Well, I didn't develop my feelings for you within the past week."
"How long are we talking?" Scott asked.
"Before Nick" Avi simply said. "I was just too much of a coward back then. You were always with these tall and broad jocks and I'm small and definitely not a jock."
"But... you never tried to get me to break up with Nick. You were the one who listened and gave me the advice to mend things. Why?"
Avi sighed. "I wanted you to be happy Scott. I thought wanting you for myself was selfish. But now..."
Scott nodded slowly. "I don't know what to say, Avi. And you're definitely not a jock, but you're handsome. And you have the kindest heart. You're fun to be around and fuck, Avi, I want whatever we have to work out. But how?"
Avi smiled and reached over to take Scott's hand into his own. "Time," he said. "We need time to get to know each other even better. You need to work through your issues with the help of a therapist. We'll go at your pace."
"But I feel like my issues and everything are not here. Here it's just me and you and our friends" Scott explained.
"Which means that we can have a few more of these carefree days together Scott. We'll play by ear, check in with each other just the way we did on the yacht" Avi offered. "If this is what you want?"
Scott didn't need to think about this offer. "Yes, please," he said. "This is definitely what I want." He faltered for a moment. "Would it be okay if I kissed you now?"
Avi chuckled under his breath. "No need to ask," he said and sighed when he felt Scott's soft lips on his own for the third time.
Eventually, the wind got to fresh to be comfortable and the two men walked back to their house, still holding hands. They each had a cup of tea to warm up and to end the day on a comfortable note.
"Will you wake me up for our meditation?" Scott asked when they were standing in front of the doors to their bedrooms.
Avi smiled brightly and nodded. "Of course I will. Good night, Scott."
The blonde smiled back at him. "Good night, Avi" he replied and leaned down for a sweet good night kiss.
~~~~
