At the same time that Benxamin was working on his painting, Victor and Lester were finally spending some time together. The young people ventured to tour the entire island. The truth wasn't that extensive, but it was chaotic, due to the foreigners or locals that abounded in the area, enjoying the Christmas festivities. Lester, who wasn't used to excessive heat, dehydrated easily and had to ask his friend several times to let him rest. Victor was pleased, attentive to take care of him - perhaps he was too overprotective - something that sometimes made Lester laugh, reminding him of his father when he was a baby.
Both boys wandered through some of the most inhospitable areas, territories rarely visited by tourists. Victor remembered them all as if he had never left, among so many natural beauties, his favorite place remained the same: An islet called Starfish, where it could see The Rainbow, a beautiful beach hidden in the middle of nowhere. The reason for its name was due to the fact that, being an ecosystem of several species of corals that inhabited said territory, they produced various color changes in the water, and depending on the weather, the tones were more vibrant.
They could only travel by motor canoe, the distance was 15 minutes. Victor wanted Lester to meet it and once there, he seriously thought about telling him that he liked him. It was the right place and time for his declaration. He hired a local to take them, although as a child he had gone to the islet alone, he preferred not to risk going on his own, unless he remembered the route well. An old fisherman offered to help them and in a short time they were in Starfish.
Lester and Victor walked for several minutes. They did not speak to each other because they were amazed by the beauty of their paradise. With several little-traveled trails, few houses around it, more palm trees than inhabitants per square meter, and beautiful vegetation typical of the place. Finally, after a few steps, they saw it, the beach was a little smaller than what Victor remembered, but for him it was still his greatest treasure. A passing tourist guide told them that possibly in a few months, by order of the islanders' representative, they were thinking of prohibiting tourist access to the islet due to the way in which some of them affected its ecosystem due to embarrassing situations that occurred in the past.
The colors of The Rainbow unfolded magnificently in all their splendor due to the privileged weather. The most predominant ranged from turquoise blue, light blue and aquamarine green, among other shades. Lester had his father's camera, and he took as many photos as he could and thought of showing them to his parents once they got back.
“This is beautiful, Victor. It's a shame that Benxa couldn't come,” stated Lester.
“My brother is okay. The three of us can come back tomorrow and I will show you another nearby island.”
“Wow, thank you. Yeah, and I wish my parents were here too, but mom... ”
“I hope she gets better soon,” Victor expressed.
“Did you know that their wedding anniversary is on February 14?” Lester said as he took more photos.
“No, I didn't know.”
“Uh huh, she was the one who proposed to my dad.”
“Hahaha, really?” Victor said out loud.
“Yes, dad was in his office and my mom was pregnant with me. She went looking for him, she was very angry and told him in front of everyone: ” Lester trying to imitate her voice. “If you don't marry me, I'm going to live again with my parents!”
“Did she force your father to marry her? HAHAHAHAHAHA!” Victor cried with laughter.
“HAHAHAHAHA... ” Lester responded, but paused for a brief moment, trying to forget about Mira's health, and continued. “Well, thanks for this, Victor. I like being here with you.”
Then came the moment Victor wanted so badly, even though he swallowed several times. He took a small piece of white paper folded in half from his shirt pocket and held out his hand in Lester's direction.
“Here,” he said, looking down at his feet. “I feel stupid, but I'm not good at these things.”
“What are you talking... about... ?” Lester read the message and immediately couldn't help but blush.
“I like you,” said the paper.
This time, Lester seemed to feel the same way about Victor, he didn't doubt that he had those feelings. Inexperienced at it, he only avoided looking at his friend, but he was also brave when answering,
“I like you too.”
Victor raised his head to look at him, Lester was as red as the color of his Bermuda shorts. He tried to grab his hand, but caught himself and wondered to himself.
“I told him I liked him but... ” then Victor spoke out loud about something he was planning to do. “I'm going to live alone once we get back, Lester.”
Lester's eyes widened, however, his attitude was much more relaxed and mature; “please, give me your new address. I would like to visit you and invite you to a coffee.”
Victor was surprised. Lester was no longer a crybaby. He began to love him much more as time went by and even if they were no longer neighbors, they would keep in touch.
“Yes, I will gladly accept it,” expressed him, then it occurred to him to sheepishly ask Lester.
“Can I hold your hand?”
Lester unfortunately could not hear him, the guide who had spoken to them before suddenly appeared and warned them that they had to return to Hephaestus, as there was a storm warning.
“Did you say something, Victor?”
“No, let's go. It's getting late.”
***
The next day, Benxamin got up early, showered, and dressed in white. He shared the same room with his brother, but he thought of leaving quickly while Victor was still sleeping. Before that, he wrote him a letter and put it on the nightstand, next to it was the drawing he painted in honor of his late mother, Anaís Dautt.
He left the room and looked for Lester to ask him the favor of going with him to buy some flowers. Benxa planned to visit the island's cemetery that same day in the company of his brother and his friend.
They bought two bouquets of lilies near their lodgings - Mrs. Dautt's favorite flowers. Lester looked at them closely, then remembered his mother's face, and wished he didn't want to be the one to give her flowers in a place like this. Benxamin realized and assimilated that he was thinking of Mira and with great nostalgia remembered Mrs. Haydar's wish.
Lester didn't tell Benxa anything about what had happened the day before, but kept thinking about Victor's confession. He was still embarrassed but excited at the same time, unlike when Benxamin had told him. Lester was willing to have a relationship for the first time in his life with someone he liked and whose feelings seemed reciprocated.
Victor didn't speak either, but he did it out of respect for his brother. He was aware that he might still like Lester, but he was willing to tell him as soon as possible.
As they walked to the hotel, Benxamin shared with the young Haydar; “I did a painting for Victor.”
“Wow, it's wonderful. But it won't have blood? Hahaha,” Lester said mocking.
“If she were alive, she would be the age of your mother,” Benxa expressed
Lester stopped; “I'm so sorry. I didn't mean that, I… I'm... ”
“Don't say foolishness, Lester. Yep, there is no blood. I painted it like the last time I saw her.”
As they talked, Victor looked at his mother's painting and his tears welled up for the first time since he had hugged Mira as a child. Anaís was in a white dress, walking down a path. His freckles had been inherited from her, once he hated them, but with the painting he was proud to have them.
The letter said,
Dear Victor,
Our mom would be happy to see us as we are now. Please, don't give up on your dream of being an actor or a singer or whatever you want, you are identical to her. Don't let her down.
I love you even if you don't believe it.
I hope you make Lester happy, who knows, maybe he will become more than just your boyfriend. Do you think I haven't noticed?
Benxamin.
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