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Vessel had been floating on cloud nine. These first few weeks of tour had been fantastic: Spending time with his American friends and putting on a show that he was really proud of. What made them even better was that Chris had been traveling with them. Having Chris on the bus was his favorite part of touring in America. After finishing off his own tour obligations he had caught a ride over to join them at their last stop in Texas. It only took a couple days for them to all get settled into a routine together. Chris helped out however he could, making sure Vessel's paint coverage is good and helping him put on his regalia every night.
However where Chris was most helpful was in the aftermath.
Another amazing show ending the set with Euclid. Vessel was sobbing as he knelt on stage before the crowd. This had become his way to show the fans how grateful he was. It meant everything to him, these moments after the music had stopped and the applause had started to reach its peak. Eventually he left the stage following close behind II, as he still had trouble seeing in the mask. Vessel felt the weight of the emotional and physical exhaustion starting to sink into his bones.
"You did so well, you were magnificent out there," Chris muttered softly as he wrapped his arms around Vessel's shaking form. Chris guided him to the green room, helping him take off his cloak and pauldron, helping him get into the small bathroom and stepping into the tiny shower before carefully removing the mask. The lights weren't very bright in the bathroom and that helped as his sight adjusted.
"Hi," Vessel whispered, looking into Chris' deep brown eyes.
"Hey," Chris spoke softly, gently running his thumbs over Vessel's cheek in a familiar repetitive motion. "C'mon let's get you cleaned up." After helping Vessel get the rest of his clothes off Chris also disrobed. Despite the size of the shower, he managed to squeeze himself in next to Vessel. The warm water washed over them, water dripping from Chris's blonde tipped hair. He grabbed the body wash, squeezing the sweet smelling liquid into his other hand. Vessel started to feel like he was coming down emotionally, sniffling and hiccuping as Chris rubbed the soap over his chest and arms. The water turned gray as it hit the floor, the paint on his body gradually melting away. Vessel hardly noticed when Chris turned off the water, his tired mind only paying attention when the soft towel covered his shoulders. Chris was halfway back in his clothes, still shirtless while using his towel to dry off Vessels legs. "Lets get you dressed. Do you want your sweatpants or the fuzzy jammies?"
"Sweatpants," Vessel replied sleepily, watching as Chris knelt by the bag of clothes in the corner. His long fingers reached out to grab the black fabric from his lover, pulling it on over his legs. Chris chuckled slightly as he watched Vessel pull the pants up around his waist, then turned to fix is damp hair in the mirror, pulling his oversized T-shirt on.
"What's funny?" Vessel asked with his head tilted to the side, a curious look on his face. He pulled on his hoodie, zipping it half way, waiting for an answer.
"Nothing, you're just cute is all," Chris said casually, moving to open the door for Vessel to exit the bathroom. III and IV were sitting on the couch, chatting with each other while waiting their turn to hit the shower. II was playing on the switch, sitting backwards in a chair. All three of them paused to look up and see Chris and Vessel emerge from the bathroom. Vessel gave them a little wave and Chris wrapped his arm around Vessel's waist. "C'mon Pretty boy. Say goodnight and let's get to the bus so these guys can get cleaned up."
"'Night," Vessel muttered, following Chris' guidance out of the green room and through the halls of the venue back to the lot the tour bus was parked in. The spring night was cool, the air was damp from rain that must have fallen during the show. They climbed up the steps into the bus. Vessel flopped into a seat while Chris started the kettle in the kitchenette. While the water came to a boil Chris grabbed a package of Vessel's favorite tea biscuits that were stored with the band's snacks. He tore the wrapper open, looking over to where Vessel had been watching his every move.
He laughed, "What?"
"Nothing, you're just cute, that's all," Vessel replied cheekily.
"Oh, you think you're clever don't you?" Chris cackled, pouring the biscuits out onto a paper plate.
"I like to think that's one of my greater qualities actually. I think I'm quite clever," Vessel countered, a grin on his face as he leaned forward, putting his elbows on the table in front of him. Chris shook his head, laughing quietly as the electric kettle clicked, letting them know that it was done. Chris poured the water into the mugs of tea, adding the appropriate lumps of sugar before moving to sit across from Vessel, placing the tea in front of each of them and the plate of sweets between.
Chris opened up his phone, opening his music app and finding a playlist that they had made together at one point. Vessel reached into one of the cupboards where a Bluetooth speaker was tucked away, turning it on before placing it on the table next to them. This was something they did quite often: sit together at the end of a long day and just listen to music. The first song started to play, Blue Velvet by Thornhill. Vessel mumbled something about how they would be a good opening band. Chris nodded, sipping on the tea. Just then II walked onto the bus, looked over at the two of them and smiled, waving as he headed back to his bunk for the night. Vessel lowered the speaker volume and focused on finishing his snack and tea.
Once all the biscuits were eaten and the mugs were empty the two of them washed up and headed for the bunks themselves. Chris heard III and IV stumble into the bus, giggling drunkenly. Glancing behind him he saw the two of them fawning over each other, getting rather handsy in the communal space. Chris smiled and rolled his eyes. The two had probably had a couple of drinks with the crew before coming back to the bus. He pulled the curtain closed and followed Vessel to the back bunk. Realistically the squished full sized mattress at the back of the bus was not all that much more comfortable than squeezing into a bunk, but it was the only way the two of them could possibly share a bed.
Vessel tucked the speaker in one of the mesh bags that hung on the wall, before pulling off his hoodie and falling into bed. Some piano piece Chris didn't know the name of was playing softly from the speaker as he took his own clothes off, leaving himself in just his underwear. He crawled into bed next to Vessel, wrapping his arms around him and Vessel doing the same as they looked at each other, face to face in the darkness.
"Thank you, for taking care of me," Vessel muttered sleepily, moving closer to press a kiss to Chris' cheek.
"Thank you, for being so good while I take care of you," Chris whispered in turn, pressing a kiss to Vessel's forehead. The song changed then, the opening orchestral part was familiar to them both. The Book Of Love, began to play softly. Chris' eyes started to flutter closed, the pull of sleep was irresistible at this point. The last thing he saw was Vessel smiling softly at him, reaching out to cup his cheek. Vessel felt Chris' thumb rubbing his cheek, his eyes also beginning to feel heavy. They started to drift off; the chorus softly whispered to them from where the speaker hung.
But I
I love it when you sing to me
And you
You can sing me anything