Since We Were 14 ~ Lams

10.

It's been like 2 1/2 months since the last chapter btw

Francis began to notice the tent in John's eyes when Alexander was brought into conversation.

Or how much John would spend with the friend of his. Of course, that wasn't a problem. Francis could understand being close with a friend.

But John and Alex seemed different. At least in John's point of view.

The way John looked and talked about Alexander it just made something click in Francis's mind.

"Hey, John." Francis smiled as he was allowed into the apartment. "Hey, babe." John said, allowing his boyfriend in.

"What're you doing here?" John asked, since they didn't plan to hang out that night.

"Well, I know you aren't working and I wanted to surprise my boy with a date." Francis hummed.

"That sounds lovely." John smiled and sat up, giving him a gentle kiss. "Is there a dress code?" He asked.

Francis nodded. "Mhm. Fancy. Like dress shirt and khakis at least." He said.

"Okay, I'm gonna go shower and get dressed. You make yourself comfortable." John assured, kissing his cheek before leaving to the bathroom.

Francis sat down on the couch and scrolled on his phone, fiddling with the box in his pocket.

He wanted tonight to be perfect.

John stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist before walking to his room. He changed into the clothes that Francis instructed and put on a pair of shoes. He grabbed his wallet and keys before joining Francis on the couch. "I'm ready, babe." He said, kissing his cheek.

Francis smiled and put his phone away, getting up and taking John's hand. "Let's go then." He hummed, walking with him out of the apartment.

"So what exactly do you have planned this evening?" John asked with a hum, walking down the street with his boyfriend.

"Well, firstly, we are gonna have a picnic in the park. I have champagne and little snacks and just a very nice meal for us. Then, we are gonna go see a a lecture downtown- and I know you hate lectures but this one is about animal life so I knew you'd enjoy it." Francis laughed softly, watching John close his opened mouth he was going to protest with and replace it with a smile.

"And then we are gonna go see a show. Then, go on a walk where we can really just enjoy each other's company." Francis finished, smiling softly.

"That seems like the perfect evening." John smiled sweetly, "I love you." Francis reminded, kissing John's cheek. "I love you too." John hummed as they made it to the park.

The evening was absolutely perfect.

After the picnic, which had treats like chocolate covered strawberries and cupcakes. After they finished, lots of laughs were shared as they were slightly tipsy and walking to a lecture. Neither of them were drunk, just not completely sober. Francis walked around to the building of the lecture, excited for this because he knew how passionate John was about this type of stuff.

He listened to the lecture but really watched at how excited John's face got, as well as how he seemed hurt when the speaker told of hurt animals.

Afterwards, John got up and left Francis to go talk to the speaker and ask him some questions. Francis laughed softly and smiled, very happy John was enjoying his time.

Then, Francis took John to go see the Mean Girls musical. He knew of John's guilty pleasure of eating ice cream and watching chick flicks with his girl friends. It was quite funny how much he loved them but tried to hide it cause he felt quite awkward about it.

After the show, Francis took John's hand and walked with him. "It was so good! I mean- I just love the movie and honestly the movie was definitely better but the musical was also just so fucking good- Martha and I need to go see it together for sure. We went to see heathers together before it got taken off and oh my god we laughed so hard." John began to ramble, clearly excited and having fun over the night.

"The lecture was amazing- that speaker was so well spoken and he gave his thoughts and facts clearly about the concern of pollution levels and its effects on our sea life. Like- his research was so good and he was clearly very passionate about that."

"And that picnic was so romantic and you just... god you really thought this might out and it couldn't get much better than this." John smiled brightly, genuinely enjoying this time with him. He felt warm and fuzzy inside. Thoughts of Alexander seemed to be slipping from his mind but there were times when him and Francis were holding hands or giving each other quick kisses during the night that John wished it was Alex with him instead. He tried to push those thoughts away though.

"John, come here." John stopped walking and turned to Francis, who took both of John's hands in his own.

"We've been... we started dating again four months ago and it's just... it's been amazing. And then before that, three years prior and I've just... I've been so in love with you for so long now. You make me a better person and you make me happy." Francis started.

"And I know... I just..." Francis took a deep breath, clearly a little nervous. "I know I'm not the man you want to be with. I know how you feel about Alex and even if it hurts me a bit, I know you can't hope who you love. But I trust you when you say you love me and when you say you'll never break my heart. I trust you more than anything, John."

John looked a bit scared when Francis brought up his feelings with Alex. He never wanted Francis to know that.

"I know I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I know that I want to be with you and start a family and be happy with one another." Francis removed one of his hands and reached in the pocket of his coat.

The look on John's face was indescribable when he realized what was happening. He looked scared, upset, happy, and excited all at once.

Francis pulled on the box and showed John the ring. "Can you make that happen? Can we get married and start a family with each other?" He asked.

John looked at the ring, not knowing what to do.

"I-" he started and stopped. He just stayed and looked at the ring in the box.

"I know... I know I'm just your second choice. I know you'd rather it be Alex asking you this question but... he's married. And he's probably going to stay that way. Can we just... can we settle and be together? Be happy with one another?" Francis asked softly.

That really upset John when Francis called himself the second choice. Even if it was true, he knew it had to hurt Francis to know that.

And John also knew that what Francis said was true. Alex wasn't going to leave Eliza. And John wanted a family. He wanted one as soon as possible.

He looked at the ring one last time before wrapping his arms around Francis and kissing him gently.

"I will marry you." He said softly.