4

Everyone around Klaus is chattering loudly. He can feel the joy, the relief of the other soldiers. They're on their way to Saigon, it's Klaus's first leave. For a few days, they're allowed to escape into a dream, free of war and death and full of parties. A short trip to heaven, just to return to hell afterwards. With every mile they put between themselves and the battlefields, Klaus relaxes a little more. The ghosts become less and less, until it's only the victims of him and his fellow soldiers. Normally, that would already be too much, but Klaus has had to endure so much over the past few weeks, he has found a new kind of numbness. It may not be as relieving as the one he's used to, yet it's just as addictive. It seems that in order to be able to stay sober in everyday life, Klaus has to experience the horrors of war. Horrors that put everything else in perspective. Still, Klaus isn't completely at ease. He feels the presence of the man he killed, and he has been feeling it for a few days now. However, the fallen soldier doesn't seem to have noticed Klaus's powers yet and Klaus doesn't know how to face him, so he certainly won't do anything to attract his attention.

In order to ignore the ghosts that do know about him and scream in his direction, he focuses on the guy next to him, the remedy to all his problems. Since their… shared moment… in the woods the other day, they haven't had the opportunity to talk in private. But now, on this leave, everything might change. Or at least that's what Klaus hopes. He still remembers Dave's words: "to me you are pretty perfect". No one has ever said anything like that to him. Even thinking of it, Klaus senses the butterflies in his stomach going wild. Now, the setting sun illuminating his features, Dave looks more beautiful than ever. He is talking to a mate of his, a grin on his face. His eyes are soft and emanate kindness. How can Klaus of anything else while looking at this miracle? How can he pay attention to the ghosts with this beauty next to him? The truth is, he can't, and he is infinitely grateful for that. Dave has evolved into Klaus's main drug and he is clearly addicted. Still, he'll need a fix tonight. He has tried, over and over again, to get access to some drugs but apart from weed and some – very questionable – unidentifiable stuff (of course, he took it anyway), he hasn't had success yet. Saigon, however, is a different story. Perhaps the city will be able to satisfy his need for a few days at least.

The bus stops, they have arrived. They all have rooms in the same hotel. In fact, in order to save money, they are supposed to share rooms. As the officer in commands reads out the pairings, Klaus's heart rate quickens. Please, he begs silently.

"Hargreeves and Katz!", the officer bellows and Klaus jumps.

At the same time, he feels a warm tingle spreading from his stomach. He shares a quick glance with Dave, desperately trying to read his expression. If he isn't mistaken, his new roommate seems pleased. He could be wrong though, reading to much into it. Calm down, Klaus, he tells himself. He can't afford to get his hopes up because he cares too much to be let down (again, adds a mean voice in his head). Dave and Klaus go up to their room and throw their bags in a corner. Klaus quickly proceeds to jump onto the bed nearest to him and lets out a cheerful laugh.

"What's up with you?", Dave chuckles, still standing near the door.

"Don't you understand?", Klaus shouts. "We're free!" And rolling over onto his stomach he proclaims: "We can do anything, bro! That's up!"

Dave can't supress a smile. "Well, then we better get changed so we can hit the clubs", he says.

Klaus nods eagerly in agreement. Then he freezes because he realises that he doesn't own any normal clothes. Christ on a cracker! Dave will surely think him so weird. But he really wants to go out tonight, so he doesn't have much of a choice.

"Eh, Davey…?", he starts, trying to sound confident. "We might have a little problem there."

Dave just raises a questioning eyebrow.

"Maybe… I… I don't own any clothes?"

Klaus is aware that his sentence sounds more like a question and he could slap himself for his stupidity. But Dave, apparently noticing Klaus's uneasiness, reacts fast. He opens his bag and throws it in Klaus's direction

"Here, take whatever you want."

Klaus looks at him, surprised by his kindness. "Thanks, man", he murmurs and then disappears into the bathroom.

Klaus has chosen slim, black pants with stripes that accentuate his lean figure and a tight, brownish shirt, also with stripes, which ends just below his belly button and leaves a bit of skin uncovered. For the first time in forever, he has made the effort to style his hair, so it isn't as uncontrollable as usual (it's still messy though, but in a good way). In the bathroom cupboard, he even found some makeup that he has applied to his face and that makes his green eyes shine. All this hits Dave at once when Klaus comes out of the bathroom and for a second, he is speechless.

But he quickly recovers, teasing Klaus: "You ready, princess? You've taken quite some time to get ready."

And Klaus, feeling somewhat comfortable in his own skin for once, shoots back: "Well, I guess I want to impress someone."

As soon as the words are out of his mouth, he regrets them. He doesn't want Dave to feel uncomfortable and maybe this was a bit too much. But he just can't help it, Dave's presence does something to him, something special.

"Come on, let's go!", he tries to conceal his embarrassment.

Well, the clock says it's time to close now

I guess I'd better go now

I'd really like to stay here all night

They found a lively club and some of their fellow soldiers joined them. In fact, all the clubs are filled with soldiers and beautiful indigenous girls. The atmosphere is light and full of energy. The alcohol and the girls help everyone forget the horrors of the war. Klaus has access to some decent booze for the first time in weeks and that alone satisfies him immensely. It seems to him that suddenly, now that he can welcome back the numbness, everything is easier. In the background, The Doors are playing. Klaus has always enjoyed their music and in this authentic environment, they energise him.

The cars crawl past all stuffed with eyes

Streetlights shed their hollow glow

Your brain seems bruised with numb surprise

Still one place to go

Still one place to go

He closes his eyes and really feels the music. And in that moment, nothing exists but him and the sound of Jim Morrison's voice. However, he also notices the presence of Dave next to him. And, just like that, as if it were an accident, Klaus makes a step back and bumps into him. They both turn in each other's direction and Klaus notices a frisky grin spreading on his face. Dave also laughs cheerfully. From that point on, one moment blurs into the next. They're drinking shots with some mates. They're dancing with two girls (though their attention clearly isn't with the girls). They're dancing just the two of them. They're drinking shots, arms linked. And in between all this, the longing glances they shoot at each other. Secretly at first, but the more they drink, the more obvious they become.

Let me sleep all night in your soul kitchen

Warm my mind near your gentle stove

Turn me out and I'll wander baby

Stumblin' in the neon groves

They're leaning against the wall of some corridor. It's just the two of them. In the distance, they hear the sounds of the ongoing party melting into one noise.

"So, you've got some mad dancing skills", Dave states.

Klaus chuckles, his cheeks glowing in excitement and embarrassment at the same time. When he looks up again, his eyes meet Dave's. They both freeze for an instant, getting lost in each other's eyes. Klaus admires once again the depth of Dave's blue eyes. When Dave reaches out to gently stroke his cheek, Klaus senses a tingling sensation spreading from the touch and he shudders. But at the same time, he leans into the other man's hand, encouraging him. The moment passes too quickly and as Dave withdraws his hand, Klaus feels the sharp pain of his absence. And because he doesn't know how to deal with this pain, because he is consumed by longing, his eyes slowly wander down Dave's face and linger on his lips. Klaus moves even closer to Dave and when the latter doesn't object, he overcomes the remaining distance.

Their lips touch and everything around Klaus disappears. It's just him and Dave, forever. Fireworks seem to explode everywhere, in him, around him. He doesn't notice that he has closed his eyes. He only feels Dave and, God, Dave feels so good. Their lips fit perfectly and his hand in Klaus's hair sends shudders of pleasure down his back. Klaus has never experienced anything similar. Like he told Five, the longest he has been with someone was three weeks and he knows he didn't really like the guy. But this is different. In this moment, he feels complete and nothing else matters. He is finally home.

A/N: I'm back! Thank you so much for reading and also for the reviews I have received. I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. I promise, things are gonna get more intense now. You'll just have to wait for the next chapter. I'll try and upload as soon as possible. As always, please comment, favourite and follow!