In three days, they were in the cottage again. Sadik had not so much as searched for a new house. He wanted to give Nikola time to think. And, if that meant spending more time in the cottage than he had planned, then, at least, the view from their bedroom window was nice.
The window faced the forest and a suspicious patch of flowers that Sadik thought that Nikola had planted. They were all forest flowers, but they were too ordered for them to have grown normally.
There were weeds among them, and grass, but they looked like a flower patch to him. A looked after one. His curiosity got the better of him and so, he asked Nikola about them.
“They were there when I bought the house. The previous owners didn’t like to disturb the forest too much, so they picked forest flowers from deeper in and replanted them in the back. I like the meadow too,” told him Nikola as he was dressing after a shower.
Sadik’s eyes trailed over his still exposed torso, zeroing on the scar. Then, he looked at Nikola’s faced when the man pulled a T-shirt over his head and then covered the exposed skin.
Again, Nikola was wearing shorts. Sadik found that kinky, but didn’t say so to Nikola. The man was probably dressing up for comfort. There was no air conditioning in the cottage. And, although the lake provided some respite from the heat, June was never a forgiving month.
“What do you have planned for today?” Asked Sadik, standing up. They had washed together, but he had been faster with dressing up. Then again, he had washed his head yesterday and so didn’t need to dry it.
“I am well overdue for a confession,” said Nikola, and Sadik resisted the urge to groan. “Even if today there is no sermon.”
Sadik’s eyes found the calendar. It was Tuesday.
“Can’t you wait for tomorrow?” He didn’t feel like going to church today. He wanted to hike in the forest. Maybe see what type of berries grew around here.
“No, we…had sex, Sadik. Out of wedlock. And, even if you say you will marry me, we still shouldn’t have,” Sadik found Nikola’s hesitance to utter the word sex adorable.
“We didn’t do anything dirty,” Sadik had not been successful in getting Nikola to try bondage, but he had gotten him to ride him. One day, he might even get him to top him. But, judging by the blush that blossomed on Nikola’s face, that day was far off.
“Yes, well, we still shouldn’t have,” Sadik rolled his eyes.
“Times have changed. No one is going to shame you over a bit of fun,” he deadpanned, and Nikola sighed.
“My beliefs are something I try to uphold. And I believe in the lessons of the bible,” Sadik saw a major flaw in that logic.
“Is it still a sin if you intend to repeat what you think was a sin?” Nikola got a surprised look on his face, clearly not expecting that. “Because, I won’t stand for a dry spell, lamb.”
“A sin is still a sin. No matter how many times it is repeated,” well, if Nikola wanted to be difficult.
“And, are you going to tell father Sergei every time we make love,” Nikola blushed and shook his head. “That is also a sin. Why don’t you spare yourself the embarrassment of having someone know what we do when we are alone and simply not tell? I won’t be telling the imam, either. Besides, they have probably assumed we will be having sex after we admitted to cuddling.”
Nikola tilted his head to the side and Sadik saw his neck. He could clearly see the redness of the spot from which he had drank. It looked like a hickey, and he quite liked the look of it.
“I suppose I could do some washing without telling. But, father Sergei will figure out I have sinned, somehow,” Sadik shrugged.
“I will do some washing and some donating too, since I was the one who talked you into sinning. I dare say my sin is bigger. However, enough about that. I wanted to go hiking today. Do you need to work?” Nikola went to his laptop and checked his Outlook for messages.
“No, but I will take my phone in case something turns up,” Sadik smiled brightly. Then, he looked at the forest that was spawning outside the window.
“We will need to get some water, for you. And also hats. Maybe something warmer, in case the weather turns. I think the weatherman said it might rain today,” Nikola quickly took out a sweater from his wardrobe. It was a pleasant yellow color with braid patterns. He then took out a backpack.
“And food too,” added Nikola, and he rummaged around for his hat. He found the one his company had given him as a welcome present and put it on. It had the company logo on it, and he quite liked it.
Then, they both went downstairs and Nikola filled a metal bottle with water. Then, he took some bread and some tomatoes and placed them in a box, so they won’t get squashed. Everything went in the backpack, and he saw Sadik waiting for him by the door.
“Won’t you take anything?” Sadik poked the spot from which he normally fed.
“You are all that I need,” Nikola blushed. His eyes lingered on Sadik’s form. Unlike him, Sadik had hiking pants on, although, he, too, had a T-shirt on. Sadik opened the door and they both went out in the fresh air.
They decided to go on the tourist trail. They walked for some time, until they found some blueberry bushes and Sadik stopped by them.
“Come on, we have to pick some for later. I can make jam out of them,” Nikola grinned and kneeled next to the bushes. The mechanical task put his mind at ease, and he didn’t notice the snake that was slithering towards him. Until he felt fangs in his ankle.
