By Zephyria 
Because they took the outer city’s ring road, the dark scenery outside the window didn’t give the special impression that this was Paris. Nevertheless, Song Hyun-soo pressed his nose against the car window, unable to take his eyes off the outside world.
He was busy admiring the signs in French, the strangely shaped streetlights, and so on.
Relegated to the sidelines, Yoon Joo-ho could only watch Song Hyun-soo’s back as he rested his elbow on the windowsill, propping up his temple.
“Ooh, Sunbae, it feels like Paris now!”
Song Hyun-soo exclaimed in an excited voice.
As they exited the ring road and entered a wide road that served as the boundary between the 16th and 17th arrondissements, the surrounding buildings began to exude a distinctly Parisian feel. Haussmann-style buildings with balconies, and open-air cafes on the ground floor. It was the typical image of Paris that foreigners envision.
Yoon Joo-ho retorted in a displeased tone.
“It’s been Paris for the past two hours, you know?”
However, it seemed that his disgruntled voice didn’t reach Song Hyun-soo.
“Sunbae, look at the cafe! It’s a real Parisian cafe!”
Song Hyun-soo looked as if he was about to run out the window. He pointed to a cafe with green and white awnings and outdoor seating, cheering.
“You’re like a kid at a theme park.”
“Huh?”
Only then did Song Hyun-soo turn to Yoon Joo-ho.
“What did you say, Sunbae?”
“Did you forget I was even here?”
“Eii, how could I… Oooooh, Sunbae, look over there!”
He thought he was finally getting some attention, but even that didn’t last long. Song Hyun-soo widened his eyes, this time pointing straight ahead between the front seats. It was the expression of a child who had discovered their favorite character at a theme park. He tugged at Yoon Joo-ho’s sleeve.
“Sunbae, look, I’m telling you.”
“What is it this time?”
“It’s the Arc de Triomphe!”
The Arc de Triomphe de l’Étoile was getting closer in the front of the wide road.
“Wow… amazing.”
Song Hyun-soo didn’t even think about taking a picture with his phone. He simply gazed in admiration at one of Paris’s iconic landmarks.
Yoon Joo-ho had already visited this city dozens of times. Although he had never come for travel purposes. In any case, it wasn’t a city that gave him new inspiration.
For Yoon Joo-ho, watching his lover constantly discover, admire, and get excited about something was several times more interesting.
Song Hyun-soo, his eyes fixed on the Arc de Triomphe, groped for Yoon Joo-ho’s hand. Judging by his focused profile, it seemed like he was doing it almost unconsciously.
“Sunbae, I feel kind of touched right now.”
“Is it that much?”
Song Hyun-soo, holding Yoon Joo-ho’s hand tightly, turned to him with a dreamy expression.
In his face remained something that the current Yoon Joo-ho had lost, something he longed for.
A spirit of adventure towards the world, a curiosity to seek new things, the pure emotion when something desired is achieved. Things like that.
When I first arrived in this city for a photoshoot, I don’t think I was as enthusiastic as Song Hyun-soo is now… What was I like? Even when I tried to recall, the scene was as blurry as looking through a steamy window.
“For me, this isn’t just a simple overseas trip, or just a business trip.”
In Song Hyun-soo’s voice as he said that, Yoon Joo-ho sensed an uncharacteristic emotional tremor. That’s why Yoon Joo-ho couldn’t pry any further. But even without asking, he felt like he knew what he was feeling.
How much one’s life has changed, sometimes humans can experience it through a change in physical location.
When you find yourself in a place you thought you could never reach, you realize your growth.
Paris was already a familiar city to Yoon Joo-ho, but he wasn’t unaware of those feelings. Yoon Joo-ho firmly grasped the hand of his lover, who was holding him tightly.
In Song Hyun-soo’s dark, shining eyes, which hid nothing, he felt a nostalgia for some passion that he had lost or never even possessed.
In the car circling the Place Charles de Gaulle, with the Arc de Triomphe in the center, Song Hyun-soo peered at the road across the way.
“That way, that’s the Champs-Élysées, right? Right?”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“This street is quiet, but that one is so fancy.”
He had the face of someone who wanted to get out of the car right away, walk the streets with his own two feet, and capture the scenery with his own two eyes. Song Hyun-soo leaned against the armrest in the center of the back seat and peered between the front seats. Yoon Joo-ho gently pinched Song Hyun-soo’s cheek.
“It’s not far from the hotel. Shall we check in and come out for a bit?”
“Can we?”
“If you’re not tired.”
“I’m not tired at all! It wouldn’t make sense to be tired after flying in first class. I wouldn’t be tired even if I flew all day, you know?”
First class, a luxury chauffeured car, a trip to Paris, the illuminations on the Champs-Élysées… Things that hadn’t given Yoon Joo-ho any particular impression from the start were igniting completely new sparks in Song Hyun-soo’s eyes, bursting like stars.
And Yoon Joo-ho wanted to keep watching those small explosions of stars. He felt like he could watch that sparkle all day long.
Around 8 o’clock, the car arrived at the hotel.
The guest room manager and the hotel’s general manager came out to the front gate to greet them and personally escorted them to the suite. Check-in took place comfortably in the living room of the room where the two would be staying for five nights and six days.
Yoon Joo-ho is such a superstar that people who appeared to be in high positions were personally attending to him, Song Hyun-soo initially thought. But he soon realized that it was more because Yoon Joo-ho was a major customer who had booked a top-tier suite.
“This is the Eiffel Suite you reserved. Please, come in.”
The general manager opened the door and stepped aside.
From the moment he stepped into the living room after passing through the hallway, Song Hyun-soo had to try hard not to scream.
Just beyond the floor-to-ceiling windows that stretched out in a ㄱ shape, the illuminated Eiffel Tower was shining.
“It’s one of our hotel’s prides. There’s no room in Paris with a more fantastic view of the Eiffel Tower than this.”
The general manager’s polite tone, who followed them in, was filled with pride.
With Yoon Joo-ho’s manager and bodyguard present, check-in took place in a friendly atmosphere. Champagne was opened in welcome, and warm towels and sweet desserts to relieve the fatigue of the flight were provided.
Thanks to the effectiveness of his English lessons, Song Hyun-soo was able to understand a few words and match the mood to some extent with a smile.
“It’s a great honor to have Mr. Yoon, such a superstar, with us. Mr. Yoon is very popular in France as well. I heard that you visit Paris two or three times every year to attend Louis Vuitton’s shows.”
Yoon Joo-ho nodded at the manager’s words.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“We hope to have you at our hotel for the next Fashion Week.”
“I hope that can happen as well.”
Yoon Joo-ho was very conventional. He wasn’t overly casual, but he was polite and sociable.
“I heard that you’re visiting this time for a photoshoot.”
“I’m shooting a winter pictorial with
Yoon Joo-ho introduced Song Hyun-soo, who was sitting next to him, with a friendly hand on his shoulder. Song Hyun-soo’s upper body immediately stiffened.
“I see, Mr. Song is an actor as well. I thought you looked wonderful.”
The manager, dressed smartly like an actor or model, gave a warm smile.
Yoon Joo-ho patted Song Hyun-soo on the shoulder and emphasized in a strong tone.
“He’s still a rookie, but he’ll be famous soon.”
And he added.
“The next time he visits Paris, he’ll be a superstar.”
The manager nodded towards Song Hyun-soo with a face that showed he believed those words without a doubt.
“I’ll remember and wait, Mr. Song.”
“Thank you for saying that.”
Nice to meet you. Thank you for saying that.
Those two sentences were the only English that Song Hyun-soo spoke directly during the check-in process. If it hadn’t been for the lessons he had taken, he probably wouldn’t have been able to say even that. When the actual conversation situation came, the sentences in his head didn’t come out of his mouth very well. The lessons he had taken hadn’t been like pouring water into a bottomless pit.
It was also enjoyable to admire Yoon Joo-ho’s voice and attitude as he spoke fluently and naturally, but Song Hyun-soo wanted to see the Eiffel Tower properly as soon as possible. Even while sipping champagne, his gaze kept turning to the window. Yoon Joo-ho, who noticed this, turned around and chuckled, covering his mouth with his hand.
“The check-in process is complete. Shall I show you to your rooms, or would you prefer to skip it?”
To the manager’s question, Yoon Joo-ho politely declined.
“Hmm… I’m a little tired after the long flight. I’ll inquire if I have any questions.”
“Your personal butler is on standby 24 hours a day. Please call at any time.”
As soon as the hotel staff left, Song Hyun-soo quickly ran out onto the terrace.
In the meantime, Yoon Joo-ho received a report on tomorrow’s schedule from his manager and the head of security and sent them away.
Finally, just the two of them in peace… or so he thought, but the quiet didn’t last long.