Chapter Text
They’ve been to many places, warmer places that leave his throat raspy and parched after a concert and five bottles of water, but still the heatwave that hits England (pretty mild compared to tropical places and even Plastic Beach) never fails to make him feel sick. The cabin doesn’t have A/C, only a heater they don’t quite need to turn on to sleep comfortably at night.
A lake nearby provided enough relief from the heat in the afternoon when the water wasn’t freezing anymore that they could take a dip and lounge on the grassy bank, but that got boring fast and they returned to their weekend home to find other forms of keeping cool. 2D may or may not have opened the fridge door and stood there for some minutes until his internal temperature dropped and Russel yelled at him from across the cabin to close it and conserve energy.
Noodle was lounging in the living room in sports bra and shorts, fanning herself with a pamphlet of a nearby tourist spot and unsticking her back from the couch. Ace was the only one seemingly unbothered by the heat, fully dressed and alternating between finding their suffering funny or feeling pity for them.
That had been hours ago, though, and now under the dying light of the sun, freshly showered with hair still damp, 2D sits by the fire outside, plucking at the strings as Russel goes back inside to tend to dinner and Ace takes his turn in the bathroom. The summer heat isn’t as oppressing anymore and the growing flames don’t really bother him, flickering and dancing as they spread around the pile of wood. Noodle doesn’t say anything when she sits by his side, putting away her acoustic guitar for a moment to snap a picture of the sunset before joining him.
She follows his pace easily, predicting the notes and together they play some nameless song. “2D,” she says later when they stop to flex their fingers. “What do you think of doing a live? We don’t have to say anything, just let our followers appreciate the music and scenery.”
“Sounds fun,” he agrees with a shrug and easy smile, and two minutes later Ace becomes their camera man.
Ace does speak with the followers, gives them a brief intro, and the duo only acknowledges the camera with a nod and wave and go back to playing some of their own songs. Russel comes back to set the table and Ace is there, filming the food and letting the drummer proudly describe his personal recipe of summer salad to the sound of Slow Country.
It’s easy to tune them out as they sit side by side on stools and soon 2D is singing, the lyrics of Don’t Get Lost in Heaven and Demon Days being carried by the wind, making blades of grass sway and blowing away harmless embers. Their eyes meet and they smile at each other, fingers moving deftly and transitioning to another song, the familiar vibe of their third album sounding in the air around them.
Empire Ants comes and goes, leaving shivers on their skin in its wake, Noodle filling in for Yukimi as she’s done sometimes in the privacy of their home. On Melancholy Hill takes the breath away from their lungs and forms knots in their throats, they choke on the words and give up on singing, Ace recording everything from the other side of the campfire where he’s drinking his beer. Noodle doesn’t join 2D as he sings broken, content to play and watch his mouth move around the words, his throat work to get the notes in the right pitch.
Russel stops them for a moment, shoves bottles of water in their hands and tells them to take care of their vocal chords. Some sips of water and a quiet conversation later, they move on to To Binge and this - oh, this is how 2D wishes they could have rehearsed this song years ago, him and Noodle together sitting on the shores of Plastic Beach, backs turned to the clutter of trash, facing the sea and the sparkling water and the sun dipping into it, turning everything red and yellow and the shades in between.
It’s easy to get lost in her eyes, too, as they look at one another and sing this duet, fingers moving with practiced ease over the strings, the melody cradling them. Noodle looks at him with so much love in her eyes that he doesn’t need to hear her say the words to assure him, but they sound wonderful in her voice, whispered in dimly lit rooms when they’re curled together, brushing fingers over exposed skin.
“There they go,” he hears Ace say, distantly, in that half-dismayed voice of his, setting the phone down on the table, held upright by one of Russel’s dishes. “In their own little world again.”
A good world it is. He doesn’t know when the band will have a break again and until then, until he and Noodle are free for a while to travel and do as they want together, all they can do is ignore everything else in moments like this, forget the rest for blissful minutes and pretend it’s only them, them and their music and their love, young but strong and blooming, growing with each passing day. 2D can write endless songs about her, about what they share and how he feels, enough songs that he can release a new album and its B-side by the end of the year. She makes him want to try his hand at drawing, so he can capture her smile with his own fingers, but he settles for a picture and kisses instead.
To Binge is over. Russel ends the stream before they can as much as put down their acoustic guitars, not that 2D is paying attention to any of it, too engaged in the silent conversation he’s having with Noodle. The flames dance in her eyes, skin aglow, cheek warm when his hand touches it, thumb brushing over a cheekbone, fingers curling on her hair and pulling her closer. He can almost feel the phantom sensation of cold metal on his skin, gold glinting under the stars, but the band is carefully kept in his bedroom, waiting for the right time.
The kiss is soft, chaste, a simple press of the lips that is enough to convey what he feels. She smiles into it, hand at the base of his neck, palm over his beating heart, fingertips tracing collarbones. He pulls away, lids parting open, lips curling into a smile of his own. With a last peck they separate fully, stand and walk back to the cabin to place their guitar away, pinkies interlaced in the space between their bodies.
2D can’t quite believe he has this, has her by his side after being torn apart too many times. He wants her to stay, forever.
