Paris, France

'

Christofer Alan bone was once again away from home, much to his delight. There hadnt been a trip planned for a few months and he had resigned himself to that time at home. He had put himself in the mental state needed to stay at home but when he had been asked to go on the trip he had happily accepted. His wife of course wasn't happy about the situation, "you always leave me, you always go away and never take me, you worthless sonofabitch." she had ranted and railed at him while their child lay sleeping peacefully in the room above them. Thankfully she hadn't hit him this time. Instead he was forced to sleep on the couch and sneak around her as he packed for the trip. But eventually he was ready to go and so he went to little Peter's room and saw him playing quietly while his nanny knit humming a soft gaelic tune as she rocked on the chair. He and the nanny had exchanged looks, time and time again had he been asked to leave his wife by the kind nanny but Christofer was not strong enough to do so, and thus Peter stayed in the home with a well equipped nanny to raise him. Christofer bent before Peter and the boy smiled an innocent and naive smile at him and Christofer gave the boy a long hug. "love you lad." he muttered against the boys dark curls.
"wuv you too da." the boy said softly to him and Christofer left a half an hour later and was on the place to Paris by the evening.

His company had rented him a small one bedroom apartment that he was free to make his own for the duration of his stay. He was to remain in Paris for a few months as the Paris oil division called upon him for help. In a way this was a sort of vacation for him, when he wasn't in long meetings or at fancy dinners he was free to do as he please. So not only had he packed nice suits but he had also brought jeans and sweaters and a camera. He had bought the thing on an impulse buy according to the sales boy it was the best of the best and Christofer intended to learn how to use it. He stepped onto the balcony of the apartment. It was downtown Paris and so the streets were alive with noise and laughter. He couldn't see the Effile tower but he was sure he was close to it. Smiling he snapped a few pictures and glanced down and frowned when they were all dark. He spun a few knobs and tried again and this Tim's they were far too exposed. Once again he fiddled around with the settings and was quite pleased when it came out as a fairly decent picture.

Once he was settled into the apartment he dressed for his first dinner with the oil company. It was to be at a fine little place a few streets down with a private table for them to discuss business. He dressed for success putting on a dark suit and tie. When he looked in the mirror he patted his hair down a bit, he had let it grow out a bit longer for the trip rather than his usual short fashion and he quite liked the results. Once he deemed himself acceptable to leave he locked the door to the apartment and then headed down the stairs and outside. He began the walk towards the restaurant and while he walked a few boys came up to him. They spoke a bit too fast for him to catch what they were saying but he smiled and accepted the paper and watched them run off to give the paper to somebody else. He looked down and say it was a band advetisment. The group looked interesting and since he had the dates off for the the show he thought it might be interesting. He wanted to explore Paris, wanted to see its people and be able to tell others he had been there. Carefully he folded the paper and tucked it into his breast pocket.

The dinner was long and boring, they discussed drills and ground density. Christofer was greatful when it was over and bid everyone good night and politely declined when they offered to take him out for drinks. Instead he wanted to walk around. He loosened his tie and undid the first button of his shirt and slipped his hands into his pockets and breathed the Paris air. He smiled suddenly and that surprised him, smiled for him were often forced and a sudden spontaneous smile was rare. Perhaps Paris would do good things for him, he mused as he walked along the streets.

Danielle had just gotten off work when she got a text from one of her friends completely gushing over a concert.

From: Maria
Message: Oh mon Dieu!! Le concert est CE SOIR! Je suis ainsi excité! Dites que vous serez là! Veuillez svp svp!
(Oh my God!! The concert is TONIGHT! I am so excited! Say you will be there! Please please please!)

Dani chuckled down at her phone and replied that she would be there. Looking back up from the mobile device, she glanced around the metro station. So many people, all hustling about with places to be. She made a mental note to paint this later, the people all moving in a blur by the railroad tracks. It would be beautiful. When her train pulled in, she boarded along with everyone else and stood next to the door. Shane would be standing on his head when she got home. J'espère qu'il n'a pas pissé partout... she thought to herself. The last thing she needed after a long day at work was to come home to puddles of dog urine all over her apartment. The metro rattled to a stop and she exited with the flow of the underground traffic.

When she arrived home, she was thankful to find that Shane had managed to contain her bladder. The massive dog bounded to greet her at the door, and she laughed as Shane's tail whipped back and forth in excitement. Grabbing her leash, she secured it onto her collar and took her out. It was such a beautiful day in Paris, so she decided to continue their outing down the sidewalk to the park. Shane loved the park, she loved being out in the sunshine and Dani felt a little guilty for having to leave her locked up in the apartment all day. We will be able to afford a house one day, baby boy... One with a yard for you... she thought to herself, in French, of course.

Shane slowly came trotting back to her and collapsed beside Dani in the grass, laying her head onto Dani's lap where she sat in the grass. Dani smiled warmly down at her and tenderly ran her fingers over Shane's soft fur. I wonder what Shay is up to, she looked out across the park at the pigeons and people. Dani felt her heart sink a little. Was she being a bad friend for not looking out for Shay more? After all, she was older than Shay and Shay didn't really have anyone... not anyone that Dani knew of, anyway. She was sure that Maria would have sent the text to Shay as well, seeing as Dani met Maria through Shay. That was another sobering thought. Dani really didn't have that many friends, aside from Shay and sometimes she didn't really know if she was friends with Shay or not. The crowd that she was in were going nowhere fast being pot heads and developing alcoholics, not your typical class A citizens. Still, who was she to judge?

---

---

---

---

Lily smiled at Chris as she felt the familiar clunk of the aeroplane touching down on the runway. As she felt the plane begin to lose speed on the runway, she quickly pulled a lipstick from her bag, using the now blank television screen as a mirror to apply some. The flight had certainly been an interesting one, even by Lily's standards. She'd met Chris at JFK airport, and it was as though they'd never been apart. They simply slipped back into their old habits that were so familiar from their time at high school. In a way, Christopher seemed different, like something about him had changed, though Lily couldn't put her finger on precisely what. Then again, she'd probably changed too. Although, not too much, she hoped.

They'd boarded the plane first, taking their seats in first class; nothing but the best for the Triple Threat. Besides, they were all filthy rich and could easily afford it. But the moment the plane had taken off, Lily had started to feel nauseas. It was a horrible, familiar feeling that often told her that she'd screwed up again. But Lily was desperate just to enjoy this holiday and push any problems to the back of her mind. She was here to have fun with her friends, and that was exactly what she was going to do. She'd decided to start the party early, ordering herself a bottle of champagne to celebrate the summer. She'd toasted the first glass with Chris, and then proceeded to finish the rest of the bottle herself. And as she drained the final glass, her nausea had completely vanished and the world had a pleasant fuzzy feeling round the edges.

It was at that point she'd decided to try and persuade Chris to join the Mile High Club with her. However, he hadn't been quite so keen. Disappointed, but not dissuaded, Lily had struck up a conversation with the businessman sat behind them. By this time, she'd moved onto the liquors, which only encouraged her flirtatious behaviour. Under the disapproving gaze of Chris, Lily and the man, whom she'd never actually discovered the name of, slipped off to the on-board bathroom. The thrill of breaking the rules, mixed with alcohol and sex, created a pretty good combination, Lily discovered. Five minutes later, she was back in her seat, proud and satisfied, but decidedly drunk. Chris had tucked her up to sleep off the alcohol, and she'd spent the rest of the flight unconscious. He'd gently shaken her awake as the seatbelt signs came on to indicate they were landing.

"D'you know when Minnie was meant to be landing?" she asked Chris. She had mostly sobered up by this point, but she could still feel the effects of the alcohol, slurring her speech ever so slightly.

She felt the plane come to a halt as someone with a saccharine sweet voice thanked them for flying with Delta Airlines over the intercom.

Shay sat alone at a table inside Starbucks and peacefully sipped the macchiato that she had actually bought with her own money this time. Her own money. She felt totally grown up today. Recently she had promised herself to stop mooching off of her friends so much, and Dani was most often her victim. Shay didn't want her to get annoyed. After all, she knew Dani was trying her best to save for a house. Who was Shay to keep her from that goal? Of course, it was such a habit for Shay to ask for money for small things that she never noticed when she was doing it anymore. She reminded herself that she'd tell Dani to refuse whenever she asked for some change. Besides, Shay had a job now, at the local Victoria's Secret store. Plus a future career in tattooing. It was time to grow the hell up.

Another thing she mooched off of Dani and her other friends was a place to sleep. Shay was pretty much homeless, but she usually slept in a ratty little motel in the heart of the city. It was all she could really afford. Dani's apartment was just...so much cleaner than her motel room. Her couch might've actually been more comfortable than the saggy, lumpy motel room bed. If she didn't spend the night at Dani's, it would be Maria's. If not Maria's, then Shay was probably spending the night with some guy or girl she met at one of her favorite clubs. They were always a lot more attractive the night before.

Shay resolved that she'd make an effort to clean her motel room, and maybe even buy some blankets to make her bed more comfortable. She wanted to make it a place where she could actually stand to live, because who knew when she'd have enough money for an actual living space?

Once she finished her apprenticeship at the cute little tattoo studio Je t'aime Tatouages, hopefully they'd give her the job and she'd be golden. But that was another year or so down the road, so meanwhile Victoria's Secret was her main source of income. She knew she was good at working there. Shay could tell anyone about any bra in the whole store and folded panties like a boss. She worked five days a week from 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM and was always on time, even if she had gone out the night before. It wasn't boring, so she felt that she was in an okay position job-wise at the moment.

Shay snapped out of her life contemplation as her cell phone buzzed on the table. Maria had messaged her about the concert that she'd heard about from everyone today. A young, local band was taking flight, and Shay had already decided that she'd go and support them. She loved music and liked to support local bands, plus having a good time was always a bonus. Supposedly her friends were going, so she'd meet up with them there tonight.

---

---

Johnathan had spent most of the morning nodding along to conversations that didn't really concern him all too much. Occasionally a friend or acquaintance would approach and for a brief moment or two he would have a decent conversation, but soon enough they would wander off on their own and he found himself lingering around the bar, blankly staring at the selection of alcohol on offer. He felt guilty just looking at them.

"Are you waiting to be served?" the man behind the counter asked, gesturing to the drinks that Johnathan had been eyeing up for the past twenty minutes or so. "No. I was just leaving," he replied, taking his weight off the counter so that he could keep a straight posture. "Thanks". They both exchanged glances, before Johnathan turned to exit.

The cold breeze of the outside world hit him like a brick, and he shoved his hands into his pockets and brought his shoulders up, releasing a shakey breath that caused a mist to cloud his vision briefly. He had no specific destination in mind, but simply just walking through the streets of Paris was nice. Peaceful, even.

He took a turn into an alley way, and when he had emerged from it he was greeted by the salty air of the seafront. He padded along the hot sand, shoes and socks in hand. His eyes followed the movements of families and children digging holes, seemingly competing with one another. He released a deep chuckle and shook his head, memories of himself being a child entering his mind.

Travelling had been something he was never keen on, especially on a plane flying half way across the world. It had always been a slight phobia for him which derived from one too many disaster movie. He even had difficulty taking the coach to New York in order to meet his old friend Lily. Despite the plane not being invaded by snakes or crashing on a deserted island, the ride had been less that smooth for the casual man. It seemed his friend hadn’t changed her ways much and drank half the flight’s supply of liquor. Paired with the fact she easily got bored of speaking with him, mainly because he refused to do anything with her (plane or not), she had turned her attention to a business man who sat behind her. He must have been about thirty-five at least. It was something he highly disapproved of but all of his attempts to stop her went nowhere.

He would have even got up to grab her arm as she left to the bathroom with him, but he was too nervous to even take off his seat belt. The only thing which kept his mind occupied on the flight was his portable game system; a Nintendo DS to be precise. He’d only brought a few games with him, Mario, Pokemon, Zelda, and some random game a college friend got him last year for his birthday. It was to do with creating your own people and controlling how they lived; Sims 2 or something like that. It wasn’t his favourite so he hardly ever played it. Chris couldn’t come up with anything interesting for his characters to do.

When Lily came back, smelling decidedly of sex and alcohol rather than the perfume she wore, he had rolled his eyes and closed the gaming system for now. With shaky hands he fetched a blanket and covered her up, shushing her to sleep to which, thankfully, she finally gave into. The rest of the flight was spent with her sobering up with rest and Chris returning to his game, only to look up every few minutes and watch the man she had fucked in the toilet. Somehow he believed them to be a ‘thing’ now. Eventually Chris found his protective nature kicking in and he fought verbally with him. After that he bothered them no more and it was only half an hour did they touch down in France; the unfamiliar jolt of the plane hitting the runway made him squeak with fear. He played it off as coming from the engine.

“D'you know when Minnie was meant to be landing?” Lily had asked, her speech still indicating the toxins were in her system. This would make it harder to get her off of the plane in one piece but he could do it. Chris slipped the consol into his bag and folded up the blanket, standing up and packing that away too.

“I’m not sure, I think she said she’d already be here.” He offered a shrug of broad shoulders and slung the black satchel over his shoulder. A hand was offered to help her up and he didn’t release it until they were safely inside the terminal with their suitcases and bags.

From there they headed towards the exit where they would be meeting up with Minnie and her sister, which Chris wasn’t sure whether he was happy about her coming or not. He was hoping it would just be the three of them like old times, but then who was he to say she couldn’t come?

---

---

Lily watched Chris slip some game thing he was playing with into his bag. She never had understood his interest in playing with those things. Why bury yourself in fantasy, all alone, when there were so many interesting people to flirt with around you? Lily loved flying. Stuck, thousands of miles above the Earth with no way out until you landed, surrounded by so many interesting strangers, all free with nothing to do but flirt with her. He also slipped the blanket off her and folded it up before packing it away whilst offering her an answer to her question.

“I’m not sure, I think she said she’d already be here,” he told her, shrugging and pulling his bag over his shoulder.

Lily giggled excitedly. "I can't wait to see her," she told him, her voice breathy. "Do you think she missed us?" she asked, but didn't wait for an answer. "This is going to be the best summer ever," she giggled again. Clearly, she hadn't sobered up quite as much as she though she had. But it didn't bother her. She'd spent the majority of the past few years in an alcohol induced haze. She was quite used to it by now, and, for the most part, it hadn't caused her too many problems.

Chris offered her a hand to help her up, which she gratefully accepted. She stood up, stumbling slightly as the world spun. She quickly used Chris to regain her balance and looked up at him with a smile.

"I'm fine," she laughed, her eyes sparked as she rolled them and a smile danced on her lips. She knew exactly what he was thinking. He'd always disproved of her drinking in high school, and she doubted he had changed his ways much since then.

She picked up her small carry on and made her way down the aisle to leave the plane, hand clasped tightly round Chris'. She flashed a cheeky smile in the direction of the businessman as they passed him and he looked back at her appreciatively, before glancing at Chris and looking away. Evidently, he and Chris had had a few words while she'd been dead to the world. Apparently, she smiled, he hadn't changed that much.

They made their way through the terminal, Chris keeping a firm hold on her all the while. All around her, the air buzzed with different languages and accents. She picked out American, like hers, French, English, something Eastern European and Chinese. It was like a rush around her. She loved people, and she loved being abroad. It was all so new and fresh and exciting. She'd been to Paris before, but never with her friends. This was going to be a special vacation, she could just tell.

As she reached the exit, she spotted Minnie and her sister... Aria, was it? No, Ara, that was her name. They were stood up, waiting for them by the gate. As they got closer to them, Lily let go of Chris' hand, abandoning him with most of the bags, and ran over to her friend, wobbling slightly on her heels as she crossed the distance between them.

"Minnie!" she said excitedly, throwing her arms round the girl. She looked exactly as she had done last time Lily saw her. She really had missed her.

Shay sat alone at a table inside Starbucks and peacefully sipped the macchiato that she had actually bought with her own money this time. Her own money. She felt totally grown up today. Recently she had promised herself to stop mooching off of her friends so much, and Dani was most often her victim. Shay didn't want her to get annoyed. After all, she knew Dani was trying her best to save for a house. Who was Shay to keep her from that goal? Of course, it was such a habit for Shay to ask for money for small things that she never noticed when she was doing it anymore. She reminded herself that she'd tell Dani to refuse whenever she asked for some change. Besides, Shay had a job now, at the local Victoria's Secret store. Plus a future career in tattooing. It was time to grow the hell up.

Another thing she mooched off of Dani and her other friends was a place to sleep. Shay was pretty much homeless, but she usually slept in a ratty little motel in the heart of the city. It was all she could really afford. Dani's apartment was just...so much cleaner than her motel room. Her couch might've actually been more comfortable than the saggy, lumpy motel room bed. If she didn't spend the night at Dani's, it would be Maria's. If not Maria's, then Shay was probably spending the night with some guy or girl she met at one of her favorite clubs. They were always a lot more attractive the night before.

Shay resolved that she'd make an effort to clean her motel room, and maybe even buy some blankets to make her bed more comfortable. She wanted to make it a place where she could actually stand to live, because who knew when she'd have enough money for an actual living space?

Once she finished her apprenticeship at the cute little tattoo studio Je t'aime Tatouages, hopefully they'd give her the job and she'd be golden. But that was another year or so down the road, so meanwhile Victoria's Secret was her main source of income. She knew she was good at working there. Shay could tell anyone about any bra in the whole store and folded panties like a boss. She worked five days a week from 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM and was always on time, even if she had gone out the night before. It wasn't boring, so she felt that she was in an okay position job-wise at the moment.

Shay snapped out of her life contemplation as her cell phone buzzed on the table. Maria had messaged her about the concert that she'd heard about from everyone today. A young, local band was taking flight, and Shay had already decided that she'd go and support them. She loved music and liked to support local bands, plus having a good time was always a bonus. Supposedly her friends were going, so she'd meet up with them there tonight.

Shay sat alone at a table inside Starbucks and peacefully sipped the macchiato that she had actually bought with her own money this time. Her own money. She felt totally grown up today. Recently she had promised herself to stop mooching off of her friends so much, and Dani was most often her victim. Shay didn't want her to get annoyed. After all, she knew Dani was trying her best to save for a house. Who was Shay to keep her from that goal? Of course, it was such a habit for Shay to ask for money for small things that she never noticed when she was doing it anymore. She reminded herself that she'd tell Dani to refuse whenever she asked for some change. Besides, Shay had a job now, at the local Victoria's Secret store. Plus a future career in tattooing. It was time to grow the hell up.

Another thing she mooched off of Dani and her other friends was a place to sleep. Shay was pretty much homeless, but she usually slept in a ratty little motel in the heart of the city. It was all she could really afford. Dani's apartment was just...so much cleaner than her motel room. Her couch might've actually been more comfortable than the saggy, lumpy motel room bed. If she didn't spend the night at Dani's, it would be Maria's. If not Maria's, then Shay was probably spending the night with some guy or girl she met at one of her favorite clubs. They were always a lot more attractive the night before.

Shay resolved that she'd make an effort to clean her motel room, and maybe even buy some blankets to make her bed more comfortable. She wanted to make it a place where she could actually stand to live, because who knew when she'd have enough money for an actual living space?

Once she finished her apprenticeship at the cute little tattoo studio Je t'aime Tatouages, hopefully they'd give her the job and she'd be golden. But that was another year or so down the road, so meanwhile Victoria's Secret was her main source of income. She knew she was good at working there. Shay could tell anyone about any bra in the whole store and folded panties like a boss. She worked five days a week from 12:00 PM to 6:00 PM and was always on time, even if she had gone out the night before. It wasn't boring, so she felt that she was in an okay position job-wise at the moment.

Shay snapped out of her life contemplation as her cell phone buzzed on the table. Maria had messaged her about the concert that she'd heard about from everyone today. A young, local band was taking flight, and Shay had already decided that she'd go and support them. She loved music and liked to support local bands, plus having a good time was always a bonus. Supposedly her friends were going, so she'd meet up with them there tonight.