Chapter Text
Upon waking up, Alejandro felt a warm weight against his chest, and after opening his eyes, he looked down to see Noah pressed up against his front, a hand curled into Alejandro's sleep shirt and holding on tightly. The sight made the taller boy smile, and he leaned down to press a kiss to fluffy brown locks.
The owner of said locks let out a small noise, cuddling up impossibly closer to the warm body beside his, and he quickly settled again, soft snores leaving him.
The two laid together peacefully for a few minutes, Alejandro letting himself wake up slowly while Noah continued to sleep, until they were both jolted by three loud knocks on their hotel room door. With a grimace, Alejandro slipped out of Noah's arms and off the bed, trying his hardest to ignore the sight of Noah's tired pout, practically stomping to the door to see who was knocking so loud so early in the morning.
He was met with none other than the host of the show, who was somehow already dressed for the day with a coffee in hand. "Alejandro, my man! Is No-it-all up yet? He sleeps like he's dead."
"Yes, he's awake. Your knocking was rather…loud." Alejandro crossed his arms over his chest, trying not to get too sassy with Chris, because he knew what tortures the man was capable of (this entire show was an example).
"Is that Chris? Tell him to fuck off," came a tired voice from behind, and he turned to see a half asleep Noah who was still wrapped in the comforter pad over, a glare in his tired eyes. Alejandro smiled at the sight, wishing he had a camera of some kind so he could take a photo of how cute he was.
Chris just laughed, stepping forward to flick Noah's bang covered forehead. "I forgot how cranky you are in the mornings," he teased, stepping back after being shot a glare by both teens. "Any who, make sure you guys bring your stuff with you when you leave. The plane's finally fixed, and the challenge is taking place tonight."
A night challenge? They hadn't had one of those since the Amazon challenge, and that had been a disaster. Noah frowned at the thought, deciding to lean his weight against Alejandro's side. "Fine, you heathen. We'll be there."
"Great! Also," the host leans down to be eye-level with Noah, and oh, he's seen that glint in his eye before, "make sure you give me my credit card back, you little weasel."
"Consider it payback for all the shit I did as your assistant," Noah easily shot back, but he made a mental note to give the card back before the challenge started. He didn't want anybody accusing him of cheating.
Chris huffed, mumbling something about, "that was one time,", before he seemed to notice how close the two boys were. A wicked smirk crept onto his lips. "Awe, you two finally get together? Thank God. Chef bet that it wouldn't happen until the end of the season."
"You two bet on us?" Alejandro asked, not appalled as he should be by that information. It seemed in character for the two hosts, though he didn't like being on the receiving end. "Surely it wasn't that obvious, was it?"
"I'm pretty sure the interns have a compilation of sweet moments between you two," the host answered, grinning like it was the funniest thing on the planet. "Plus, Noah over here was moping about you yesterday, and got some advice from his lovely ex-boss—"
"More like ex-nuisance—" Noah was cut off by a hand to his mouth, and he suddenly had the urge to bite the hand like Izzy would.
"As I was saying, he wanted some advice on his little crush." Chris watched Alejandro's face light up, and the Spanish teen looked down at his new boyfriend, eyes wide and a large smile on his face.
"You asked for advice about your little crush on me?" Alejandro's voice was oddly soft, and Chris bit his lip to not fake gag and ruin the moment. "Mi amor, you're so precious."
Noah just sighed defeatedly, pushing the host's hand away from his face and looking up at his boyfriend. "I had a moment of weakness, and Chris and Chef were the only two around. Sue me." He fought back a smile as Alejandro intertwined their fingers, squeezing the hand in his before Chris gagged. Loudly.
"Do not start making out in front of me, or I'll swap one of you to Team Amazon," he said, though the threat was half-hearted. Romance was always a ratings boost, even if it was gay, and with two competitors who had captured the audience's hearts (seriously, how was Noah a fan favorite?) this could work out in Chris' favor. Maybe the next season of Total Drama would be greenlit after all!
"I think I'd rather jump out of the plane without a parachute," Noah deadpanned, and Chris took that as his cue to leave, not wanting to stay around for the onslaught of insults he'd surely be met with. He had better things to do, thank you very much, like tell his husband that he won their bet.
With Chris gone, Alejandro led Noah back inside the hotel room, and when the door was shut, he pulled his boyfriend into a hug, chin resting on top of his head. "How is your eye? I still have the eye patch that Chef lent me, if you'd like to wear it."
"There's only room for one pirate between the two of us," was Noah's reply, followed by the longest yawn Alejandro had ever heard. He peered down at the shorter boy, an eyebrow raised in concern, but Noah just waved him off, still pressed against his front. "But thanks for the offer. I'll just take the pills and suck it up. It isn't the worst injury this show's ever seen."
"I suppose I'll just have to look after you, hm?" Alejandro hummed, moving his head from its place on top of Noah's and then leaning down, capturing the smaller boy's lips in a kiss. "We'll vote Tyler off when the time comes," he promised between kisses, ignoring the look Noah shot him.
"Tyler's just a klutz, that doesn't mean we have to vote him out," Noah paused, trying not to let his thoughts be interrupted by Alejandro's kisses. "Besides, maybe we can start a winning streak, hm? Think we can handle it?"
Alejandro rolled his eyes at being challenged, squeezing Noah's waist in retaliation. "As long as someone doesn't fall asleep during a challenge again," he teased, pressing one last kiss to the shorter's lips before being pushed away. He let out a dramatic sigh, which is boyfriend merely scoffed at. "You wound me, cerebrito."
"Sensitive much?" Noah stepped away to look through his bag for his shorts. Once they were found, he claimed the bathroom first, changing out of his pajama pants into the cargo shorts and attempting to brush his hair. Once he was satisfied, he left the room, heading back towards the bed so he could grab his pill bottle, only stopping whenever he realized that Alejandro was shirtless.
Hearing his boyfriend's footsteps from behind, Alejandro turned around smirking whenever he saw the awkward look on Noah's face. "See something you like, mi amor?"
"Keep it in your pants, Casanova," Noah said, making an effort to not stare at the shirtless teen. Instead, he grabbed Crime and Punishment, opening the book from where he'd left off, which causing Alejandro to protest and try to grab the book away.
"You said we would read it together! You cannot skip ahead, Noah!" Alejandro managed to grab the book, holding it above the shorter teen's head. Noah huffed, raising his knee to hit Alejandro in the stomach like he had last night, and the Spanish teen surrendered, handing back the book. "You and your bony knees."
The two continued to bicker as they got ready, and after a sweep to make sure that they had everything, the couple left the room, Alejandro immediately grabbing onto Noah's hand. The cynic obliged, knowing that Alejandro probably lacked physical affection from his family. Why not let the boy cling to him?
He was reminded why not to whenever Owen spotted them in the lobby, excitedly yelling about, "I knew you could do it, little buddy!" before scooping Noah into a hug, holding him in his arms like he weighed nothing. Which, Noah kind of did weigh nothing. He knew he was small, and so did Owen, which was why he was picked up so much by the blond.
Tyler and Alejandro watched the spectacle, the latter's eye slightly twitching at the sight while the jock smiled widely. "Are you two dating now? That's cool!" he said, elbowing Alejandro's arm. Then, he noticed Owen squeezing his little buddy, and whispered, "should we get him off of Noah?"
"Si," Alejandro agreed without a thought, stepping over to the two best friends so he could pull Noah out of the oaf's arms. He immediately held onto his hand again, dragging his boyfriend away from Owen and towards where Tyler stood.
Tyler gave Noah a high five and Alejandro a fist bump, clearly happy for the two of them. "After the show, you guys can go on double dates with me and Linds!" he suggested, and while Noah wanted to decline, mainly because the thought of going on a double date with anyone made him want to crawl out of his skin, Alejandro merely said that they'd think about it.
"What about double dates?" Sierra's voice rang out, and the trio turned to spot Team Amazon also in the lobby, gathered around while holding their bags. Courtney and Gwen whispered something to each other, giggling afterwards, Sierra had a grip on Cody's arm and seemed delighted by the idea of a double date, and Heather looked like she was three seconds away from gagging.
"You can't double date if you don't have a boyfriend," Noah pointed out, earning himself a stuck out tongue from the purple haired girl. He rolled his eyes, meeting Cody's eyes and mouthing 'good luck'. Cody just sighed defeatedly, looking similar to a kicked puppy. A kicked puppy with a stalker, to be more exact.
Heather made her way towards the couple, giving them a once over and then letting her eyes drift onto Noah. "Are you sure you want to be with him? You're kind of ugly, but you could maybe score someone better if you cut your hair and didn't dress like a total dork."
"Awe, you're acting like you care about me," Noah teased, batting his eyelashes before being hit by a thrown nail file. "Heather has a heart after all!"
"Don't ruin my image, you dweeb," Heather scoffed, though Alejandro caught the small smile on her lips. That turned into a frown as she looked at him next. "Thank God you finally told him about your crush. It was starting to get embarrassing."
"Being bald is also embarrassing," Noah chimed in, getting yet another nail file thrown at his head, followed by a "shut up, nerd!"
Alejandro chuckled, though he managed to duck out of the way before a nail file could hit him. Seriously, how many did Heather have on her? "I regret ever admitting it to you, senorita."
"You should," was Heather's curt reply, and then she was pushed to the side by Courtney, who was tugging Gwen along with her.
"Finally! We were getting sick of you guys flirting all the time," the brunette said, a careful smile on her lips. She glanced over at Gwen, who was wiggling her eyebrows at Noah, much to the boy's dismay.
Noah flipped Gwen off with the hand that wasn't being squeezed by his boyfriend, and the goth returned the gesture with a grin on her teal lips. "You'd think having a boyfriend would soften you a little."
"In your dreams, honey," Noah smirked, looking up at Alejandro whenever his shoulder was bumped into. "What?"
"If it matters, I like you just the way you are," Alejandro said sincerely, and Gwen faked cooed, before he added, "even if you do act like a heathen at times."
He was met with a shove that made him let go of Noah's hand. Alejandro frowned, reaching out again for his boyfriend, but Noah ducked behind Gwen and Courtney, practically using them as human shields. "At least I don't flirt with anything that has legs!"
Alejandro rolled his eyes, gently scooting between Courtney and Gwen so he could reach Noah, tugging him into his arms. He kept the smaller boy pinned against him, Noah's back to his chest, and ignored how he squirmed against his hold. "I apologize for him, ladies. It must be the pain medication that is messing with his head."
"He's not concussed, is he? I wouldn't be surprised, given this show," Courtney said, examining Noah's bruise. It was definitely nasty, and she wondered if Chris would let the makeup team cover it up. Then again, injuries seemed to be good for the ratings, oddly enough. Some people were just weird and liked to watch the suffering of teenagers.
"No, his eye is just bruised," Alejandro explained, looking down at Noah, who'd accepted his fate of being held. The bruise was a deep purple, and while the pain killers and ice pack had helped a little bit, he knew that it bothered Noah still. "I offered him the eye patch that I wore, but he refused."
"There's only room for so many of us to embarrass ourselves on international TV," Noah interjected, meeting his boyfriend's eyes. "Then again, this entire show is an embarrassment ritual."
Gwen agreed, before wincing at the bruise on Noah's face. "Yikes. You bruise way too easily. I didn't think Tyler kicked the ball that hard."
"I totally did!" interrupted Tyler, who'd somehow snuck up on them. Noah shot him a sideways glance, and the brunet ducked his head apologetically. "Sorry again, dude. Didn't mean to hurt you."
"Whatever, I've been through worse," Noah muttered, annoyed but unphased by the black eye. Being friends with Eva, Izzy, and Owen meant a lot of injuries, either from his friends or because of his own clumsiness. Either way, he'd grown used to getting hurt ever since he joined Total Drama.
It was just a fact of life. The wind blew, birds knew how to fly, and everyone on Total Drama gets injured at some point, contestants and staff included.
Their conversations quieted down as some interns approached, needing to take their bags back to the plane. After handing their stuff over, the group went to get breakfast, wanting to savor hotel food before they went back to eating whatever concoctions Chef came up with.
"So, what should we do for our last hours of freedom?" Gwen asked, resting her chin in her hand. The contestants were all gathered around two tables, having been informed that they had until five to do whatever.
"Maybe we could go to a museum? Cody and Sierra seem to be over their disagreement, so they're no longer a sore subject," Alejandro suggested, an arm thrown around Noah's shoulders.
Heather scoffed, rolling her eyes at Alejandro's suggestion. "Of course you'd want to go to a boring museum, you nerd. Was the Louvre not good enough?"
"Considering we were competing, no." Alejandro merely smiled as Heather groaned, meeting her hardened stare with a glare of his own.
"Okay, okay, break it up you drama queens," Noah interjected, elbowing his boyfriend's arm so he'd stop egging Heather on. "Whatever we're doing, we're maxing out Chris' credit card. He deserves it for waking us up."
Alejandro huffed, though he surprisingly listened, leaning his head against Noah's shoulder. "Fine. But she started it."
"I'm going to beat you—" Heather was cut off by Courtney slapping a hand on her mouth, as well as Gwen kicking her shin.
"Nope! No fighting! You already got punched once during this show," Courtney reminded, meeting Gwen's gaze and nodding at her just the slightest bit. "Besides, you did start it."
Gwen giggled in agreement, stepping back away from Heather before the girl could step on her foot. "I wish they kept Leshawna. It would've been great entertainment."
The queen bee just scoffed, shooting a glare at Alejandro's smug face before she went to stand beside Sierra, who looked at her somewhat apologetically.
"Ooh, maybe we could go to the park again!" Tyler suggested happily, before getting a deadpan stare thrown his way. "Right. Sorry, Noah."
"It's whatever," Noah told him, ignoring how Alejandro's arm had tightened around his shoulders. It was kind of nice to be clung onto by someone who could control their strength, no offense to Owen.
A few more suggestions were heard and promptly shot down, until Gwen suggested they just look around the area. They were awfully close Big Ben, and they would be close enough to run back to the hotel to meet up with Chris and the crew before their "curfew". Courtney immediately agreed, as did Alejandro, while the rest just went along with the idea because there were no better options.
Walking the streets of London was nicer than any of the challenges had been. No hot desert sun, no freezing ice, just avoiding walking into Londoners, as well as trying to keep the peace between the group. As Noah had said two minutes into their walk, "it's too early for your dumb arguments."
The area was crowded with tourists, and after obtaining a map, they agreed to explore some of the other famous buildings in the area, saving Big Ben for last, and before they went back to the plane, they'd ride the London Eye. The contestants followed another group for a bit, wandering the old buildings and listening to the tour guide explain its history. While some of the teens found it boring—Heather grumbled under her breath every few minutes, Owen had loudly whispered to Tyler about lame this was, and Cody had tried to crack a joke that didn't land well—Alejandro seemed to be loving it. His eyes took in every detail, and whenever the tour guide asked a question, he always tried his best to answer.
It was cute, Noah thought to himself. He'd first realized how much of a secret nerd Alejandro was back in Japan, and it became glaringly obvious in Paris. He'd spent some time after the challenge pointing out specific paintings to Noah, telling him about their origins and the stories behind them. He went on tangents about the artists, wondering about their thought processes behind the art, and despite being slightly annoyed at being dragged around the museum, Noah found himself enjoying it.
He was enjoying the current tour, watching Alejandro from behind the taller boy while Owen whispered to him, teasing him about his "staring problem".
"I'm not staring," Noah denied, crossing his arms over his chest. Meanwhile, his eyes ratted him out, but he couldn't help it. For once, Alejandro looked like he was genuinely happy. It was a nice look on him. "I'm simply admiring the architecture."
"I didn't know 'architecture' was Al's nickname," Owen teased back, laughing whenever Noah elbowed him.
The shorter teen let out a sigh, looking up to see that Alejandro had turned around to look at him. Upon noticing Noah, he smiled in his direction, crooking a finger so he'd come closer.
Noah gave Owen one last glare before walking forward a few steps, easily falling into step with Alejandro. "Enjoying yourself?"
"Mhm. History is fascinating, don't you agree?" Alejandro looked down at his boyfriend, purposefully brushing their hands together. "I've only been to London once, but I'm afraid I didn't have a chance to explore."
Noah hummed, taking the bait and intertwining their fingers. "Because of your dad, right? Diplomatic duties and all." He remembered the introduction Chris had given Alejandro during the first episode, as well as little comments the Spanish teen had made as they traveled the world.
Alejandro nodded, a little taken aback that Noah had remembered. He purposefully didn't bring up his family much, only letting a few comments slip here and there, and the first episode felt like ages ago. "Yes, that's right. I think I'd like to come back one day and explore some more."
"With you," was left unsaid, but Alejandro's eyes said it anyways. Noah found himself smiling, squeezing the hand in his. "After one of us win the million, we can do that. Though maybe we can sleep for a day straight before that. God knows we deserve it."
"I can't argue with that, mi cerebrito."
The rest of the tour was as interesting as it could be, and after exploring for a few more hours, the contestants finally made their way to the Great Clock of Westminster, where Big Ben was held up proudly. When it was announced that they would be climbing up 334 steps, Noah had to bite his tongue so he wouldn't let out a groan.
"Think you can handle that, nerd?" Heather taunted, looking down at him with a delighted grin. Noah flipped her off in return, ignoring the looks the other teens were giving him. Surely he can handle stairs, right? He'd handled the show's challenges so far, and while he might have complained, he hadn't died yet from overexertion.
The tour of the clock tower was hell. Noah decided on that 100 steps in, feeling a burn in his calves that would have made Eva proud. They occasionally stopped and listened to the tour guide spout fun facts about the tower before continuing up the steps, but eventually, they reached the top.
It was boring. Sure, it was a London staple, and probably the most visited landmark, but it wasn't worth the hike it took to reach the top. Or at least that's what Noah thought. He looked around the area, drowning out the tour guide as he looked at the mechanics. If he wasn't so winded, maybe he'd be more intrigued, but Noah was frankly too tired to care so much, unlike the other tourists, who were thrilled by the sight of nineteenth century mechanical engineering.
After some time, they went back down the steps, Alejandro having to grab the back of Tyler's jacket to prevent him from falling twice. He was always thanked afterwards with a thumbs up and a smile, which made him feel somewhat nice. Every few minutes, he looked over his shoulder at Noah, noticing the smaller boy's grumpiness at such physical activity. He made a mental note to not have him do so much during their challenge tonight.
Finally, they were back down, and the group found a spot to sit so they could rest their legs.
"Man, I haven't been that winded since Izzy took us to the zoo!" Owen huffed, flopping down to sit beside Noah. The smaller teen grunted, a small frown on his lips at the memory. The girl had tried to steal a penguin, and after being caught by one of the worker's, she made them run and hide so she could plan for a midnight escapade. Luckily, that never happened.
Alejandro sat at Noah's other side, looking down at him worryingly. "Are you alright? That was a lot of walking, and I know how you feel about that."
"I'm fine, Ale. I'm not going to have an asthma attack or anything," Noah shrugged it off, more focused on catching his breath and stretching his legs. He turned to Courtney and Heather, an eyebrow raised. "I still don't know how you two manage to walk in those, let alone run for all the challenges."
"It's just talent," Heather answered, not wanting to admit that her heels were killing her and that she'd probably end up having blisters.
Courtney just shrugged, sitting beside Gwen on a bench and resting her head against the goth's shoulder. "You get used to them after a while," she explained, though her heels were also in pain.
They rested for a few minutes, before deciding to head towards the London Eye for one last hoorah. Noticing Noah's clear disdain for more walking, Alejandro offered to give him a piggyback ride, and after some back-and-forth, Noah finally agreed. The Spaniard made sure that his precious cargo was safely clinging onto him, and he gave the group a thumbs up.
Luckily for them, the London Eye was only about a ten minute walk, and they got to walk over a bridge and admire the water. Once at the giant ferris wheel, they waited in line, chatting with one another and waiting for their turn. When they reached the front of the line, Noah was let down from Alejandro's back and paid for their tickets, and soon enough, they, as well as another group behind them, were let onto a carriage.
The ascend was slow, but the view was incredible.
"Look! I can see the plane from here!" Tyler pointed out, standing beside a window and pointing towards the water. Sure enough, the jumbo jet was visible, and Noah fought the urge to shudder at the sight.
He was soon pulled away from his thoughts by a hand on his wrist, and when he looked up, Alejandro was leading him away from the other teens and towards the other side of the carriage. They looked outside together, though Noah noticed how the other's eyes landed on him every so often.
Finally, after the seventh time of being stared at, Noah quietly asked, "what? Do I have something on my face?"
Alejandro just smiled, leaning down to press a kiss to Noah's nose. "Now you do, mi amor," he teased, chuckling at Noah's groan. He grabbed the smaller boy's hand, for the fourth time that day, bringing it up to his lips so he could kiss the cold skin. "Did you have fun today?"
"It was alright, I guess," Noah answered nonchalantly, though he couldn't keep the smile off his face. Acting as a tourist instead of a reality TV show contestant had been great. He never wanted it to end, but sadly, the show must go on. "How about you? I noticed you nerding out earlier."
"I was not 'nerding out'," Alejandro rebutted, flicking Noah's forehead in retaliation. "I was merely enjoying myself, and the history of such a beloved city."
"Oh my God, I'm dating a nerd," the bookworm mumbled, showing off a grin that Alejandro couldn't help but match.
As the people around them chattered and enjoyed the views, Alejandro looked down at Noah again, deciding that the boy was an even better sight than the historic city below them. In fact, he would even go as far as to say that Noah looked like a dream come true.
A dream that Alejandro never wanted to wake up from.