Same Job, Different Time and Place [R-18] - Part 2

Alfred looked a bit confused and he stared at Arthur for a long moment. "Aren't they for sheep or something?" He questioned, still confused as he scratched the back of his head. Sometimes he wished he could understand some of Arthur's references. They were just so obscure at times! He really had no idea what to think when his lover pulled one of his obscure, unknown, very British jokes.

Though he soon looked through the menu also, not really knowing what half of the menu things said. Ah well. He would just pretend he knew and order something random. Or a food that had a good looking name.

"Of course I'm going to eat!"

Arthur looked suitably impressed. “Yes, well done.” He nodded. “You’re getting your xenophobic jokes right,” he smiled a little. “Although honestly, if you take a look at some of the people from Britain, I think we’d all rather shag a sheep, or a cow instead.”

He chose what he was going to have (which was probably one of the most filling meals on the menu) and held it so that Alfred could see it better.

“Mm, stupid question,” he agreed and paused for a bit. “Do you want some help reading the menu?”

Alfred laughed at that, finding good humour in that. "Yup. You know I gotta keep all up to date on my xenophobic jokes," He teased. He really wasn't all that bad. There were times that he was a bit ignorant of cultures and maybe sometimes he got frustrated with a group of people (just like many Americans) but other than that, he really enjoyed other cultures and immigrants when he really started to get to know them. He had a better appreciation of British culture because of Arthur, though he still didn't know all that much about it. Though he couldn't help but laugh just a bit louder at the added on part.

"Well, luckily I got one Englishman who seems to be an exception," He winked with a good natured grin.

Soon he looked over at the menu and his cheeks reddened. He didn't want to go through the embarrassment of having Arthur read it off for him...he wanted to choose a few things! So he soon pointed to something random, one thing from each section. "These things!"

“Hmm, you’re a right charmer, aren’t you?” Arthur teased. “Well, I’m glad that I’m not a munter in your eyes at least,” he chuckled.

He found it rather endearing how Alfred seemed to become flustered that he couldn’t read it. He happily read through the things he’d pointed at. “Uh, that’s steak stew, that’s pasta and tomatoes, that’s a spring salad and that’s a pear coated in chocolate… but I don’t think that last one is on the lunch menu.” He nudged Alfred’s knee with his. “I’m having the stew.”

Alfred just grinned with good nature, nodding. "Yup. You know me too well, darling," He admitted, looking like he was in a lot better mood than he was earlier on that morning.

He was glad that Arthur translated everything for him...it really was a relief because then he would have no idea what he was ordering. "I'll just grab the steak sew and the spring salad then," He commented, leaning over curiously at the menu. "And a coke...with ice this time."

Arthur laughed a little, sounding relaxed and happy around his boyfriend.

“No problem with the coke… I just don’t know if you’ll physically be able to eat both the stew and the salad. I thought that you wanted something light?” he looked a little amused. “We’ll just have to wait until someone comes to serve us. Its lunch so it’s pretty busy… let’s just hope that we aren’t waiting too long, eh?” he reached over and pecked his cheek quickly.

“What would you like to do for the rest of the afternoon?”

Alfred was actually rather happy that Arthur was being so publicly affectionate over here in Paris. It was definitely a change from what he was used to and it...it was just rather nice. It was nice to be able to express his love for Arthur openly and not be stared at weirdly. While they wouldn't necessarily be looked at weirdly over in New York City, at the same time...no one really looked at anyone over in that city. It was much too busy for its own good.

"Yeah, I'll probably just get the stew then," He agreed with a small nod before finally closing the menu. He thought about it before shrugging.

"Anything is fine! We can look around at some of the things they have? Maybe help me avoid the tourist traps?" He asked, smiling.

“Alright,” Arthur nodded, fleetingly feeling a little bad about talking Alfred out of eating food. “Tourist traps? What, like those dodgy blokes on street corners that try to sell you mini-Eiffel Towers?” he laughed a bit. “But there’s an idea, though. You wanted to go up the Eiffel Tower, didn’t you? Why don’t we do that today?”

A waitress soon arrived at their table and Arthur ordered smoothly in French before turning back to his boyfriend.

“What is it with you and ice in your coke, by the way?”

Alfred really didn't blame Arthur or anything for talking him out of eating. He knew that he had to cut back on his eating at times and not only that, but he did want something lighter. He just chuckled. "Yeah, stuff like that. Or attractions that have so many tourists that you can't see a single thing that you want," He commented.

Though he nodded at the mention of the Eiffel Tower. "Yeah! Let's go to the Eiffel Tower! That would be so cool!" He grinned, obviously excited about the very thought of it. Hah! That would show Matthew and his cultured ass.

He looked over at Arthur oddly. "Well, it's just better with ice! It's so much colder and satisfying! And every restaurant in the US serves it with ice, I guess I'm just used to it."

“Right, I see…” Arthur just smiled warmly across at him, enjoying his company. “It’ll be fun to go there,” he agreed. “It’s been a couple of years since I last went. You’ll really love it up there… unless you’re afraid of heights? Good Lord, you aren’t afraid of heights, are you?”

He certainly hoped not.

“Is it?” he tried to keep laughter from his voice, pursing his lips so that he didn’t just laugh at him. “Right… well… if you really think it tastes different,” he rolled his eyes, hiding his smirk as he rested his head upon his hand.

Also enjoying Arthur's company, Alfred couldn't help but smile warmly back at the other. "Yeah, it would be fun!" He said, eager and now a bit impatient. He really didn't know what to expect from it but he knew that he would enjoy himself. He soon grabbed a camera from his pocket, waving it around a bit. "We have to take pictures while we can!" When he really thought about it, Alfred came to notice that they really...never took any pictures. So he quickly turned on the camera, watching as Arthur hid his smirk with his hand before snapping a quick picture of it.

Quickly looking at the preview, he smiled warmly. "Cute," He commented lightly.

He rolled his eyes. "And of course it does! It's much better!"

Arthur arched an eyebrow as Alfred produced the camera. When the hell had he bought that? And where had he been hiding it? He wasn’t expecting for Alfred to take a picture of him however and spluttered a bit, swatting at Alfred’s shoulder.

“Cheeky git, I was unprepared!” he exhaled heavily, attempting to give Alfred his ‘I’m not impressed’ look, although he wasn’t really that bothered. It was out of principal mostly. “If I were you, I wouldn’t wave that around too much. Pick-pockets are common in this country.”

He refused to get into an argument about ice and so decided not to say anything.

Alfred bursted out laughing, holding the camera away just for a bit and seeming to enjoy himself way too much. "Yeah, yeah. No worries. If someone did try to pickpocket me, I would definitely chase them down!" With that, he scooted his chair closer to Arthur's own, holding the camera out and leaning closer to Arthur. Grinning, Alfred snapped another picture though this time with the both of them.

"Alright, alright. That's all I'll do for now," He promised, crossing his fingers before returning back to his spot.

He hadn't played with a camera for a long time so it was definitely a lot of fun getting the opportunity to do that again.

For how quickly it happened, Arthur didn’t have the time to switch his expression from mildly irritated to something more attractive. He just sighed a little and rolled his eyes, a small smile tugging at his lips.

“You’re ridiculous,” he decided. He missed the brief closeness, though. “At least give me some warning before you just shove it in my face?” He paused. “When did you get that, anyway? I haven’t ever seen it before.”

Alfred could easily see how that small smile pulled on Arthur's lips and he quickly took notice just how Arthur really didn't seem to care even if he was shoving the camera in his face. Who could blame him though? He had little to no pictures of his lover and he just wanted more.

"Mm, call me ridiculous but you gotta admit it's fun!" He thought about it before looking back at the camera before pocketing it. He reddened a bit, somewhat flustered as he scratched his cheek.

"Uh, I just bought something quickly in New York before we went to Paris. I didn't want to...you know...go through Paris and have nothing to remember it by except our memories. So I bought something that I could afford." He looked down. "It's not much but it's something."

“Perhaps,” Arthur murmured, “for you, at least.” He let his hand drop beneath the table to stroke at the top of his thigh, in what was supposed to be an affectionate manner and not something sexual; they were in public, after all.

His expression softened as Alfred told him that and mentally made a note to try and make their time there as memorable for Alfred as he could. He wanted him to look back at the trip fondly.

“You could have asked me to contribute something, darling,” he said quietly. “I would have helped.” He didn’t like Alfred to splash out on things when he knew that money was incredibly tight for him.

Alfred was appreciative of Arthur's hand stroking his thigh. It really placed him at ease just to feel it and of course he didn't view it as sexual, especially when they were in public. He never really viewed it as sexual unless Arthur was staring at him with sexual deviancy in his eyes.

He just smiled, lightly outlining the form of the camera in his pocket with his finger.

"Well, I just wanted it to be kind of a surprise. Don't worry about it. It was cheap enough."

Arthur squeezed his leg gently. “Sweet,” he commented, smiling a little more than before as he felt the situation become somewhat more intimate. “You’re…” he sighed softly, “a real sweetheart.”

He’d have to get Alfred something nice for his birthday, although he wasn’t quite sure what at that point. Something Alfred would appreciate and enjoy. Sky diving or something? He was pretty sure that Alfred would enjoy something physical and different.

The waitress returned with their food, placing them in front of them along with Alfred’s drink before she left again, leaving them in peace. The food smelt good. Arthur reluctantly pulled away from Alfred; his stomach was commanding him to eat.

Alfred's heart felt a bit lighter at those words and...it was just so nice to actually hear that from the other. To hear those words and that Arthur appreciated what he did. "Always for you," He murmured back.

He really wasn't even thinking about his own birthday. Usually he celebrated it with his friends but other than that, not all that much. Though they did throw a crazy party when he turned 21, which Alfred never really wanted to remember again as he had his first real experience with alcohol. He wondered if Arthur would even remember.

Looking at the food, Alfred heard his stomach grumble a bit but instead of reacting, he pushed down his embarrassment and began to eat, glad to have the ice in the coke.

Arthur heard Alfred’s stomach rumble and although he chuckled a little in response, he didn’t say anything because he was just as if not more hungry (probably more). He was polite as he ate, however, taking small spoonfuls rather than slurping it down quickly.

Even in the silence, he was glad that Alfred was with him. He wouldn’t have had it any other way.

Alfred was more than happy to eat the beef stew and he had to admit that it was pretty good. Though he already found himself craving for some good old homemade American food. The comfort food that he loved so very much. Clam chowder sounded really nice also. He could still appreciate the food that was here in Paris though. It really wasn't all that bad.

Their time in the Eiffel Tower was a lot of fun also. Alfred had taken a lot of pictures and though there were quite a few tourists, there were a lot less than there usually was. At least they weren't there in the summer if only because that's when most people were able to actually visit Paris. So it was definitely easier to get there and to appreciate the sight.

Though soon the day was beginning to end and despite this, Alfred really didn't feel all that tired yet. A thought pestered him, from the very back of his mind and while it flustered him, it also excited him. He licked his lips nervously as they both headed back to the hotel.

"Hey...wanna drop by the store here?" He asked, his intentions obvious though he was still flustered.

Arthur had enjoyed visiting the attraction again. It really was beautiful, and it just reminded him that Alfred would have to see it at night, as well. Alfred had obviously enjoyed it a lot, although he’d repeatedly insisted to take photographs. He put up a fight initially but he would always give in. He couldn’t stand seeing Alfred pout in the way that he usually did, after all.

He was holding Alfred’s hand as the question was asked and his own palm became a little clammy. It was sort of exciting but, it was a little bit odd at the same time. They were going to choose something to eat off of one another. It was bizarre.

“Yeah, okay,” he agreed with a small nod, heading towards the shop. Immediately he was struck by the options that they had. There were far too many possibilities. “Uh… any thoughts?”

Knowing that Arthur enjoyed the attraction, Alfred felt a bit accomplished at the very least. He was glad to get plenty of pictures of the both of them at the Eiffel Tower and just of Alfred and Arthur together. It was definitely nice. Maybe when he got a laptop (if he did get one) he would be able to put pictures in there. But for now, the camera itself was fine. Maybe he could print out some photos in the office (sneaking it of course).

Though now he felt nervous, extremely nervous and he couldn't help but wonder how Arthur felt about it. Despite everything, he was still excited.

Soon following Arthur into the shop, he looked around the aisles.

"Um...well, there's strawberries. That's an natural...you know..." He lowered his voice. "Aphrodisiac. Of some sort," He mumbled before looking around. "There's uh...also chocolate syrup or just regular chocolates." He looked around curiously.

"Any ideas?" He asked, swallowing.

Arthur raised an eyebrow quizzically. “Strawberries? How the hell are you supposed to… do that? They’re actual objects, not syrup or something.” He sounded confused. “Uh, well, as long as it doesn’t taste disgusting then I’m not too bothered,” he blushed a little.

“I would say chocolate but… that looks a little odd. What about cream?” he suggested, feeling even more embarrassed now that he’d said it. “But that might be a bit messy. I don’t even think that they sell whipped cream in this country.” He cleared his throat.

“But, um… chocolate itself isn’t a bad idea, either.” Arthur loved chocolate, not that he’d actually mention it. He was certain that Alfred would shower him in the stuff if he knew.

Alfred was still red and he was glad that most of the people in the store probably wouldn't understand what they were saying. Thankfully. It would have been horribly embarrassing if they were trying to do this kind of shopping in New York. "Well I mean like...you eat it off the body. And I suppose in the moment it just helps increase sex drive." He really was starting to get flustered.

He smiled. "Well, let's grab some fruit and maybe some chocolate. If you want to grab...um...some syrup or whipped cream, if they have that, then let's go for that. We can take a shower afterwards." He was starting to get nervous yet excited again.