Time Travel, France, and Romance // OxO // Closed

Lou chuckled. “I know, I get it. Believe me.”
He smiled, his eyes locking on Jay. “I’m so surprised. You’re taking this unusually well.”
Unless he’s acting, he thought. Unless he’ll leave right when we get back.

(That’s alright)

Lou chuckled softly. “Don’t worry. I can jump us back anytime. Heck, I can jump myself back to a time and decide not to show you if you really do want to… forget everything.”
Lou almost made it seem like he was saying he could make Jay forget him, if he wanted to. In which case, he could. He could simply jump back to the day at the coffee shop, and leave. Just like that. And everything would carry on the way it would.

Lou froze, wondering for a moment if that perhaps was the reason he had. He shook his head, narrowing his eyes. “No. I can say that’s for sure.”
He adverted his eyes from Jay, instead having them wander to the sky above. “I just… I wanted to? I don’t know. I don’t even have an explanation for myself. But it certainly wasn’t done as anything other than a gesture of what I was feeling.”

“Well, if I jump us back, get you some clothes, we’ll lose no time at all,” Lou said, smiling at the idea. “Literally. And I have some stuff at my place you might be able to wear… it’s up to you.”

Lou nodded, although it seemed solemn. He continued to get in his own head, imagining all the ways Jay could just… leave once they got back.
Lou hesitantly put his hand on Jay’s shoulder, his hand timidly resting there. With a sorrowful smile, he jumped them back.
In an instant, they stood in Lou’s doorway. The familiar image of the dimly lit house, and the warm air coiling around the two washed over.

Lou was extremely reassured by the smile Jay gave him, and Lou happily took his hand as he lead him to his room. Bean was laying on the bed and woofed softly as his tail wagged furiously. Lou patted him on the head, walking straight to his wardrobe on the other side of his bed.
He began to shuffle through clothes, finding a black button-up and a pair of grey slacks.
“This work?” he asked, turning around with the clothes draped across his arms.

Lou returned the smile. “See how it works. If you’re gonna be difficult, I’ll make you wear a suit.”
He snickered sarcastically. “The bathroom is just down the hall toward the living room. Or my closet is right there. Or you can change here and I’ll go wait for you in the living room.”

Lou rolled his eyes with a smirk. “I’ll go get you one. Now change, so we can go explore.”
He called Bean and the pup jumped from the bed, his collar jingling. Lou glanced back at Jay for a moment before closing the door.
He slid down his hallway, grabbing a few sets of face wash and cotton pads. He had no clue how makeup worked, so he pretty much just grabbed whatever.
He knocked on the door when he was done, his hands full of whatever he could find.
“Ready?” he asked from the door.

“Well you certainly look wonderful,” Lou said. “Say, I kind of like you better without makeup.”
Lou moved around to his bedside table, putting back on his round glasses. It was wonderful to see clearly again.

Lou turned around, fixing his glasses. “Alright then.”
He held out his hand and took Jay’s, smiling and focusing back to the time they had left.
They appeared in the same dark alley, the sounds of the city flooding their ears. Lou’s smile widened.
“I haven’t spent much time here in ‘05, but it seems nice,” he said. “Where shall we go?”

“Don’t know,” he mumbled. “Like I said, haven’t been here much.”
He looked around, biting his lip. “Let’s see….”
He suddenly glanced back and forth, then gestured for Jay to follow as he stepped from the alley.
Lou lead the man down the beautifully lit streets, swerving through intersections and watching horse-drawn carriages parade down the roads. Lanterns hung from doorways and fewer people dotted the city.

“I’ve been here only once,” Lou said with a smile as they walked. “I normally go back to a later time. Before a lot of settlement. I don’t necessarily like the city much.”
He gazed around, in awe of the city himself.

Lou soon caught sight of an illuminated boutique just a little ways down the road. Lou nudged Jay with his elbow, kicking off happily into a jog before reaching the door.
He looked behind to see if Jay had followed, then stepped inside. It smelled like sweet tea and coffee, and extravagant clothing hung from ornate racks. Lou smiled, seeing a hat rack.
He popped one off the rack, setting the flat cap bunnet down on his head. His wavy hair poked out from underneath and his glasses were only slightly askew.
“So?” he asked, turning around after fixing it on. “Whatcha think?”

He looked around, putting his hands in his slacks pockets. Sure enough, he found a few francs.
He walked up to the counter, putting down the flat cap and a couple golden coins.
The man at the counter took up the coins, telling the men to have a good night in fluent french.
“Merci, monsieur,” Lou replied. “Vous aussi.”
Louis picked up the hat again, this time setting it atop Jay’s head. He playfully tugged the end down, having Jay’s hair and the hat fall into his eyes. He smiled as he walked out of the boutique, glancing back at the man and snickering.
He leaned on the door frame, grinning.
“I always gotta keep a couple francs in my pocket, eh?” he said with a shrug. “Never know what time you’re going back to.”

“Loosen up,” Lou laughed. “Haven’t you ever been to the 1900’s, handsome?”
He smiled, having Jay wall beside him as he guided the pair down the street once more. He turned around, walking backward so he could be facing Jay.
“It’s after 10:00 at least. Now, pretty much anyone will think we’re drunk,” he said with a chuckle. “Which means I can compliment you all I want— with only half the judgement.”