A/N: This is dedicated to one of my dear friends on Twitter. Happy Birthday AmantPassionne~! 3 I own nothing, but the story.
Francis had to make sure that everything was going to be perfect. Tonight was the night that the Frenchman was going to propose to his boyfriend, Arthur. The nation of love went out of his way and reserved the entire restaurant, Le Jules Verne, for this occasion. It was extremely expensive, but worth it.
Arthur was currently away on business in London, so Francis took advantage of his absence to plan this perfect evening. He knew the Brit would be flying in later tonight, so he had a small window of time to finish the preparations. After working and stressing over this evening, Francis finally took a seat on his Coco Chanel sofa.
He slid his hand into his pocket and took out a small black box. He opened the small box and stared at the golden ring that was inside. For the first time that day, Francis felt nervous. 'What if he says no? What if he doesn't want the same thing I want?', the thoughts plagued the Frenchman's mind. He took a deep breath to calm his nerves. 'Get it together, Francis! Arthur loves you! I'm sure everything will go just as planned.', he mentally told himself.
Meanwhile, Arthur tapped his pen impatiently on the conference table. All he wanted to do was return to Paris and see Francis. They had been living together in Paris for a few months now. 'Only a few more hours, Arthur…Then you can go home and see Francis.', he told himself. Arthur sighed deeply, silently wishing for time to go faster.
Few hours passed, the conference was finally over. Arthur walked out of the meeting. "Finally! I thought that conference would never end.", he told himself. He reached into his suit pocket and pulled out his cellphone to call Francis. He dialed his number and waited for the Frenchman to answer.
Back in Paris, Francis just finished getting dressed in his stunning black suit when he heard his cellphone ringing. He turned away from his full body mirror and walked over to his nightstand. He picked up the phone and saw that his beloved Angleterre was calling. He answered the phone. "Bonjour, mon cher. How did your meeting go?", he smiled as he talked to the Brit.
Arthur sighed. "It was boring as usual, but I got everything I needed done. I'm just calling to tell you that I'm going to be home soon.", the Brit smiled as he talked to Francis. He has missed him so much in the past week he has been gone. He stood at a bus stop, waiting for a bus to take him to the airport.
"Tres bien. And I have missed you, mon petit lapin.", Francis said as he sat down on their bed. He heard the Englishman chuckle. "And I have missed you.", Arthur replied. Francis' heart fluttered. "Angleterre…When you arrive in Paris, go to the Eiffel Tower and head to the top…I will have a surprise waiting for you.", the French nation informed the Brit. Arthur blinked a few times. "Um…Alright. I'll be looking forward to it.", he said lovingly.
A bus started to pull up to Arthur. "Well my bus is here. I'll see you in about two hours. I love you.", he told the Frenchman. Francis' heart always skipped a beat when Arthur said those three words. "Alright. Je t'aime aussi. Au revior!", Francis hung up the phone. Arthur smiled and hung up as well, boarding the bus bound for the airport.
Francis put his phone in his pocket. He also made sure he had the ring as well. He made his way down the stairs of their apartment, grabbing his car keys. He got into his car and headed to the Eiffel Tower. Francis wanted everything to be ready when his darling Brit arrived.
Almost two hours later, Arthur's plane had landed. His curiosity was killing him. 'What was the surprise?', Arthur's mind kept asking him over and over again. After getting off the plane and leaving the airport, he signaled down a taxi to take him to the Eiffel Tower. He grew more and more anxious as he got closer to arriving at the Eiffel Tower.
The moment he arrived, he paid the driver and jumped out of the car. He made his way up the tower surprisingly fast. He reached the top floor and looked around, breathing heavily. There was no sign of Francis. 'He did say to meet him here, right?', he asked himself.
"Looking for me, Angleterre?", a suave voice caught Arthur's attention. Arthur saw Francis leaning seductively against the doorway of the restaurant. Arthur finally caught his breath and straightened up his suit. He smirked and sauntered over to the Frenchman. "Indeed I was looking for you.", he leaned in and captured Francis' lips with his own.
Francis returned the kiss passionately, wrapping his arms firmly around the Englishman's waist. Arthur simply melted into the kiss and he wrapped his arms around Francis' neck to pull their bodies closer. They could sense how much they missed each other in that kiss. When the kiss broke, Francis tenderly placed his forehead against Arthur's.
They both stood like that for a while until Francis finally broke away. "Come with me.", the Frenchman took the Brit's slender hand into his own and led him inside the fancy restaurant. Arthur was in complete awe. The restaurant was dimly lit by the numerous candles surrounding the room. The sounds of a piano filled the room. "What do you think, cher?", Francis asked him softly.
"It's…beautiful.", Arthur uttered. He looked around the restaurant once more and he finally noticed that it was empty. "But why is it empty?", he asked with a puzzled expression on his face. Francis chuckled. "I reserved the entire restaurant just for us.", he squeezed the Brit's hand tenderly.
Arthur's eyes grew wide. "This is the most expensive restaurant in Paris! This must have cost you a fortune!", he exclaimed as he looked at the Frenchman. Francis leaned forward and pecked the Englishman's lips softly. "Oui, but it was worth it.", he winked at Arthur. The Englishman blushed softly.
"I can't believe you did all this for me.", Arthur said softly. Francis led the blushing Brit over to a table with a lovely vase of roses in the center of it. "I'd do anything for you. You should know this by now, Angleterre.", the Frenchman chuckled and pulled out the chair for Arthur.
Arthur took a seat. "Wait right here while I get our dinner.", Francis smiled and walked into the kitchen. Arthur waited there silently for Francis to return. The Frenchman came back into the room with a sliver platter in his hand. "Here we are.", he said as he sat the platter down on the table.
"We will be having Duck à l'orange with a side of grilled broccoli and Dauphinoise potato. All made by moi.", he smiled as he bowed slightly. Arthur chuckled. "It looks delicious.", he licked his lips slightly as he looked at the food. "One more thing…", Francis dashed back into the kitchen and came back out with a bottle of 2005 Château Barreyres.
"Can't have dinner without wine.", Francis laughed as he poured Arthur and himself a glass. "To us.", Francis said as he held up his wine glass. Arthur lifted his glass and repeated, "To us." They both clinked their glasses together and took a long sip. The pair ate their dinner quietly. They simply enjoyed being in each other's presence.
It didn't take the couple long to finish their dinner. "That was superb, Francis. Thank you.", he smiled at the Frenchman lovingly. Francis retuned the smile. "You're welcome, mon amour.", Francis got up from the table and walked over to Arthur. "Would you like to dance?", he offered the Brit his hand.
"I would love to.", Arthur took his hand and Francis led them outside of the restaurant. "Why are we dancing out here? We can barely hear the music.", Arthur chuckled softly. "We only need each other not the music.", Francis said as he pulled their bodies together. Arthur simply blushed in response.
Francis took one of Arthur's hands into his and placed his other on the Englishman's waist. Arthur intertwined their fingers and placed his other hand on the Frenchman's broad shoulder. Their bodies swayed with their own rhythm. Francis spun Arthur around and pulled him close once again.
'No wonder Francis wanted to dance out here. The city of Paris is simply beautiful at night. Now I know why it's call the city of lights.', he thought as he danced gracefully with the nation of love. Arthur's emerald eyes stared deeply into Francis' blue ones as they danced. Arthur thought this evening couldn't get any better.
Suddenly Francis stopped dancing and moved his hand from Arthur's waist, so he could place it tenderly on the Brit's cheek. "Arthur…I love you more than anything even though we bicker constantly." Francis chuckled and continued. "You are my lover, my best friend, and my soul mate.", Francis said softly as he stroked Arthur's cheek with his thumb. Arthur's breath hitched at Francis' words.
"There is a reason I brought you up here tonight…", the Frenchman said as he got on one knee and reached into his pocket, pulling out the small black box. Arthur's eyes went wide. "And that reason is…", Francis opened up the box, revealing the diamond embedded golden ring. "Arthur Kirkland…Will you marry me?", the question finally left Francis' lips.
Tears came to Arthur's eyes and he hugged Francis tightly. "Yes! A thousand times…Yes!", he said against the Frenchman's neck. Francis felt his own eyes well up with tears as he returned the tight embrace. Arthur pulled away and crashed his lips against the Frenchman's. Francis returned the kiss deeply.
Moments passed and they finally broke the kiss for air, Arthur smiled lovingly at Francis. "I love you.", he said breathlessly as he placed a hand on the Frenchman's cheek. "Et Je t'aime.", Francis said as he placed his hand over Arthur's. This was the happiest moment of their lives. And thus, their new chapter began.