Part 42 - Dance with me?

Pugsley

It actually looked a lot better in here than I thought it would.

And I make that claim knowing full well I peeked inside this hall yesterday while I was helping set up the decorations outside with Eugene, who got kind of annoyed that I walked off and left him by his lonesome to do all the heavy lifting.

At that point though this place didn't look nearly as extravagant as it did right now. 

Candlesticks and chandeliers, not exactly what I thought would be used to light up the room, but they did give it a nice soft glow, along with a spotlight down the other end of the tables, shining down upon the orchestra, which was playing a nice melody to liven up the evening and get the guests moving.

Everybody here was dressed so accordingly to the theme, and if I didn't feel out of place earlier, then I definitely did now. But I'm here, so there's not much point in trying to hide myself from the crowd. 

I'd greeted Eugene on the way up here, since he was stationed outside with his moths in wait for them to return to their jar, and when I'd asked if Y/n had shown up yet, he told me she was waiting for me inside already. 

And he said, and I quote, 'she looks stunning, you're one lucky guy.'

I know that, though she wasn't technically mine. Yet. 

But his words made the anticipation of seeing her tonight all the more nerve wracking, and I could feel myself starting to perspirate a little under these layers of clothing. My mother and father were making quick work of walking down the staircase to join in the bustle of the floor below us, and I followed in suit as my eyes scanned the room for the girl that I was here for. 

Honestly if it weren't for Y/n, I probably wouldn't have even come to this event, making up some lie to my parents about feeling unwell. But that girl had asked me to be here with puppy dog eyes and the sweetest please I'd ever heard in my life, so who was I to say no to her?

As soon as my feet left the bottom step, my eyes turn to my mom when she spun herself to face me with a small smile.

"Darling, your father and I are going to go find our seats, why don't you go and find your lady and we'll catch up with you later? I'm sure she's somewhere around here."

She lifted a hand to my face, gently poking my nose with a kind smile, and I nod to her as she turned away with my dad and the two of them moved through the people around us to find where their seats were. Mom had gotten special benefits from being involved in the organizing of the event, such as seats at a table close to the stage where I assume all of the speeches and entertainment were going to be held. I had a spot with them too, as did my sister, but right now I was more focused on finding a certain girl.

And hey, maybe after tonight, I won't have to tell people she isn't my girl, or my lady, or anything like that.

First I actually had to get her within my sights. I hadn't been able to spot her when I first walked in, but there were a lot of people in here, so maybe she just got lost in amongst the hoards of attendees who were constantly moving around.

I ducked in between people as I walked, turning my head each time I passed a group of students to see if I could find her, but the more I looked, the more I started to lose hope. None of them were her, not even someone who knew her to tell me where she could be, and I eventually reached the other end of the hall, still no Y/n in sight.

Maybe she was outside?

No, Eugene would have told me if she was out there. And I doubt the timing was just so bad that I walked in as she walked out without even catching a glimpse of her. But that's all I needed, just a fleeting moment of her and I'd know it was Y/n for sure, but I couldn't even find that.

Was she here at all..? Or is this some cruel joke that they're playing on me to get my hopes up...

No. I can't think the worst of her, she has to be here...somewhere.

I back up closer to the edge of the floor where people continued to move past, and I look at every single one, hoping, wishing to see her, and I let out a sigh.

But then I heard it.

"God what am I doing..."

That voice.

The one I would know anywhere, even if it were simply a whisper amongst a sea of screams, the voice that made feel as if I had swallowed a million butterflies. I've heard it countless times before, and I wished to hear it for the rest of my life, because no matter how many times her words graced my soul, it would never be enough, I needed it, craved it...so much. If it were the last thing I ever got to hear, I would die happy, and I would replay it in my head even in the afterlife, just to keep a piece of her in my spirit, to know her in every life I live.

I felt my body turn before I could even tell it to, I didn't have to think about it at all, I knew it was her. I'd recognize this feeling in my chest in a thousand different lives, because in every single one, she could be the only person capable of making me feel this way.

My view of her was delayed only by a moment, one person who walked in front of my eyes making me wait for what felt like an eternity to see her, but when they moved on, and my gaze fell upon the figure in front of me, it felt as if the whole world around me just slowed to a stop, while my heartbeat rapidly got faster. 

There she was. 

The music, the sound of chatter and the bustle of the people that once filled the room, suddenly disappeared into the distant background of my mind, and a calmness washed over me. The only thing any of my senses could feel, hear, see...it was just her. Every part of me never wanted this to end, this flutter in my heart, the feeling of all my muscles relaxing just at the sight of her, the everlasting want to be holding her in my arms, and never let her go.

In all her dazzling beauty, she stood a mere arms length away from me, which in this reality of frozen time, was still too far. She might not have been looking to face me, but I could see her, I could see the way her perfect hair sat just right underneath the back of her mask, the way the dress hugging her curves flowed down to the floor in a way that brought a light to my eyes, even in this dim corner where nobody could see just how much I was admiring her in this second, and for every second til the day I die.

My senses began to come back to normal, and the sound of the orchestra reached my ears once again as I blinked a few times, just to make sure I wasn't imagining her. Time seemed to speed back up to it's regular pace, as I noticed something seemed a little bit off with the way that Y/n was standing.

Both of her arms were hovering in the air next to her body, as if she were trying to remain balanced, or maybe pretending to be a bird... But the former seemed more likely.

I noticed a heel being gripped onto in one of her hands, and I could only assume the other was still on her foot underneath her dress, which could be why she was stabilizing herself. If the bottom of the heel I could see in her hand was any indication of what the other one looked like, she didn't have much holding her up right now.

And hey, what better way to start this evening with her than to offer her a helping hand.

"Y/n?"

Her whole body swiveled around at the sound of my voice, and even though the area around her eyes was covered my the masquerade mask that matched perfectly to the color of her gown, I could still see the slight shift of her pupils when we locked eyes, and something almost like relief crossed her face when she realized it was me.

But she may have moved a tad too quickly, as her figure wobbled a bit like she was about to lose the balance she was trying so hard to keep, but before she took a devastating tumble towards the ground, I reached my hands out to her out of pure instinct, grabbing her by her forearms and holding her still before she was able to fall.

"Woahh, you okay?"

I felt her free hand grip tightly around my arm, while the other one still held her shoe as she regained her steadiness, and she looked up at me with a small, sheepish smile once her body stopped itself from shaking any further.

"Thank you..."

I smile softly down at her.

"Anytime... Do you uh, want some help?"

I gesture my head towards the shoe in her grasp, and she lets out a short huff and nods at my question with an embarrassed look on her face.

"That would great, yeah. I didn't really think this through.."

She holds out the heel for me to take in my own hand, and I do so with a shake of my head.

"It's fine, that's why you have me after all."

I lift both her arms up for her to place her hands on my shoulders, keeping herself balanced as I kneel down in front of her on the floor, shoe in hand ready to place back on her foot, but I wouldn't feel right about doing so without asking first, seeing as I would have to lift up her dress slightly.

I look back up at her, to find her head already tilted down towards mine.

"May I?"

She nodded slowly, and I watched her throat move as she swallowed.

"You may."

As soon as I got the okay, I looked back down the the hem of her dress, and I carefully lifted it a couple of inches off the ground, just enough for me to able to see the foot missing it's shoe, and she moves it closer to me while I hold her ankle, guiding her foot back into the heel. 

It fit perfectly, and once her foot lowered back down to the ground, I felt her hands remove themselves from my shoulders as she took a few steps in place, just to settle herself back into the feeling of both heels. I stood back up, becoming taller than her once again, and after she got herself balanced without needing my help, she smiled up at me.

"Thank you, I don't know what I'd do without you."

I laugh.

"You know, my offer still stands even now. I'll carry you if you don't feel like walking in these things."

I hear a small huff come out from her nose as she nods.

"I will...keep that in mind. ...Thanks, Pugsley. Really, you're my hero."

Fuck, why does she have to say stuff like that in such a sweet way. It made me weak in the knees how she could just admit something like that so casually and not even falter once. I think if I tried to say any of the things I wanted to say to her, I'd fumble the first few words within a second and embarrass myself for life.

I just give her a huff of a laugh, bringing my hand up to scratch the back of my neck. I was so restless right now that I might just jump out of my skin if I'm not careful.

"Well, you're welcome, I uhm..."

It was at that moment that I really let my eyes drop over her figure. I'd been so distracted before that I hadn't taken the time to truly take it in, or appreciate just how right Eugene was.

That dress does look stunning.

"Woah..."

It came out more like a breath, because seeing her like this really did knock the air straight out of my lungs. Part if me felt like I was looking at a completely different person, but it was still her. The girl I've had within my grasp for months now, my best friend in the entire world, and the one person who I knew so dearly, in ways that some may label as too much. But it's not my fault she talks about almost everything in her life, all I do is listen.

And I'd do it over and over again if that's what she needed.

Her head glanced down to the dress as she laughed softly.

"Yeah it's uh, a lot, I know. I look-"

"Beautiful."

There were no other words that could describe her. And even that didn't feel like nearly enough to express just how purely ethereal she was, no sentence or compliment in any language on this earth would ever be able to do my thoughts justice.

But the thing I truly wanted tell her, to scream at the top of my lungs for the whole world to hear, I wanted so badly for her to know...

I love you.

I fear it would forever get stuck in my throat, destined to stay there for however long this persistent feeling of being afraid lasts. 

Her gaze lifted back up to meet mine, and something in her eyes softened.

"You really think so..?"

I nod.

I knew there wasn't the right way to say what I really meant, but I tried anyway.

"Siempre serás más hermosa que la luna y las estrellas juntas, mi niña."

I get a slight head tilt in return to my words, accompanied by a confused expression, but she still smiled regardless if she understood or not.

"What does that mean?"

I shake my head gently with a sense of smugness that I could keep that just to myself. 

I told her, but I never realized that maybe she didn't have to know what I was saying in the first place. 

"It's not important. Just...you look great."

Her eyes give me a once over, and she smirks at me.

"Likewise."

Now there's the girl I fell for. The sarcasm that dripped from that word alone made me remember that even under these clothes, in this hall with these lights, this music, the people around us that I didn't even know, 

She was still just my person.

No amount of elegance or difference in surroundings would ever change that.

My heartbeat slowed a little, only just by a fraction, at the familiar comfortable feeling that she brought to me.

I roll my eyes.

"Oh I know right, but it wasn't my choice. I probably would've gone with like a suit of awesome armor or something if it were up to me. Then I'd get a sword and everything."

I singular snort escapes her throat, and she's quick to cover her mouth so people didn't overhear her giggles.

God that laugh... I could listen to it on repeat for months and never get sick of it, and it was even better when I knew I was the cause of it.

She takes a deep breath, composing herself before looking back at me with a shrug of her shoulders.

"Yeah well, I'd say that funny beats brave any day of the week. So, you know.."

Her tilted down to the floor, and a strand of hair fell from behind her ear, and without even thinking about it first, my hand reached out to her to tuck it back where it belonged. And her eyes jumped up at the sudden contact, and all I could do was just stare into them.

"Good to know..."

She glances to my hand, and I realize maybe she felt uncomfortable with my touch, so I retract it away from her soft skin.

"Sorry. I didn't mean-"

"It's fine.."

Her smile stayed upon her lips, and I couldn't bring myself to look away from it. It was subtle, but sincere, which only made my own expression shift to match it.

The speakers that once played slow songs that were serenading the hall, started to play a more upbeat tune, gracing everyone's ears with a song that I'm sure could bring joy to a person just by hearing it.

I recognized it, from hearing it countless times blaring though Y/n's headphones when she sits at her desk, thinking I'm not looking. But I may or may not have caught her tapping her feet along to it, like she was itching to get out of her chair and dance to it.

And now I could give her that chance.

When I glanced back at the open floor, there were people filling the empty floor space, and some were starting jump around in happiness to the music, while others were simply just sort of swaying awkwardly along to the tune. And I felt a longing feeling in my chest just looking at it.

But, if I didn't ask her, then there's no chance it would happen. 

I turn my attention back towards Y/n, whose gaze was too locked onto the people behind us, and she had this look in her eyes... Like she was staring at something she wanted but couldn't have. 

"Hey uhm.."

My words grabbed her focus back onto me, and she looks at me expectantly.

"I know it's still kind of early in the night, and you don't have to if you don't want to,"

I gestured towards the dance floor.

"But... Would you- I don't know, maybe like to..."

Oh fuck. The words were getting stuck. They were right there, but they refused to come out. It felt as though they were cowering in fear of her saying no, because I know if she did, I will have made things awkward for her, and that's not what I wanted at all.

I just craved to hold her close, to feel her body move in sync with mine in a dance that I hoped for her to remember for the rest of her life. To laugh and the fact that everyone could see us having the time of our lives, and to only see her.

I needed to experience something outside the bounds of being friends, just once. And if that one thing was getting to dance with her here tonight, then I would take it and hold onto it as long as I could, making it last forever.

"Yes."

Wait..what?

Her smile grew wider as she nodded, moving closer to me until she was only a few inches away from me.

"I would love to dance with you."

I didn't even have to say it... But she knew.

My eyes look between hers, and I could feel my heart rate start to pick up again with how close she was.

"Really?"

Her eyes never left mine, but I could see the small movement of her hand fiddling with the top layer of her dress.

"Mhm.. But you have to promise not to hate me if I step on your toes."

I wouldn't dare dream of it.

I gently lifted up one of my hands, having my palm open for her to take, and after a a few seconds, she placed her own hand in mine, and I curled my fingers around hers.

I pulled her out from behind the curtain where she stood, and the soft click of her heels against the ground filled the space between us as she stared at me, slowly walking with me towards the dance floor, where a new memory was just waiting to be made.

"After you, m'lady."