Dance With Me
#1 of Stories
AN: I uhm.. May or may not have had a very hardcore crush on a professor of mine for a while. The only one to trump my passion for him is my current partner. I wrote this before my current partner and I started dating.
"Dance With Me"
The instinct to wander the path she knew took hold. No matter how many times she'd been there before there was always something new until the winter set in. The spot she treasured deeply was hard to find, but it was worth the trip. Especially this day...
She'd had a rough week. There wasn't one thing that had gone right at all, but she knew where to go to make it better. One of her professors suggested she go on a walk months ago to clear her head. The young woman started doing that every day just to collect herself the semester before, but this particular day, the professor told her she needed to. She had been obviously stressed, and it worried him. Her studies were falling behind. She promised she would try to get better.
As she began her walk, something felt very different, but she didn't pay any mind to it. She just wanted to get to her rock in the woods. It took her a bit longer than usual to get there. The ground being snow covered didn't help matters, but she was determined. The cold didn't bother her at all. As she peeked around the marker tree that hid the tiny path from view, she smiled in relief. "Almost there... "
There was a small crack of sticks as she padded herself down the slightly slippery path. She wouldn't fall no matter how bad it was. There was enough to grab onto even if she did begin to feel herself slide. It was a matter of only a few minutes before she reached the special spot she had all to herself. The only other person that knew where it was was a security guard, but he only worked mornings. It wasn't morning anymore. It hadn't been for a long time.
As she sat herself down on her favorite rock underneath an evergreen overlooking the small stream that never seemed to freeze no matter how cold it was, she sighed in relief. "Finally. Alone. I can just relax now." She dug in her pocket for her headphones and poked them gently into her ears. Ever since a chat she had with one of her professors, she was wary about putting ear buds in, but they were easily portable. They were all she had. Sticking the bit into her phone, she turned on her favorite playlist. Leaning back against the tree covering the rock, she smiled as small beams of bright moonlight lit up the tiny clearing in front of her. The stream piddled under the soft tones of her melodies as she began to close her eyes and tune out the world.
She felt a few creatures rustle around her as she sat and relaxed, but she paid them no mind. They generally left her alone. There was a certain squirrel that was brave enough to steal her sandwich the one day, but he hadn't been around since the snow set in. It was peaceful here. She was nearly ready to sleep. It was time for her to go.
Opening her eyes, she pulled her ear buds from her head and put them back in her pocket. Her phone almost dead from the use, she chuckled softly before turning it off and putting it in the other slit in her jeans. She smiled softly as she watched a rabbit scurry on the other side of the water before she got up and stretched.
Something made her ears perk up however. She froze in her place. A stick snapped coming down the only path back to her dorm she would dare brave in the winter let alone at night. Another snap sent her mind into a tizzy. Was it the security guard? Did he take a different shift? No. The footsteps that followed were much to light and careful than his. Who was the stranger? Not wanting to be caught by someone else, she slipped behind her rock. It was big enough to hide her until she could make an escape.
Nearly terrified, she sat and watched as the stranger wandered into the clearing. It was clearly a man, and his face was lit only barely by the moon light. She could make out a smile. He had been here before, but who in their right mind would come out here at 2am.. Wait.. She did.
She chuckled at herself softly knowing she couldn't be heard over the moving water. She was lucky she was in mostly dark clothes. If the stranger had looked just right, she knew she'd be seen, but he didn't seem to be too worried about his surroundings. He felt safe here as she did.
Sighing softly, the stranger cleared a spot in the snow and sat himself down watching the stream. He was meditating she thought. That's what it looked like. She sat there for a few moments before she dared move. He seemed to be in a small trance. It was almost fascinating to watch, but she was more concerned in not being caught. She took her chance.
Slowly, she slid herself out from under the tree and towards the path, but something made her freeze. The stranger began to sing. It was familiar. Her heart skipped a beat as she turned to look at the man on the ground. She couldn't help but smile. It was a song she knew. It was actually one of her favorites. It was a duet, and he was skipping over the woman's parts. From what she could tell he was fit and strong from his silhouette, and he obviously liked adventure if he was out here at night. Why not take a chance?
Slipping back to the rock, she sat herself down as silently as she could. He had finished the song, but he was still humming the tune. It took a bit, but he began to sing again. This was her chance. The first bit he sang was beautiful and melodic, but it was still in his own voice. She was swooning. Her part came up faster than she wanted but the music flowed in her like when she first heard it. The words were instinct.
"I wanna get lost in some corner booth. Cantina, Mexico. I wanna dance to the static of an AM radio. I wanna wrap the moon around us. Lay beside you skin on skin. Making love till the sun comes up, until the sun goes down again..."
She froze a bit as the man began the next part. You could tell her had heard her. His voice had more feeling, but he never once turned around. They finished the song before he even shifted, but he only began to sing another. She knew it too. They sang together song after song until the sun began to come up.
The light began to show more of the strange man in the clearing. He was older. She could see a few greys poking through his brown hair. She couldn't help but smile as he rose, but he didn't look in her direction. His face still pointed at the water he spoke. "Tomorrow. Same time." He walked away without looking back.
The young woman didn't know what to do. He sounded so sincere, but the mystery was going to kill her. After he was out of view, she scurried quickly back to her room and grabbed a few hours' sleep before rushing to her classes for the day, but it was almost as if she wasn't even there. Her mind was all about this man. He captivated her in every way, and her heart fluttered every time she saw someone that even remotely looked like him. Every minute she wasn't in her woods, she grew more and more anxious. Once the sun had fallen though, she grabbed herself a shower and put on her best warm clothes that she could. Even in the dark, she wanted to look good.
It was way too long before she was able to make the hike up to the spot, but once she was there, the now familiar shape of the man was in his spot on the ground. She took hers on the rock. It was a bit before either opened their mouths, but it wasn't her who spoke first.
"It's your turn to choose."
She nodded even though he couldn't see her, but she began to sing.
"All those days watching from the windows, all those years outside looking in, all that time never even knowing, just how blind I've been, now I'm here blinking in the starlight..." She knew it was far-fetched, but he knew it.
He sang as wonderfully as she could have imagined. They took turns this night singing different songs with different tempos, but they all centered on love. They centered on where she was falling. She didn't even know his name, but that wasn't mattering to her. She could feel him through his song. The sun rose as did he. He turned to leave, but the rock dweller spoke, "Tomorrow. Same time," she could see him nod as he walked away. No matter how physically attractive this man was as he walked away that voice of his was captivating her. A week went by of the same. Every night they met by the stream and sang.
Wednesday came the next week, and she had class with her favorite professor, the one that told her to start going for walks. He seemed distracted by something. He seemed to be floating on air. She chuckled at him for a bit until she found herself drifting off into her own thoughts. The class ended quickly as usual, but the girl stayed behind. She had to share her news with how she was feeling. He always seemed interested in hearing her news.
"Sebastian! I met someone.. sort of. I'm not sure where we're going, but when we're together I float. I flutter. He captivates me," she blurted out to her teacher as he began shutting down the computers in the room for the day. He looked up at her and smiled a bit.
"Well, that's good news. Do I know him, Anastasia," he sounded honestly intrigued even though he himself was still obviously in his own thoughts.
"I dunno. You might. Maybe I'll ask him if he knows you. I don't want to say names right now in case it doesn't work out," she blushed a bit, scorning herself for not even knowing this man's name. He looked up at her and smiled.
"I could say the same. There's this woman. She's beautiful." Sebastian seemed to almost giggle as he talked. You could see he felt for this mystery woman.
"If I was her, I'd say yes. Who could deny you? You and your awesomeness," they both laughed at her words. After giving each other their goodbyes, the anxious woman scooted out of the door and swiftly to her room to bundle up for the night journey. After the shroud of night fell upon her little campus, she stole away into the darkness. Her heart beating fast as she raced to their spot. It wasn't just hers anymore. She shared it now with the stranger. She always had.
As she sat there waiting for her shadowy companion, she ran through all the songs she could possibly start. It was her night to begin, but she was running out of ideas. The only things left aside from silly things were operatic. She knew them, but her ability to replicate them was "meh" at best. As she heard the familiar footsteps coming down the path, she straightened herself upon the rock. She'd just have to tell him she was starting to run out of ideas.
"It's your turn tonight," the man sat himself down on the ground, but tonight, he was facing her. Even though she still couldn't make out his face, the twinkle in his eyes from the moon light made her heart skip a beat. There was a deep familiarity in them as her cheeks began to turn pink. He couldn't see her either, but she could tell he was smiling just to see her eyes.
Collecting herself, she cleared her throat before starting off with the last few songs she could think of, but when they came to an end, she sat there silent, entranced and yet afraid of her singing partner, waiting for him to say something.
"What's wrong? It's not like you to stop."
"I.. I don't know anymore that aren't operatic, and.. and I'm not strong enough for them vocally," her voice was soft and low. The crisp air carried it to his ears. He chuckled softly.
"You don't have to be perfect. You just need to try," his voice was familiar in more ways than one, but she couldn't put her finger on it. She nodded softly before starting in on The Phantom of The Opera. Much to her surprise, he followed flawlessly, and they didn't sound half bad. When they ended after her best attempt at the high notes at the end, the man giggled softly behind his hand.
"Was.. was I that bad," the woman sat and blushed deeply as she looked down at her lap. At this, the man got up and moved to sit next to her on the rock. He was just barely touching her leg with his, but the contact made her grow warm inside.
"No. You weren't bad at all, but I thought of a song that you forgot, or at the very least, we didn't think of," he cleared his throat softly before starting in on a favorite country song of hers. How could she have been so forgetful? It nearly blew her mind that this man knew all of these songs. It wasn't that they weren't popular or common, it was just that she thought she was the only one with that eclectic of music tastes. It made her smile in awe as she waited for her part.
Once the song ended, they couple sat there in silence just looking at the water lit by the shining moon. It was a full moon unlike the night they had met, and once the night became late, the light shone in and illuminated the tiny clearing almost as if it was day. The faint blue glow on the late winter snow was intoxicating to the eye. The stranger stood.
"Dance with me," turning around cast a shadow upon the man's face as he extended his arm to the bewildered and shy woman.
Taking his hand without speaking, he led them into the light. He began to hum So This Is Love from Cinderella as he started turning around his partner. Slowly, gently, the humming music caressed their ears as they shifted slowly in the snow. They weren't truly dancing. They shifted close together as she began to hum with him, her head on his chest. It felt like years before one of them broke the softly musical hold.
"You know? I feel bad for not knowing your name," blurted out the blissful yet curious young woman.
The man chuckled softly as he leaned his head down to her ear, "You know my name, Jasmine."
Baffled by this, Jasmine stopped swaying as she stood to look at who she thought was a stranger. She could tell he was smiling, but the moon still wasn't upon his face. "When you got up, I saw your face. I saw your beautiful face, the blush on your cheek, your red nose from the cold. I saw it all, but best of all? I felt it all. The passion, love in your heart, the determination to finish what you start, the subtle shyness you have... I must say it's very cute," at this, he leaned down and kissed her cheek before stepping back further into the light. His face was still hidden, but one small move and he'd be exposed. She needed to know.
Jasmine stepped forward a bit, reaching out to touch his face, but he snatched her hand away to kiss her palm. "You know my name for the same reasons I know yours. You're smart Anastasia. You're brilliant actually." The man placed the captive hand on his cheek as he turned his face to the light. Despite her best attempts, a gasp escaped the shocked woman's face.
"Sebastian?"
"Dance with me Jasmine."