Dirty Laundry
17
2012
Waking up the following morning, Riley had a small smile on her face before she even opened her eyes. She knew Alex hadn’t left her at any point in the night to go see his friends because she could tell his position hadn’t changed. They were both still laying on their sides, facing each other. Riley’s forehead rested against his shoulder and Alex’s arm was draped loosely over her waist.
Opening her eyes, Riley’s smile grew a bit more when she got a glimpse of Alex sleeping soundly beside her. It wasn’t until after she caught herself just watching him sleep for a few minutes that she realized she was feeling a bit better. Her head had stopped pounding and she no longer felt nauseated. However, her throat still hurt and she was quite congested, but she wasn’t going to let that stop her from enjoying the rest of her time in Paris with Alex.
Careful not to disturb Alex, Riley slowly reached for her cell phone off the nightstand. She wanted to see if she had missed any messages from Aunt Penny during the night. There was one message from her aunt, just checking in that Riley made a mental note to reply to later. It was too earlier back on the west coast in the states to reply now. After putting her phone back on the nightstand and taking the necessary medication, she carefully turned back to find Alex awake.
“Morning,” he smiled.
“Good morning,” she replied, frowning when her voice came out just as raspy as it had the day before.
“I take that to mean you’re not feeling better?” Alex asked, mimicking her frown.
“Actually,” Riley perked up, even if she was faking it a bit. “I’m feeling a lot better. My head stopped hurting and I don’t constantly feel like I have to throw up.”
“Excellent news,” he replied with a smile returning to his lips. “Fever?”
Riley shrugged. “I don’t think so,” she said, reaching for the thermometer off the nightstand and sticking it under her tongue.
Alex leaned over and pressed a light kiss to her forehead. “I’m not exactly sure what that’s supposed to do for a fever. I think you’re cool though.”
Riley let out a muffled giggle right before the thermometer beeped and she removed it from her mouth. “98.3,” she read out loud.
“Congratulations. I guess this was a fever you could sweat out...” Alex said, laughing at his own Panic! At The Disco joke.
“Right,” Riley rolled her eyes, choosing to ignore his lame joke. “So, since I’m feeling better today, what do you say we have a redo of yesterday?”
“Riley, you’ve been feeling better for all of thirty seconds. Do you think the best way to follow that up is running around the city all day?”
“Who said anything about running around the city?” Riley asked, rolling to her side to face him and pressing a light kiss on the side of his jaw.
Alex let out a long groan. “That’s not fair,” he muttered, no doubt referring to the location of Riley’s kiss.
“What’s not fair?” Riley asked, bringing more light kisses across Alex’s jaw until she met his lips.
Alex groaned again, using all of his self control to shove her away. “You should rest.”
“I have rested,” she argued, sitting up and dropping her hands into her lap.
Alex sat up too, reaching for one of her hands and giving it a squeeze. “We waited this long, right? What’s a little longer?”
A frown appeared on Riley’s face again. “I just feel bad. This is so not how I wanted to spend our time here together.”
“I know,” he assured her. “Trust me. I’d much rather you not be sick but it’s okay. Plus, the key point here is that we are together, regardless how we spend the time.”
Her frown slowly transformed into a smile. “Why do you always know exactly what to say?”
Alex shrugged. “It’s a gift; I guess.”
Riley laughed which ended with a small coughing fit. “That sounded way worse than it really was.”
“Sure,” Alex nodded slowly. “How about we make a deal?”
“A deal?” Riley repeated.
“You promise to stay in bed and relax for now and if I can still get a reservation, we can go out to dinner if you’re up for it later.”
Alex felt little butterflies explode in his stomach at the way Riley’s face lit up at his deal proposal. It felt like every time he was around her, she did something new to make him fall for her even faster. He was ready to take the next step with Riley and had been hoping this Paris trip would help.
“Yes, I will absolutely take that deal,” Riley beamed. “Dinner sounds amazing. I haven’t had real food in days.”
Alex laughed. “I’ll go make a call and you should order some breakfast from room service in the mean time.”
“Okay,” Riley nodded.
Alex was able to get them a reservation at five-thirty that evening. He thought it was best because Riley had plenty of time to rest during the day and he wouldn’t have to keep her out too late.
The pair spent the rest of the morning and most of the afternoon laying in their big hotel room bed together, watching movies off Alex’s laptop and eating from the tray of French pastries and macaroons Riley ordered for breakfast. By the time they were ready to leave for dinner, Riley could feel the pressure building in her head again and her throat certainly still hurt a lot but there was no way she was going to let Alex know that. She was just so excited to go on a real date with him in Paris.
Alex wanted it to be a surprise and refused to tell Riley where they were going. Ultimately, he ended up taking her to Jules Verne, a restaurant in the middle of the Eiffel Tower.
“This place is so nice,” Riley said with a smile on her face as she sat across the table from Alex.
He returned her smile, glancing quickly around them. “I’m glad you think so. It didn’t dawn on me until we headed up here what a tourist trap it would be.”
“We are tourists, aren’t we?” Alex shrugged.
“I don’t know. We’ve started touring around here so much, it’s starting to feel like I live here sometimes.”
“That’s pretty awesome though, right? You should be so proud of yourself.”
Alex nodded. “I am. And you should definitely be proud of yourself. I know how hard you worked on that presentation. I’m sure, despite being sick, it will be really effective.”
“Thanks,” Riley smiled. “I hope so.”
Alex grabbed his drink and lifted it in the air to Riley in a toast. “To us.”
Riley lifted her glass and lightly clinked it with his. “To us,” she repeated as they both took a sip.
Alex placed his glass down on the table doing a poor job of hiding the look on his face.
“I’m sorry,” Riley groaned. “I know this sparkling cider stuff isn’t the best tasting but with all the meds I’m on, alcohol didn’t seem like such a good idea. You could have had a real drink.”
Alex laughed. “It’s fine. It’s not that bad. It’s just sweeter than I want it to be. How are you feeling, by the way?”
“I feel fine,” she lied. “Better than this morning even.” She didn’t want him to make her go back to the hotel immediately after they ate.
“Really?” Alex asked, unsure if he believed her.
“I know my raspy voice makes it sound like it’s worse but I really feel okay,” Riley assured him.
“Okay,” he nodded slowly.
——
After they finished dinner and dessert, Alex paid the check, ignoring Riley’s attempt to split it with him completely. They continued the rest of the climb to the top of the Eiffel Tower and found an empty spot by the edge to take in the sight.
“Wow,” Riley whispered as she look out across the city. “I’ve been up here before a few times and it still kind of takes my breath away every time.”
Alex glanced over at her and cracked a smile. “I know what you mean...”
“Was that a line?” Riley asked with a laugh as she slid her arms around his neck loosely.
“I think it might have been,” Alex replied, placing his hands on her waist.
“It worked,” she shrugged, leaning up on her toes and pressing a quick kiss to his lips. “Thank you.”
An adorable pout was left on Alex’s lips after her short kiss. “Thank you for the line or the kiss?”
“Actually, thank you for tonight,” she said, dropping her arms from his neck and turning back to look out at the sky.
“Oh, you’re welcome,” he nodded. “That sort of reminds me of something I wanted to talk to you about.”
“Okay...” Riley answered quietly. She couldn’t help but notice how quickly his mood changed. He suddenly seemed very nervous.
“We’ve been friends and hanging out now for a while, right?”
“I guess...” she replied. She certainly was not a fan of his use of the word ‘friends’.
“Well, that’s a problem.”
“It is?”
“Sure,” Alex nodded, turning to face her. “I don’t want to be your friend.”
“Um... Okay,” Riley muttered. She felt her heart jump into her throat as she sort of went into a panic mode thinking she may have misread everything that had happened between them. What did he mean by that? Did he plan this Paris trip with her just to break up with her? Was there even anything between them worth breaking up?
“I think you’re amazing, Riley. You’re smart and funny and kind and talented as all hell. I’ve never had as much fun with other girls as I do with you when we’re out. Or even when we just stay in. From the beginning I’ve always felt this strong connection with you and I can’t waste it anymore.”
All Riley could do was watch him speak. Her heart has still pounding as she listened to his little speech but she was less worried about him breaking up with her now.
“Oh,” Alex continued, taking Riley’s left hand in hers. “You’re also the prettiest girl I’ve ever had the honor of kissing.”
Riley laughed slightly, giving his hand a squeeze. “Thanks...”
“You’re welcome,” he smiled. “Now this all brings me to a very important question I have to ask you.”
“Okay...” she said slowly as she watched Alex suddenly crouch down in front of her. “Oh no,” she quickly dropped down to match his position. “Are you okay? Is it your stomach? Crap, this is just how it started with me. I knew you were going to get sick...” she rambled.
“No, I’m fine,” Alex replied quickly.
“Oh,” Riley laughed. “Then what are we doing down here?”
Alex nervously shrugged and slowly started to stand as Riley followed. Once she was fully upright again, Alex went down, more obviously on one knee this time.
“Alex,” Riley gasped as it started to make more sense. “What are you doing?” she asked, that panicked feeling quickly coming back for a completely different reason now.
“I’m crazy about you, Riley,” he continued, still holding onto her left hand as he dig into his pocket with his other.
“Alex, you are crazy. Please stand up,” she pleaded through gritted teeth as she noticed they were beginning to form a crowd watching them. “People are starting to watch us.”
Alex held in a laugh as he continued. “Riley, will you do me the honor and...” he paused, revealing a small, black box from his pocket.
“Please stop,” Riley quietly pleaded as her eyes fell closed.
“Be my girlfriend...” he finished, popping open the top to the black box.
“Your girlfriend?” she repeated as she opened her eyes, a sense of relief washing over her when she saw there was no ring in that box.
Alex nodded as nerves now started to bubble up in the pit of his stomach. “What did you think I was going to ask?”
Riley shook her head and started to laugh. “You are such a jerk.”
“But am I a jerk whose girlfriend you want to be?” he asked, shifting uncomfortably as he started to cramp up from his awkward position.
Riley smiled as she nodded her head yes. “There’s no jerk whose girlfriend I’d rather be.”
A big smile washed over Alex’s face as he stood up and quickly pulled her into his arms and planted a big kiss on her lips. Riley wrapped her arms around his neck, leaning up on her toes and kissing him back as the small crowd that had gathered around them started to applaud. It would appear they didn’t actually hear Alex’s question.
“Wait,” Riley broke from their kiss and dropped her arms from his neck. “What’s in the box?”
“Oh, right!” Alex laughed, pulling two small beaded bracelets from the box. “One says Riley and the other says Alex. I had them made with this wire-y thread so they won’t break.”
Riley raised an eyebrow. “So we won’t forget our names?”
“No, silly,” Alex rolled his eyes. “You wear my name and I wear your name. Yanno, so even when we’re apart, a piece of me is always with you...” he explained, holding up the Alex bracelet.
Riley smiled as she held out her arm for Alex as he slipped the bracelet on her wrist. She held it up to get a better look at it and smiled wider when she noticed the last bead after his name had a heart on it.
“And a piece of you will be with me,” he continued, slipping the Riley bracelet on his wrist. There was also a bead with a heart at the end of her name.
“Thank you,” Riley smiled, leaning up to kiss him again. “You are the sweetest guy in the world.”
“Eh,” he shrugged. “There’s a lot of guys in the world. I don’t think you’re qualified to make that call.”
Riley laughed. “Well, fine. But I can say you’re the sweetest out of all the guys I’ve ever known,” she said, snaking her arms up and around his shoulders. “So, clearly this was something you were planning on doing this whole time... What would you have done if I was too sick to leave bed?”
Alex rested his hands on her hips. “Probably the same thing, just in bed, without the audience.”
“That might have worked better for you,” Riley said with a laugh.
“How so?” Alex asked.
“Then all these people wouldn’t have left thinking you proposed to me with a beaded bracelet.”
Alex laughed and rolled his eyes but his laughter was cut short by Riley’s lips crushing against his in a hard kiss.
“Let’s go,” she said, moments later when she broke the kiss and took Alex’s hand in hers.
“Where are we going?” Alex asked as she lead him through the crowd towards the exit.
“Back to the hotel,” she said, pausing to lean up to his ear quick. “I want to have sex with my boyfriend.”
***
Waking up the following morning, Riley had a small smile on her face before she even opened her eyes. She knew Alex hadn’t left her at any point in the night to go see his friends because she could tell his position hadn’t changed. They were both still laying on their sides, facing each other. Riley’s forehead rested against his shoulder and Alex’s arm was draped loosely over her waist.
Opening her eyes, Riley’s smile grew a bit more when she got a glimpse of Alex sleeping soundly beside her. It wasn’t until after she caught herself just watching him sleep for a few minutes that she realized she was feeling a bit better. Her head had stopped pounding and she no longer felt nauseated. However, her throat still hurt and she was quite congested, but she wasn’t going to let that stop her from enjoying the rest of her time in Paris with Alex.
Careful not to disturb Alex, Riley slowly reached for her cell phone off the nightstand. She wanted to see if she had missed any messages from Aunt Penny during the night. There was one message from her aunt, just checking in that Riley made a mental note to reply to later. It was too earlier back on the west coast in the states to reply now. After putting her phone back on the nightstand and taking the necessary medication, she carefully turned back to find Alex awake.
“Morning,” he smiled.
“Good morning,” she replied, frowning when her voice came out just as raspy as it had the day before.
“I take that to mean you’re not feeling better?” Alex asked, mimicking her frown.
“Actually,” Riley perked up, even if she was faking it a bit. “I’m feeling a lot better. My head stopped hurting and I don’t constantly feel like I have to throw up.”
“Excellent news,” he replied with a smile returning to his lips. “Fever?”
Riley shrugged. “I don’t think so,” she said, reaching for the thermometer off the nightstand and sticking it under her tongue.
Alex leaned over and pressed a light kiss to her forehead. “I’m not exactly sure what that’s supposed to do for a fever. I think you’re cool though.”
Riley let out a muffled giggle right before the thermometer beeped and she removed it from her mouth. “98.3,” she read out loud.
“Congratulations. I guess this was a fever you could sweat out...” Alex said, laughing at his own Panic! At The Disco joke.
“Right,” Riley rolled her eyes, choosing to ignore his lame joke. “So, since I’m feeling better today, what do you say we have a redo of yesterday?”
“Riley, you’ve been feeling better for all of thirty seconds. Do you think the best way to follow that up is running around the city all day?”
“Who said anything about running around the city?” Riley asked, rolling to her side to face him and pressing a light kiss on the side of his jaw.
Alex let out a long groan. “That’s not fair,” he muttered, no doubt referring to the location of Riley’s kiss.
“What’s not fair?” Riley asked, bringing more light kisses across Alex’s jaw until she met his lips.
Alex groaned again, using all of his self control to shove her away. “You should rest.”
“I have rested,” she argued, sitting up and dropping her hands into her lap.
Alex sat up too, reaching for one of her hands and giving it a squeeze. “We waited this long, right? What’s a little longer?”
A frown appeared on Riley’s face again. “I just feel bad. This is so not how I wanted to spend our time here together.”
“I know,” he assured her. “Trust me. I’d much rather you not be sick but it’s okay. Plus, the key point here is that we are together, regardless how we spend the time.”
Her frown slowly transformed into a smile. “Why do you always know exactly what to say?”
Alex shrugged. “It’s a gift; I guess.”
Riley laughed which ended with a small coughing fit. “That sounded way worse than it really was.”
“Sure,” Alex nodded slowly. “How about we make a deal?”
“A deal?” Riley repeated.
“You promise to stay in bed and relax for now and if I can still get a reservation, we can go out to dinner if you’re up for it later.”
Alex felt little butterflies explode in his stomach at the way Riley’s face lit up at his deal proposal. It felt like every time he was around her, she did something new to make him fall for her even faster. He was ready to take the next step with Riley and had been hoping this Paris trip would help.
“Yes, I will absolutely take that deal,” Riley beamed. “Dinner sounds amazing. I haven’t had real food in days.”
Alex laughed. “I’ll go make a call and you should order some breakfast from room service in the mean time.”
“Okay,” Riley nodded.
Alex was able to get them a reservation at five-thirty that evening. He thought it was best because Riley had plenty of time to rest during the day and he wouldn’t have to keep her out too late.
The pair spent the rest of the morning and most of the afternoon laying in their big hotel room bed together, watching movies off Alex’s laptop and eating from the tray of French pastries and macaroons Riley ordered for breakfast. By the time they were ready to leave for dinner, Riley could feel the pressure building in her head again and her throat certainly still hurt a lot but there was no way she was going to let Alex know that. She was just so excited to go on a real date with him in Paris.
Alex wanted it to be a surprise and refused to tell Riley where they were going. Ultimately, he ended up taking her to Jules Verne, a restaurant in the middle of the Eiffel Tower.
“This place is so nice,” Riley said with a smile on her face as she sat across the table from Alex.
He returned her smile, glancing quickly around them. “I’m glad you think so. It didn’t dawn on me until we headed up here what a tourist trap it would be.”
“We are tourists, aren’t we?” Alex shrugged.
“I don’t know. We’ve started touring around here so much, it’s starting to feel like I live here sometimes.”
“That’s pretty awesome though, right? You should be so proud of yourself.”
Alex nodded. “I am. And you should definitely be proud of yourself. I know how hard you worked on that presentation. I’m sure, despite being sick, it will be really effective.”
“Thanks,” Riley smiled. “I hope so.”
Alex grabbed his drink and lifted it in the air to Riley in a toast. “To us.”
Riley lifted her glass and lightly clinked it with his. “To us,” she repeated as they both took a sip.
Alex placed his glass down on the table doing a poor job of hiding the look on his face.
“I’m sorry,” Riley groaned. “I know this sparkling cider stuff isn’t the best tasting but with all the meds I’m on, alcohol didn’t seem like such a good idea. You could have had a real drink.”
Alex laughed. “It’s fine. It’s not that bad. It’s just sweeter than I want it to be. How are you feeling, by the way?”
“I feel fine,” she lied. “Better than this morning even.” She didn’t want him to make her go back to the hotel immediately after they ate.
“Really?” Alex asked, unsure if he believed her.
“I know my raspy voice makes it sound like it’s worse but I really feel okay,” Riley assured him.
“Okay,” he nodded slowly.
——
After they finished dinner and dessert, Alex paid the check, ignoring Riley’s attempt to split it with him completely. They continued the rest of the climb to the top of the Eiffel Tower and found an empty spot by the edge to take in the sight.
“Wow,” Riley whispered as she look out across the city. “I’ve been up here before a few times and it still kind of takes my breath away every time.”
Alex glanced over at her and cracked a smile. “I know what you mean...”
“Was that a line?” Riley asked with a laugh as she slid her arms around his neck loosely.
“I think it might have been,” Alex replied, placing his hands on her waist.
“It worked,” she shrugged, leaning up on her toes and pressing a quick kiss to his lips. “Thank you.”
An adorable pout was left on Alex’s lips after her short kiss. “Thank you for the line or the kiss?”
“Actually, thank you for tonight,” she said, dropping her arms from his neck and turning back to look out at the sky.
“Oh, you’re welcome,” he nodded. “That sort of reminds me of something I wanted to talk to you about.”
“Okay...” Riley answered quietly. She couldn’t help but notice how quickly his mood changed. He suddenly seemed very nervous.
“We’ve been friends and hanging out now for a while, right?”
“I guess...” she replied. She certainly was not a fan of his use of the word ‘friends’.
“Well, that’s a problem.”
“It is?”
“Sure,” Alex nodded, turning to face her. “I don’t want to be your friend.”
“Um... Okay,” Riley muttered. She felt her heart jump into her throat as she sort of went into a panic mode thinking she may have misread everything that had happened between them. What did he mean by that? Did he plan this Paris trip with her just to break up with her? Was there even anything between them worth breaking up?
“I think you’re amazing, Riley. You’re smart and funny and kind and talented as all hell. I’ve never had as much fun with other girls as I do with you when we’re out. Or even when we just stay in. From the beginning I’ve always felt this strong connection with you and I can’t waste it anymore.”
All Riley could do was watch him speak. Her heart has still pounding as she listened to his little speech but she was less worried about him breaking up with her now.
“Oh,” Alex continued, taking Riley’s left hand in hers. “You’re also the prettiest girl I’ve ever had the honor of kissing.”
Riley laughed slightly, giving his hand a squeeze. “Thanks...”
“You’re welcome,” he smiled. “Now this all brings me to a very important question I have to ask you.”
“Okay...” she said slowly as she watched Alex suddenly crouch down in front of her. “Oh no,” she quickly dropped down to match his position. “Are you okay? Is it your stomach? Crap, this is just how it started with me. I knew you were going to get sick...” she rambled.
“No, I’m fine,” Alex replied quickly.
“Oh,” Riley laughed. “Then what are we doing down here?”
Alex nervously shrugged and slowly started to stand as Riley followed. Once she was fully upright again, Alex went down, more obviously on one knee this time.
“Alex,” Riley gasped as it started to make more sense. “What are you doing?” she asked, that panicked feeling quickly coming back for a completely different reason now.
“I’m crazy about you, Riley,” he continued, still holding onto her left hand as he dig into his pocket with his other.
“Alex, you are crazy. Please stand up,” she pleaded through gritted teeth as she noticed they were beginning to form a crowd watching them. “People are starting to watch us.”
Alex held in a laugh as he continued. “Riley, will you do me the honor and...” he paused, revealing a small, black box from his pocket.
“Please stop,” Riley quietly pleaded as her eyes fell closed.
“Be my girlfriend...” he finished, popping open the top to the black box.
“Your girlfriend?” she repeated as she opened her eyes, a sense of relief washing over her when she saw there was no ring in that box.
Alex nodded as nerves now started to bubble up in the pit of his stomach. “What did you think I was going to ask?”
Riley shook her head and started to laugh. “You are such a jerk.”
“But am I a jerk whose girlfriend you want to be?” he asked, shifting uncomfortably as he started to cramp up from his awkward position.
Riley smiled as she nodded her head yes. “There’s no jerk whose girlfriend I’d rather be.”
A big smile washed over Alex’s face as he stood up and quickly pulled her into his arms and planted a big kiss on her lips. Riley wrapped her arms around his neck, leaning up on her toes and kissing him back as the small crowd that had gathered around them started to applaud. It would appear they didn’t actually hear Alex’s question.
“Wait,” Riley broke from their kiss and dropped her arms from his neck. “What’s in the box?”
“Oh, right!” Alex laughed, pulling two small beaded bracelets from the box. “One says Riley and the other says Alex. I had them made with this wire-y thread so they won’t break.”
Riley raised an eyebrow. “So we won’t forget our names?”
“No, silly,” Alex rolled his eyes. “You wear my name and I wear your name. Yanno, so even when we’re apart, a piece of me is always with you...” he explained, holding up the Alex bracelet.
Riley smiled as she held out her arm for Alex as he slipped the bracelet on her wrist. She held it up to get a better look at it and smiled wider when she noticed the last bead after his name had a heart on it.
“And a piece of you will be with me,” he continued, slipping the Riley bracelet on his wrist. There was also a bead with a heart at the end of her name.
“Thank you,” Riley smiled, leaning up to kiss him again. “You are the sweetest guy in the world.”
“Eh,” he shrugged. “There’s a lot of guys in the world. I don’t think you’re qualified to make that call.”
Riley laughed. “Well, fine. But I can say you’re the sweetest out of all the guys I’ve ever known,” she said, snaking her arms up and around his shoulders. “So, clearly this was something you were planning on doing this whole time... What would you have done if I was too sick to leave bed?”
Alex rested his hands on her hips. “Probably the same thing, just in bed, without the audience.”
“That might have worked better for you,” Riley said with a laugh.
“How so?” Alex asked.
“Then all these people wouldn’t have left thinking you proposed to me with a beaded bracelet.”
Alex laughed and rolled his eyes but his laughter was cut short by Riley’s lips crushing against his in a hard kiss.
“Let’s go,” she said, moments later when she broke the kiss and took Alex’s hand in hers.
“Where are we going?” Alex asked as she lead him through the crowd towards the exit.
“Back to the hotel,” she said, pausing to lean up to his ear quick. “I want to have sex with my boyfriend.”
***
Notes
Damn. I can’t believe it’s been 4 months since I’ve updated this story. Consider it a Christmas miracle that something went up! Orrrrr, I’m just newly re-motivated after getting to see them perform at 2 of the SWIR anniversary shows. Either way, enjoy the update and happy whatever you celebrate! XO!
If you could come back and update, that'd be great <3
1/23/19