It was hard to pay attention to the lovely woman in front of him when he felt eyes glaring into him. At first, he supposed that being with Juliet Capulet would just attract that kind of attention, but he changed his mind when he was able to identify who was glaring at him.

"So, then I fell over," Juliet chuckled to herself, after explaining a funny story. The lack of response caused her to frown. "Paris, are you listening to me?"

Paris snapped his head back towards her. "Oh, I apologize. Just, er... someone was looking at me weirdly."

"Who?" Juliet asked curiously.

But Paris couldn't tell her. How could he tell her that her family's worst enemy was watching them court each other? Even without the rivalry, it was hard to explain why Romeo Montague was staring at him like that. "Uh, I don't actually recognize them," he lied.

"Oh, okay," Juliet said, shrugging. She proceeded to tell another story, not realizing his discomfort. Paris nodded along at the appropriate times, but found himself looking in Romeo's direction when she was distracted.

Romeo was a rather handsome man, and had all the qualities one could look for in a friend. However, with his heart being so taken with Juliet, he had never found it appropriate to approach him. This, he thought, was a good opportunity.

His staring didn't go unnoticed, as him and Romeo locked eyes. Romeo winked at him, which confused him. Paris knew his own curiosity was his doom, so he turned to Juliet and excused himself to the restroom. When he turned back, again in Romeo's direction, he winked back and nudged towards the restroom.

He walked into the restroom with Romeo closely behind. "Do you quarrel, sir?" Paris asked him, unsure of his intentions.

"Oh, I do not quarrel," Romeo replied, biting his lip as he looked him up and down. "I'm a lover."

It unintentionally made his lips curl up into a smile. "Right, okay. So, why were you staring at me?"

"Well, I was quite furious with the sight in front of me," Romeo explained. "I found myself yearning... Trust me, when I yearn, I yearn earnestly."

"Yearning... for her?" Paris guessed. He pulled a face. "She is rather beautiful, but I find it strange you would yearn for a Capulet."

Romeo chuckled. "Oh, no, my dear. I meant you." With that, Paris was utterly shocked.

"But you're a---"

"Man, yes," Romeo answered. "And you're a man, too. Yet, that does not stop my yearning."

Paris' heart thudded in his chest. Before this, he had convinced himself he was in love with Juliet. Before they had even properly met, he had seen her beauty and spoke of it like she was from the Heavens.

There was a different allure with Romeo. "What I want to know is why you're with her when you can be with me?" Romeo questioned.

There were many different answers that Paris tried. "She's beautiful, and I love her."

"Love isn't reliant on looks, and we both know you don't appreciate her for any other reason," he argued.

"You're a man," Paris said.

"Can't deny that," Romeo chuckled. "But again, it's not relevant."

Paris paused. "I don't yearn for you," he said weakly.

Romeo got closer to him, pressing him up against the wall of the restroom. Their closer proximity made it harder for Paris to hide the tell-tale signs of attraction, and this, unfortunately, was how he was caught. "But I think you do," Romeo said breathily.

Paris couldn't speak, for he was too concentrated on watching he smirked, all arrogantly. Yes, there was definitely a different allure with him. With this, he couldn't find it within himself to lie anymore.

He leaned forward and kissed Romeo, his eyes falling shut as he gave into desire. It immediately struck him as different than kissing a woman, but that didn't make it bad. Romeo matched him perfectly, with a strange appearance of familiarity. He assumed this wasn't the first time Romeo had kissed a man.

Romeo eventually pulled away, raising his dark eyebrows. "How'd you like that?"

"I loved it," Paris replied, grinning. "I think you've fully convinced me."

"You should return to her, tell her something's come up." There was a smile on Romeo's face as he offered his advice. "And then you can show me how much you yearn for me."

It wasn't bad advice. So, after straightening himself up, he left the restroom and went back to Juliet. It all made sense to him as he made his way back to her.

He had always told himself that he loved Juliet, but it was just an attempt to fit in with what he thought was normal. But yearning is yearning, and Paris was ready to show Romeo how much he had learned to yearn for him. "Hey, Juliet," he said. "I'm actually not feeling very well tonight."

A concerned expression appeared on her face. "Oh," she frowned. "I think you should go home then. I don't want you to feel any worse."

"Yes, I think that's a good idea," he said. "I'll see you soon."

Juliet agreed, and both ignored how their attention was shifted towards other people. Juliet didn't exactly yearn for him, either.

Once outside the party, Paris waited patiently. Romeo appeared moments after. "Let's go," Romeo said. "Let us reinvent love."

It was perhaps unconventional, but the two had indeed found love. They kept their love close to them, like a badge to wear over their hearts. And Paris wondered how he could've ever loved anyone else than his Romeo.