City of Blinding Lights

"This is crazy, I've never done anything like this before," Caleb said with a grin as he attacked his ice cream with the pink plastic spoon that he had been given.

Audrey and Caleb were safely on the ground again, after having spent half an hour enjoying the view at the great height of the Eiffel Tower. The descent with the elevator proved to be a nerve wrecking experience for Audrey, yet the trauma was lessened by the soft yet comforting grip that Caleb had on her shaking hands. Audrey had stood as stiff as a board, her shallow breathing racking her chest and she had her head buried in Caleb's chest as the elevator began its mockingly slow descent back down.

Audrey flew out of the elevator the minute the doors opened and she sank down on a near by park bench, putting her head between her knees as her breathing returned to normal.

Caleb had strolled towards her with a smile on his face.

"You alright?" He asked with genuine concern and received a wry smile and nod from Audrey, who attempted to stand up again slowly.

Caleb then insisted on providing Audrey with his cure for what he called he 'post height shivers', and so it came that Caleb and Audrey were sat cross legged on the grassy ground behind the lit up Eiffel tower, that glowed brighter than anyone could have possibly imagined, happily finishing the ice cream that Caleb had bought at a ridiculous price from an ice cream stall not far off from the tower.

It was late evening, well past nine o'clock and yet neither Caleb nor Audrey felt the need to leave just yet.

Having finished their cups of ice cream, they sat in silence looking up at the master piece of human architecture, Audrey resting her head on Caleb's shoulder and his hand searching for her own.

The only thing that perturbed Audrey about Caleb was how easily she was growing fond of him. He was such a refreshing change from the boys her mother drummed her up to meet and date. Caleb took things a day at a time and seemed to have little care for what was going to happen next. He just went with the flow, rather than trying to control it, and this was what Audrey admired about Caleb so much.

Caleb also found himself growing far too fond of the mysterious girl that he had only know for three days. Yet he took it in his stride. Here they were sat closely next to each other in front of the lit up mass of steel that was the Eiffel Tower. They were already living every lovebird's clique, and neither of them had a problem with that.

"So tell me what are you doing in Paris then?" Caleb asked softly glancing down at Audrey who avoided his eye contact by fixing her eyes to the top of the Eiffel Tower.

She was deliberating in her mind as to what she should tell him. Lying would only complicate things, but telling him the truth would be pushing the boundaries of their tentative relationship that had only just begun. Telling him the truth would mean letting him into her life and giving him an important part. This was a problem for Audrey, as she knew that in as little as six days Caleb and the rest of his crazy group of friends would be on to the next city. It seemed as though he were only a temporary, if blissful presence in her life.

But one thing Audrey had learned in recent times was to trust herself and just do what she felt was best.

"I came here to clear my head," she said softly. "I was staying in Munich with an old German school friend and I had a bit of an identity crisis," she carried on with a soft chuckle.

She was waiting for Caleb to question her sanity and edge away from her. Yet he did neither and instead cocked his head to one side to show he was listening intently.

"I've always wanted to go to Paris you know, start a small clothing line and see where it takes me," Audrey said with a smile as her dreams took her off the earth she was sitting on and carried her up to the stars. "I just wanted to do my own thing, and Paris seemed to be the best place to do that."

Caleb sent a heart-warming smile down at Audrey. He knew that what she had just told him was something that was not the first thing she told people whom she had only just met. It meant a lot to him, but he did not want to vocalize this thought, as he didn't want to sound like a sap.

Instead he acted on an impulse that he would have normally attempt to suppress, but the Paris air and atmosphere had obviously gone to his head because before he knew it he had bent his head and connected his lips to her own.

Audrey froze for a moment, totally surprised by this sudden show of affection. Yet after a few seconds she let herself go and she edged closer to Caleb and threw her arms around his neck. One of his hands was at her cheek and the other was at her waist.

It could have looked like a scene from your typical romance film but this was as real as it got. The heavy summer air seemed to hum around them and wrap them in the joy of summer weeks to come.

When Audrey had first walked down the Champs d'Elysee, she had imagined herself falling in love with a dark haired tanned French boy who bought her petite fours and showed her around the city, which symbolized everything that Europe was about. But here she found herself falling for a ginger haired American who played in a band and who had never been to France till now.

Audrey let the feeling of recklessness take over her, and to her great surprise it was a shade that suited her. She was ready to fall head over heels in love with this boy, regardless of where it was going to leave her.