“Good point,” Lou chuckled, his eyes twinkling. “Yet, still, either phase is a compliment.”
The man held his puppy tighter. Outside, yeah, he may have seemed smooth or flirty, but in reality… his heart was beating way too fast and he had no clue what he was doing.
Jack chuckled a little. "Mm. Alright." He replied with a smile, looking out at the water below from the bridge they stood on. "Thanks for giving me this tour, by the way."
“No problem.” Lou set down Bean, brushing his hair aside. “Didn’t really have anything else planned for the day. You seemed interesting. Why not?”
He shook his head, laughing to himself slightly. “Anyway, where are you lot staying? I might know a few good… bars, shops, joints around there. Plus, don’t wanna have us stray too far from where you need to be.”
He chuckled softly, and nodded. "We're staying at…oh, god, give me a minute." he pulled out his phone to check. "This one." he showed Lou a picture, then put his phone away, running a hand through his hair.
“Huh, that one? Some reason, the name evades me,” he mumbled. “But I still know where it is— we’re a pretty good deals away. Here, follow me.”
Lou pushed himself from the railing, giving a brief glance over at Jay to make sure he was behind. He continued down the bridge, just deftly noticing the ships still passing below.
The sort of square they were in now housed street performers and roadside artisans. People were dancing to the tune of a nearby jazz band with a small guitar case filled with donations. Tables were scattered across the pavement, decorated with a large amount of products. Lou stopped at a nearby booth for a moment, just briefly looking over a couple leather bracelets.
“This place is bumpin like this most of the time,” he informed Jay. “Especially at night. They get out some big lights and have a sort of music festival. It’s a great time.”
Jay nodded a little bit, following Lou. He smiled a little at the description, nodding again. "Huh. Sounds pretty cool. I doubt I can make it tonight, I think I'm gonna crash as soon as I get back to the hotel. But maybe some night, I'll come here, yeah?"
“Well, of course. It’s a must-see,” Lou replied. “But yeah, I get it, jet-lag sucks.”
He looked up at Jay, noticing that he was extremely tired.
“I’ll get you back to your hotel, then, eh?”
Louis pried his eyes from the booths and made his way down a nearby street in the break of two buildings. After walking for about another ten minutes, Lou stopped at the front of a hotel. It was smaller than most but still had the flair of a nice-quality place.
“Here you are, sir,” Lou said, awkwardly standing before the door.
Lou had no clue what to do now. Once Jay was gone, he’d probably never see him again, despite knowing where he was staying. And even if he did, would Jay want to keep in touch? Would he want to be friends?
Lou shook the thoughts from his head and picked up Bean, happily ruffling the pup’s fur.
Jay smiled a little as they approached the hotel. "Thanks. Hey, can i get your number? so we can keep in touch?" he looked at Lou curiously. "I mean…we don't have to if you don't want to, it's just…you seem like a fun person and I'd love to stay in touch." he bit his lip a little.
Lou’s heart raced and he was unable to keep himself from smiling.
“Of course!” he took out his phone, unlocking it and going to his contacts. “Here, put in your number and I’ll maybe text you tonight if you want to go out?”
Lou trailed off that last sentence, not fully realizing what he had just said. His eyes widened slightly and he glanced down at Bean. The dog just licked at his face.
Lou sighed, handing the phone over with a nervous smile.
Jay laughed a little. "I already told you, I think I'll be a bit too tired to go anywhere tonight, but maybe tomorrow?" he put his number into Lou's phone. "Just, uhm. Don't text too much, I get charged for each time my phone has to check in with a cell tower because of an incoming message. Unless I'm on wifi, and then everything's fine." he grinned.
“Alright, gotcha,” Lou said with a nod. He slipped his phone back into his pocket. “I’ll keep in touch. And, yeah, I totally get it. I traveled to America once with my family… let’s just say my parents got a big phone bill.”
He smiled, picking up one of Bean’s paws and wiggling it like Bean was the one waving goodbye.
“So, I’ll see you ‘round.” Lou waved, and with a swift step, he was on his way back down the street, smiling gleefully to himself.
Jay grinned, and waved back to the puppy, then looked at Lou. "Alright cool. See you." he waved to Lou, then headed into the hotel. He was sharing a room with his friend, and headed there, collapsing onto his bed.
"Did you meet any cute french guys?" his friend, Marco, asked.
Lou kept Bean wrapped tightly in his arms.
“Did I do good?” he almost whispered into the dog’s fur. “I don’t know how it went, I’m bad with this kind of stuff.”
Of course, the small terrier didn’t reply.
“I want to jump with this guy,” he continued. “He seems… different. Maybe he could handle it?”
Bean just stayed quiet, content in his master’s arms.
“Well, in due time, I guess,” Lou replied, setting the pup down and proceeding to walk back to his apartment.
“In due time.”
"Well…I did, yeah, I guess." he said slowly, plugging in his phone and looking at the ceiling. "But no, I didn't kiss him or something. We just talked."
Arriving back at the apartment, Lou slipped Bean off of his leash and stepped inside, shutting the door gently. He sighed deeply, standing at the door for a moment before heading over to his desk. He set his phone face-down on the table, staring at it.
Bean padded over, hopping in the man’s lap.
“Yeah, I know,” he said, stroking the puppy. “Later. I’ll text him tomorrow, maybe.”
Lou kicked back in his chair, pulling Bean up so the pup laid across his chest. He slipped his jacket off, revealing a grey T-shirt with some alternative band cover emblem.
“Did… did I leave my coffee on the table?” he asked aloud. Bean cocked his head.
In a flash, a cup of coffee sat in Lou’s hand, where it had previously been empty. He had gone back to early that morning, remembered to grab the cup, and jumped back.
You see, that’s what he was.
A time traveler.
"Boring." His friend dismissed, waving a hand. "Kiss him next time, if you think he's cute."
Jay blushed red, and shook his head quickly. "No! Marco! I'm not kissing him! He's…I don't even know if he likes guys, and I don't want him to stop talking to me. Okay?"
Marco scoffed. "You could always ask. You're so timid, dude. It's annoying." Marco was trans. He usually went by male pronouns. Born female, he identified as male. Marco didn't mind rooming with Jay; they were friends, always had been. Always would be.
"Oh, shut up! I'm cautious. There's a difference." Jay rolled his eyes.
Lou sighed, picking up his phone and moving to the couch. He had a small apartment, so he only had to walk two steps. From the door, directly in front of it, was a comfy leather couch facing the small TV to the right. Directly to the back of the couch was the kitchen, with a bar behind the couch so you could still see the TV while eating. The fridge was on the other side, along with a microwave Lou never really used. To the far right was his room, down a very narrow hallway.
Lou flicked on the television but just for background noise. He switched to whatever channel played the best music in his opinion— which was classic rock.
Bean happily spread across as much of the couch as he could while Lou scooted over to make room. He sipped at his coffee, recounting everything that had already happened that day— and it was barely even 4 o’clock.
Marco rolled his eyes right back. "Cautious smautious, you make me nauseous. Get out a live a little!" He sat up. "I'm making you wear make-up tomorrow. I want you to look cute when you meet your next boyfriend again."
"Marco!" Jay exclaimed, blushing. "He's not!"
(Time skip?)
(Sure. What time should we skip to?)
(uhm…I was thinking sometime the next day? After Jay's class is done with their touring?)
(So like noon the next day?)
(I was thinking more in the afternoon, like around two or four?)
(Okay, perfect.)
Lou tapped his foot nervously on the floor as he bit his thumb, staring at his phone.
“Should I send it? I’m probably overthinking this,” he mumbled to Bean. The puppy was fast asleep beside him.
He had done everything he could to procrastinate actually texting Jay. Heck, he’d even gone on a run this morning. He’d showered, ate, done his hair, and everything. He never cared this much.
His hands shook slightly as he brushed the hair from his face and sighed.
“Alright, I’m gonna do it,” he said, trying to convince himself more than anyone. “I’mma do it.”
And with that, he pressed send. The message read:
Salut, mon ami! Comment vas-tu? I was thinking later tonight we could hit up a cool place I know of. Said to have the best drinks. What’dya say?
(The first line says “Hello, my friend. How are you?” btw)
Jay's phone pinged with the incoming message, and he pulled it out. Smiled when he read it and saw who it was from.
Marco poked him. "Whozzat?" He asked, leaning his chin on Jay's shoulder.
Jay swatted his friend away. "Nobody, shut up." He grumped, texting back.
Je vais très bien, et toi? Yeah, that sounds great! We've got a free night tonight, so that should be fine.
(That says "I am great, how are you?")
Lou felt like he was holding his breath as he saw Jay typing. As soon as he read the message, he smiled and let out a sigh.
He gave Bean a thumbs-up as he texted back.
Merveilleux! How about I meet you outside your hotel around five?
He paused for a minute before sending. He glanced from his phone to his bathroom mirror, where he was already getting ready to go, despite having roughly 2 more hours.
He took a deep breath before adding:
Just us?