Title: Love Like That

Rating: K+

Pairing: None; maybe Arimes if you squint really, really, really hard with a magnifying glass.

Summary: Ariadne has a discussion with Eames over just why she can't stop staring at the two men three booths to the right.

Notes: I'm trying out a new format if you haven't noticed. I was reading more boring text (I hate University -cries-) when I stopped to get my eyes untangled and opened all my docs I should be working on. Instead, I write this, which albeit has been bugging me since 10:15 am when I was in my Gender, Sex, and Class of British 18th and 19th centuries.

It also crept up this morning at 5 am when I listened to Alejandro by Lady Gaga as I got dressed and later at 6ish in the car. I wrote this because I want to (via Ariadne) explain why I'm so fond currently of the idea of Eames and Arthur. Don't worry no Eathur to speak of below, but maybe this will explain my emotional attachment to the idea.

Thanks and Enjoy

The two men at the third booth down to the right in the corner coffee shop in downtown Paris had no idea she was staring. Ariadne anticipated at any moment, one of them would realize she was intruding and would look up. What fascinated her more was for once she wasn't sure she'd care.

The mid-twenties blonde is cuddled up next to the slightly younger looking brunette with his arm lying lazily on the back of the seat. They're whispering, or rather, the blonde is whispering. The brunette laughs lightly and says what sounds like 'shut up' as he takes a sip of his coffee.

"Ariadne? Hello?"

She blinked and realized Eames was talking to her as he took the seat adjacent to her, sitting her latte in front of her, while he took a sip of his own. She turned pink when he glanced over at the two men and back at her.

"You know love, it's rude to stare. I promise they're not diseased." He smirked.

She frowned at him. He thought she was staring because they were gay, or at least appeared that were gay. Correction; they were: blonde just gave brunette a loving kiss on the lips.

"Eames, I'm not that kind of person; love is love."

He looked her over and she could see that behind his light eyes, wheels were turning, studying her and what she said. She took a sip of her latte as she waited; knowing interrupting his train of thought would only end in him trying to recapture it.

"Then what are you staring at? I don't think you can change either of their minds; it seems they're spoken for each other." He smiled and snuck a glance over.

"I don't want to 'change their mind'," she laughed. "Even if I wanted too I don't think I'm enough woman."

"Enlighten me."

He placed his elbow on the table and his face in the palm of that hand, batting his eyes, making her laugh again.

"It would take a very strong and very attractive woman to change that kind of mindset."

"That isn't what I was referring too but do continue."

"Well what are you referring to?"

"Why you were staring."

Ariadne looked over once again at the couple. The brunette was now trying in vain to get the blonde to take a piece of cake. She couldn't help but grin when the blonde gave in and let the brunette feed it to him.

"It's complicated," she smiled sheepishly behind her cup.

"Now darling, you know I love complicated," Eames winked.

She sighed and thought a moment before answering with: "It's just, they love each other. You can tell just by looking at them. Even if they weren't sitting so close or even in the same booth, you can feel it. And they don't care who sees them, who judges them, they only care about what's happening in the moment between just the two of them. It amazes me, that's all."

Eames studied her again and she waited.

"I can see where you're going with that, but what makes them different from say, that couple over there?" He pointed behind her and she had to turn to look at the man and woman sitting two tables over.

"They," she replied, nodding back to the man and woman, "have little to lose and all to gain. Those two," she nodded to the two men, "they have everything to lose."

"So you're attracted to tragedy; nothing new there. I pegged that from the start, unlike Arthur, I knew you were hounding around Cobb for a reason."

She rolled her eyes. "It's not that... it's..."

She tried to find the right words.

"They have a love heterosexual couples can't fathom. Their love breaks all the rules; it deifies the years and years of ingrained repression, denial, and dismissal of same-sex attraction by the church, the government, even the people themselves. Love such as that conquers the fears of insecurities and oppression a heterosexual attraction does not have to deal with in a socially normal setting. In essence, their love is- if they remain true and there are no underlying abusive behaviors- what love is supposed to be. If anything, I'm jealous; I would die for a love like that."

Once she finished her speech, she sighed and took another drink, draining her small cup. She glanced up to find Eames smiling at her.

"Well," he finally said, "aren't you just the little romantic?"

She shrugged, and gave a half smile. "What can I say, I'm a sucker."

Eames chuckled and downed the last of his own coffee. "Well love, I think our break is over. Let us not dilly-dally least father grounds us and takes away our TV time."

Ariadne giggled at Eames' description of Cobb. Before they got to the door, she looked back at the couple in the third booth down to the right. Her eyes met the blonde's and he gave her a soft smile before returning his attentions to his lover seated next to him.

Awww... I hearts the love XD even if it isn't Ariadne and Eames :P

Thanks for reading!