Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien [Jimin] 18+

1.

Looking up from the screen of your phone, you blink once, twice, three times – you are not where you are supposed to be and Google maps are the stupidest invention ever.

It took you two hours to find your Airbnb apartment yesterday, all because Google maps were not quite user friendly. Not to mention that your sense of direction was utterly pathetic.

Yet despite all of that, you were absolutely positive that finding 'Shakespeare and company' would be an easy task – after all, you were so close to it, having just spent 10 minutes mourning the fact that the Notre-Dame was still very much unapproachable. From there to the bookstore, the route should have been easy to follow but alas, it was not. Somehow, you have managed to confuse yourself even further.

Looking around in place, you breathe a sigh of relief when you see the green doors and a sign that tells you that perhaps your sense of direction isn't as bad as you think it is – 'Shakespeare and Company'.

There it is, the bookstore with such rich history, one of your must-see places in Paris, something that the 'Midnight in Paris' lover in you had to tick off the list – there it is, right before you and very much closed. You check the time, finding that it is almost nine – a quick Google search, which is something you should have done before leaving your apartment – tells you that it opens up at half past nine.

You don't have time, you absolutely don't have time to sit around and wait for it to open. It's going to take you some time to reach the 7th Arrondissement and once you do get there, two museums await. Wasting time, waiting for a bookstore to open is not a luxury you can afford right now.

Perhaps you will have time before you leave. After all, you still have a week to spend in the city of light and although your plans are pretty strict and well-organized, you are aware that some changes are bound to happen. But you will leave that for the last day – right now, you only have a few minutes of your life to offer to a closed bookstore.

As you take photos of the famed location, you recall the comments your mother made before you left, about how a young woman shouldn't travel alone in a foreign country. She had a point – one shouldn't travel alone if they want to have at least one photo of themselves on the memory card. It sucks a bit but you don't let it dampen your mood – you don't need photos to preserve the memories. A selfie stick was always an option but it was also beneath you – something you've decided when they first appeared.

"Is it closed?" a voice asks from behind you, making you jump a bit, as you weren't aware that you had company. The man looking at you seems to be about your age and a tourist, if the camera around his neck is anything to go by. The brief once-over you give him lets you know he is also unnaturally attractive.

"Yeah," you tell him, offering him a compassionate smile when you see his expression sour. "It should open soon though – about half an hour, if Google is correct."

"Thanks for the info," he smiles, before he lifts up his camera and starts taking photos. You realize that the chit-chat is over, so you resume taking photos as well. Just a few seconds later, his presence gave you an idea.

"Hey, would you mind taking a photo of me?" you ask sheepishly, smiling when he nods his head at once. "I'm travelling alone and I just want at least one photo of me in the folder, you know?"

"I can relate," he chuckles as he takes the camera from you. "How do you want to take it? Casually touristy, right in front of it or artsy, with you looking up at the sign in awe?"

"Artsy," he laughs at your immediate response, to which you simply shrug. "When will I be artsy if not in Paris?"

"Touché," he agrees, before directing you so that he can take a decent shot. "Turn a bit to the left."