Paris is gorgeous. It's an escape for her, she gets to pretend to be anyone she wants to be. And who she chooses to be doesn't miss playing pretend with Riley Matthews and dancing for hours with her, who she chooses to be doesn't even know Riley Matthews exists.
Because knowing Riley Matthews is killing her inside.
She introduces herself to him as Candace and never gives him a last name, he never asks. She knows he doesn't care about that. About her. But she likes not being Maya Hart too much to give a shit.
He takes her to the Eiffel Tower and she figures she's living every straight girl in her school's dream, at the top of the most romantic place in the world with an older French boy whose eyes never leave her. But dreams and fairy tales aren't on the same level to Maya. Dreams fall somewhere much lower and less significant in her world.
"You look beautiful, all the stars cannot compare," he tells her.
"I bet you say that to all the girls," she retorts, both of them knowing it's true but pretending this playful flirtation is only for them.
"Only the American ones," he laughs.
"Well, let's forget about them, right now, it's just us," she instructs, holding his hands. This is too intimate and personal, she knows, but she's always liked the way hand holding felt when it was her and Riley.
"And the idiot tourists," he murmurs. He nibbles at her earlobe, whispering something she doesn't understand in French.
He starts working at her neck, she moans comfortably. Paris feels amazing and so does being Candace.
They take it back to his apartment, moans still leaving her throat. She winds up tossed on his bad, her clothes half off. Her insides twist, this is her first time. She's going to lose her virginity to a stranger who thinks her name is Candace. She's fucking terrified as he undresses inbetween kisses but she fakes confidence.
He expects her to go all the down to blow him, so she does even though she hates the idea. She wishes Riley were here to save her from this but Candace doesn't know who Riley Matthews is.
She doesn't let him make her swallow, instead she tells him to cum on her, wherever he wants. It's awful, she can't stand how it feels. She wants to dance in the cardboard castle again, not be here.
But then he's inside her and it hurts so damn much but everything's okay because she isn't thinking about the fairy tales she misses.
She leaves early in the morning, escaping the hideous scene she'd been in hours ago. She hates the way the blood on his sheets looks and the way her back feels but she knows she'll be back soon enough. The view from his balcony is too damn pretty.
She thinks of Riley again as she leaves. The fairy tale doesn't cross her mind.
He calls her at lunch, invites her out again and tells her last night was fun. She tells him it was okay and he takes it as teasing. The rest of her meal is in silence until someone hits on her, thinking she's older. This one isn't very attractive so she walks away and tells him she has a girlfriend. She'd been thinking of Riley again.
All thoughts of the brunette have diminished by the time she's with him. They're surrounded by pretty lights again so she slips her hand in his and asks him to buy her balloons.
She wishes they would take her far away from here, from her world.
He tells her, "don't float away, Candace" like she'll listen. She smirks and tells him not to tempt her. He laughs and whispers in her ear, "I'll have to make you want to stay then, won't I? Perhaps another night of pleasure will do the trick."
She giggles like she wants it again and smacks him with a balloon. For a second, it's like she's with Riley and they're just messing around. But Riley is with Lucas in New York, she reminds herself, I probably haven't even crossed her mind. She hasn't even tried to text me in a day.
His lips are on hers and Riley stops existing again as he groans out, "Candace, you're fucking sexy."
She lets him fuck her again that night just so she can see those lights out his window. She's gone in the morning, like she was never there. She wishes she hadn't been the moment Riley texts her to ask how Paris is.
"It's gorgeous," Maya texts, "I'll paint you a picture."
"Ooh! Promise?" Riley texts back.
"Pinky swear," Maya replies.
"Yay! Have you met anyone? ;);)" Riley sends.
"A boy. He's a good kisser," Maya texts.
"You kissed him!? OMG."
"We did more than kiss."
"What now?"
"I lost my virginity."
"MAYA!"
"?"
"U LOST UR VIRGINITY!?"
"Yea."
"WHY DIDN'T YOU CALL ME!?"
"Riles, ur caps lock is stuck."
"No it isnt. My best friend just told me something awful."
Maya stops replying. She goes home with another boy and the view isn't what she likes so she's gone before the sun rises. Her back aches more than she thought possible after three nights in a row but she still finds another boy to go home with. It's another disappointment with the view and she doesn't even leave him her phone number.
She isn't planning on turning her phone back on any time soon. She has no reason to. Reading Riley's freaked out texts about what happened is too painful.
"I screwed up, didn't I?" She asks no one in particular, tears welling up. She cries her eyes out under the pretty lights of Paris and draws what she sees for Riley. She makes it as pretty as she can.
But Paris is fucking ugly in her memory.
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