“They’re homemade,” Ben explained. They were a huge pain in the ass to make, but the expression on Jace’s face was worth it.

“No way! What about the fortunes?”

“Check it out.” Ben smiled as Jace broke one open and tossed half into his mouth.

“Mmmm, good. What’s in my future?” He examined the scrawl on the little strip of paper and raised an eyebrow. “A thousand kisses will soon cover your body.” He raised his gaze from the fortune to look at Ben. “Let’s see if we can make this one come true.”

* * * * *

Before leaving for Italy, four nights had seemed too short a visit. By the third day, Ben’s leg muscles were shredded and his feet felt on the verge of falling off. He couldn’t imagine his condition had they stayed for a week or longer. There were simply too many sights to see. Ben found it impossible to rest for very long before the urge to continue exploring overtook him again.

Rome was a fascinating mix of old and new. They visited the obligatory sites: the Colosseum, the Vatican, the Pantheon, and the Circus Maximus. Ben’s favorite had been the ancient ruins of the Forum. While there he imagined travelling thousands of years into the past, the crumbling buildings restored and proud again, the streets teaming with Roman people going about their daily business. Being in the midst of the ruins brought home the reality of this bygone era.

Modern Rome had much to offer as well, especially for a shopaholic like Ben. They ducked into designer fashion stores where the price for a pair of jeans was more than what Ben paid for rent, but they also found some smaller stores where he picked up a couple of shirts he was certain never to see back home. The grocery stores were more humble, full of variations of familiar Italian staples but new items as well.

The quality of Italian restaurants varied wildly. For the first couple of meals, Jace took them to back streets where the menus weren’t even in English. The food here was exquisite and gave credence to Italian cuisine’s reputation as being among the best in the world. Once, Ben was impatiently hungry and allowed a pushy proprietor to pull them into a restaurant near a tourist attraction, where Ben’s pizza was flavorless cardboard and Jace’s pasta microwaved.

Having learned his lesson, Ben let Jace choose from then on. Today he had managed to find a lunch café that looked like a tourist trap, but was visited almost exclusively by locals. Jace ordered for them in Italian, loving the opportunity to show off his language skills. Ben was more than happy to allow him, enjoying the helpless feeling that came with not being able to read or speak the local tongue.

“To the bravest boyfriend I’ve ever had,” Jace toasted once their wine had been served.

“You’re not still going on about that?” Ben blushed.

“I don’t just mean the way you handled the taxi drivers,” Jace said. He considered the wine as he swirled it around the glass. “How old were you when you first came out?”

“Fourteen,” Ben said after a moment’s calculation.

“I’d say that’s pretty damn brave.”

“Yeah, maybe in the nineties,” Ben countered, “but kids are coming out younger and younger these days.”

“All right, all right. What about that time at the Greek restaurant where the waiter disappeared for half an hour and you marched into the kitchen--”

“Only to find him smoking a joint with the chef,” Ben finished wryly.

“At least you got us our food. How about that guy you punched in the chest after we saw him kick his dog?”

“Fat lot of good it did. His dog turned on me like I was the jerk.”

“It was still brave,” Jace insisted.

“Look, I’m not trying to go overboard with humility,” Ben said, “but I think you misunderstand. Sometimes I get angry and do crazy things without thinking. I don’t think that counts as bravery. Recklessness would be a better description.”

“Call it whatever you like, but there’s something there.” Jace shook a breadstick at him. “Usually you’re adorably sweet and sympathetic, but I’ve seen glimpses of something else. There’s something stronger than titanium inside of you.”

“Like the Terminator?”

“Exactly like that.” Jace laughed. “That bravery, recklessness, whatever you want to call it, is one of the many things I love about you.”

They both became silent at the mention of the “L” word. Funny that they could dive headlong into sex, a relationship, even a trip across the ocean, but saying those three little words was something they still balked at.

“So what’s next?” Ben asked, leaving the question open for interpretation.

“Well, it’s our final day here and I’ve saved the best for last.”

Ben didn’t have to wait long to find out what this meant. A few blocks from the restaurant, in the midst of clothing stores and newspaper kiosks, was another set of ruins. Archeologists had dug down so that an entire city block was below street level. Jace led Ben by the hand down the cracked and ancient stairs and into the excavated ruins where a familiar smell greeted their nose.

“Cats?” Ben asked, but an answer wasn’t necessary as there were already half a dozen in sight.

“They’re using this area as a sanctuary,” Jace said, stooping down to pet a three-legged cat that was rubbing against his leg. “We have to hurry. I think the tour is about to start.”

As it turned out, direct access to the ruins, known as the Torre Argentina, was only possible via one of these guided tours. Otherwise, the land that had once belonged to Roman gods and their temples was now the exclusive home of felines who behaved as if they were equally divine. Every site their guide led them to was occupied by a cat, sunbathing on ancient steps or stalking through broken columns in search of mice.

“And it was here, in 44 B.C., that Julius Caesar was stabbed to death by his fellow senators,” their tour guide informed them, causing a frenzy of picture taking.

“Et tu, Kitty?” Ben joked. When Jace didn’t respond, he looked back to find his boyfriend some yards behind the tour group. He was sitting in the dirt, two cats on his lap, another on his shoulders.

Ben had a great respect for animals. So much so that he usually left them alone, figuring that they didn’t care for people constantly trying to pet them. His experiences backed this up, and so he usually kept his distance. Jace was different. He loved cats so much that it flowed out of him and somehow changed the world. Even the most troubled cat willingly gave into his affections. He was like a gay version of Snow White with all the forest creatures flocking around him.

“I love you,” Ben said. He’d meant only to say it to himself, but it felt good to finally say it aloud. Jace didn’t react, too far away to hear, so he said it again, this time yelling it. “I love you!”

Jace looked up, surprised, before a wild grin broke out on his face. He stood, sending the poor cats flying and strode over to Ben. “About time you admitted it,” he said before picking Ben up and kissing him. Behind them came a few shocked gasps, a couple of titters, and at least one burst of applause. “I love you, too,” Jace murmured into his ear.

The rest of the tour was embarrassing; most of the group kept an eye on them, waiting for a repeat performance. Ben was relieved when the tour was over, craving private time with Jace so they could explore this new confession.

“Hotel?” Ben asked as he stuffed money into the donation box.

“No time,” Jace responded. “I said I saved the best for last.”

“This wasn’t it?”

“No. Well, for me it was. Especially now.” They grinned at each other before remembering they were in the midst of a conversation. “No, I had something special in mind for you.”

The exterior of the Teatro dell’Opera couldn’t compete with the rest of the city’s architecture, but the interior didn’t disappoint. Opera had never been an interest of Ben’s, but he understood why Jace might think he would enjoy it. Ben felt severely underdressed as they entered the theater, but he had felt that way almost the entire trip due to the fashion-conscious Romans. He felt thankful when he spotted a few other couples in T-shirts and shorts, no doubt his fellow countrymen.