Two Steps Beyond

Part 14

Their next three days in London seemed to fly by. They were both pretty sure they saw and did almost everything possible in their time left in the city. "We really need to come back Bas." Blaine told Sebastian as they packed their suitcases.

"Agreed. Even though we relaxed quite a bit, it was more to make up for all the running around that we did. But I don't regret it one bit."

"Me either. Now, will our time in Paris be just as hectic?"

"Not quite, but we chose to make this week hectic with everything we wanted to see. A lot of the things I have planned for Paris are a bit quieter and no crazy surprises."

"But there are surprises, aren't there?"

"Why would you say that?"

"Just the way you answered, that's all. Is there a particular reason you chose for us to go from London to Paris by train instead of flying?"

"The train ride is enjoyable and it's something different. And I thought you'd like to experience the trip the way I used to when I'd go see Lexi."

"No complaints on my end, I was just curious. How are we getting to the train station?"

"Charles is taking us. He actually said he's going to miss the two of us as we've been a delight to have around."

"When did he say that?"

"That would've been when I brought the box of stuff down that needs to be mailed back home. And so you know, I'm shipping it to Lexi and Cooper."

"Makes sense considering we're not going to be home for another ten days. I don't doubt one of them will bring it over to our place."

"That's what I figured as well."

It was about an hour later when they made their way down the stairs with their bags. After setting them in the foyer they decided to take one last walk through the gardens since they had time. "This has been an amazing trip so far Bas."

"I think so too. There is only one thing I'm not looking forward to once we get home."

"What's that?"

"Going through all the pictures we've taken. In one week we've taken well over five hundred B, it's anyone's guess how many there will be by the time we get home."

"Understandable, good thing we don't have to sort them immediately." Blaine replied while resting his head on Sebastian's shoulder. "I can see why Lexi loves it here so much."

"Yes, it's pretty amazing. And we lucked out with only one day of rain which is like a miracle. At least we still had museums to see then." They were still pretty deep in conversation when Charles came walking up to them.

"We need to get going gentlemen."

"Alright Charles." Sebastian replied. "Thank you again for taking us."

"Not a problem Sebastian. If I had allowed a cab or car service to take you and Blaine Alexis would've been very upset with me. Though know, I'm not just doing this to appease Alexis, I want to take you both."

"We truly appreciate that Charles." Blaine said once they stood up and headed back towards the house.

The drive to the train station wasn't relatively long, but in a way Blaine wished it would've taken longer as he wasn't quite ready to end their time in London. But after gathering their bags once more they said goodbye to Charles before heading inside for the next leg of their trip. Once they were inside and checked-in they took their obligatory picture before heading for the platform. After storing their bags they headed for their seats. They had decided to sit facing each other and as much as Blaine wanted to ride backwards, Sebastian felt it best if he did since he'd done it before and wasn't sure how it might affect Blaine.

They talked throughout most of the trip. It was pretty clear that taking the train was the right choice since Blaine seemed to be enjoying it more than he thought he would. "Where do we arrive in Paris Bas?"

"Gare du Nord." Blaine couldn't help smile when Sebastian answered. Even though they both took French, it just sounded completely natural coming out of Sebastian's mouth. "Now, since we're arriving late in the afternoon is there anything particular you'd like to do or do you just want to take it easy?"

"Depends on how I feel when we arrive."

"Well B, we'll be arriving in about an hour."

"What?"

"It's a bit shocking, I know. But we are on a high-speed train, remember."

"Right. How about we just take a walk and leave the real sight-seeing for tomorrow?"

"We can easily do that."

Once they arrived in Paris it didn't take long for them to make their way to street level. Normally Sebastian would've just taken the metro, but with it being Blaine's first time in Paris he wasn't going to deny him the views. It wasn't long till they had hailed a taxi and were on their way to Sebastian's parents' home. When they pulled up in front Blaine was impressed by what he was seeing. Now the home was nowhere as massive as the home in London, but it was impressive nonetheless. "So you know B, no staff this week. We're going to be roughing it."

"That could be tough Bas, but I'm sure we'll manage." Blaine replied while they exited the taxi. After paying for the taxi they gathered their bags and headed inside. Once they were inside Sebastian gave Blaine a tour of the downstairs before grabbing their bags once more and heading upstairs. "Where are we staying?"

"My room. It's actually the same size as the master suite but actually has better views." When they walked into the room Blaine stopped almost instantly. Sebastian wasn't kidding; the room was huge and immaculately decorated. If one didn't know better, they'd think it was the guest suite since there was little to no bits of Sebastian's personality easily visible.

"Bas, has the room always been decorated like this?" Blaine asked while setting his suitcase on the luggage rack Sebastian had gotten out for him.

"Yes." Sebastian sighed as he answered. "If you can't tell, I didn't decorate it."

"I can tell. It's too stuffy even for you." Sebastian just looked over his shoulder at Blaine and smiled. Blaine was absolutely right; his room looked like it came out of interior designer's catalog. Everything had its perfect place. Blaine wanted to ask Sebastian more questions, but the last thing he wanted at that moment was to bring up Sebastian's Mother knowing the mood it could put him in. He just had to remember to ask Sebastian when they got back to New York.

"Ready to go killer?"

"Lead the way." They were barely out of the house and Sebastian slipped his hand into Blaine's and gave it a gentle squeeze. As much as Blaine knew Sebastian loved Paris, something about him seemed to be off the instant they stepped outside. "Are you okay Bas?"

"Yes, why?" Blaine wasn't happy with Sebastian's answer since the tone of his voice was off so he stopped dead in his tracks and looked up at him. "Alright, maybe I'm not fine. But I'll manage."

"Bas, you don't need to manage. Talk to me."

"Okay, as much as I didn't want to leave Paris, in a way I'm glad I did. There are a few people I'd rather never see again."

"And you're worried about seeing them."

"Yes, as they're assholes. Put it this way B, they make the me you first met look like a gentleman."

"You mean the Bas that was trying to get in my pants the moment we met."

"Yes. The difference is I know when to stop, even though it might not have seemed like it. I never would've pushed you into something you didn't want." Sebastian watched Blaine's facial expression. "Come now B. As much as I constantly flirted and laced conversations with sexual innuendo even after you said no was because I loved seeing you blush. These guys don't know when to stop and they are nowhere as charming as I am though they think otherwise."

"Bas are you saying…" Blaine didn't finish what he was saying as he could see just how uncomfortable Sebastian had gotten. "Screw'em. You're going to have a romantic week in Paris with your boyfriend. And if they come near us, they'll have to deal with both of us. I'm not going to let anyone hurt you Bas." Normally Blaine was the quiet one of the two of them, happily letting Sebastian take the lead. But Sebastian could see from the fire in Blaine's eyes that there wasn't anything he wouldn't do to protect him. People might see Blaine as little, but little did they know the feisty persona he kept hidden most of the time.

While they walked Sebastian took the time to get Blaine to brush up on his French since they hadn't spoken it in a while. Blaine mentioned that he was a bit hungry while they walked which worked well with what Sebastian had in mind. So they stopped a little bistro where Sebastian placed an order for them. Blaine just stood by since Sebastian was speaking much quicker than they usually did, which was probably why he was getting Blaine to brush up a bit. Once they knew how long of a wait it would be till their food was ready Sebastian took Blaine across the way so he could purchase a blanket.

"If I didn't know better Bas, it looks as though we're going to have a picnic."

"Well, that's because we're going to B. I know just the perfect spot for us to enjoy our meal. It has much better views than the bistro does." There was a soft smile on Sebastian's face that practically melted Blaine's heart. Sebastian didn't get like this often, but when he did Blaine loved it. Sebastian truly did have a romantic side to him. They returned to the bistro just as their food was being brought to the counter. "Ready?" Blaine just nodded at Sebastian's question while taking the blanket from him so Sebastian could take their food.

They hadn't seemed to walk too much further though Blaine knew they had when he started to see something come into view. "Bas."

"Yes."

"Are we going where I think we're going?"

"That depends, where do you think we're going?"

"Champ de Mars." Sebastian just smiled while Blaine spoke as he was clearly trying to pronounce it properly.

"Very good, I thought it was rather fitting and I knew you'd appreciate the view."

"Very much so, thank you."

Once they reached the park it wasn't long till they found the perfect spot for their impromptu picnic. So after placing the blanket down, they got comfortable. Blaine just sat back and watched while Sebastian set everything out. Sebastian had clearly taken care of everything when he ordered as there didn't seem to be anything missing. "I tried to keep it pretty safe considering you don't eat French food very often. And there are a few things I knew you'd like even though you've never had it."

"I trust you."

Before they began eating Blaine leaned against Sebastian who had his phone out so they could take a picture with the Eiffel Tower in the background. Once that was done, Blaine started to peruse the spread in front of them while Sebastian tweeted where they were, knowing most of their friends were beyond jealous of the fact they were going to Paris. While they ate, they both couldn't help but laugh when both of their phones started to beep. "I think it's safe to say everyone knows we're here now." Sebastian said between bites.

"I think so too."

Sebastian seemed more than happy with himself as Blaine seemed to be enjoying everything he had ordered, even some of the more obscure dishes. They'd both just finished eating and had decided to lie down and just look up at the Tower. "I hope you left room for dessert." Sebastian said without even turning his head to look at Blaine.

"You got dessert?"

"Of course I did. What kind of boyfriend would I be if I denied your sweet tooth while we're on vacation?"

"Not a very good one." Blaine replied while rolling onto his side. "And we both know you're an excellent boyfriend so what did you get." Sebastian just laughed before grabbing the last container out of the bag.

"There are cream puffs and there are macarons."

"I've never had a macaron."

"That's what I thought, which is why I got both since I know you like cream puffs." Once the container was opened, Sebastian watched as Blaine checked out the contents. Considering Sebastian hadn't led him afoul so far in regards to food Blaine grabbed a macaron and took a bite. Seeing a look of bliss form on Blaine's face Sebastian grabbed one as well and took a bite. "I'm guessing you approve." He said while licking his lips. The statement was almost pointless considering the sound that came from Blaine's mouth. "Don't worry B; it's not going to be a one-time thing while we're here. I love them and these aren't even the best ones in the city."

"There are better?" Blaine asked before getting a second on.

"Yes. We'll get some either tomorrow or the next day." Blaine just nodded before leaning back against Sebastian. Their first few hours in Paris were everything Blaine could've possibly asked for. They sat in the park and talked long enough that they were still there when the lights began to come on. As the city came alive, Blaine glanced back at Sebastian.

"The pictures don't do it justice Bas."

"I know. And just wait, till it gets even darker. Not much can beat it, there is a reason it's referred to as the city of lights." Since they didn't need to be anywhere anytime soon they just relaxed, talked, and watched the city change around them. It wasn't till Sebastian felt more of Blaine's body weight leaning against him did he sit up enough to notice that Blaine had drifted off. Hopeful that he hadn't been a sleep too long Sebastian nudged him gently. He must've just fallen asleep because his eyes flew open. "It's okay B, you just fell asleep."

"Sorry."

"Don't be. But since you did, why don't we head back to the house."

"Alright." Blaine replied while stretching. "Do we have to be up at any particular time tomorrow?"

"No, we'll get moving whenever we wake up. I only have one thing planned that we have to be at a particular time but even that's in the evening." Blaine just smiled back at Sebastian before they each got up so they could fold up the blanket. Once that was done, Blaine placed the blanket over his arm while he waited for Sebastian to return from tossing the rest of their trash. When Sebastian returned he leaned down and gave Blaine a quick kiss before taking his hand. "Now, before we go would you like to take another picture since the Tower is now lit?"

"Will we be back in the evening again?"

"Probably." After Sebastian answered he could see that Blaine was thinking about what he wanted to do. "Why don't we take one now and we can always take another one when we return?" Blaine just smiled up at him while Sebastian took his phone out of his pocket. It didn't take long to get the picture since they'd both gotten very good about taking pictures of the two of them together. The hardest part was making sure they got what they wanted in the background.

On the walk back to the house Sebastian kept glancing down at Blaine who was taking in all the sights around him. Seeing Blaine's eyes light up with everything he saw, helped reignite Sebastian's passion for a city he'd left behind albeit not willingly. It reminded him of why he fell in love with Paris to begin with in the first place. While they walked he felt Blaine let go of his hand, but slid it around Sebastian's waist, tucking himself against him. Wanting the same closeness that Blaine wanted Sebastian lifted his arm up and around till he could wrap it around Blaine. There was definitely something to be said for walking closely with the one you love on a beautiful Parisian night.

By the time they arrived back at the house, Blaine just looked up at Sebastian with the most content look in his eyes. With not a word exchanged between the two Sebastian lowered his head just enough so that they could kiss. The kiss was soft and tender, but there was no denying the passion behind it. Once Sebastian felt one of Blaine's hands grab ahold of his shoulder he stepped back enough to break the kiss. "Why don't we finish this inside?" Sebastian said, while trying to catch his breath. "I'd rather not give the neighbors a show my first night back."

"Are you getting modest Bas?"

"I am for the most part when it comes to you."

"Yet we had sex on the balcony in Kensington numerous times."

"We were in the back of the house where no one could see us. There was a time where I might've wanted to, but not anymore."

"That's because you love me." Blaine said while Sebastian opened the door.

"That I do." Sebastian then extended his hand to Blaine. "Shall we continue this upstairs?"

"I can't think of a better way than to spend my first night in Paris than making love with you Bas." Sebastian just looked at Blaine as it was rare for either of them to refer to the sex life that way. Though they both knew on more than a few occasions that was exactly what they'd done.