Happy.

I walked into the large hall, feeling exceptionally under dressed. But, to be honest, I was dressed in the smartest clothes I owned. My best friend, Vicky, had invited me, and her boyfriend, to the opening of a new restaurant, but it was so much more than that. It was one of the largest rooms I had ever been in. There were two levels in the room. The back of the room, where people entered was for regular people, like me, Vicky and Dan. Then, in the front of the hall, raised by only a few steps, which still made a large difference, was the VIP area. There were just as many tables in this area as there was in the ‘regular’ people area. On the far left of the hall, about 10 meters by 10 meters, was a dance floor, with a small staging area for a live band. I knew that the band wouldn’t be the type of music I liked – it would be classical music for proper dancing – Waltz, Ballroom, etc. Dances that I knew I wouldn’t be participating in.

But, in truth, I was honoured to be here. Vicky had only managed to get us all in because her brother was the head chef. As I looked around, I saw that nearly everyone was in black tie clothing. The men were all in black suits, and the women were all in posh, expensive dresses. I didn’t even own any trousers that weren’t made of denim. I was slightly self-conscious, but I knew there was nothing I could do about it now. Plus, as soon as I sat at the table, I would be mostly hidden, so no one would notice. To be fair, though, I was wearing my smartest black jeans, a black button up with a white tie. Could have been worse. There was nothing I could do about my hair, though. It was cut in a certain way that meant it was messy and shaggy no matter what I did to it. I normally straightened it, to make it slightly more presentable.

Only about 10 minutes before we left Vicky’s house to come here, Dan had cornered me and asked me a favour. “At some point, do you think you could…leave for a while?” he had asked and I had frowned in confusion. “I just…I want to ask Vicky something…and…I don’t really want you…present.” I thought over what he said and then I grinned. Vicky and Dan had been going out for nearly 2 years, and it was clear to me what Dan was going to do.
“Of course!” I had happily agreed. I was ecstatic for Vicky – Dan was perfect for her. The only problem was, I didn’t know what I was going to do while I left Dan and Vicky alone.

I didn’t have to think about it for a while, though. The meal we had there was fantastic. We had a starter, and then a main meal. Typical of most posh restaurants, the quantity of food was not high. But it was quality over quantity, right? Anyway, just as the waiter, who, by the way, was gorgeous, said he’d be back in a minute with the desert menus, Dan shot me a look and I knew he wanted me gone. “I’m, um, just going to look around,” I said, lamely. I’d had about an hour to think of an excuse, but I still didn’t get one.
“What? Luke, you-“ Vicky started but I stood up, ignoring her. “Fine, but don’t go into the VIP section.” I rolled my eyes and left, a small smile curving my lips as I thought about what was about to happen.

I wandered around slowly, trying to think of things to do before returning to the table. I walked slowly to the bathrooms, taking as long as possible. I went inside and washed my hands, finding I had nothing else I needed to do. As sad as it sounds, I admired the decorations in the bathroom. It was elegantly done in black and white tiles, with bright white doors and counters. The sinks were black ceramics with black taps. There were about 4 light bulbs above a 3 foot high mirror above every sink, which were edged in black. I stayed in there for a while, getting several weird looks from people. I just ignored them.

After about 5 minutes, I walked out of the bathroom and wandered around the hall for a while. I tried to make it look like I wasn’t looking at all the people who were eating a meal, and that I was walking back to my table, but I don’t know if I succeeded. Eventually, I got to one of the sets of stairs that lead up to the VIP area. It didn’t look like anyone was around who would stop me from going in. I quickly looked around and then tried to look casual as I ducked under the velvet purple rope. Once I was standing upright again, however, I felt a hand on my shoulder. “Can I help you, sir?” I turned and saw a man, he was average build, but still scared me because I was so short compared to him. At only 5’4” I was short compared to pretty much everyone.
“I-I-“ I panicked, trying to think of something to say.
“Do you have a VIP ticket, sir?” the man asked, the look in his eyes getting angrier by the second.
“Um, I-“ I still didn’t know what to say. I glanced away from the man for a second and saw a boy, about my age walking, past us. I quickly grabbed him, without thinking. “I’m with him,” I said, pulling the boy into the conversation. I saw shock register on his face before he skilfully covered it up.
“Really?” the man asked.
“Yes, he’s my boyfriend,” I said, praying to anyone who’s up there that this guy was willing to play along. I could see the man wasn’t falling for it, so before I could talk myself out of it, I turned and kissed the boy on this lips. The sensations that flowed through my body at the touch of his lips were electrifying and I couldn’t help but gasp into the kiss. I forced myself to pull away, only realizing then, that the boy’s arms were around me and that he had kissed me back. I looked into his eyes for a second before blushing and looking back at the man. He narrowed his eyes and then nodded and walked away. I let out a relieved sigh and then turned to the boy hesitantly. I finally took in his appearance properly. He was reasonably tall with scruffy blonde hair. He wore it in a similar style to me, except mine was dyed black. He was wearing a black suit with a black shirt and a black tie. The look wouldn’t work on most people, but it did on him.

I looked up at him and saw he was looking at me with an amused smile on his face. “I…um…thanks,” I said quietly and the boy nodded while smiling.
“I’m Alex,” he said, holding out his hand. I glanced at the man, to make sure he wasn’t watching us and then placed my hand in his. Tingles erupted over my palm but I managed to ignore it as I smiled up at him.
“Luke,” I said and he smiled down at me.
“So, I think you owe me now that I did that for you,” he said and I didn’t know what to say. What would he want me to do?
“Um, I-“ I started and he grinned.
“Chill, I was just going to ask you to dance with me,” he said and I blushed.
“Um, I’m not much of a dancer,” I told him and he grinned again. I found myself staring at him, already addicted to his smile.
“I’ll lead then,” he said and took my hand again. I didn’t even have a chance to object as he pulled me into the dance floor. There were only a few people out here. Not enough to hide me.
“I’m really not good, I’ll probably trip you up until you get sick of dancing with me,” I said. Alex just pulled my body against his, earning a gasp from me.
“I don’t think I could get sick of you,” he said into my ear and I shivered. He took my hand and placed one on his shoulder, while his hand went to my waist. His other hand gripped mine lightly as he lifted our joined hands. I was very aware that I was the girl in this moment, but I truly didn’t care. Well, not enough to wish to stop. “Ready?” he asked softly.
“No,” I whispered back, just as softly. He just grinned and started moving slowly, allowing me to get used to it.

Our bodies moved smoothly together, across the dance floor. Alex really knew what he was doing. I, on the other hand, was paranoid I would mess up and make Alex look stupid. I constantly looked down at my feet, to make sure they weren’t too close to his, just in case. “Eyes up, Luke,” Alex whispered. The way he said my name made my heart skip a beat. I raised my eyes to his and they got locked there as we danced.

I never thought I’d be upset when the music ended, but I had wanted the dance to go on forever. When we stopped moving, Alex leant down and pressed a soft kiss to my cheek. “Thank you,” he whispered and I smiled as I blushed. “We’re even now.” I panicked for a second, worried that I would never see him again. Alex took my hand and led me away from the dance floor. We walked back to the steps where I had been stopped previously. “I better get back,” he said and I nodded.
“Yeah, me too,” I said, wondering how Vicky and Dan were. I watched as Alex bit his lip and then reached into his pocket. He pulled out a small slip of paper and a pen. He quickly wrote something down and then pushed it into my palm. I smiled at him as we gazed into each others’ eyes.
“I’ll see you, Luke,” he said and I nodded as I forced myself to pull away from him.
“Bye,” I said softly and turned and walked away. I glanced back and could no longer see him. I looked down at the paper in my hand and saw Alex Gaskarth followed by a phone number. I couldn’t help but grin as I put the paper in my pocket carefully.

When I got back to the table, Vicky jumped up, throwing her arms around my neck. I grinned and hugged her back tightly. I looked at Dan over her shoulder and saw he was grinning too. The size of the smile on his face would have made him look idiotic at any other time, but now he just looked insanely happy. “Congratulations,” I said to them both, even though it was aimed at Vicky.
“You knew?” she asked me and I shrugged.
“Dan asked me to sod off while he asked you,” I said, grinning at Dan. Vicky hit me gently before sitting back next to her fiancé. I sat back down as well.
“Well, can I see your ring?” I asked and she beamed and held her left hand out towards me. I held her hand in mine as I looked at the ring. “Very nice,” I grinned at Dan and Vicky took her hand back and gazed at the ring.
“He spent too much,” Vicky said, but I could tell she was already in love with the ring. I rolled my eyes and glanced at Dan, who rolled his eyes as well.

A few minutes later, after we’d been talking about their wedding, Vicky looked up, quickly changing the subject. "So, Luke, who was the gorgeous guy you were dancing with?" she grinned and I blushed.
"Um, his name was Alex," I said, smiling softly. "He, um, helped me out and said I could pay him back with a dance."
"What did he help you with?" Dan asked, frowning slightly.
"Um, I kind of got caught in the VIP area and he said I was with him," I said and Vicky rolled her eyes.
"I told you not to go in there," she said and I fixed me gaze on her.
"Oh, I'm sorry, would you rather I came back here and interrupted your proposal?" I asked her and she had no reply. "Exactly."
"Well, you could have gone somewhere else," she said.
"I'd been standing in the bathroom for over 5 minutes...what else is there to do at a restaurant?" I asked and she huffed, knowing I was right. "Anyway, I got a cute guy's number out of it. So I don’t mind breaking the rules." I couldn’t help but grin as I thought of Alex's number in my pocket.
"Aww, Lukey's in love," Vicky cooed and I rolled my eyes while I blushed.
"I am not in love," I defended. "I've known the guy about 15 minutes."
"So?" she asked. "Ever heard of love at first sight?" I didn't know what to say. How could I be in love with someone that quick? True, I really, really liked Alex. But I don’t think I was in love with him. Not yet anyway.

Once I got home that night, I went straight to my room and sat on my bed. I used to share this apartment with Vicky, but she moved out a couple of months ago to live with Dan, and I didn't really want another roommate. I was 25 and perfectly happy to live on my own. I took Alex's number out of my pocket and looked at it. I decided I liked Alex's handwriting. It wasn't too elaborate like some people's, but it wasn't boring. I took my phone and slowly pressed each button, wondering if I should phone him tonight or wait for tomorrow. It was 11.34 according to my clock, but I had a feeling that Alex wouldn’t be asleep yet. I bit my lip and then pressed the 'send call' button and brought the phone up to my ear. It rang once before it was answered. "Hello?" I smiled hearing Alex's voice again.
"Hi, Alex, it's Luke," I said, feeling stupid. I wish I had something to say to him. But I didn't, I'd really just wanted to phone just to hear his voice again.
"Oh, hey! I was hoping you'd call," he said and I grinned.
"Really?" I asked softly, unsurely.
"Yeah, I wanted to talk to you again," he said and my heart fluttered. "Um, do you want to get coffee or something tomorrow?"
"Um, sure," I smiled, relieved that Alex had asked me, because I was too nervous to ask him. "Where?" I asked.
"Where do you live?" he asked.
"Seride Street," I said. "It's about 10 minutes from-"
"I know where it is," he interrupted me. "I don’t live far from you." That piece of information made me happier. "Do you know the small cafe on the corner of Lourne Street?" he asked and I grinned.
"Yeah," I said happily. That was my favourite place to go.
"Great, so, I'll see you tomorrow? 11 o'clock?" he asked and I nodded while I grinned.
"Absolutely," I said, wondering if I sounded too keen.
"Great, I've got to go, but I'll see you there," he said.
"Yeah, okay, bye," I said.
"Bye," he replied and then hung up. I closed my phone, a grin plastered to my face and fell back onto the bed. I lay there for a second, smiling, and then I got up, got ready for bed, and then climbed under the sheets and fell asleep, dreaming of spinning round a hall, held in the arms of a blonde haired boy.