A/N: I wonder… what would happen if Phineas and Isabella ended back up in Paris? Just a one-shot. In this story, Act Your Age never happened, but they are teenagers.
City of Love (Reprise)
Phineas rested his head on the palm of his hands, leaning back against the oak tree in his backyard. Ferb and their dad went to visit their family in Britain, and Candace was off with Jeremy. Linda was at the hair salon getting a perm. This meant that Phineas was alone with nothing to do. He sighed, bored and unsure what to do today. He closed his eyes, sighing once more.
"What'cha doin'?"
Phineas opened one eye and grinned, opening the other.
"Hey, Isabella, what's up?"
He patted the grass next to him, which was usually reserved for Ferb. Isabella sat down, smiling broadly. Phineas leaned back against the tree.
"Any big ideas for projects today, Phineas?" asked Isabella. Phineas sighed and shook his head.
"I can't think of a single one. I usually have Ferb with me to help decide on these things."
Isabella leaned her head back, thinking. Suddenly, she had an idea.
"Phineas, do you still have that jet plane? Or at least the blueprints?"
Phineas looked at her.
"I think so. Why?"
Isabella grinned.
"Let's take a road trip to Europe! Just the two of us!" she chimed.
Phineas hummed.
"Just the two of us, huh?" he pondered.
Isabella clacked her shoes together in anticipation.
"Okay! Sounds like fun!" Phineas said. Isabella beamed at him.
Phineas stood up and walked over to the garage, rummaging in his toolbox. Isabella followed.
"What'cha looking for?" she asked, peering over his shoulders.
"The switch for the underground hangar. I know it's in here somewhere," he replied. Isabella looked confused.
"When did you build an underground hangar?"
"Aha! Found it!" Phineas declared triumphantly. He turned around to face Isabella. "Ferb and I built it not long after our first trip to France. After our first jet was destroyed, we rebuilt with the extra parts left over from construction, and left it in the hangar. It's been collecting dust ever since."
Isabella and Phineas walked back over the oak. Phineas held his arm out.
"You might want to stay back, Isabella. The hangar takes up most of the yard."
Phineas pressed the button on the remote switch and a loud beep resounded from the yard. The grass split and began to open up, slowly revealing a launch pad of considerable size. Situated on the pad was a jet plane for four. It was silver and purple and had Flynn-Fletcher Airways painted on the side. Isabella stared in awe. However, the feature that really caught her attention was the name of the aircraft.
"Isabella, may I present to you, The Isabella! Sporting a 1200 horsepower turbine double intake jet engine, a carbon fueled speed booster, 12-foot wingspan – on hinges of course, and state-of-the-art stereo system! And…"
Phineas jiggled the fuzzy dice.
"…lucky dice."
Isabella swooned and fell into Phineas' arms.
"Oh Phineas, she's beautiful!"
Phineas climbed into the pilot's chair and held out a hand for Isabella. She took his hand hopped into the seat beside him. Phineas flipped open an on-board computer and brought up a keypad.
"You choose the destination, Isabella!" he said. Isabella looked surprised.
"Oh, um, okay. How about Paris?"
"Paris it is then!" Phineas declared, and punched in the coordinates. Isabella had to bite her lip to keep from screaming in excitement. "Strap in, Isabella!"
Isabella quickly strapped herself in and Phineas began the pre-flight check and countdown. In an instant, the two were shot into the air and were flying high above Danville. Isabella cheered as Phineas laughed. He made a few adjustments to the flight settings and soon they were cruising at a cool 2000 feet.
"And I just set it on autopilot… there! We'll be in Paris in no time!"
"Oh Phineas, you're amazing!" Isabella said.
"It's nothing, Isabella. We never get to do anything together, just the two of us."
He quickly looked her in the eye and grinned. Phineas turned to look out of his side of the cockpit and grinned broadly.
"Wow, the Tri-State Area looks gorgeous from up here," he said. Isabella looked out of her side and nodded.
"We just passed over Danville Mountain!" she said.
Phineas nodded and settled back in his seat, sighing contentedly. He closed his eyes, enjoying the soft hum of the engine. Isabella did the same. For a while the two remained this way. Eventually, Phineas spoke up, breaking the silence.
"Say, why did you want it to just be the two of us, Isabella?" he inquired. His question had caught Isabella off guard. She had not been prepared for that.
"Well, um… like you said, we hardly get to do things alone…" she answered, laughing nervously. Phineas stared at her for a moment, shrugged and laid back.
"Fair enough." He looked out of his side. "Hmm, we have now entered Nebraska," he said.
Isabella looked as well.
"What do you say crank this up a notch?"
"I don't know Phineas. What if the plane breaks? You haven't used it for a long time…" Isabella objected.
Phineas raised his hand.
"Don't worry, Isabella. It'll be fine!"
With that, he pulled the speed booster lever. The engine let out a colossal bang and the aircraft shot forward faster than the speed of sound. Isabella screamed in terror and clutched her seat tightly while Phineas whooped in excitement. The world became a blur of shapes and colors as they sped forward at 1000 miles per hour.
"At this speed, we'll arrive in Paris in no time!" Phineas shouted. Suddenly, an alarm started blaring in the cockpit.
"What is that?!" screamed Isabella. Phineas quickly shut off the speed booster.
"It's the capsule integrity alarm!" he said, frantically flipping switches and turning dials. "The speed booster weakened the rivets holding the chassis together. If we don't land soon and find a way to repair the central holding frame, we'll crash!"
"What?!" shrieked Isabella, terrified.
Phineas flipped another switch, finally shutting off the alarm and settled back into his seat. He looked at Isabella calmly.
"Don't worry. I've got this, Izzy. Just trust me. Our scanner shows us that the nearest city is just up ahead. All we need to do is land at the airport and repair the rivets. Easy as pie," he said.
Isabella, though terrified, was soothed by the calm reassurance of Phineas' voice. She nodded and gingerly readjusted herself in her seat. She bit her lip to stop it from quivering in fear. Her eyes darted between Phineas and the rapidly approaching ground. Phineas' stern focus on keeping the plane airborne made her feel safer, and she gradually began to calm down. Eventually, a green light flashed on the console. Phineas breathed a sigh of relief.
"We're level again. Geez, that was close."
"I'm beginning to think that maybe this wasn't the best idea, Phineas. We should have checked the plane at home to make sure it was airworthy," Isabella said.
Phineas nodded.
"Yes, you're right. We should have. We'll do that when we land to repair it."
The radio crackled to life, causing them both to jump.
"Unidentified aircraft, you are entering restricted airspace. State your order of business or be prepared to be escorted off the premises. Over."
Phineas pressed the transmitter button and spoke.
"Jennisburg airport this is private aircraft Isabella. We have suffered critical chassis damage and require repairs immediately. Requesting permission to land. Over."
Isabella swooned at Phineas' display of manliness. She quickly shook herself back to reality. This was no time to be lost in Phineas Land! He might need her! Isabella steeled herself for the possibility. The radio crackled to life again.
"Private aircraft Isabella you have permission to land. Over and out."
Phineas confirmed the information and brought the plane in low to the tarmac. Upon landing a swarm of engineers flooded the pavement, helping the two out of the cockpit. Isabella stuck to Phineas like glue. He shook hands with the overseer, explaining their problems. The man scratched his head.
"Aren't you a little young to be a jet plane designer and pilot?" he asked.
Phineas stared at him blankly.
"No."
The overseer shrugged and hollered at his guys to take the plane to the repair bay. He motioned for Phineas and Isabella to follow him, which they did.
"The repairs are going to take a while, so you might want to get out of the sun," he said.
"Um, I'd be more comfortable if I was the one doing the repairs. It is my design after all," Phineas objected. The overseer shrugged.
"Suit yourself, man."
Phineas took Isabella's hand and led her to the repair hangar.
"I'm sorry, Isabella. I never meant for this to happen," he groaned.
Isabella shook her head.
"It's okay, Phineas. I'm just happy to be with you…" she said.
Several hours later
Phineas gently shook Isabella awake. The repairs were finally done. She had fallen asleep waiting on the crew and Phineas to finish. Isabella yawned widely and stretched, causing Phineas to laugh. She hopped into the co-pilot seat and waited for Phineas to started the engine. When he didn't she looked over at him.
"Phineas?" she asked. "What's wrong?"
"Isabella… I was just thinking. If I had failed to regain control of the plane earlier… I could have lost you. I did a stupid thing. I put you in danger. I'm so sorry," he said.
Isabella leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. Phineas looked shocked.
"You were brave, Phineas. I trust you completely. Now get this plane in the air!"
Phineas smiled and fired the engine. Soon, they were airborne once again and shooting off towards Paris. The final leg of the journey was quiet, much like the first few hours. Isabella fell asleep in her seat. Phineas listened to her soft breathing as he piloted the jet. The sunset was beautiful. Suddenly having an idea, he maneuvered the plane above the clouds so that he could get a better view. Perfect. He gently tapped Isabella awake and pointed out of the viewport. Isabella's mouth dropped.
The sky was a brilliant orange, yellow, and red. The cloud layer was almost entirely pink up here.
"Phineas… it's beautiful!" she breathed.
"It's something else, isn't it?" he said. The console beeped.
"Nearing destination."
Phineas lowered the aircraft and Isabella gasped. They had reached Paris just at nightfall. The city was lit up like a massive Christmas tree. The Eiffel Tower stood out like a colossal needle, it's light blinking slowly. The lights of the buildings reflected off of the Parisian channels and waterways.
"Oh my…" whispered Isabella. Phineas smiled gently and brought the airplane into a gentle descent.
"We're going to have to find a place to hide the jet," Phineas said. Isabella nodded and helped him search for a suitable area. "Here we go!"
Phineas slowly brought the jet plane to a landing in a clearing not far from the Eiffel Tower, but away from heavily trafficked areas. Isabella inquired as to why they needed to hide the plane.
"Well, let's just say that some of the parts I used to build it aren't exactly legal in France…" he said sheepishly.
Isabella rolled her eyes and hopped out of the cockpit and stretched. Finally, they had reached Paris! Maybe now she could…
"Isabella look!" Phineas called out. She rushed over to his side, and looked up in the sky. Fireworks. They were beautiful. Isabella snaked her arm into Phineas' and rested her head against his shoulder. They stood there for several minutes watching the fireworks before Phineas realized something.
"We need a room," he said. Isabella instantly turned deep red at that thought.
"Um, yeah…"
Phineas tugged at her arm.
"Well, come on," he said, laughing. Isabella followed him, laughing as well.
They came to a bridge and slowed down to a walk. The lamp posts cast a soft glow on the cobblestone as they walked. Romantic Parisian music drifted up to the bridge from the water below. Isabella stopped, forcing Phineas to as well. She walked over to the side of the bridge and looked out at the water. There were several small boats on the Seine, with lanterns illuminating the surface the water. Phineas put his arm on Isabella's shoulder as he joined her.
He felt a flutter in his heart as they stood there, admiring the beauty before them. Isabella looked up at him and giggled when he looked away, embarrassed. He didn't know why he had this reaction all of the sudden. Even stranger still, he had the sudden urge to embrace her right there. Should he? Would she mind? He decided to. Phineas moved forward, and slowly put his arms around Isabella from behind, and leaned forward, embracing his best friend. Isabella was initially shocked but melted into the hug, placing her right hand on his arm. She closed her eyes and smiled, enjoying the closeness. This was what she had wanted last time they had come to Paris, and now it was happening. She was so happy. No, happy was not an adequate word to describe the emotions she felt right now. She was… elated. And so in love. She felt Phineas move, and squeezed his arm. He stopped.
"Not yet," she whispered. Phineas smiled and embraced her again. The romantic music from the river below drew closer and filled the night air. Isabella sighed, and rested her head on Phineas' arm.
"Phineas?" she said quietly.
"Yes, Isabella?" he replied.
"You're my very best friend, you know that?"
"And so are you, Izzy," he said, smiling. The fluttering in his stomach was back. He wondered if she was feeling the same thing.
"Phineas?" she said again.
"Yes?" he replied.
For a moment, there was silence between the two. They stood there, listening to the music.
"Kiss me…" Isabella said.
Phineas froze up. What? Kiss her? As in… kiss her kiss her? On the lips? He gulped. Then he slowly leaned forward. His nose brushed past her left ear. He could feel her physically shudder at the touch of his breath.
"Are you sure?" he whispered.
"Yes," was the response.
Phineas pressed his lips against hers. Their lips conformed to each other in an instant. They remained this way for several seconds. Phineas broke the kiss and straightened up, but did not end the embrace. If anything, he tightened it. Isabella gripped him closer and tighter than before as well.
"Isabella?" he whispered.
"Yes?"
"I think we're a couple now."
"I think so, too."
Yes, a couple. A couple. They were definitely a couple. Wait until the gang back home hears about this.