Sparks Fly

“Aren't you ready yet?” Carlos called to Ellie from outside the bathroom door. The premiere was for some Nickelodeon show, Carlos had told her. She'd never heard of it. So she was taking her sweet time getting ready.

“Just about” she sing-songed, blinking at herself a couple times. She twirled around in front of the mirror, checking for anything she'd missed. “Oh, duh” she said, rolling her eyes and reaching for her make-up bag again. She swiped on some red lipstick and smiled at her reflection. She rarely had opportunities to dress up, but she thought she looked pretty good. She fastened the necklace from Carlos, then placed an ornate black headband in her short blonde hair. Finally, she opened the door. Carlos looked up, offering her a smile. “You wore a bowtie.”

“Yeah, I promised I would didn't I?” Carlos leaned in to kiss Ellie and she smirked, taking a step back. “Ellie” he whined, drawing out the second 'e' in her name.

“Well, this is our first real date, right?” Carlos nodded. “So... you have to wait until the end to kiss me.”

“But you look so beautiful.” She shrugged at him, and he sighed in defeat. “Fine. We do have to get going though. Can I hold your hand?” Ellie nodded, and Carlos took her hand, lips brushing her knuckles, and out the door they went.

“So what exactly is this uh... event, gonna be like?” Ellie asked, now in a limo with Carlos, Logan, Kendall, and James. Erin was babysitting Sophie, who had sworn to Ellie that she'd take good care of her.

“Well, as I said, they're going to a premiere for one of the new shows on Nickelodeon.” The limo pulled up in front of a fancy looking building and dropped off three out of four guys. Then they were moving again.

“Okay... so we're not going to that premiere?”

“Nope!” Carlos' grin spread from ear to ear.

“So... where are we going?” Carlos gave her an extremely obvious shrug. “Well, am I gonna like it?”

“Of course you will! I'm sure you will. You trust me, don't you?” Ellie smiled, just as the limo pulled to a stop.

“I do trust you, Carlos.” He opened the door of the limo, allowing her to get out first. They were at a theater. Bright lights lit up the marquee with current productions, which tonight was “RENT!” Ellie squealed, enveloping Carlos in a hug and smothering his cheek with kisses. Along with Beauty and the Beast, Ellie was fond of most musicals. RENT was definitely in the top five of her list of favorites.

“Sophie told me you like musicals, and I like musicals. So I thought, you know... this would be a fun first date.” Carlos took Ellie's hand and led her into the theater, her eyes wide. She'd never actually been to see a live musical, though she'd seen them on TV before. She grabbed his arm, pointing out every little thing that caught her eye. He smiled and kissed her cheek with a chuckle, she was giddy with excitement.

“RENT is one of my favorite musicals, did you know that?” Carlos shook his head.

“No, but it's one of my favorites too. Let's try not to sing along too loudly, okay?” Ellie sighed, crossing my arms as we took our seats.

“Fine. But we are singing all the way back to your absurdly nice apartment.”

“Sounds like a deal to me.” The lights went down, and as soon as the cast started singing, Ellie was flailing in her seat. She glanced over at Carlos every few minutes, smacking his arm when it got intense. The people around them seemed a little annoyed, and Ellie half expected Carlos to tell her to calm down. But he was just as excited as she was, if not more, gripping her shoulder and mouthing the lyrics. They laughed silently, Carlos' hand found Ellie's, and she rested her head on his shoulder. The rest of the show went by in a flash, and Ellie cried about every ten minutes.

Once it was over, they walked outside hand in hand. They spoke about the cast (the guy who'd played Benny had a fantastic voice). “If I were ever to be in RENT, I'd want to play Mimi.” Ellie mused, biting her lip. "I just think she has the best singing parts." Carlos nodded.

"Agreed. I guess I'd want to play Roger if I were in it. But what I really want to be in is Grease." Carlos lead her up to the top of a hill before performing the whole 'Greased Lightning' bit. Ellie laughed as Carlos swiveled his hips, winking at her when he hit the end of the chorus. She applauded, tears from of laughter leaked from her eyes. "Stop laughing, I'm amazing!"

"Of course you are, Carlos" Ellie cooed, pinching his cheek. "You do have talent, of course. You'll get to be in Grease someday." Carlos sighed, taking Ellie's hand and pulling her down so they could sit on top of the hill together.

“What if we just ran away, right now?” he asked.

“Well, you'd get fired, and I'd die of fright wondering if Sophie was okay.” Carlos nodded, picking at the grass by their feet. “But, if it weren't for that” his gaze flicked up to her, a twinkle in his eyes. “Then I'd say that would be perfect.”

“Because we both need real vacations.” Ellie nodded this time, smiling sadly. “Well, at least I've got you” Carlos chirped, standing up and pulling Ellie with him. “Come on, if we can't run away I at least have to do something exciting.” Ellie smiled and they ran down the side of the hill, screaming and laughing all the way down. They passed a block of buildings, and there was the Pacific Ocean, right before them.

“I've never been to the ocean before” Ellie commented, kicking her shoes off.

“I think there's a lot you've never done before” Carlos replied as he pulled his shoes off. “Not to worry, that's what I'm here for. Now let's get in that water.”

“Here?” Ellie looked around, there was no one in sight, but it was the Pacific Ocean. There could be people anywhere.

“No, in the pool back at the apartment.” He started unbuttoning his jacket, and Ellie glanced down at what she was wearing.

“Carlos, I kind of love this dress. I am not going swimming in it.”

“Who said we were swimming in our clothes?” Ellie felt a full body blush take over her. There went his bowtie, vest, shirt, socks, pants... down to his boxers. “Come on, Ellie” Carlos teased, pressing a kiss to her forehead. “We don't have to, of course, but - There's only us; only tonight.” Ellie smiled, removing her necklace, headband, and finally, the dress. She felt pretty vulnerable, but there was a feeling of freedom that came with it, as well. She steadied her breathing, then turned to face Carlos.

“Give in to love, or live in fear” she replied, and yeah, she felt a little silly. But she knew Carlos didn't think so. He shuffled over to her, and tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. Their eyes met, pupils blown in the darkness, and their lips brushed together, just once.

“Come on, let's go for a swim.” They ran out into the waves, yelling and screaming like children. And Ellie pushed Carlos over once his attention was stolen by a distant lighthouse. “I said a swim, not an ambush!” Ellie leaped away from him in an attempt to escape, but Carlos caught her by the waist. He pulled her back, dragging her underwater with him. They burst to the surface, Carlos laughing as Ellie splashed him with water. “Hang on, there's something in your eye” he said, forcing her arms to relax as he chuckled.

“Really? It's not a shark or something is it.”

“No, there are almost never sharks in this area, I promise.”

“Almost never?” Ellie started to make for the shore but Carlos grabbed her waist again, pulling her back to him gently.

“Calm down, just let me look at you.” Ellie sighed, giving him an 'I'm going to kill you' look. “Nope, no sharks in your eyes.”

“Oh, thank god for that.”

“It was just moonlight.” Ellie snorted, splashing him again. “Come here.” She shuffled over to him through the water, and he leaned in to kiss her.

“You're such a sap. Also, not the end of the date yet.”

“Well, maybe I'd like to kiss you right now.” This time their lips connected, mingling the taste of saltwater and Ellie's lipstick. They broke apart, and Carlos beamed. “You should try new things more often.” Ellie rolled her eyes. “Also, try not worrying so much, and start living more. And” he began, before kissing her again, his fingers light on her hips. “Loving more.” Ellie nodded, smiling to herself. Give in to love, or live in fear.

“I'm trying, I promise. And it's not easy, but I appreciate you being patient with me, Carlos.” Ellie moved closer to him in the water, their toes touching before their lips fused together again. Carlos, only a little surprised, quickly recovered and kissed her back with full force. His thumbs hooked under the waist of her underwear, the touch of his skin on hers searing even in the chilly water. They broke apart, their breathing uneven with excitement. Carlos bit his lip, unable to stop a grin from twitching the corners of his mouth up. "Now let's get back to your apartment."