Four Years

Rachel's POV

Paris was absolutely beautiful. Sure, I'd been to Paris plenty of times before, but that was only for a day or two. I was on tour. I never had time to go out and be a typical tourist.

When Pete and I first got to Paris two days ago, we stayed in the hotel room. Mainly because it was twelve in the morning when we'd arrived. But, Pete had had champagne and rose petals and all the other clichés you could think of set up in the room, waiting for us.

Needless to say, we slept together. Multiple times.

So, our first night in Paris was spent having sex. That's a fan-fucking-tastic way to start a vacation, if you ask me.

Our first day in Paris was spent at the Louvre museum and shopping. So beautiful and wonderful.

There were some paparazzi and some fans, but that was to be expected. I didn't mind them at all.

Our second day, we walked the tree lined streets of the western lower half of the Champs-Elysées, hand-in-hand, stopping at some small shops, and eventually stopping at a little place to eat.

The food was excellent. The people were fantastic. The fashion was to die for. I loved Paris.

I loved Pete.

Today was our third day in the wonderful city. Alex called earlier to check up on me, which was so nice.

Alex had a good heart. He needed to give it to someone else. Someone else with an even better heart.

Pete told me that he was gonna be taking me to a surprise. He told me to wear something nice. I didn't know exactly how nice I should be, so I just threw on a classic black dress, some lace tights, and my heels that I wore everywhere.

They were classy, yet casual. It was fantastic.

"Pete, where are we going?" I asked as we stepped out of the hotel doors and into the cool Paris night.

"Surprise, my dear," He winked, opening the cab door for me. I eyed him suspiciously before sliding into the small cab. He just chuckled and got in after me. "Seriously. I think you'll love it."

"You know I don't like surprises," I sighed, laying my head on his shoulder. "Why can't you just tell me?"

"Because it'd ruin the fun," He smiled softly, grabbing my hand. He ran his finger along his initials on my ring finger. "I really do love you."

"I love you, too," I smiled, lifting my head off his shoulder. I leaned in and kissed him softly. Kisses in the backs of cabs in Paris. Heaven. "Now tell me where we're going."

He grinned, "Nope. You'll see when we get there."

"Boo, you whore," I pouted, folding my arms across my chest. I watched the beautifully lit city pass us by. It was breathtaking. I almost didn't want to ever go home. I even considered asking Pete if we could move here, but I knew it wouldn't be for the best. He had the band. We both had family in America. It just wouldn't be good.

The cab stopped and Pete thanked the driver, handed him money, then got out. Confused, I thanked the driver and stepped out after Pete. What the hell were we doing?

We were by the Champs-Elysées. We had been here already. And, as beautiful as it was, I wasn't that blown away. If this was Pete's surprise, he'd definitely lost his touch.

"What are we do - "

Pete shushed me and grabbed my hand. He started walking, pulling me along with him. We weaved in and out of the crowds. Pete was on a mission. It was a bit odd. I was so confused.

Before I knew it, we were by the Seine. Holy shit. This was beautiful. I pulled my camera out of my bag - yes, I brought my camera. I was going to be a typical tourist and take lots of pictures. This was too beautiful to pass up!

I snapped a few pictures of the Seine and the lights reflecting from the water. Honestly, it was gorgeous. I couldn't imagine being anywhere else right now. Pete was the greatest. I pointed the camera over at him and took a picture of him looking over the river. I liked it.

I turned and took a picture of the people walking. It was a great shot.

"Yo', come on," Pete said, grabbing my hand, pulling me towards some stairs. We walked down the stairs, then it hit me. We were going to ride the boat on the Seine! At night! Oh, this was so damn touristy. But I was excited.

A boat pulled up. It had no passengers. Were we...

"Come on," Pete stepped on to the boat. I stared at him. Was this his surprise? He grabbed my hand and helped me step into the boat. "Sit."

Pete said something to the boat driver, then came and took a seat next to me. He smiled warmly, "You like?"

"Holy shit," I breathed out as we started moving. We were really riding a boat alone at night on the Seine. "Is this your surprise?"

"Part one," He shrugged, a tiny grin on his face.

I leaned in and kissed him. Part one. There was another part to come. Holy shit. I didn't think anything could top this.

Knowing Pete, something could.

I took my camera out of my bag and started taking pictures of the river, the buildings, everything.

"Holy shit, is that the Eiffel Tower?" I gasped, slowly lowering the camera. "It's so beautiful."

"Not as beautiful as you," He whispered.

"Okay, Mister Cheesy," I laughed, my attention going back to my pictures. I took a picture of the Eiffel Tower all lit up. It was way prettier at night.

"Wine?" He asked, handing me a glass of white wine. Fucking impressive.

I took it and thanked him by kissing his nose. He laughed and laid his head on my shoulder.

The ride was quiet and short. Pete just sat there with his head on my shoulder, drinking his wine, while I shot the scenery and drank some. He would occasionally comment on my pictures, saying he liked them or they sucked. His honesty was refreshing.

The boat stopped and Pete stood up, grabbing my hand. He stepped off the boat and on to the little platform, then helped me.

"Merci," He nodded to the boat driver. The man just smiled.

"Where are we?" I asked, looking around. People were getting on and off of boats. The Eiffel Tower looked so close and pretty.

"Port de la Bourdonnais," He grinned, swinging our hands as we just stood there, people buzzing all around us. I just stared at him. "Oh, just forget it. Come."

And with that, he was pulling me. We walked through the crowd of people that were getting off one of the boats.

I looked up and noticed the Tower getting even closer. Oh, my God. It hit me. We were going to the Eiffel Tower! This was fantastic.

"Surprise part two?" I grinned, keeping my eye on the Tower as it inched closer and closer. I had been begging Pete ever since we got here to go to the Eiffel Tower. He'd made up so many excuses. He'd probably had this all planned out.

That was probably what he was doing that one night he stayed up until the wee hours of the morning. Wow. He was fantastic. And committed.

"Not even," He shook his head. Oh? Oh.

I shut up and let him lead me to the Tower. God, it was beautiful up close. Before I knew it, it was towering in front of us. We were looking up at it and all it's beauty.

"Holy shit," I breathed out, my jaw hanging open. It was magnificent. "Pete..."

He looked over at me, that grin still on his face. It hadn't left since we got back together. It was adorable. He was happy and so was I.

He leaned in and kissed me deeply. And here we were. Standing in front of the Eiffel Tower. Kissing.

I broke the kiss and looked around. I found a tourist that looked kind and asked if she'd take a picture of Pete and I. She kindly said yes. Like I knew she would.

I handed her my camera and told her which button to press and how to zoom and stuff like that.

Pete and I stood, our arms around each others waists. Cheesy couple pictures for the win! We took another one. We were kissing in that one. Which I found pretty damn cute.

"Merci," I smiled and nodded as she handed the camera back to me. She smiled softly. I reviewed the pictures, smiling widely, "Wow. These are great. This whole surprise is great!"

"There's more," Pete said softly, causing me to look over at him, eyebrow raised.

"More?" I asked, eyes wide. First it was the boat ride with nice wine, then it the Eiffel Tower. Now what? "What more could you possibly do?"

"Part deux," He said, getting down on one knee. Holy fucking shit. Was he really? Oh, God. Oh, GOD.

He pulled a tiny box out of his pocket and opened it, revealing a giant rock of a ring. Holy motherfucking shit.

My hands covered my mouth as tears started to fall. Pete was fucking proposing to me. This was fucking insane. Everything we went through on Believers Never Die led up to this. Was he proposing because he really wanted to get married or was he proposing because he didn't want to lose me to Alex?

Which totally wasn't going to happen.

"Rachel Marie Woods, I love you so fucking much. I know we've been through hell and back...multiple times. But each time, we've made it out alive and stronger than ever. I...I want to spend the rest of my life with you," He said, his voice shaky as anything. Oh, God. "Rachel, will you marry me?"

I squeaked out a small yes and nodded. He stood up, a giant smile on his face. He slipped the ring on my finger and kissed me. People who had gathered around to witness a proposal smiled and clapped.

I laughed softly and wrapped my arms around Pete, hugging him so tightly. I didn't wanna let go. I wanted to spend forever in his arms.

"I wouldn't mind spending forever by your side," I whispered. We broke apart. We stared at each other as if we were the only two left in the world. No one mattered except us.

"I'm so fucking glad you said yes," He sighed. It was like a sigh of relief. The weight of the world was probably lifted off his shoulders as soon as I said yes. "I would've died if you said no."

"I wouldn't have said no," I giggled, wiping the remaining tears out of my eyes. "God, look what you did to me. I have mascara running down my face."

He laughed and wiped my cheeks with his thumbs, "You're fine."

"I hope so. What are we doing now?"

"We've got dinner reservations at this little restaurant down the street," He said, taking my hand in his. He looked down at our hands. "Your hand is heavier with that ring..."

"I know. It's huge! You're a wonderful fiancé, you know that?" I laughed, pecking him on the cheek.

"Weird hearing that. Really weird."

"Gotta get used to it, loverboy," I smiled.

We walked hand in hand down the street, huge smiles on both our faces.

I was engaged to the man of my dreams. Like he said, we'd been through hell and back. We'd made it out stronger. We were now getting married. Damn.

***

"Pete?"

"Hmm?" He grunted sleepily.

I traced the tattoo around his neck, "What made you propose now? Why not back in the states? Or...just why now?"

He stopped playing with my hair, and sat up a bit, "I've wanted to marry you for a long time, Rachel."

"Really?" I asked, sounding a little more shocked than I should've been.

"Yes. Honestly, the first thought of marrying you popped into my head after we got back together in two thousand seven," He said softly. "I didn't want to lose you again. I loved you so damn much. But I knew you wouldn't go for it because of the whole "must hide from All Time Low" thing..."

Wow. Ever since 2007? That was after I broke up with Brendon, then a few weeks later, got back together with Pete...

He's wanted to marry me since then? Holy fuck.

"So. I thought of this tour. This tour's been in my mind for about three years now. All Time Low wasn't big enough the last couple tours we did. And we thought that since they had a new album coming out, we'd help make them big. So. Huzzah. My plan backfired on me at first," He laughed, thinking back on it.

Damn straight it did. I slept with Alex and Jack. I put everyone in so much fucking pain. And all that time, it was because Pete wanted me to marry him. Wow, I felt like shit.

"You meet All Time Low once again and you come out to the public. Thus meaning I can propose to you without you freaking out about those jackasses finding you," He concluded, a little smirk on his face.

"You're a fucking genius," I breathed out. "A twisted, fucked up genius."

The smirk remained present on his face, "Thank you!"

"So this whole fucked up mess you dragged us into was all so you could marry me?" I asked, still baffled by it all. I didn't know whether to be pissed or flattered.

"Yeah," He nodded.

"That's so messed up," I shook my head. "But, at the same time, sorta romantic. I love you."

"I love you, too," He said softly, leaning in to kiss me. "Round three?"

"Fuck yes," I giggled as he crawled on top of me.

Best night of my life. Ever.