#nightsinparis

[emotionalghostown]

The 007

This one is about Jake—a rich kid with hazel eyes and a magnetic pull I couldn’t resist. I met him through my mentee at a house party in the fanciest part of the city, the kind of party I’d only seen in movies. His apartment was sleek and spacious, practically begging for trouble, filled with people whose effortless wealth radiated from the walls.

His friends were textbook bourgeois. I’d been around snobby rich kids before, thanks to my private school scholarship back home, but this was a whole different level. These people weren’t just rich—they were powerful. They knew it, and they made sure everyone else did, too. The men wore their privilege like it was a family heirloom, and the women around them were all perfectly slim, polished, like they’d been cut from some expensive mold. I felt like Ginny Humphrey when her dad married Lily: what in the Gossip Girl was I doing here?

But thank the lord for my Scorpio rising. I had piercing black eyes and a razor-sharp wit to match. My private school education had taught me how to blend in, how to be a chameleon in any social setting. So, I played the part, fighting my way into their world with a smoothness I’d perfected over the years. I could laugh at their jokes, volley back their sarcastic comments, and make them think I belonged. But the whole time, I was thinking, This is a game, and I’m damn good at it.

Jake, though, was infuriatingly aloof. He didn’t flirt, didn’t even give me a second glance in public like he had an image to uphold. Still, I could feel the tension when we walked to the party, a silent pull that made my blood boil. By the time we got there, I was ready for something to happen.

Fueled by the frustration (and half a bottle of Monbazillac), I found myself wandering to the kitchen to grab water. And then I felt him behind me, close enough that I could sense his presence before I turned around. He was standing there, looking at me with those impossibly sexy hazel eyes. I started to walk away, but he leaned in and asked if he could kiss me. I laughed, partly from nerves, but he leaned in closer, his voice all smooth and quiet, and asked, “Don’t you want to?”

Oh, I wanted to. And that was all it took. We made out right there, and soon we found our way to his room, where we had the kind of soul-shattering sex that makes you believe in cosmic connections. That night turned into a week, and then into months. Every time he was in town, we would meet up, and the same thing would happen. It was primal, physical, just pure raw lust. I didn’t know anything about his life, and he didn’t know much about mine. We rarely spoke, but when we did, it was as if words only got in the way. It was freeing, easy, and insanely pleasurable.

But you can feel the but coming, can’t you?

One summer night, I was out with a friend at a bar when my phone rang. I checked the caller ID and saw Jake’s name. Now, you have to understand—he never called. We’d been doing this thing for over a year, and all we ever did was text. So when his name showed up, I knew something was off. I picked up, and right away, I could tell he sounded drowsy and a little paranoid. I asked him what was wrong, and he laughed, saying, “Damn, how’d you know?” He asked if he could come meet me, and, feeling curious, I told him to come by the bar.

When he arrived, he looked like he’d seen a ghost. I immediately knew something was wrong, and he looked me dead in the eyes, saying, “You know me as Jake, that is my real name but that’s not the full story.” I raised an eyebrow and joked, “What are you, CIA or something?” He smirked, but this time his face was dead serious. “Yeah, actually, good job. And tonight, I think I blew my cover.”

I laughed, thinking he was joking, but his face was dead serious. He told me he actually was CIA and that he’d messed up on an assignment that night. He looked me in the eyes, and I realized he wasn’t kidding. He said he needed me to help him clear his head, that I was detached enough from him and smart enough, and he just wanted to be in my arms tonight.

So there I was, walking him home, feeling like I’d fallen into some bizarre, high-stakes spy thriller. He started telling me details I’ll never repeat because, frankly, I’d like to avoid jail time. When we got to his apartment, we kept the lights off and tiptoed to his room. And as I turned to get ready for bed, I saw him in the moonlight. He was checking a gun, making sure it was loaded before he slid into bed beside me. He held onto me, practically trembling, and I stroked his hair, trying to calm him down.

I stayed awake, terrified out of my mind, listening to his breathing slow as he drifted off to sleep. Guns aren’t exactly common here in Europe unless you’re law enforcement or someone in deep, dark places, so the whole situation felt surreal, like a scene from a smut novel gone terribly wrong. I lay there in the dark, trying to make sense of everything, but I couldn’t shake the fear.

And that was the last time I ever saw him. He vanished just as mysteriously as he’d appeared, leaving me with a night of secrets and a story no one would believe.

[soundsofmaria]

The soirée at the @darasendersofficial @parisfashionweek presentation Thursday night. It was blast with all the clicking cameras, Pickles the pink poodle 🐩 and a fun selfie stand up mirror by the door ��💖! · · · #parisfashionweek #pfw18 #pfw #fashionblogger #darasenders #nightsinparis (at Rue Cambon) https://www.instagram.com/p/BoQjrxqAoy8/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=8adlhahoh21z

[bikinidotcom]

Tonight's the night, the music is down, let's live it up. (📸: @chloelecareux) #bikinidotcom #parisnights #nightsinparis #midnightinparis #parislove #parislife #parisfun #furcoat #fauxfur #furs #furlove #fauxfurvest #fauxfurjacket #saturdaynightfever #bikinilife #bikinilifestyle #livelifeinabikini #lightsdown #musicup #ablondeandabrunette #blondeandbrunette #bikinistyle #mermaidstyle #summerstyle #sunchaser #sunlover #sunchild #europenights #parisclub #parisclubs (at Paris, France)

[browngirlbooklover]

This dude was walking down the street with his horse, and I asked for a ride. #nighttimewalks #nightsinparis #donthateonmyhorse

[incarnatia]

Was recently tagged by @mesogeios​ (hi!) —

Relationship status: very witty, very much in love, and very patiently waiting for him to come home 

Favourite colour: those elusively elegant shades caught between gray and beige, ivory, hues of rich greens (of emeralds and olives and forests...), a deep wine red, the cold pale blue of a morning sky in January 

Lipstick or chapstick: lipstick

Three favourite foods: sea bass risotto, winter pomegranates, delicate Japanese-style French pastries

Last song I listened to: Architecture by Lana del Rey

Top 3 shows: mainly Mad Men and Peaky Blinders, really

Top 3 bands: Rhye, Cigarettes After Sex, The xx

Book I’m currently reading: The Crack-Up by F. Scott Fitzgerald, about to start du Maurier’s Rebecca

I’m tagging: @nightsinparis, @vitrina, @ianthia, @lambette, @writingletterstoshakespeare, @flaubertian, @la-femme-terrible, @wolvenry & @the-vellichor

Happy holidays! 

[lachanteuse]

Rules: Write the first 10 songs that come up on shuffle and quote your favourite lyrics from each song, then tag 10 people. (tagged by @nightsinparis - thank you!)  

1. fluorescent adolescent, arctic monkeys 

everything’s in order in a black hole; nothing is as pretty as the past though

2. all these things that i’ve done, the killers

another head aches, another heart breaks; i am so much older than i can take 

3. thunder road, bruce springsteen 

have a little faith, there’s magic in the night

4. landslide, fleetwood mac

mirror in the sky, what is love? can the child within my heart rise above? 

5. tiny dancer, elton john 

turning back, she just laughs. the boulevard is not that bad 

6. higher love, james vincent mcmorrow 

think about it, there must be a higher love, down in the heart or hidden in the stars above 

7. naive, the kooks

you’re such an ugly thing for someone so beautiful

8. jealousy, tom odell 

i didn’t mean to hold you, or gain your sympathy: that’s my jealousy 

9. morning sun, melody gardot 

that morning sun has come to greet you, she’s peeking ‘round the corner just waiting just to meet you 

10. la vie en rose, louis armstrong 

this magic spell you cast, this is la vie en rose

I tag: @twilightstreets, @letemporaire, @saintjoan, @reveurh, @bottiicelli, @vesrailles, @avthenas, @femme-en-blanc, @petitepearl, and @marmories :)

[letemporaire]

tagged by lovely @asteriea

i tag @fiowher @roseofparis @nehmesis @vntage @nightsinparis @summerrhoney @pavlikovski @inkpoems @melanchoia @satinyrose

rules: write the first 10 songs that come up on shuffle (no skipping) and quote your favourite lyrics from each song, then tag 10 people.

glamorous indie rock & roll  - the killers // electric girls with worn down toys, make it up, break it up, what do you care ? 

13 beaches - lana del rey // and i’d be lying if i kept hiding the fact that i can’t deal, and that i’ve been dying for something real

personal jesus - johnny cash //  your own personal jesus, someone to hear your prayers, someone who cares /  i will deliver, you know i’m a forgiver 

fly me to the moon - frank sinatra // let me play among the stars, let me see what spring is like on a Jupiter and Mars

 shades of cool - lana del rey // cause you live in shades of cool, your heart is unbreakable 

because the night - patti smith // love is an angel disguised as lust, here in our bed until the morning comes / desirous hunger is the fire i breathe, love is banquet on which we feed

that joke isn’t funny anymore - the smiths // i’ve seen this happen in other people’s lives and now it’s happening in mine

pretty woman - roy orbison // i guess i’ll go on home, it’s late, there’ll be tomorrow night, but wait, what do i see ? is she walking back to me ?

Helsinki - julien doré ft melanie pain // son amour est pur comme le ciel d’Helsinki, et je l’aime comme on aime l’amour de sa vie (her love is as pure as Helsinki’s sky, and i love her the way you love the love of your life)

andria - la dispute // i remember when you leaned in quick to kiss me, and i swear that not a single force on earth could stop the trembling of my hand

[frankamabile-blog]

Photo Processes

I played around with the saturation and vibrancy of this picture to give it more glow. With the Eiffel Tower being a dark kind of steel, I wanted the light to really pop and represent the energy of this iconic monument.

[capturedbyhart-blog]

La belle Epoque #nightsinparis #pfw2016 #onthemove #paris

[byclaramartin]

just a couple of real ones 👨‍👨‍👧‍👦 #nightsinparis #fashion #pfw #tbt (at Paris, France)

[kakookill]

52 Nights in Paris In 52 Seconds: Twenty third second, between district nine and eighteen. — at Anvers.

#52nightsinparis #nightinparis #night #paris#onesecondmoment #KamiTidakTakut #glow #shiny#nightShadow

[jayecane]

#NIGHTSINPARIS #prayforparis

[mrbryantlee-blog]

this week has just been a whole whirlwind of emotions, that I can't even handle myself. But I'm working on it, working on me one step at a time. #nightsinparis (at Eiffle Tower Paris)

[ainabreiyon]

The sky is your limit; not mine. That's one statement I'll definitely never follow. I surpass all of that shit and through it all I'll illuminate. #nightsinParis

[senegallife]

Comment: tattoo_inspiratioon_ said "A beutiful parisienne night #paris #montmartre #ausacrecoeur #sacrecoeur #nightsinparis #music #love #prettygirl #singing #lovehervoice #arab #tunesia #senegal #cestparis #loveit #justchillin #monument #artiste #happy #parisinstagram #monparis #lamourdemavie"

[cherylburke]

Next stop...Crazy Horse! #burlesque #nightsinparis