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Jamal had never been the biggest fan of travelling.
He liked visiting places, sure. He loved a good tourist attraction as much as the next guy. But the travelling part itself wasn't his favourite. It was simultaneously boring and nerve-wracking. It was draining and exhausting. It was too much.
Yet, somehow, the travelling had been his favourite part of this trip so far.
A lot of it probably had to do with Florian. When he had suggested a tour through Spain, Jamal hadn't spared a thought for the logistics or the chaos that a trip like that promised.
He'd thought about how he'd get to spend some time with his closest friend, and that had been enough to convince him.
By saying that the travelling was his favourite part, Jamal didn't at all mean that the rest had been bad. He had liked the museums, the parks, the restaurants, the clubs all very much. It'd been very fun.
But none of it could compare to watching an awful movie with Florian on the plane. Or when they spent an entire train ride trying to catch skittles in the air. Or the long walks they'd take from one point to another, that let them appreciate the beautiful views and also talk a lot.
Even the bad parts of the trip were fun, with Florian by his side. Having to hide in a bathroom stall in order to avoid paparazzi. Getting stuck on a broken train for hours. Walking many kilometres at night because they'd gotten lost.
All of it had been so insanely fun. It was definitely the best trip he'd ever gone to. It-
Florian's voice cut through his thoughts.
"You look like a fool when you're smiling." He teased.
"Well, you look like a fool even when you're not smiling." Jamal quipped.
Jamal turned to look at Florian. The blond was driving the car they'd rented earlier that morning. He was wearing his sunglasses on the top of his head, whereas Jamal had his on. The white shirt he wore only made his sunburns even more noticeable.
Looking at the other, Jamal knew that what he'd just said wasn't the truth. Florian didn't look like a fool. In fact, he looked quite...
He didn't finish that thought. Instead, he relaxed in his seat. When he looked out the window, though, he felt his spine straighten up.
"Holy shit!" Jamal said.
"What?" Florian asked, glancing quickly from the road at him.
"It's so beautiful." Jamal said, pointing at the lake that was besides the road.
Florian snorted. "We've been close to this lake for a good while, Jamu. You're so distracted." He added with a laugh.
Jamal blew a raspberry, but smiled. Paradoxically, Florian's teases always made him feel happy.
Some time passed, but they were still driving by the lake. It was big, and so, so beautiful; it's water a mixture of dark and light blues. Mesmerised, Jamal pulled his phone out of his pocket, and took a couple pictures.
He looked at them, and sighed loudly. None of it could compare to the real deal.
Florian seemed to notice his frustration.
"You don't think they're enough for a photography prize?" He asked.
Jamal cocked his head to the side. "Maybe honorary mention?"
Florian was quiet for a few seconds, his eyes narrowed. Then, suddenly, he turned the wheel, and parked the car on the side of the road.
"Is this where you plan on leaving my dead body?" Jamal joked, even though he was feeling pretty confused right now.
"The cops will never find you." Florian said, serious. "But honestly, though. Take the pictures."
Jamal blinked.
"What?"
"We have time." Florian shrugged his shoulders. He glanced at Jamal's eyes very quickly, and then stared at the lake. "Take the pictures." He repeated.
Even though it was just a small thing, Florian's gesture was very touching to Jamal. Smiling like a fool, he took off his seat belt and jumped out of the car. Florian followed him.
Jamal walked closer to the lake, taking in all the little details. The lake's shore was made up of a myriad of grey rocks of different sizes. There were many trees surrounding the lake; as far as his eyes could see. Very, very distantly, he thought he could spot a little boat.
Within a few minutes, Jamal's gallery was filled up with various pictures of the lake. He definitely didn't need that many, but...
For some reason, Jamal didn't want to end this moment just yet. Maybe it was because they were almost at the end of their trip; soon he and Florian would be in different parts of the country, and meeting up in person would become way more difficult.
Speaking of Florian, Jamal then turned to look at him. The Leverkusen player was standing a few metres behind, hands in the pockets of his black shorts. He was gazing at the lake, completely lost in thought.
Jamal, on the other hand, wasn't thinking as much as maybe he should; without reason, he snapped a picture of Florian. The other didn't notice it.
Opening up his gallery, Jamal examined the picture he'd just taken. Florian's relaxed stance, his thoughtful eyes, his slight smile. Damn, that was a nice picture. Maybe Jamal should send it to him; it was great for him to use in a dating app or something like that.
"Let me see!" Florian's excited voice scared Jamal. Quickly and without much reason, he swiped right on the photo, so that the other would not see it.
Jamal showed him the (lake) pictures, and Florian seemed to approve them, even though he looked a bit more at Jamal's reactions than the pictures themselves.
"You're done?" Florian asked, head tilting to the direction of the car.
"Uh..." Jamal stared at the lake, feeling desperate to prolong this moment, just a while longer. "There's just something I wanna do!"
Jamal walked even closer to the lake, getting to the shore. He took off his flip flops, and started walking on the rocks.
"Are you sure?" Florian asked, sounding hesitant.
"Yeah!"
"You're gonna get stuck!" Florian half warned, half teased.
Jamal turned back to look at him and smiled, trying not to let his nervousness show. "Trust me!" He exclaimed.
"I do." Florian answered immediately.
Those words made Jamal feel something... weird, but he had no time to analyse this now. He just kept walking, until his feet touched the cold water.
He took a few more pictures, but it still wasn't enough. The water level wasn't high, he could walk a bit more.
And walk a bit more he did. Sooner than he expected, though, the ground beneath his feet got a bit steep. Jamal didn't let that stop him, and soon the water was above his knees.
"Jamu..." Florian trailed off.
Jamal turned to look at him. His friend seemed a bit concerned right now.
"I'm not walking any further than this." Jamal promised. Florian nodded, his expression softening.
Jamal took his last pictures. He looked at them, and smiled at the result. This was exactly what he'd been wanting.
"I'm done!" He announced to Florian.
"Great." The other answered. "Now get back here, before our car gets stolen."
Smiling, Jamal started to make his way back.
...
...
...
Fuck.
...
As it turns out, walking towards the shore was a significantly harder task than walking away from it.
The rocks were slippery, and moved around when he stepped on them. The current was against him now, and he had to put a lot more effort into moving his legs. He'd made the water muddy by moving around, and now it was hard to see his feet clearly.
Jamal tried, but he managed to walk just a few centimetres forward before he lost his confidence. He was scared of falling down. He didn't know what to do.
Out of options, he then raised his head and looked at Florian.
"Flo..." He wasn't sure what to say.
"Need help?" Florian simply asked.
Jamal nodded, feeling his face burn with embarrassment.
To his surprise, Florian didn't make fun of him. Not a mocking look, not a held back smile, not even an I told you so.
Florian just took off his shoes and socks, left them and the rest of his stuff near Jamal's, and got into the water.
Jamal stood where was, hoping he didn't look as foolish as he felt like.
When Florian got within reach of him, he extended his hand.
"Give me your phone." He demanded.
"Oh, so you're saving the phone before me?" Jamal couldn't help but protest, even as he gave the other his phone. "Got it."
Florian smiled. "Well, in case anything happens, I want to at least have your pictures of the lake to remember you by." He said as he began to make his way back to the shore.
Jamal felt a pang of nervousness hit him. What if something did happen, and Florian saw that picture Jamal had taken of him? What would he even think?
Why did I even take that picture in the first place? Jamal asked himself. He could not find an answer.
Florian noticed his anxiety, even if he didn't know the reason behind it.
"Don't worry , Jamu." He said as he put the phone down on the dry shore. He was pouting overdramatically. "I'm coming to rescue you next."
Jamal tried to think of a comeback, clever or stupid, but he found none. Weird. Florian's smile disappeared from his face, and he started walking faster towards him.
After a few seconds, Florian was close to him again. He extended his hands, and this time Jamal grabbed them. He imagined it was because the cold water of the lake was wrecking him already, but Florian's skin had never felt that hot before.
Florian started trying to guide Jamal back to the shore, but it was clear he didn't really know what he was doing. Still, having someone to hold on to as he walked made Jamal feel more confident, and little by little they made progress.
Jamal almost slipped a few times, but he saved himself by grabbing Florian harder each time. He was holding the other by the forearms now, and he even worried that his fingers would leave marks on his skin.
After some time, Jamal stopped walking, feeling stuck again.
"Try going through the right." Florian suggested. His voice was low, almost husky.
"My right or yours?" Jamal asked.
"Mine." Florian said. "Wait, no, yo-"
He didn't have time to correct himself.
Because Jamal had stepped firmly on a rock on Florian's right side (his left). The rock moved away, his foot flew forward, and Jamal slipped. Since he was holding onto Florian for dear life, both of them plummeted into the water.
The fall happened so quickly, that Jamal didn't have time to register everything. He only focused on two different moments: the feeling of the cold water hitting his back. And the feeling of Florian crashing against his chest.
For a few seconds, Jamal felt despair take over his mind. I can't believe I fell into the water, I took Florian with me, I can't breathe, he's gonna get hurt, we're both gonna get hurt, he-
Jamal found the bottom of the lake, lifted his body, and managed to just raise his head above the water. He breathed in quickly, feeling his chest heave desperately, a pressure weighing on his body.
I'm fine, I'm above the water, I can breath, Florian-
Florian?
"Jamu?" Florian's voice was a bit muffled. "Jamu? Jamal?"
"I'm fine." Jamal answered, some lake water leaving his mouth when he spoke. Gross.
"Open your eyes, Jamu." Florian said, voice completely serious.
Jamal opened his eyes (when had he closed them?), and whatever air he'd managed to get into his chest immediately left his body.
Florian was practically laying down on top of him. One of his hands was under the water, supporting his body up, whereas the other was currently cupping Jamal's face. He was close to him, very close, also breathing shakily.
Jamal must've hit his head on one of the rocks or something, because the first thought that came into his mind then was Florian is a very handsome man.
It was weird. But it was true.
Even though Florian was currently soaked in lake water, his wet hair sticking to his forehead. Even though his eyes were wide and scared and worried. Even though his face was very red, like his sunburn had suddenly gotten three times worse.
He was very handsome. Jamal had noticed this before, of course (who didn't?), but he'd been having that thought more frequently in the past few months, for some reason.
Florian was saying something. Maybe Jamal should be paying attention to it. Fuck.
The Leverkusen player cupped his face more firmly, and Jamal startled out of this weird state he was in.
"Jamu, are you okay?" Florian sounded out of breath.
He thought about it for a second, before answering. "Yeah. You?"
Florian nodded.
They were both quiet for a second. But then Jamal looked into Florian's eyes and smiled just a bit, and Florian returned that smile, eyes crinkling, and-
Both of them burst out laughing. Now that they knew that both were fine, there was truly no better reaction. Both of them just laughed for a while, basking in the ridiculousness of what'd just happened.
But then their laughter began to die out, and Jamal noticed that he was practically sitting down on the rocks, and Florian was practically on top of him.
They looked at each other, both eerily quiet now. Maybe unconsciously, Florian cupped his face a bit more firmly. Jamal leaned into the touch. Florian opened his mouth, like he was going to say something, but he eventually just closed it back.
Jamal felt weird. Not because of the fall, or the water, or even his embarrassment.
He didn't really know how to explain it, but he got a feeling. A feeling that something else could have happened at this moment. If he and Florian were different people, or if the situation was different, something else would've happened.
Whatever that something was, it didn't happen.
After a few more seconds of silence, the cold water seemed to have gotten to Florian, and he ended up sneezing on both of them.
Jamal teased him, and they started laughing again. Perhaps not wanting to give any space to another of those weird moments, Florian quickly suggested that maybe they should try standing up and getting back to the shore.
Even though he felt surprisingly upset to be ending this moment, Jamal agreed
Their second attempt at getting back to the car was significantly more successful: it didn't take them long to reach their goal. There were a few slips here and there, sure, but nothing close to what'd just happened.
When they were by the car, they took some towels from the boot, and used it to dry themselves. They were both quiet, but the silence wasn't uncomfortable, even though Jamal felt the slightest shift in the mood.
Thinking back to that weird moment after they fell, he eventually came to the conclusion that Florian had for sure also felt something different. Jamal didn't think that asking the other about it was worthwhile; Florian was probably as much in the dark as he was, right?
Later, when they were on the road again, Jamal looked over all of the photos he'd just taken.
"Well?," Florian asked, unable to hide his excitement, "are the pictures worth both of us maybe getting infected with whatever germs were in that water?"
"Quite possibly." Jamal joked along, looking away from his phone at Florian. "And if they aren't, at the very least I know what I'll do after I retire from football."
"Nature photographer?" Florian asked.
"Lake diver." Jamal corrected immediately.
As Florian laughed, Jamal looked at his phone gallery again. And sure, the lake pictures (especially those he'd taken right before he got stuck) looked very good.
But, for some reason, Jamal's favourite picture of the day was the one he'd taken of Florian spacing out. Go figure.