Display of love
Title : Display of love
Author : siriala
Rating : NC-17
Word count : 4,500
Fandom : J2
Genre : AU RPS
Characters : Jensen Ackles, Jared Padalecki
Pairings : Jensen/Jared
Disclaimer : sadly, not even the fantastic city in which this fantasy takes place belongs to me.
Beta : honscot was kind enough to help me once more and I can't thank her enough, all praise go to her for any good thing about this fic.
Warnings/enticements : Valentine's Day schmoop, the boys living in Paris, bottom!Jared/top!Jensen, established relationship. Again, schmoop. You've been warned.
Summary : Jared knows Jensen is it for him. Now comes the time to show and tell.
Notes : I got the idea for this fic at the 2014 Saint Valentin after reading an article (spoilers for the story) about the way some people in Paris had added to the schmoopy celebration. Surely, J2 needed to do it, too !
Also, I'm wary about writing a fic that would happen in present day USA because I've never been there so it was a good opportunity to write something, other than historical or futuristic fantasy AUs, in a setting I know. That said, I have absolutely no idea how student exchanges between American colleges and French facultés work. I'm not going into much detail but please bear with me for the course of this little fic and suspend your disbelief. Verlan is "an argot in the French language, featuring inversion of syllables in a word" (Wikipedia definition). Banlieue means suburb, a cité is a housing project. RER is the name of the regional railroad network serving Paris and the suburbs, and, by extension, the train itself.
A few notes you can ignore, just FYI :
- Professor Diouf is played by the late Mouss Diouf and Jensen's friend and coworker by Louise Bourgoin.
- The Sorbonne university, founded sometime in the 12th century, is situated in the Quartier Latin, forever known for its liveliness due to the students and the many places to eat and drink.
- Chenonceau is my favorite castle, set over the river Cher, in the beautiful region Val de Loire which counts many more gorgeous castles. Its most famous owners were powerful women of the 16th century : Diane de Poitiers, king Henri II's favorite, celebrated for her beauty ; Catherine de Médicis, Henri II's wife and queen of France who arranged to get the castle back when her husband died (jealousy ? such an ugly word !) and worked on it quite a bit then had sumptuous receptions there, dilapidating a bit more the already depleted treasury ; and Louise de Lorraine-Vaudémont, wife of king Henri III (third - and favorite - son of Catherine de Médicis to access the throne and brother of the infamous queen Margot, one of the most interesting French kings in my opinion, especially when he's not caricatured and trivialized by authors…) who retired there when she became a widow after Henri was assassinated. Sorry, this is my favorite period of history, I tend to digress…
- The chambre de bonne described in the fic is a tiny maid's room that you can find at the top of the Haussmann buildings in Paris, the floor under the roof reserved for as many of them as it was possible to build. As their name indicates, those rooms were used by maids of rich families but are now often rented by students. They're usually accessible by stair only and the toilets are common to the whole story. At least it was still that way back in the early 90's when my boyfriend of that time used to rent one during his studies. Not a great place for a couple's life, let me tell you… But apparently, I remember it fondly enough that I gave one to Jared.
- Les Invalides were built during the 17th century, by order of king Louis XIV, as a nursing home for crippled soldiers. It also accommodates army-related museums.
Hearts and vectors on the banner found at Freepik, thanks to the people who shared the other pics on internet !
You can also read this fic on AO3.
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"You're leaving early, Mr. Padalecki."
Jared turned his head but kept on filling his backpack.
"Right, Professor. I'm sorry but…"
"Don't bother explaining yourself, I've been young and in love long before you," Professor Diouf cut in with a smile. "Considering the day, I'm to assume you have a date with that hot boyfriend of yours."
Jared's grin became blinding.
He still couldn't believe his luck. He had come to Paris to achieve a Master in French literature at the Sorbonne, ready to enjoy all the pleasures the Parisian life had to offer to a young, willing and not too shabby American guy ; never had he imagined he would meet there the love of his life.
But here he was on Valentine's Day, equally thrilled and anxious about the surprise he had prepared for Jensen. They may never have spoken aloud those three terrifying little words, but Jared knew his feelings were returned. He could sense it in each of Jensen's caresses, in every word his man said.
At least it felt that way. He was pretty sure. Almost convinced.
"I'm meeting him at this little restaurant where we had our first date, in the Quartier Latin," Jared explained anyway, because his thesis master had been the one to tell him about the place where he had invited Jensen for their first date.
Jared only hoped the outcome would be just as positive and sexy as the first time.
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Jared had become accustomed to the later dinnertime here in France and it was no hardship to go back home to change his everyday clothes to something more elaborate before he left for the restaurant. Night had fallen over the city and though February was in full force, the weather kept up and the temps were pleasantly high for winter, even at this hour. There would be no snow tonight to make the trip back to Jared's place difficult.
He passed a group of young students who had already celebrated the day with more alcohol than the occasion required and considerably less romantic couple-y feelings. Jared couldn't help laughing when he translated for himself the bawdy song they were hollering without any kind of rhythm or talent. He was glad to see that he could understand everything.
He had arrived in Paris thinking he knew enough of French to get by easily, only to discover that, like with any language, his academic knowledge could only get him so far. But he had learned so much since then, thanks to the everyday small talk, chatting with servers and patrons in the morning at the little café he liked to take his breakfast, as well as in class, of course, and then going out with his fellow students or friends, and even while getting to teach English to underprivileged young people in one of the eastern, multiethnic-populated suburbs. That one had been a bitch ! The kids were welcoming enough, asking many questions about his country and the life out there, but getting to understand their own language, especially when they used verlan and the strong banlieue accent, was still an ongoing process.
But it was thanks to this student job that Jared had gotten to meet Jensen. His architectural company had been chosen to convert the cité where Jared was teaching into a new, more humane, less-concrete-and-more-trees one. They had bumped into each other on a day Jensen had come around for a survey, then proceeded to pretty much fall in love at first sight. The rest was history.
They decided on the spot that it couldn't be a mere coincidence that two Texan boys met so far from home, in a nondescript French cité where the odds of finding each other were slim to null. They went for coffee at the nearest café, talked for hours to the sound of the pinball machine roughly played by a few regulars, until Jensen remembered a meeting he couldn't ditch. They exchanged phone numbers and began texting as soon as they were both settled in their own RERs to go back to their respective lives.
Before the lewd song was over, Jared pulled his phone out to write down some of the words he had just heard. He would make sure to find the song again on YouTube or Dailymotion, to sing it to Jensen someday, to try and give him some ideas… Not tonight, though. Tonight was about love, and even if he aimed to end the celebration in his lover's arms, Jared wanted to let him know first that he hoped to spend a lot more time with him than this year together before Jared was supposed to go back to the USA.
He made it to the restaurant with time to spare. Jensen hadn't arrived yet, but Jared knew an important appointment had taken him out of the capital all day. He also knew from an earlier text that Jensen was on his way back, close to his own apartment to put on something more in tune with the day's festivity before he met Jared.
Indeed, Jensen appeared at the restaurant's door not even a quarter of an hour after Jared had asked for an aperitif to pass the time. Jared's heart stuttered a bit at the sight. Jensen was easily the most beautiful man Jared had ever seen, but he had made a particular effort on this occasion to look even better. The charcoal grey suit seemed tailored on him, close-fitting in all the right places, and the white shirt opened at the neck was sin-inducing. But the best part of this attraction was to see it reflected one hundred percent in Jensen's eyes as soon as he spotted Jared.
Leaving his coat on the rack, Jensen made his way to the table and leaned down to kiss Jared. They knew the restaurant was gay-friendly but, on this day of all days, they would have pushed the envelope anyway. It made it easier, though, for Jensen to linger and let his lips caress Jared's for a long, lovely minute that left Jared wanting more.
"How was your day ?" he asked as Jensen was taking his seat in front of him.
He knew that Jensen had been dealing with this old client for a while, trying to make him see reason about his renovation projects in relation to the tightness of his budget.
"Frustrating ! It's just another few hours lost trying to convince the man that architecture is a real job and that we can't go with the plans he's drawn himself."
"I'm sure your ideas will prevail sooner or later."
"Maybe. Sometimes I think the stubborn old guy just needs to feel that someone is listening to him, and he enjoys the opportunity too much to let it go. Ah, let's forget about it for now. What about you ? Thesis going well ?"
"Very well ! Professor Diouf was quite laudatory about my progress this afternoon," Jared puffed himself up with a pleased smile. "I still need to clear a few points, of course, but it seems it's all heading in the right direction."
Their hands joined over the table without either of them consciously deciding about it.
"I can't wait to hear you present it and win top honors."
"Even though you don't care about French literature ?"
"Even though. You will be brilliant."
"I love your faith in me, as misplaced as it might be."
Jensen brought Jared's hand to his lips.
"I have no doubts whatsoever. You're gonna dazzle 'em all !"
Jared could almost believe it, carried by Jensen's faith and love. As usual, his boyfriend didn't need any mushy word to have him feel loved and supported.
It made him wonder about his own need to say those words, to let Jensen know about his feelings and his wishes for a shared future. In all things, Jared was more demonstrative, more obvious, and this probably just stemmed from that. But still, it felt unsettling to be the needy one. To be so much in love with one man, never completely sure that the reverse was true.
The waitress showed up then to take note of Jensen's choice for an aperitif. They also asked for their meals after she brought the alcohol along with a few appetizers.
"I had the strangest phone call from Louise this afternoon," Jensen announced when he put his glass back on the table.
Louise was one of Jensen's coworkers, a fellow architect who had been hired at about the same time. She and Jensen were thus very close, having developed a deep camaraderie and support as the new people at the office. She was gently crazy and had a knack for bringing Jensen's playful side to the fore.
"What did she say ?" Jared asked, intrigued.
"That I really have the best boyfriend ever and that she would try to steal you if her nickname wasn't so deserved. And then she hung up."
The poor girl was indeed often called Mouise - screwed, in deep trouble - for her luck with men seemed inversely proportional to her beauty and sociability.
"Would you happen to know what she meant, and should I be worried that you're going to elope together ?"
"Considering she still has the wrong parts as far as I'm concerned, there's really no need for you to worry. But I hope you already knew about my worth ?"
Jared was desperately looking for a topic to lead them off this minefield. It was pretty clear Louise had found out about his Valentine gift but had been smart enough not to let the cat out of the bag. And since Jensen hadn't seen anything yet, Jared would try and keep the mystery for as long as he could, preferably till they were back at his place and the big reveal could happen the way he had envisioned it.
"I had a call, too," he quickly informed Jensen. "My mom skyped. She says thanks for your pics of our trip to Chenonceau. Although she asks that you be in the pictures next time. She wants to be able to brag around over the prettiness of her son's boyfriend. Seems her friends think you're too good to be true, Mom needs proof of your existence."
They had taken to visit, one weekend per month, some of the many historical gems or any other kind of attraction reachable from Paris within a few hours of driving. It was as much about the visit as the time spent together far from their usual life, sharing a bed and all their meals. They had already planned to add Normandy beaches to their schedule once summer was back. And a much longer trip, possibly abroad, as soon as Jensen got some real downtime and Jared was done with his thesis.
"That can be arranged," Jensen agreed. "Next trip we take, you're manning the camera. I definitely understand why your mom would need to brag, seeing how her son has such an ugly mug…"
"Someone's not gonna get any tonight…"
"I was talking about her other son, of course. You, light of my life, need no embellishment of any kind to shine and attract the attention of everyone around."
"Much better. So, have you thought already about our next destination, Mr. Trip Advisor ?"
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After dinner, Jared took Jensen to a bar he had heard about, to end the public part of the night listening to music, gently making out and drinking. Then they walked at a slow pace back to Jared's place, hand in hand, laughing about some amusing or old-fashioned window displays. They didn't talk all the way, enjoying each other's presence and warmth for the last leg of their walk.
The entry hall in Jared's building was posh, the path to the lift covered with a plush rug that they used until they got to the side stairway, the only way to reach Jared's floor. The climbing was hard and long so Jared didn't wait to take the first step.
Jensen stopped his momentum by closing his arms around Jared's waist.
"Why did you want us to come here, Jay ? We'd be so much better on my big bed, in my big bedroom… the perfect place for the perfect St Valentin," Jensen suggested while nuzzling Jared's neck.
Jared couldn't help shivering but he didn't let his arousal derail his plans.
"I've got something to show you. Are you afraid of climbing those six stories, old man ?"
"Lead the way, kid."
Jensen pushed him forward without completely letting go of him so that he could cushion Jared's laughing stumble on the first step. Their age difference was an ongoing joke between them. They were only four years apart but Jensen liked to pretend he had debauched a young student ever since he had refused to believe Jared was 24 already, until Jared showed some ID.
And he loved even more watching Jared all the time, Jared pretending he didn't relish the attention.
"Stop ogling my ass, you perv !" Jared exclaimed as he could feel Jensen's eyes definitely stuck on his backside during their ascension.
"Now why would I do such a stupid thing and miss out on that perfect view ? Old I may be, but my mom raised no fool !"
Jared liked his little maid's bedroom on top of the old and beautiful Parisian building. It had a great view over the city's roofs and it felt like home, but even after all those months, used as he was to climbing the numerous steps to his sixth floor - counting the French way, first floor excluded - it was still a tiring exercise to get there. Jensen seemed to agree, as flushed and heavily breathing as Jared.
But Jensen's sigh when they entered Jared's one-room living place was not due to tiredness ; it was all because of the smallness of the chambre de bonne. Although his job ensured that he knew better than Jared the history of those maid's rooms, it still boggled his mind that someone could live in such a tiny space. He was amused by the ingenuity of the people finding tricks to make the few square meters count double, but Jared had heard him more than once make plans about how to join at least two rooms to create one slightly more decent apartment.
Jared stopped Jensen's musings immediately by claiming his lips as soon as they had gotten rid of their coat and jacket. As amusing as Jensen could get when dealing with his pet peeves, this was not what Jared wanted tonight.
Still, keeping your goal in mind when Jensen had his tongue in your mouth and his hands on your ass felt particularly arduous. Kinda stupid, too. But Jared had no idea how long his gift would be available, so he had to steal himself and let Jensen go for a few minutes.
"Wait, I have something to show you."
Jensen didn't really stop at all.
"Is it more important than making love on Valentine's Day ?" he whispered, his lips sliding the length of Jared's neck once again, so slowly that Jared couldn't help shivering all along.
"Not more important," he said almost intelligibly, "but really… really important."
He wouldn't win any rhetoric awards tonight but he could plead mitigating circumstances. He challenged anyone to resist Jensen in full seducing mode. Well, not really, because he would carve the eyes out of anyone trying to get to Jensen that way, but still, he had a valid argument for showing so little self-control.
"Ok, show me what you got," Jensen accepted in a lewd tone.
After a deep sigh to calm himself down, Jared took hold of Jensen's hand and led him to the window. Most windows of the floor opened either over the inner courtyard or over the avenue, but the one in Jared's room, situated at the end of the building, was better oriented. It had a stunning view over the main street, the crossroads, and even the golden roof of the Invalides' dome, weather permitting.
It also had a perfect view over the digital billboard standing at the intersection, one of those delivering messages all year long to the city's inhabitants. This specific one was planted at the right angle for Jared's perusal from his high vantage, and the leafless trees of winter couldn't hide the messages.
Jared was taking a risk tonight but he didn't care. The idea had come to him as he was checking the city's website during a research about museums, and it had stuck with him until he did it. Until he had found the perfect message to share with the man he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Something he was happy with, anyway. Something that would express his wishes as clearly as possible.
He offered to Jensen the binoculars he had borrowed from a neighbor, three doors right of his own, one of the first friends he had made in this country.
"Jared, what… ?"
"Just watch," he asked as he took place behind his lover and brought his arms around his waist.
"What should I be looking at ?" Jensen wondered, taking in the mostly deserted street, as his own free hand covered Jared's and stroked.
"The billboard."
Of course, it would have been easier, especially as Jensen's eyesight wasn't as sharp as Jared's, to wait in the street, right in front of the billboard, for Jared's message to appear. But he wanted this to be an intimate experience shared only by the two of them. He wanted to feel at home in case Jensen would let him down.
He also needed to be able to get quickly naked if it all turned out the way he hoped.
He could feel that Jensen was full of questions but the magic of the night made him wait and see. Jared let his chin rest on Jensen's shoulder and they read the messages appearing one after the other, marking the Saint Valentin as a special day speaking of love, sometimes friendship, in ten-centimeter-high yellow letters shining through the darkness. Love old or new, testimonies of years spent side by side or wishes for a closer relationship, through humor, spelling mistakes and different languages, all those words described the same feelings Jared had discovered with the man in his arms.
And then his own message took the stage. "Jensen, my life has turned into a dream with you and I never want to wake up alone. I love you, je t'aime. Jared"
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He felt Jensen's hand on his squeeze tightly, Jared's tension answering by rising to new levels.
He should never have run along with this crazy plot. Who the hell declared their love to a man they'd known for a few months, when at least one of them was living only temporarily in a country so far from their home that the mere idea of creating something permanent together was simply laughable ?
A fool, that was who. A fool who was going to find himself out of a lover as soon as Jensen let him down gently.
"I do have the best boyfriend," Jensen finally said in a strangled voice.
Jared rejoiced at once, the vice-like grip around his heart relaxing dramatically. He watched as Jensen turned around and looked up at him with as much wonder as a kid taking in his first Christmas tree, all laid out with brilliantly-wrapped gifts promising hours and days of never-ending joy and pleasure.
"I love you too," Jensen offered at last.
Their lips clashed together, lack of coordination soon swept away by the need to taste each other as much as be a part of the other.
Then Jensen pushed him roughly towards the bed, never letting Jared surface from the kiss. Jared didn't get time to deal with the sofa-bed so it was a good thing he had foreseen that part of the night and left the sofa opened before he went to the restaurant.
They landed more or less carefully, the bed protesting their combined weight in one spot. They paid it no attention, entirely taken by the feel of the other's skin under their hands and the need to take the other's clothes off, as quickly as they could.
Jensen won that race. He usually did, reducing Jared to a moan-and-shiver being, helpless body and mind feeding off Jensen's touch. From the first time they had made love, Jensen had found all of Jared's most sensitive spots and learned to use them to his advantage.
There had never been any complaint from Jared, for he couldn't get enough of Jensen's tongue lapping at his nipples, or the slit of his dick. Each of Jensen's fingers entering him meant more pleasure than he ever anticipated, and he was brought off the bed, just like each time, when fingertips stroked his prostate.
Jensen was still mostly clothed and it added to Jared's arousal, his cock spurting pre-come that was going to ruin Jensen's shirt in no time but he couldn't care less, warmed by the idea that he would mark his lover for all to see when he got home tomorrow, just as Jensen was going to mark him inside and Jared was sure his possession was just as evident to everyone else's eyes.
"I love you," he said, because he wanted to use the words aloud and see Jensen react to them, and he felt hot all over when Jensen had this predatory smile that meant Jared was going to be taken, plundered and ravaged very soon.
He spread and bent his legs, to arrange for Jensen to feel like it was the most natural position for them as they were facing each other, Jensen lying on him, his weight pinning him to the bed with no choice but to take it.
"Love you. So much," Jensen answered, growly and possessive.
His fingers worked Jared open for a little while longer. Jared also loved those moments when all of Jensen's attention was zeroed in on him, when he watched the play of Jared's feelings on his face, taking in his open-mouth labored breathing, the flush of his cheeks, his difficulty at keeping his eyes from closing. Jared knew it lasted as long as Jensen felt he could resist the need to be inside of Jared, as long as his throbbing dick would be content with sliding along Jared's, playing with his balls and perineum, wetting them more and more.
Slowly but surely, the strokes went closer to his hole, pushing Jensen's fingers away, replacing them at last with the much bigger girth of the engorged cock impaling Jared in one unstoppable slide. Jared's breath hiccupped at the sudden fullness, the heady sensation of being owned, unable to get away even if he ever so wanted.
Jensen thrust with all his might, setting a frantic pace that alighted Jared to the limit of his endurance, his own cock worked over by Jensen's hand. Jensen's mouth made it all the more irresistible as it went from Jared's lips to his nipples, licking as much as biting. Jared surrendered, ball of heightened feelings, and he came.
Yet he was not free of sensations as Jensen continued to fuck him for at least another minute, seeking his release with wild abandon. Then his rhythm faltered, and Jared felt it, the semen warming his inside and that he would try to keep in him for as long as possible.
He tied his arms around Jensen's back, rucking up his shirt to get to the sweaty skin once more. They would lie there as long as necessary for their sharpened feelings to settle ; until they could finish disrobing to sleep in each other's arms.
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Jared was awakened by Jensen moving to get up. He drowsily watched as Jensen rummaged through his clothes but, instead of putting them on to go to the toilets at the end of the floor, he took his phone out and then walked to the window.
"What are you doing ?" Jared murmured.
"I wanna keep a memory of your message."
"They're gonna put 'em all on the website, and I've saved the receipt email. Come back to bed."
"Yeah ? But it's not the same as here, from your window - this tiny place that can hardly be called a home."
Jared smiled. Ever the architect, his boyfriend was, even at three in the morning and completely naked.
"Don't lie, I know you like my place."
"I'm not sure I'm ready to admit that much. But I do love the memories we made here."
It was more than enough for Jared, and he could kind of understand Jensen's wish to keep a memory of the real thing rather than the impersonal website's rendition. Although Jared liked to think millions of people all over the world, far more than the whole population of Paris and the people coming into the city every day to work, could continue witnessing his declaration of love for however long it would remain online. He had already thought of sending the link to his family and closest friends. He could imagine their reactions, his parents awwwwwing, his siblings snickering, Chad calling him a giant sap…
He watched as Jensen snapped away with his iPhone at the billboard down in the street to make sure he got at least one good picture of his message before it changed again to someone else's, Jared's own eyes taking in the beautiful and harmonious form of his boyfriend's body. Not for the first time, he reflected that the architect who had designed this man, be it nature or a god, had outdone themselves on that particular day.
All pseudo-philosophical thoughts abandoned him when Jensen turned back towards the bed, happy at last with his photoshoot. He watched Jared with a raised eyebrow, wordlessly asking permission to take a picture of him in this intimate setting. Jared opened his arm to offer himself in any way Jensen might want him, also asking him just as silently to join him back in bed. Due to the compactness of the room, the old heater had no trouble heating the place, but Jared wanted his man back in his arms as soon as possible.
Jensen took his picture while Jared felt himself salivating at the sight of Jensen's long and pretty cock, sure that his lust would appear clearly in the shot. He needed Jensen, inside him again. Now.
He pushed the sheet away, entirely off his body, and opened his legs. Jensen got this message loud and clear, just as clear as the one still flashing, down in the street ; he threw his phone on top of his clothes and got back to Jared swiftly to lie between his spread legs.
Jared moaned when he felt Jensen sliding in him, the words "Love you" whispered in his ear. The path was easy and smooth, and yet all of Jared came to coalesce into this one point of contact between him and his lover. Feelings-and-body, together.
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With all his planning, Jared had completely forgotten that he wouldn't have to wake up early the next morning, that they had the whole weekend to enjoy each other's company. They would probably retreat to Jensen's much bigger apartment soon enough, but right now they could stay in bed for as long as they wished without worrying about Jensen's job or Jared's studies.
But when he finally opened his eyes to shut the damn alarm-radio down, Jared's heart skipped a beat. All he could see was the small open box right in front of the green numbers of the digital clock that gave enough light to show the inside black velvety cushion, split in the middle to cradle a silver ring.
He felt dumbstruck, speechless. Then he turned towards Jensen, only to find him very much awake and staring back.
"Will you marry me ?" Jensen asked.
-------FIN-------
End notes : you can see a few of the real messages shared here (with English translation). The City Hall website's page which used to show many messages is not online anymore, as far as I can tell.
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