Horseshoes and Hand Grenades

"Good mornin', sunshine," Jack greeted the next morning, pressing a kiss to Alex's temple as he blinked his eyes open.

"Why're you always like this?" Alex muttered sleepily, eyes closing once again when he stretched his arms up over his head.

"Like what?" Jack asked, fingers tracing over the fading marks on Alex's chest.

"So mushy 'n' gross," Alex laughed. Jack smiled, shaking his head.

"Shut up," Jack said, sitting up. "You love it."

"A little," Alex admitted, following in Jack's lead as he got up to get dressed. Keeping in mind that they would take lots of pictures, Alex tried his best to look nice. He made sure his hair was fixed exactly how he wanted it, and he put on one of his nicer pairs of shorts, the ones that cuffed just above his knee. Wearing shorts everyday was still so foreign to him, as he never had to bother trying to stay cool. It would be hot when they got back too, but at least it wouldn't be as hot as France.

"You look nice," Jack commented as they left their room, heading to the breakfast room. Alex had already eaten some of the food he left in their room, but he chose to accompany Jack since he was already ready.

Smiling at the compliment, Alex reached for Jack's hand. Jack accepted it, giving Alex's a small squeeze. He could tell how excited Alex was, and it raised his mood even more. The rest of the group was downstairs already, and they ate quickly before it was time to start their day.

"Alex," Marissa said later on, turning around in her seat on the bus to face the boy behind her. Natasha, who sat beside her, turned around to look at Alex through the space in the seats as well.

"Hey," Alex looked up, glad to be included in a conversation for the rest of their bus ride. Jack was talking to Zack and Rian across the aisle, and although he knew they'd be pleased for him to join them, Alex didn't really know the people they were talking about. He also didn't know much about sports, and that's what the other boys were talking about, as the seasons were due to start up soon. Jack kept his hand on Alex's knee, and the idea of it made Alex grin. He never wanted Alex to feel like he was being ignored.

Her eyes flicking up and across the aisle quickly before speaking, Natasha asked quietly, "Do you have any idea why Max is so quiet today? I talked to him this morning, and he barely answered me."

Alex laughed awkwardly in response, looking down in his lap. He didn't want to embarrass Max, or himself really, but he knew Marissa and Natasha would be interested. "Uh, when I was with Max yesterday, he told me he liked- er, loved, me. Jack went to talk to him after, I guess." Alex felt Jack grip his leg tighter when he said this. He hasn't known Jack was listening, but apparently he was.

"Wait, what?" Natasha gasped. Meanwhile, Marissa stared at Alex, her jaw practically on the floor.

Alex laughed. They both looked so shocked, it was kind of funny. "That's really it. It was all he said, and then I went back to our room. Jack came back and we talked, and then he went to go talk to Max. I don't know what they discussed, but Jack gave me a general idea."

Marissa was the next to speak. "So, Jack isn't mad at you or anything?"

"Why would he be mad?" Alex asked, trying to keep quiet. "I honestly didn't know, and he knows I didn't, too." After Alex spoke, Jack's thumb swept over his leg reassuringly. He was still listening. Alex didn't think Rian or Zack could hear him, but Jack would probably end up telling them later on.

"That's true," Marissa nodded. "Well, hopefully nothing's awkward now."

"Things might be okay," Alex hummed. "Since he didn't really do anything besides talk to me, Jack isn't really bothered, and neither am I."

The girls hummed in agreement. "I wish you just stayed with us," Natasha sighed, "Then maybe you would've had a better night."

"My night was fine," Alex smiled, "Jack and I are fine, now, too."

Marissa gave Alex a knowing look, but decided not to press on while everybody was around. She liked bothering him about what he and Jack did during their alone time, because he always had the funniest reactions. Generally, she also cared about Alex's personal life, as well. Alex didn't much mind, because he had some of his own questions to ask Marissa about her relationship in his mind. While spending so much time focused on Jack, Alex had completely forgotten that Marissa is here with her boyfriend, too, and he wanted to know the details.

The Eiffel Tower was even more exciting than everyone had thought it would be. Paris generally had a cozy yet bustling atmosphere, and it was so pleasant to take in the sights that the students had only seen in photographs before. From a ways away they could see it, and took their first round of pictures with the monument. The group then decided to spend the day sightseeing other places first, like The Place de la Bastille, the Arc De Triomphe, and the Louvre. Alex constantly had his camera up, not wanting to forget a moment of how beautiful it was. What he did forget, though, was to preserve the memories of the people he was with. Lucky for him, Jack had that covered. He had dozens of pictures of Alex taking pictures, of Alex looking at things, of Alex looking at him, and of the two of them together. He also made sure to take lots of pictures of his friends, as well.

When night finally fell, it was time to go up. At last, they would get to see all of Paris from one of the most famous sights in the world. The lines were long though, so realizing it'd be smart to settle down, Alex held his bag on the ground between his legs and leaned his head onto Jack's chest.

"I'm tired too," Jack laughed, "This isn't fair."

"That's too bad," Alex yawns. "You're taller."

Alex is pretty sure he sees Natasha take a picture of them, and he smiles against Jack's shirt. The line continues to move slowly, until they finally reach the booths, and then the tower, and then the elevators. People were pushing past each other to be the first ones inside, and Alex figured their group would probably split up. He wasn't expecting Jack's hand to be separated from his, his boyfriend moving forward with the rest of the group while turning around and looking to see where Alex had gone. Being struck by the beauty of the inside of the building, Alex hadn't realized he was falling behind, and it was too late. Jack, along with everybody else, was in the elevator now. At least Jack knew he wasn't there, and would probably be waiting for him right at the top.

"Hey," Alex heard from behind him, his nerves diminishing when he realized who was standing over his shoulder.

"Oh," Alex breathed, "Hi."

"I thought I was alone for a second," Max laughed.

"So did I," Alex smiled, glad to not be by himself anymore. It made the whole experience a lot more stressful. As they took the elevator up, Alex and Max were rather quiet. It wasn't an awkward silence by any means, though. Alex still felt comfortable around Max. He didn't feel the need to have a guard up. When the elevator doors opened, Alex was torn between running to the edge and seeing the view and finding his friends. Realizing the group probably would have had to move along so they weren't in the way, Alex decided to walk near the edge as he looked for them, leading Max along with them. Once they spotted the group, Alex was about to make a beeline for them, when Max pulled him back by his hand. Alex looked at him with confused eyes, but there wasn't much time for anything to be explained.

"Before we go over there," Max said, his voice rushed and nervous, the last thing that made sense to Alex before he felt a foreign pair of lips being pressed to his.

Although he felt an arm around his waist, Alex pulled back when the shock wore off, ripping through Max's grasp before stumbling backward. He couldn't form any words, he just stood gawking at his friend, before twisting around and practically flying away. Everything was blurry and shaky, and he lost his and fell just a few metres away from where he was supposed to be. It seemed like Max would stay on the other side of the tower, as Alex turned around to see that he wasn't making any further advances. Blood rushed to his knee, and the area throbbed as he stood up carefully and checked it out. It was definitely going to bruise, and there was already a bit of a cut on it. It didn't matter though, none of it mattered, all that mattered was Jack. Alex finished his short walk with buzzing limbs, tapping Jack on the shoulder gently. Jack turned around with a smile, his face contorting into one of both shock and confusion when he saw tears welling in Alex's eyes. He got a glimpse of the way Alex was holding his leg gently above the ground, looking as to not apply any pressure to it, before Alex was falling into him, covering his shirt in tears.

"Shh," Jack soothed him, "Hey, what happened?" When he got no response, he tried again. "It's okay, Alex. Tell me what's wrong."

Looking up at Jack with eyes just as sparkly as the city below them, Alex looked ashamed as he said with a hiccup in the faintest whisper, "Max kissed me."

Notes

hi friends!! was anybody expecting that??

sorry for taking like 3 weeks this time lmao things are a bit tough rn but i think everything's going to lighten up in december :^)

thanks for reading and thanks to SophieGaskarth and Alltimegabi for commenting.