Lucy and Max spent their time in the air watching movies and getting to know each other better so she had fun, but, still, it was a long trip, and she was glad to set foot on land again. There were two cars waiting for them as they exited baggage claim, one to take them to the hotel and another with bodyguards to follow and ensure their safety.
While in the car, Lucy marveled at the sights. They had flown into Athens, and she was in awe at all that she was seeing, even if it was just a little flower shop amongst everything. Max looked on, admiring the view inside the car more.
When they arrived at the hotel, Lucy was not surprised that they would be sharing a room. She was surprised, however, that they would be sharing a bed. Staring at it, she called out to Max in the living area that was part of their room but separated by a wall, "Umm, Max dear, can you join me in the bedroom for a moment?" Her tone was as sweet as sugar but laced with a sarcastic flavor.
Max walked into the room, smiled, and teased innocently, "Yes, my love, what can I do for you?"
Lucy play-smacked his arm and exclaimed, "Stop that! I'm serious. What is going on here? Why one bed?"
Max shrugged, "It's part of the cover story. What can I say?"
"You can say, 'Don't worry, I'll sleep on the sofa,'" Lucy joked back, smiling sweetly.
"Yes dear," Max sighed, pretending to be very disappointed, except he wasn't really pretending.
Lucy chuckled and then said, "I'm going to take a quick shower before taking a nap."
"Okay," Max replied, "I'll take one after you. Don't forget to set the alarm so we only sleep for about four hours. We need to get used to the time difference so that means we'll be able to wake up around 10am and enjoy the day."
"Great idea," Lucy agreed. "I'll set the alarm now in case I forget after the shower."
It was a good thing she did that because after her shower, Lucy went straight to bed, falling asleep almost immediately. She didn't even notice when a sleepy Max, not thinking straight, came out of the shower and climbed into the bed with her.
Around the same time, in Los Angeles, Peter and Johnny were on their way back to the former's townhouse from a concert. Johnny had surprised Peter with tickets to see a group of 80s pop stars who were touring together. Peter had mentioned during one of their conversations that he really enjoyed such music, so he was very touched that Johnny had remembered.
They had gone out to dinner before hand and when Johnny presented the tickets, Peter's look of surprise had been gratifying for him. "You look like a character on a TV show with that face you're making," Johnny teased.
Peter scoffed, "At least I show expressions on my face."
Johnny laughed a genuine laugh. "Can't deny it," he said still laughing.
"You know I'm just joking," Peter said to ease some of the burn.
"No, you're not," Johnny chuckled. "But it's okay. I'm not offended. I enjoy your wit."
"Is that all you enjoy about me?," Peter asked, obviously fishing for compliments.
Johnny leaned in closer and answered, "I don't know. Depends on how the evening ends."
Peter stiffened, knowing where this was going. "Should I tell him now?," he thought.
Seeing that Peter seemed uncomfortable, Johnny cleared his throat and said, "I'm just joking around. No pressure or anything. Really."
"I know," Peter said trying to laugh it off, but failing miserably. "Umm…"
"What's wrong?," Johnny asked, eyebrows knitted with genuine concern.
"Nothing really," Peter answered, shaking his head and waving his hand down. "Let's change the subject. Let's talk about who will be at the concert."
Johnny "hmm'd," letting Peter change the subject for the moment, making a mental note to bring it up later that night when they were alone.
They enjoyed the rest of dinner with light conversation and then Johnny drove them to the concert venue. After a long while, they were finally at their seats, which were pretty close to the stage.
"How did you get such good seats?," Peter asked incredulously.
"I know people," was all Johnny replied.
Peter laughed, "That answer leaves a lot of room for interpretation. Your honor, please ask the defendant to be more specific."
Johnny chuckled, "Oh, is that what we're playing at now? Okay, I'll play. Your honor, I plead the fifth." Since pleading the fifth amendment to the Constitution was a way for witnesses to not speak in case they incriminate themselves, that made Peter even more curious.
"Okay, now I really have to know," Peter needled, leaning in close to Johnny's face.
"Sadly, you don't need to know. Just enjoy the concert," Johnny replied, giving him a quick and unexpected peck.
Peter automatically looked around, wondering if anyone saw. Johnny took his hand and said, "Relax. No one cares. And if they do, then we shouldn't care."
That felt very reassuring to Peter for some reason, and he smiled.
"There you go," Johnny smiled back.
The concert started shortly after that, and the two men thoroughly enjoyed it since the songs being played were all ones that were popular 80s hits. Peter felt very happy being able to enjoy the show with someone he cared so much for, especially when Johnny embraced him from behind during the slow, love songs.
When they reached Peter's townhouse, he said, "I don't want this night to end."
Johnny reached over to cup his face and replied, "It doesn't have to." He leaned in and they kissed. When Peter felt it getting more heated, he pulled away slightly to take in a breath.
"What's wrong?," Johnny asked. He leaned back into the driver's seat, but was still looking at Peter. "Does this have to do with what we started talking about at dinner?"
Peter looked down and sighed, "I guess this is as good a time as any to have this conversation."
"You can tell me anything. You know that? Right?," Johnny asked with earnestness, shifting in his seat so that they were both facing each other. He reached over to take Peter's hands.
Peter was feeling a hard lump in his throat, and he told himself not to cry. "I guess I'm just afraid that once I tell you this, you won't want to date me anymore," he finally managed to get out in a quiet voice.
Johnny felt a similar lump forming in his stomach, as his concern grew. He responded with, "I'm listening, and I promise that nothing short of you being a serial killer is going to stop me from seeing you. And even then, who knows?" He smiled, trying to reassure the man in front of him who seemed so scared. It was tugging at Johnny's heart like nothing before ever had.
Peter smiled, feeling Johnny squeeze his hands. He nodded, and still looking down, began, "So the thing is….umm…you know how I'm Christian?" Johnny "uh-hmm'd." Peter continued, "Well, I sort-of don't believe in sex before marriage." He snuck a glance up to see Johnny's reaction but before the man could say anything, he quickly went on, "I know that sounds really old-fashioned and you might think less of me, but I can't help what I believe, and you know my faith is important to me so can you please try to understand and not break up with me?"
The last part sounded like a plea, making Johnny feel bad that Peter had been bottling this up their whole relationship so far. Although he was surprised at what Peter said, Johnny in no way planned to use it against him. Instead, he answered, "Of course, I understand. I'm not a pig, you know?"
"I know," Peter rushed to say. "I was just worried, because, because…" He couldn't think of anything and just ended with, "I don't know."
Johnny drew Peter in for a hug and said, "I like you for you, not for your body." When they pulled apart, he gave Peter a quick kiss and continued, "I mean, don't get me wrong. You're hot and totally my ideal type in that regard, but we don't have to have sex if you don't feel comfortable with it."
Peter laughed, "Thank you. Both for understanding and for thinking that I'm hot. I think you're pretty sexy yourself."
"What about sleeping together?," Johnny asked and then quickly clarified, "I mean, just sleeping, no sex."
"That would be nice," Peter answered. "Do you want to do that tonight?"
"Absolutely," Johnny answered.
After they both went inside Peter's town house, they took showers (separately) and then crawled into bed together. Peter was resting his head on Johnny's chest, with Johnny's arms around him, when he breathed out in a deep sigh.
Johnny gave a small laugh and said, "I'm not sure what kind of sigh that was."
"Contentment," Peter replied. "I don't think I've ever felt like this before."
"Same here," Johnny affirmed.
"I wish we could stay like this forever," Peter added.
"Forever?," Johnny contemplated to himself. When he felt Peter hugging him tightly, he thought, "That doesn't sound like a bad idea."