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A lot of things happened that might not have left Price in the best state of mind. Half of his team dying was definitely one of them. Eventually, Price grew tired of the constant threat of war and death. So he resigned. At that, most things were over. He didn’t see his previous colleagues, no one really came to visit him. That might have been because to get away for a few years at least, Price had gotten a cottage pretty far away from any tightly packed town. So he was alone most of the time. But that part about nobody coming to visit wasn’t true.
Price stood outside, his eyes on the sky as the fall leaves in different hues of orange and yellow blew past him. His hand was shielding his eyes from the bright forest sun as he waited in the clearing in front of his house. He liked this place. It was calm and quiet for the most part. Nobody was around to ask him things or to demand he handed in his reports on time. Just nature and quiet. But not for long. Price lifted his hands from his eyebrows to hold onto his hat in preparation. He knew what was coming, even if he couldn’t see it yet. Far away in the sky, behind a white cloud slowly drifting through the air, a black speck appeared. It stood out against the clear blue backdrop that was the sky, even if it was only the size of a mosquito from where Price was standing.
He knew one thing though, it was approaching. Quickly at that. When it had grown to the size of a pine cone, Price could faintly hear the distant sound of a heavy motor transporting an even heavier vehicle through the sky. That little pine cone in the sky was the chopper he had been waiting for. He felt a small smile spread across his lips as he waited. It was kind of surreal, watching a chopper approach like he had done so many times before in the military. The big difference now was the scenery around him though. Price didn’t mind this scenery, and some days, he even preferred it over what he had gotten used to over the years.
Price only had to wait a couple of minutes before the chopper was as big as it was supposed to be. Its blades spun furiously as the driver slowly lowered the vehicle down on the soft ground of the forest. The colour was a dull green and the doors on each side of the chopper were closed, making it look like some kind of fish. He watched, not even bothering to cover his ears as the blades on top of the chopper slowly slowed to a halt. Price had learned to be a patient man. So he waited patiently. Eventually though, the door facing him opened and out stepped a man in a wine red leather jacket and a pair of equally as dull ear muffs as the chopper.
“Captain Price!” The man called in his thick russian accent, pulling off the ear muffs and letting them rest around his neck as he stepped closer. Price chuckled quietly, shaking his head slowly as he approached the man.
“No’ a captain any more!” he answered, his smile widening by the second as he got closer to the man.
“You’re always a captain to me!” The man answered, reaching Price and pulling him into a tight embrace. The ear muffs pressed uncomfortably against Price’s collar bones, but he didn’t mind. The familiar scent of smoke and motor oil filled his nostrils which brought him a strangely large sense of comfort and familiarity.
“Welcome, Nikolai,” he said, allowing his body to relax against the other man as he brought his arms up to return the embrace. They had never really hugged before when they were in the military… It's strange what a lack of witnesses does to a pair of men, really. Nikolai gave him a few firm pats on his back and when they pulled away from the embrace, both of them were smiling like children.
“It’s good to see you again, captain.”
Price showed Nikolai around the cottage. His kitchen with running water in the sink, his rather small rooms and of course, the open fireplace. Nikolai seemed to approve of all of this because he nodded slowly. He had always been a bit of a wild card, Nikolai. He was playful one second and quiet the next. It switched on a dime. Price never really minded though. It was nice to catch up with his old friend over a cup of coffee. So nice in fact that neither of them realised when the sky clouded over and it got colder. It wasn’t dark yet, but it was going to be in an hour or so, and Price had forgotten to prepare the firewood.
“Do you mind if I…?” he asked, gesturing vaguely at the fireplace that had no wood saved up before gesturing outside to the shopping block. Nickolai shook his head, leaning back in the chair he had been sitting in.
“Not at all. Then I can have a smoke.” Price just sighed, standing up from his seat and gesturing for Nikolai to join him outside.
As Nikolai leans against the outer house wall, Price walks over to the large stump he had been using to chop the wood on. He could faintly smell Nikolai’s cigarette smoke as he put a piece of wood on the stump and swung his sharp axe. Nikolai couldn’t help it as his eyes moved over to observe Price. How those strong shoulders swung the axe with practised ease, cutting the wood in half and making it ready to be put into the open fireplace. For a moment, he had forgotten the cigarette between his lips as his eyes shamelessly scanned over Price. After a few moments, Price counted the wood he had chopped so far. That was definitely enough to warm the cottage for at least that night. It was fairly small though, but that wasn’t really what Price wanted to be doing when Nikolai finally came to visit after so long.
When he turned around, he met Nikolai’s eyes for a split second. The russian jolted and quickly looked away, the smoke flowing out through his nose as his cheeks gained a barely noticeable pink tint. Price could feel himself smile as he picked up about half of the wood and started to carry them back into the cottage.
“Are you going to stare or are you going to help?” he asked, a smug look in his eyes as he walked past Nikolai. The other man pushed himself off the wall, grinning back.
“How about both?” he retorted, leaving the cigarette by his lips as he moved over to retrieve the remaining half of the wood.
…
Nikolai watched from the sofa as Price sat crouched by the fireplace, piling the wood up to make a small fire.
“It’s going to be warm and cosy…” he muttered for himself, causing Nikolai to let out a quiet scoff.
“Could be warmer,” he remarked, making Price look up.
“Pardon?”
“Cuddles.” Price chuckled quietly, shaking his head as he turned his attention back to starting the fire.
“You think of everything…” he muttered, striking fire on a match and placing it on top of a bunch of bundled up dry paper. Then he put up the small metal fence over the opening, mostly for show but also to keep the blocks of wood from potentially falling out. He stood up and looked back at Nikolai. The Russian looked back with an almost challenging expression, as if daring Price to do something.
“Scoot over…” Price said at last, loving to sit down next to Nikolai. The other man happily complied, moving slightly to the side and gesturing for Price to join him. He sat down with a huff, almost instinctively leaning against Nikolai again. He had gotten half used to the distinct smell that Nikolai brought to the function, but this close, it was even stronger. The sound of the crackling fire filled the room and bathed them in a comforting dull orange light. Slowly, Price could feel Nikolai’s hand come around his shoulders, pulling him closer. He didn’t mind.