Tibur and Tristan hadn't gone far from the road when Caleb and Michael returned to find them. They were resting under the almost bare branches of a large and imposing tree. Caleb opened his backpack and pulled out two bottles of water, handing one to his husband.

"It's hot out" he said, "Make sure to drink enough."

Tibur followed suit, pulling a third from his bag and taking a sip.

"What about mine?" asked Michael, holding out his hand hopefully.

"You're not a child" Tibur informed him, "You should have thought about bringing your own."

"Then what about him?" he asked, motioning to Tristan as he replaced the cap on his bottle and handed it back to Caleb.

"Tristan is my husband" Caleb replied, "While you're just..."

"What?" asked Michael, squaring up to his newfound mentor.

"Mine to worry about, I guess" said Tibur, handing over his bottle with a sigh.

Michael smiled, drinking in the sweet taste of Tibur's generosity. The temples were free to visit, relying on donations and the support of the Modeshi government. As such, the site was often flooded with visitors on public holidays, and tourists were willing to withstand the heat to get a glimpse of the sunbaked structures. 

Beneath the sun umbrellas and wide brims of hats, locals and foreigners had already descended in force. Caleb held onto Tristan's hand so he wouldn't lose him.

"Caleb!" Tristan cried in protest, " There are a lot of people here... aren't you worried what they may think..?"

"Why should I care about people?" he asked in return, "I only care about you."

Tristan bowed his head and shyly lowered their hands from view.

Michael took a step away from them, burying his hands deep into the pockets of his shorts. It's not like Tibur was ready for such an open display of affection himself, but the gesture hurt his heart a little. He vowed not to share his water so easily again.

When they reached the first of the temples, Tristan's embarrassment was eclipsed by his awe. The grand ruins seemed to be reaching for the sun; standing in their shadow, the world and all its complexities felt miniscule. Tibur stood by his side, looking up at the towers of stone.

"What do you think of my ancestor's work?" he asked proudly.

"It's beautiful" said Tristan, his smiling face shining brightly, "Can you show me around?"

Caleb dutifully released his grip on Tristan's hand, content to let him wander a little. It was a rare moment of altruism; his husband's happiness outweighing his own possessive nature. Dr Sharab would have commended him for the strides he'd made to correct his behavior. Receding into the shadows, Caleb watched as his husband walked freely in the light.

"I mean, it's impressive and all" said Michael, intruding on his peaceful observation, "But isn't there anything to do here? I thought there'd at least be some minigolf or something."

"You didn't need to come" Caleb pointed out.

"And miss the opportunity?" asked Michael, "It's not like he would have agreed to a trip for just the two of us. Aren't you the same though? I'm pretty sure you weren't supposed to join them when they cooked this up."

Caleb was annoyingly aware of the truth in his words. Tristan was yet to be satisfied with only himself for company; it was something he was working to correct.

"Are you sure he hasn't remembered everything?" Michael continued, "And that's why he always uses Tibur as a shield to protect himself, because he knows things between you aren't as rosy as they seem."

The sun is shining. I can hear tourists talking. My feet are standing on solid earth. Tristan is close.

Caleb closed his eyes and tried to ground himself, blocking out the feelings Michael was attempting to incite. Everything was okay. As long as Tristan didn't remember his past, everything was okay. This was the future they were building together.

"Aside from sleeping with him, what do you actually want from Tibur?" asked Caleb, opening his eyes, "Rather than spend too long thinking about my relationship, maybe you should examine your own."

Michael hadn't really got that far. He knew he liked him, that the attraction was undeniable; but until he knew they were compatible in bed, what more was there to think about? The prospect of a serious relationship with a man left too much to be considered. Even if his parents accepted it, what would he do regarding his friends? Tell them..? No. It was better to take things one step at a time, there was no sense worrying about things that may not even come to light.

On the steps of the first temple, Tibur was acting as tour guide.

"And so many years after they were used as places of worship, a bunch of nuns or something came to seek shelter after some kind of battle... either in the east or the south..."

He wasn't very good.

"And that was where some of the carvings came from. Either in this temple or the next one... to be honest I don't remember all that well who did what. Millie is more of an expert on that kind of thing..."

The creeping guilt was there again.

"Oh" said Tristan, "Then maybe we can come again another time and she can explain it better. They're still wonderful to look at! And the view here is amazing. It's no wonder they wanted to carve what they saw."

Tristan took a seat on the steps, and began neatly stacking rocks one on top of the other. It was all so calming... so beautiful. The sea was sparkling and the buildings gleaming, he listened to the gentle sound of the waves and marveled at the expanse of sky above them. A thought floated to him on a careless breath of air.

"Jed and Sarah were fools for not wanting to come here..."

"Who?" asked Tibur.

Tristan's body tensed. "Huh?" he said, damning the words that had fallen out of his mouth, and thankful that Caleb had not been close enough to hear them.

"Who are Jed and Sarah? Are they people you've remembered..? Tristan, have you remembered something?" asked Tibur excitedly.

"What? No. No... I think I should drink some more water. I'm feeling a little light-headed."

Tristan clutched a hand to head, his body suddenly weak. Tibur reached into his bag and pulled out his bottle, then remembered Michael's lips had dirtied it.

"Maybe we should find Caleb" he suggested.

Tristan grabbed his arm.

"Don't mention what just happened" he told him sternly, before softening to a smile "He'll only worry, and I'm not done exploring. Let's just sit for a minute. I'll be alright in a minute..."

After a short break, Tristan seemed his usual self again. They went to find the others and walked to the next temple, with the married couple joining hands again as they did. Tibur was unsure if there was anything worth dwelling on further; Tristan seemed fine, it was easy to forget that the results of the accident may yet still be lingering.

"There's something off about those two..." said Michael, walking at Tibur's side behind them.

"It's called 'love'" Tibur told him plainly, "Of course it seems off to you."

"Are you jealous?" asked Michael, looking around to see no one was watching before catching hold of Tibur's hand.

He wanted to scold him, to deny him, and yet the feel of Michael's fingers wrapped around his palm were enough to make him smile. The laughing face in the sunlight, the warmth of Tibur's touch... an unprecendented euphoria radiated in Michael's heart. He didn't even let go until the third group of tourists passed them. A curious glance from a fair-haired man, and their private bliss was shattered in an instant.

Michael sunk his hands back into his pockets, following Tibur's solemn steps from a more respectable distance. 

The temple complex adequately conquered, the four men returned to the house. Tristan went to lie down before dinner, while Tibur retreated to the sofa, pulling a book from his backpack and allowing himself to get lost in its pages. Once again, Michael and Caleb found themselves at a loose end. With no desire to socialize more than was necessary, the two settled for swimming laps in the outdoor pool.

Tibur's eyes began wandering from his page to the pool. Michael's blatant stupidity seemed to lessen, the more his clothes were removed. Picking his chin up, Tibur took a breath and reminded himself; This is the man that thought burning candles and an oscillating fan were a good mix after his apartment burned down - no need to feel intimidated...

Tristan padded out of the bedroom after a while and sat down to join him on the couch.

"Did you sleep okay?" asked Tibur, "Are you feeling any better?"

"Fine" said Tristan, carefully stretching his arms.

"Have you had any thoughts about those names you remembered?"

Tristan firmly shook his head. "Probably something from a TV show" he lied, "Not worth thinking about."

Caleb arrived from outside, a towel wrapped around his dripping body.

"Did you sleep okay, Baby?" he asked.

Tristan laughed. "You're the second person to ask me that" he said, "I slept just fine."

Caleb controlled his annoyance before his gaze could reach Tibur. It was a good thing, he told himself, that others cared about his husband too.

Michael joined them inside, not bothering to cover his glistening body with a towel, the water pooling at his feet as he puffed his chest out. This time, even his powerful body couldn't detract from his boorish behavior.

"It's getting everywhere!" cried Tibur, "Why didn't you dry off before you came inside?"

His purpose had been clear, he wanted Tibur to admire him from close up.

"I'm air-drying" said Michael, "Besides, I'm only going to get wet again when I take a shower."

"I'm going to wash up myself, Baby" said Caleb, "Can you show me where you packed everything?" 

Tristan dutifully nodded, following Caleb into their bedroom and away from Michael's half naked body. Left alone in the living room, Michael shook his hair at Tibur, droplets of water rained down on him and threatened to ruin his book.

"Stop it!" cried Tibur, tucking his novel into the folds of the couch, "You're like a wet dog!"

Michael bounded up to his side accordingly, rubbing his hair across Tibur's neatly ironed T-shirt as he sniffed his neck. The infuriating puppy was making Tibur laugh to spite himself, the ticklish sensation was more than he could bear.

"Stop!" he cried, his order carried on a wave of laughter, "What am I going to wear tonight if you make a mess of my clothes?!"

Michael lifted his head.

"They didn't tell you?" he asked.

Tibur craned his neck to put a little distance between them.

"Tell me what..?"

"We're not joining them for dinner. The lovebirds are going out this evening then they're heading along the coast for a drive... you and I are staying in. We'll have the place to ourselves."

Tibur swallowed. 

"Then what will we eat?" he asked.

Michael's eyes hungrily traveled the length of Tibur's body.

"Take a guess" he said, biting his shoulder, his arms encircling Tibur's waist as he pressed up against him.

The look of consternation on Tibur's face made Michael switch gears.

"We'll order something in" he said, kissing Tibur's cheek, "I just want some time alone with you. I've missed you these nights in the apartment... it was kind of nice all cozied up in your room before. I bought the same lotion but it wasn't the same; I guess there's something about the way it smells on your body."

Tibur was waiting for Tristan to appear and save him from his reddening shame, but the door to their bedroom stayed shut.

"You have a habit of making me flustered" he told Michael truthfully.

Michael broke into a wide grin, before taking Tibur's hand and pressing it to his lips.

"Thank you" he told him.

"For what?" asked Tibur.

"All this time... I thought I was the only one that felt that way. Fuck, Tibur. Do you have any idea how crazy you make me?"

The wet head rolled across Tibur's chest as Michael giddily reveled in Tibur's blushes.

"Can I kiss you?" he asked, remembering not to act too rashly.

Tibur nodded, leaning down and tenderly kissing Michael's lips as the door popped open.

"Oh" said Tristan, turning around and bumping the chest of his husband, "Go back, go back, they're not done yet." 

A little after eight pm, Caleb and Tristan were ready to leave.

"Don't do anything you don't feel comfortable with" Tristan whispered to Tibur, "If it's not right then there's always the next time."

Tibur squeezed Tristan's hand, reluctant to part as the pressures of the night began to overwhelm him.

"Baby" said Caleb, "We should get going if we want to make the reservation."

As they pulled away from the house, Caleb could see the worry etched across his husband's face.

"He's a grown man" he assured him, "And he can always call you if he needs to. Whatever happens between them is their own business."

Tristan knew that he was right, that their decisions were their own, and they were consenting adults no less. And yet he couldn't help but feel like he was leaving his innocent child to the mercy of a ruthless groom on the night of their wedding.

"If he calls, we go back" he said.

"Of course, Baby" said Caleb. If he calls, I'll kick some sense into that idiot myself.

The house was oddly quiet with only Tibur and Michael left behind. Neither one knew what to say to fill the deafening silence between them. If it wasn't for the low battery on Michael's phone causing it to buzz, he might never have found the courage to speak at all.

"I'm going to put it on charge in the bedroom" he said, "Do you want to come with me..?"

It wasn't a grand seduction, it wasn't even a half-convincing ploy; and yet Tibur took his hand and followed him up the stairs, aware that things between them would be forever changed.