Drive

Around noon, Draco asked, "Are you very hungry?"

When Leo said no, Draco suggested that they drive on until early evening and then get something to eat somewhere off the highway. Leo agreed to this.

Towards evening they reached Montpellier. There Draco left the freeway and headed for the sea. They drove on country roads for about an hour until they came to a small village that was a bit off the road. It was pretty hidden. Accurately, Draco drove into a small parking lot and parked there.

Draco told Leo to get out, put on his jacket, and locked the car. Then he motioned for Leo to follow him. They entered a small inn with no guests. The landlady, a small, plump, friendly woman greeted them profusely in French.

Draco answered her fluently in her native language. The landlady led them to a table by one of the windows. From here one had a wonderful view of the Mediterranean Sea, which shimmered blue in the sun.

Leo looked out spellbound and forgot about the environment. During that time Draco ordered dinner from the landlady. Leo was so absorbed in the sight of the ocean that Draco had to nudge him to ask what he would like to drink.

"Just some water, please." Leo ordered and looked out again.

Until the food was served, they were both silent.

"I hope you like this," Draco said as the landlady brought the fresh seafood platter. There was also fresh, warm baguette and herb butter.

"Hmm, yes, it looks very tasty and it also smells very good." Answered Leo, who only now realized how hungry he actually was.

During the meal, too, Leo kept glancing longingly outside.

Draco, noticing the looks, suggested, "We can go down to the beach after dinner and if you want we can go for a swim."

"Swimming?" Asked Leo. "But I don't have any swimming gear with me."

"That doesn't matter," Draco replied. "Nothing is going on on this part of the beach, we can swim naked there."

"Naked?" Horrified Leo looked at him. "No never."

Draco saw the horror and fear in Leo's eyes.

"It was just an idea," he muttered.

"Sorry for reacting like this," said Leo. “But it's not that I'm afraid of you, but I was brought up not to show yourself naked to strangers. In this regard, my parents were from the previous century. After all, they weren't the youngest either. "

Leo had never said so much in one go before. 'Ah, it's slowly thawing,' thought Draco.

"I didn't mean to offend you either," Draco explained. "I just thought, after such a long drive in the heat, a bath in the cool water would have been good."

"Yes, when I look out at the sea like that, I would like to plunge into it, but don't stop naked." Leo admitted.

“Were your parents strict in their upbringing? Because that someone brings up their children in such a prudish way is no longer the norm. ”Draco wanted to know.

"Strict? Strictly, I can't really say, you gave me a lot of freedom. Only in things that concerned the body were they, how should I put it, left behind. The views of the nineteenth century still held true for her. I haven't even seen her naked in years. Well, at least they were in their mid-sixties when they died. "

“Okay, let's stop swimming then. But we could run away a bit by the water. After the long drive, a little exercise won't hurt, ”suggested Draco. Leo agreed to this.

After Draco paid without responding to Leo's protest, they left the inn and drove down to the beach. Draco was right, there was really nothing going on here, unlike the seaside resorts along the coast.

Leo took off his shoes in the car and rolled up his pants to his knees.

When Draco glanced at Leo's bare legs, he thought, 'I've never seen calves like this on a man. You are as shapely as a woman's. ' In general, Leo was more of a girl than a boy.

They walked slowly through the shallow water, which really didn't feel cool to the touch.

"So your parents were quite old when you were born?" Draco picked up the conversation from the inn. Somehow he had the feeling that it would be good for Leo to talk about everything.

"Yes." Leo agreed. “You were in your forties when my mother got pregnant with me. At the time they were still living in Africa, where my father was working as a mission doctor somewhere in the jungle. They no longer believed in becoming parents. I spent the first five years of my life on this mission in Africa, but I was supposed to go to school in Germany. I still remember our departure, which was more like an escape, as I realized in retrospect. We left the mission overnight, not even having the time to say goodbye to my friends and my nanny. And when we came to Germany, my parents moved up north to a small town instead of going back to their hometown. And from that point on, nothing more was said about Africa until, yes, until the day they took their own life. "

Draco had listened carefully.

“And now you want to go back there? To your place of birth? ”He asked.

"Yes. I told you about a letter you wrote before you died. Well, it just said there was something they couldn't live with any longer. And I think that has something to do with the mission. And I'm also looking for a good friend of mine who wanted to take a look around down there. "

"A 'good' friend or ...?"

"Yeah, just a good friend," Leo interrupted Draco violently.

"Well, at least he wanted to look around there," Leo continued with the story. "He only contacted me once and that was when he had reached the mission, after that I didn't hear from him and I can't reach him either."

“And that's why you take it upon yourself to hitchhike to Africa without money? Well, that really has to be a good friend. ”Draco replied.

“Why do all people always think friend equals sex. Nobody believes in real friendship anymore? ”Leo sighed annoyed. “I've only known him for half a year, but during this time we have developed a deep, honest friendship that has absolutely nothing sexual about it. He was the only one who stood by me after my parents committed suicide. He helped me go through all of their records. And he was the only one who agreed with me that there must be a secret that has to do with either me or my father's work in Africa. That's why he offered to get to the bottom of the matter. And something inside of me tells me that something happened to him. "

'Africa' thought Draco, 'what a coincidence. That's where I suspect my brother. '

"And how do you want to get to Africa?" He asked aloud.

"I'll hitchhike to Algeciras or Tarifa and take a ferry from there," Leo explained. “I could have flown too, but I don't have more money than I have with me. That means I already had it, but I can't get it. "

It was now dark and they returned to Draco's car.

Leo didn't put his shoes on again, but got into the car with the jeans rolled up.

Thoughtful Draco looked over at Leo. The protective instinct was awakened in him. Actually, he had intended to drop Leo at the earliest opportunity, because he couldn't use any witnesses for what Draco was up to that night. But now he couldn't bring himself to do it anymore.

When they reached the autobahn again, it was emptier than before, so they made faster progress.

Draco started humming a tune. When he looked over at Leo after about half an hour, he was asleep.

'Well, well, it always works,' Draco thought ironically. After about two hours they reached Toulouse, Leo was still asleep. Draco left the freeway and took a path that led him past the city into the mountains. There his goal was off the beaten track.