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Along his bandmates, Paul stepped into the darkness and silence that offered the side of the stage. Sure, there were people going about, various crew members doing their job, some dimmed lights kept on to make sure no one would trip over a cable – and surely create a disaster in the process if the concert was still ongoing.
But compared to the actual stage, the backstage area always appeared oddly calm. You could feel the energy of the crowd, but it was fading with every step as you walked away. No bright lights in your face. No pyrotechnics here, either. Crew members were gradually slowing their pace, the emergency of the ongoing show now over.
Among the quieting tumult, Paul often almost felt lost. Adrenaline was still pumping in his whole body, keeping him on edge. The overwhelming excitement of being on stage, playing in front of thousands of people, of fans, was still there, but the concert was part of the past; it was history now. It was a total success: they had played well, there had been no mishap. The band and the crowd had enjoyed every minute of it and had energized each other.
They were almost back to their rooms now. Paul was tailing Olli, his mind a bit elsewhere, not being able to catch a coherent thought yet. This section of their tour had been intense, on a tight schedule. Tonight had been their second concert in a row.
Paul wasn't in his twenties or even in his thirties anymore and could already tell he would feel drained as soon as his nerves would be relaxed again. The sound of a door opening ahead of him caught his attention, and he immediately followed Olli inside their shared room, happy to be able to cool down away from people. Fresh clothes would also help.
Old habits die hard. After a few minutes of peaceful and routine cleaning, Paul had started to chat with his bandmate. As expected, it was mostly Paul sharing his train of thoughts and Olli listening, but the bassist kept the conversation going nonetheless.
They talked for a while until Olli excused himself and left the room. Paul didn't think much of it. If Olli had wanted him to shut up, he would have let the conversation die out – or even straight out asked for silence, if Paul hadn't gotten the hint. They had been sharing a dressing room for years now, they had their habits.
Paul turned his attention back to his wardrobe, returning his stage shoes back to their designated place. A soft knock on the door made him turn his head.
"Yes?" he called out, getting back up from his kneeling position to go open to the visitor.
Before he reached it, the door opened just large enough for Richard to pass his head inside. After giving the whole room a quick check, he slid in and closed behind himself.
Paul repressed a laugh. "Why are you being so careful?" he asked his boyfriend.
Richard walked up to him, a wide smile on his face, arching up a brow. Paul could only answer with a grin of his own, putting an arm around Richard when he got close enough. He felt his body warming up with affection when they shared a quick peck on the lips.
"I wanted to make sure I had my boyfriend all to myself," Richard teased, making his voice exaggeratingly honeyed.
They stared in each other's eyes for a few seconds before bursting into laughter. Paul recovered quicker, whipping away a single tear from his eye. He was glad Richard came to find him. Obviously, he was always more than happy to see his partner, but it turned out that a short shared moment of privacy like this one was just what he had needed to feel better. Tiredness could wait a little longer.
"No, actually..." Richard started, "I wanted to see if you'd like to come with me to the beach tonight."
He didn't need to say more, Paul was already convinced, beaming at the idea. But Richard went on.
"Well, I had hoped we'd go there today with the band, but that didn't happen, and I'm not sure we'll have time to go tomorrow. And I really wanted to spend some time with..."
"Oh, shut up already!" Paul cut him with a quick kiss. "I'm in! It's a wonderful idea, Richard."
*
As planned, they found each other again at Richard's dressing room door, some thirty minutes later. Paul knocked on the door and let himself in upon hearing Richard's answer. Even if they didn't intend to stay here, he pushed the door close, to allow them some privacy, before turning around to take a better look at his boyfriend.
Richard was now in casual clothes, wearing a big and comfy hoodie. Paul had likewise put some layers on. It was almost summer and the nights weren't cold in this region, but it always felt fresher by the water.
Paul always found Richard very dashing in his stage outfits. Bright, elegant colors, complementing pieces, bold make-up... He had a hard time keeping his eyes off him. But seeing his boyfriend in informal outfits was a different kind of special to Paul. It gave him a strange feeling of closeness that filled his chest with content. Richard was comfortable enough around him to show this side of him without restraint, something that not everyone would see. Of course, he wasn't the only one with that privilege, but a reminder of being in that close circle never failed to make Paul feeling overjoyed, lucky to have this wonderful man as his partner.
"You ready?" he asked, still smiling widely.
Richard answered with a nod, closing the distance between the two of them to enfold him in his arms. Though being held tightly, Paul managed to free his own arms to wrap them around his boyfriend's neck and pull his face closer to his. Getting the hint, Richard aligned their lips and they started to kiss. Gently at first, until Paul got a bit greedier and rougher.
He had wanted to do since Richard had walked out of his own dressing room. They kept going for a little more without intensifying their kiss any further, merely enjoying the moment. When they parted, Paul realized his cheeks must have had turned slightly red by now, not unlike Richard's.
"I'll take that as a yes," Paul said with a smile.
He then turned around to open the door again, Richard releasing him, and then they both stepped outside the dressing room.
"Hey, look who's here!"
Both turned around to see Till coming their way, waving at them and smiling widely. Upon reaching them, he gently, yet firmly, pushed them his way – the opposite of the backstage exit, where they had intended to go to sneak out of the place as quietly as possible.
"Uh, Till? Where are we going?" Richard inquired, not sounding too pleased with the turn of events.
Paul was cautious himself, definitely not wanting to get dragged along for some crazy scheme while he was about to finally have some time off with his boyfriend after a few mad days.
"To the after-party, of course!" Till almost shouted, way too enthusiastic about this.
Uh-oh.
Now that he was close to them, Paul could smell some alcohol in Till’s breath. He looked to the other side of the singer and met Richard’s eyes, who had apparently reached the same conclusion as him. They needed a plan to get out this now, if they ever wanted to reach the beach in peace.
Considering the smell, it was probably too late to try to explain to Till the two of them wanted to spend some romantic time alone. He didn't even want to try, he was in no mood to argue and just wanted to get out of here. He had to think of something immediately.
"Hey, Till?" Paul said. The singer turned his head towards him but didn't slow down. "Could you let go of us please? Actually we had... plans before coming to the after-party..."
Paul saw the gears turning in Till's head and took the opportunity of him looking away to make faces at Richard, hoping he'd get the strategy. Thankfully, his boyfriend's face lights up.
"Yeah, we were heading back to Paul's room, he forgot something important there before coming to mine," Richard said, trying to sound a bit annoyed.
Till stopped in his track, shifting his gaze between the two of them. Until he realized.
"Oh, I see..." he started in a knowing voice, a broad grin on his face. "I'm in the way right now, aren't I?" He chuckled and let go of the two guitarists. "Right, go, do your smoochy business. Or naughty. Or both. Whatever you had in mind for tonight. See you later!"
He wiggled his eyebrows at them before going on his way down the corridors, his low chuckle still audible for a bit longer.
Paul and Richard kept staring at his back until he was out of hearing distance, then looked at each other, a victorious smile on their faces. They turned around and headed for the exit, hurrying their pace in excitement, all giggly.
*
Taking their time, they stopped for an instant, basking in the fresh air coming from the sea. Paul took the occasion to put his head on Richard's shoulder, who squeezed his hand in return.
They had been walking on the beach for some time now. Their trip there had thankfully been uneventful, as they had met few people on their way. Only a couple had recognized them and had asked for a picture. Paul and Richard had happily obliged and Paul was quite certain both of them still had their silly faces on, as they had been laughing about what had happened with Till a few minutes after escaping the backstage area. The picture the couple had taken was probably a very interesting one. They had politely left the bandmates alone after exchanging a few words, everyone parting with a big smile on their faces.
Paul and Richard stayed there for another few seconds, inhaling the salty air and enjoying the calming scenery. Then, Richard tilted his head to the side and they resumed their walk. Paul would have happily stayed close to his boyfriend a little longer, but there would be another occasion soon enough. Walking with Richard side by side, holding hands with their fingers intertwined like the happy couple they were, was enough to make him feel like his heart was bursting from joy.
After a few more minutes of strolling, Richard pulled his arm slightly to catch his attention.
"Hey, is that a bonfire over there?" he said, pointing at a spot of light on the very end of the beach.
Paul's eyes followed Richard's direction. He squinted a bit to try to catch more details of the distant scene.
"Looks like it," he answered. "Probably a bunch of youngsters having some party, I think I can see some of them dancing."
Richard hummed, seemingly lost in his thoughts.
The couple kept walking hand-in-hand until they were closer to the scene. Paul could see the dancing silhouettes clearly now and even heard some beer bottles clinking together. What should they do now? Turn around and go the other way? Paul didn't want to get too close, since he didn't want to get involved with probably half-drunk people.
Their stroll had been romantic, he'd hate to see the mood being ruined right now. But at the same time, a bonfire light was charming and even a bit nostalgic - it reminded him of the times when his friends and him had lighted up bonfires for a party on multiple occasions, a few decades ago now.
He had been staring at the distant light for a little while and Richard seemed to have caught up on his train of thoughts.
"Do you want us to lay down there?" he offered, gesturing at a small sand dune overseeing the sea a few meters away. "They can't see us from over there."
Paul smiled. It was very thoughtful of Richard to offer. He loved how they were able to read each other, to understand the other one without words. Their bond had been tight before, after a chaotic start, but it had been growing even more since they got together almost a year ago.
"Good idea," Paul answered, still smiling at the memories of the beginning of their relationship, "we can still see the bonfire but won't be interrupted by some idiots."
Richard let go of his hand, flashed him a big smile and started to run to the dune. "What a goof!" thought Paul, but he started to race after him while grinning. He couldn't help himself. Richard was his goof.
Paul played along but didn't give it his whole either, happy to admire Richard's running silhouette from behind. Richard's butt truly was one of his favorite assets about him. Well, obviously Paul loved every single one of his features, but this one was at the top, especially when Richard was skipping around on stage, and he was sure most fans would agree. What a lucky man he was.
Upon reaching a good spot, his boyfriend dropped himself on the dune, sending some sand in the air at the same time since he didn't bother to slow down that much. He opened his arms, inviting Paul in, waiting for him to arrive.
Paul slowed down a bit, not wanting to crush his idiotic boyfriend in the process. But he still arrived with some speed, straddling Richard before flattening his upper body on his. He made sure to avoid head-butting him, though, and positioned his head next to his. He lost no time and started to assault Richard with kisses all over the side of his face.
Richard, taken by surprise, burst into laughter, before using his leg as leverage to turn them around. He managed to put enough force into it and landed on top of Paul, retaliating with some kisses of his own.
A few minutes, rolls and many kisses later, Paul was back on top of Richard. They had both given up on getting the upper hand, as none of them would admit defeat first and they ended up out of breath from too much giggling. Paul had his head on Richard's chest, his hand next to it.
Okay, Richard's pecs were probably one of his favorite features as well, he had to admit that. He squeezed them playfully before pushing himself just enough to align his face with Richard's, rubbing their noses together, which had Richard laughing softly. Paul couldn't repress a broad smile and he felt his cheeks starting to hurt from too much chuckling and grinning.
He rested his forehead on top of Richard and closed his eyes, inhaling his boyfriend's scent in. A bit of leather, a hint of soap from his shower and most of all his typical cologne. Paul loved it and the mix with the salty atmosphere was especially pleasing.
Richard placed another kiss on his lips.
"I love you so much, you know that, right?" Richard said in a murmur.
"I do. Of course I do, idiot. And I love you too, Reesh."