- - -

One year later.

Brian carefully made his way along the narrow path leading down the steep mountain side.  The hike up the the other side had been demanding but he would gladly have crossed a mountain twice as high to skip the awful boat ride. From atop the pass he saw the boat Justin had taken, sail out of the small creek.

When Justin had brought it up that he wanted to spend a week in Hornstrandir to paint, Brian had told him he couldn't go unless he had someone to cook and keep his sleeping bag warm.  Ultimately they'd chosen Hlöðuvík as a location for their stay, because of what it meant for them, but the fact it had a shower didn't hurt.

They would certainly stand a bit out from the regular hikers this time.  Since they were staying in one place and not hiking with their gear, they didn't have to worry about how much it weighed.

In preparing for the trip Brian had gone a bit nuts shopping for the best camping gear.  He had ordered all the gear online and shipped it straight to Ísafjörður. It was safe to say they'd be camping in style.  A huge tent,  sleeping bags, camping beds, chairs and tables were all top notch with comfort in mind. The tent had the possibility of up to three separate sleeping or storage units with an open space in the middle where the could sit in  case of rain, and he'd even bought a gas powered ice box and barbecue, a solar panel and a satellite phone. They had already put in an order to get fresh supplies of food with the next boat that would arrive 3 days later.  One thing they hadn't brought on this trip. They had been monogamous for almost a year now so there was no need to bring condoms.  

Even though Justin had plans to paint large parts of the day and Brian had joked about being his one man waiting staff he wouldn't lack projects, he intended to work on some ideas he and Björn had about advertising his company. He'd also be in contact with Kinnetik via the satellite phone part of each day if needed and besides that, well… reading a book or three and just relaxing and hiking a bit would probably not be such a bad idea.  Walking down the horseshoe formed valley Brian thought fondly of the last year in Justin and his lives.

After his proposal they’d spend the next two days in Hlöðuvík, making love and walking around the valley. When they’d ran out of coins for the shower, and food, not that either of them cared so much about food they’d hiked over the mountain pass of Kjaransvíkurskarð and down to Hesteyri the only ‘town’ in Hornstrandir. Hesteyri had like other areas in Hornstrandir been deserted in the 1950’s but since it had already by then been an established village and due to the fact that it was the closest of the fjords and creeks to Ísafjörður it had been kept in good condition and descendants of the people living there had come to the village every summer, some for vacation and others for running tour businesses. The old schoolhouse was a popular destination for writers who wanted to work in peace. The small bed and breakfast was in a house previously owned and lived in by the doctor of the area and had been a fine villa in its time. It had two floors; and today the first floor served as a small café while the upper floor had rooms that were rented out to guests not willing or able to camp. Eight other houses were in the village, all private summerhouses.

On the way down the mountain, their phones started to work again and they received a message from Valur telling them to keep in mind that if the wanted dinner at the café it had to be ordered with 3 hours advance. He sent the phone number of the lady running the café and Justin called her and asked for dinner. As they arrived she had made old style rack of lamb with all kinds of side dishes. The meal was just what the boys needed and Justin almost cried.  The lady of the house, who was in her eighties had indeed been living in this house in her young years. She’d been married to a son of the doctor but was now widowed. She couldn't speak much English but her son who looked to be in his fifties translated her tales of the area and also knew quite a few stories himself.

When the men told their hosts that they had decided on their trip in Hornstrandir to get married the old lady asked them if they were planning to do so in Iceland.  It was something neither man had thought was a possibility since both wanted their friends and family to be at their wedding.  But an idea was born and it seemed so much more original and fun that to somehow repeat part of the process they’d already been through and hadn't had such a good ending.  

“Family fly. No Fire Mountain” The old lady said.  Both men realized that they had totally forgotten to think about if the eruption was still active while they had been gone.

Brian decided to call Cynthia, in case she was worried that they hadn't been in contact this whole time, and to know if that fact had caused any problems. Thankfully everything was still on track but she was glad to hear from him.   When she asked when they were coming back, knowing the air traffic was slowly getting back to normal she sure was in for a surprise.

“Yeah, about that.” Brian told her. “This can't be official until you hear from Jennifer, but we have decided to get married. Here in Iceland.” He laughed out loud when Cynthia dropped the phone and picked it up again spurting her surprised response.

“What? You…. bastard… you… oh my God… Brian! That’s great I’m happy for you! But really... Iceland?  What are you smoking up there? Do you know how busy we are?!!”

“We’re paying the ticket for the gang, and those others that we like. Those of the staff who stay behind to manage the shop get a BIG bonus. You and Ted do NOT get to stay behind. I need you to organize all flights. I’ll send you the details later. Bye bye girl Friday”  He ended the phone call.  

“She just pissed herself I think” he told Justin and laughed mischievously, thankful that he could trust Cynthia… even with that.  

After coming back to Ísafjörður they had gotten Björn’s sister’s apartment again. She was thrilled that they wanted to stay. The eruption had caused a lot of cancellations and she was losing quite a lot of business. She also helped them find accommodation for the guests who would be joining the wedding. The soon to be married men spend only two weeks planning the big day with valuable help from Björn who found them a priest, the same one who had wed him and Valur two years earlier.  Valur had to be away most of the time since he’d started flying but he managed to get some of his colleges to take his flights for a few day’s before and after the wedding. They decided the ceremony should be held back in Hornstrandir and discovering there was a small church in one of the creeks, Aðalvík, on the near side of ‘Hell’s Current Corner’ as Brian had renamed Straumsnes, made the choice of location easy. Björn’s sister demanded to be the wedding planner but Brian told her that would not be possible. He quickly told her they liked her too much to subject her to Emmett’s wrath. But they offered her the position of royal assistant and interpreter of his highness the wedding planner which she happily accepted.  

Many pretty hilarious phone calls took place in those days.  The first one they told was Jennifer who was thrilled for the news. Debbie was next and even though she cried and called Brian an asshole she was genuinely happy for them. She promised to be at Michael’s house when he’d receive his phone call to do damage control.  Lindsay was very happy for the news. She had realised by now that it had been a mistake to encourage Justin to move to New York so soon to their earlier wedding plans and she had been worried about Brian for some time now.  She told him it would be good for her and Mel to take a vacation now and that of course they'd bring Gus and JR.  

After howling on the phone with excitement Emmett agreed to come to Iceland and oversee the party. When he realized how much alcohol costed in Iceland he threatened to withhold the information about the location of the wedding unless all guests brought their tax free limit at the airport of Champagne, beer and other drinks he knew the guests would like.

Most of their family and friends had flown to Iceland to attend their wedding. They opted not to invite Justin’s father and Brian’s mother and sister. They knew what their reply would be.  The only ones outside of their immediate friends and family to come were Lawrence Ramson and his wife. Lindsay and Mel were glad there was a direct Icelandair connection from Toronto but the rest of the guests flew in via Boston.  Not all the guests were from back home though. They’d invited Edda, and the families of Jón and Brjánn and Atli, and of course Valur and Björn and his aunt.  They also invited Nina. All in all 36 guest celebrated their union and although not a large group the small church was filled to it’s capacity.

The ceremony itself was low key but were romantic. Jón and Brjánn both brought guitars and harmonicas and turned out to be wonderful musicians.

The menu consisted of sushi and champagne… and a random collection of bottles that Emmett had “collected”.  The guests were asked not to bring presents but of course they didn't behave and brought them a present anyway. The all chipped in and sponsored the Vic Grassi house in Pittsburgh to pay the salary for one staff member for the next year.

Valur and Björn put up a large party tent but the weather was so good everybody sat outside long into the night which was starting to be a little bit dark around midnight, now that it was nearing the end of July.  All guests were on forehand offered the choice to sail back to Ísafjörður in the evening and spend the night in a hotel, or sleeping in cabins that they had rented for the week around the big day. Several tents had also been put up since the cabins didn't have space for everybody. Needless to say no one opted for the boat trip and some of the guests decided to stay a few more days in the lovely remote valley.

As the sun started to rise again many  of the guests as well as the grooms were nowhere near sober anymore and Edda even seduced the priest. Later they found out that it turned into something more and now Edda had moved to Ísafjörður to live in sin with him and was working with Björn guiding tourists around on a special tour called Edda Escort.

- - - -

After coming back to Pittsburgh the newlyweds spend some time alone at Britin having a lot of fabulous sex and making plans for their immediate future. They came to the mutual conclusion that Justin leaving New York might not be the best idea, and when Brian suggested they'd sell Britin and buy a small apartment in New York and stay there together a week or two out of each month, and then visit other places, like Pittsburgh or Toronto a week here and there, things started to make a lot of sense.  

“I picked the last one and it didn’t work out. You pick this one.”  Brian had said.

Justin enlisted his mother’s help and after looking for a relatively short time he found what he wanted. An old six storeys office building in Brooklyn. It was up for foreclosure and went dirt cheap, but they would have to buy it all as one property. Britin had sold almost instantly and Justin figured since they could afford it they could rent out the lower levels as a much needed studio space for artists in the area, and use the income for renovation.  At first sight it looked worse than the dump he’d rented in Pittsburg to paint in, but it was a good sound structure with good plumbing and electricity so with some paint, new windows and a whole lot of other work it might turn into an bohemic heaven. Brian wasn't thrilled but he trusted Justin to do something great and was a bit curious, how it would turn out.

The fifth floor would be for Justin’s studio as well as a small guest apartment, and the penthouse would be the New York home for the the two of them. It wasn't as big as the loft in Pittsburg but it was certainly enough.

What happened next was just like in a really bad Hollywood movie. Plans were announced to tear down an old industrial lot nearby, and redesign her area into a complex with art schools, shops and restaurants and a relatively large public park.  It would take a few years of course but immediately the real estate prices skyrocketed.  So, Justin went ahead and sold the street level for more than half of what he’d paid for the whole building to begin with. They would still rent out three floors for studio space and decide later if the real estate would rise more if they wanted to sell.  

Justin wanted to paint the loft himself but hired a constructor to change the windows and put in a hardwood floors, a large bathroom and kitchen.  The loft was ready to move into just 6 weeks later.  From the roof of the building there was view of the now factory and it’s tall chimneys but future academic area, and possibly parts of the Manhattan skyline depending on how tall the new construction would rise. One could always dream...

Apart from new windows they didn't have to touch the the other floors. Justin wanted his studio raw, and a Facebook post that went semi-viral had artists lining up for renovating the space in return for an affordable working space.

Brian made Cynthia and Ted partners of Kinnetik and hired a brilliant new ad man to oversee their newer accounts.  Brian stayed with Remson, Brown, Eye conics and other major clients and after a transition period he'd felt ready to take more time off to spend with his beloved and have to to visit his son more in Toronto.  

Justin's career took off that winter. The paintings he made from his inspirations in Iceland sold like gold and some months he was making more money than Brian. He knew Brian didn't mind paying for their expensive lifestyle, but it made him feel better to not have to depend on Brian for his art.

Not everything was easy but they made it work.

The kept contact with their Icelandic friends. Edda came to visit once and Valur visited often when he was on the New York flight. He preferred staying with friends to staying in a lonely hotel.

- - -

Justin welcomed him with a long tongue dueling kiss.  "How was the hike" he said laughing as they finally broke apart.

“Mmmm… it’s very steep, I wouldn’t do it in the rain but I’m glad I didn’t have to sail. How was your ride?“

“Bumpy, but not as bad as last year”  Justin replied. “Do you want coffee? I already boiled some water. There were a couple of people with me on the boat, they helped me haul all the gear up here. I invited them to come over for some food when they are done camping”

“So I gather I have to wait for my afternoon delight?” Brian asked teasingly. He was glad Justin had help with their impressive amount of luggage.

“Yes you have to wait, but I promise it will be worth it” Justin murmured into his ear.

“Ahhhh…. Be careful Sunshine.  A big boner might send a wrong message to our guests.”

After having coffee and some sandwiches with their fellow campers they started putting up the tent. Thankfully they got help since their tent; which looked like a house next to the other tents, needed more than the two of them to be done right.

- - - - - -

The next morning Brian woke up first. When he was getting out of their sleeping bag he could not help waking up Justin.

“Shhh… go back to sleep, I’ll prepare breakfast”

When Justin opened up the tent and hour later the smell of coffee and something very good lay in the air.  Brian had made pancakes and scrambled eggs and sausages, and placed a variety of fruit and berries on a plate.  “Good morning Sunshine, it’s almost ready, go grab a quick shower.”

The area was coming alive again. Campers were getting ready for the hike of the day. The sun shone bright in the sky and curious young foxes were hiding in the massive angelica that grew next to the camping area.  Justin looked forward for setting up his easel and start painting.

The breakfast was amazing. Food simply tasted better while camping.

Justin leaned back and let the sun shine on his face.  “I love this place so much. If I could build a cabin here I persuade you to move her for the entire summer.”

“Yeah well… unfortunately they don’t let you build here in the nature reserve... but this funny thing happened…” Brian put his coffee down just to be on the safe side, “...Björn told me about this cabin in Aðalvík that was up for sale in the recently. He and Valur wanted to buy it and asked me if we might be interested in co-ownership… I chipped in. Half of it is now ours. He handed Justin a photograph of a rather rundown cabin. It’s needs a lot of wor…”

He didn't get to finish his sentence since Justin threw himself at him and started assaulting him with kisses.

“Thank you thank you thank you… I love it!… I love you!!” Justin told him in between kisses.

“I love you too. Happy anniversary Sunshine.”

~ THE END