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He wondered if it would ever get old and commonplace, run of the mill. If he lived here, every day running seamlessly into the next, would these sights, these sounds, these feelings this place invoked – would they suddenly become barely noticeable, white noise requiring little contemplation? David hoped not, hoped he'd always marvel at the watercolor sky, the calm stillness of the water, the sharpness in the air. He thinks it should be immortalized in some way, made a permanent part of their story in more than just memories and photographs. If he could paint he would capture the reflection of the sky in the water, its surface a perfect mirror of the serenity surrounding it.
An idea suddenly gets lodged in David's mind and he turned back toward the cabin to see Billy stretched out on the dock, his arms extended out and down toward the water, his palms flat just above the slight ripples emanating from some distant wave. It makes David think of Superman with training wheels, getting his form right on the ground before taking to the air, and his laugh catches Billy's attention. When their eyes meet it's like a silent awakening of the senses. He swears he can hear Billy's heart, smell the faint scent of his favorite soap. Logically he knows it's merely sense memory, Billy's imprint in his mind coming into clearer focus. But the idea that he somehow becomes a Sentinel for Billy strikes him as both oddly romantic and endlessly funny and he starts to laugh louder, breaking through the quiet like the surf rolling across the sand.
Billy shoots him a quizzical look, the one that says "I have no idea what you're on about but I love you anyway," then motions for David to come over. And in this case the feeling is mutual, as David has no idea what Billy is doing but he happily joins him. The air is cooler down here, and just above the water he swears it's moving faster, an ever so slightly increased breeze, but his side is pressed firmly against Billy's from shoulder to ankle, and Billy's warmth filters through him.
When they were introduced he'd already been witness to Dom and Billy in action and had expected an almost mature frenetic energy from the man, the steady hum of a comedian's motor. But there was a surprising stillness about Billy, and a kind of hard-earned wisdom that came from meeting the shit-end of life head on and sending it back from whence it came. He was respectful of the past but not nostalgic, firmly rooted in the here and now yet happy to imagine future possibilities. He grounded David even at times when David began to feel stifled, when his mind couldn't focus for all the rapid-fire doubts and second guesses about the choices he'd made.
He felt as if he should say something profound or poetic, something to match the stunning landscape that surrounded them, to give voice to the emotions that flooded him. The sky continued to darken; soon there would be so little light they'd be lucky to not fall of the dock as they headed back inside. He can just make out the low, rough rocks that dot the water across from them, can only barely see Billy's hand as it closes around his.
David looked over where the sun would rise in the morning, burning the black of night away like a raging fire, the water ablaze with its crimson and tangerine light. He remembered his desire to capture these memories, but decided his idea that Billy write some music about this trip could wait. This vacation had soaked into their souls; Billy would be able to commemorate it, to honor their time in this enchanted place, on another day. For now David was content to feel the slight rush of air across their hands, to watch the goosebumps rise on their skin, and to soak up the love and contentment that radiated around them. He had no doubts that this relationship, every moment with this man, would never get old, could never be commonplace. And that was even more beautiful than the sky as it filled with the glow of a thousand stars.