Games, Part Three

sta was in heaven. As Anthony lead her around the dance floor, she felt she could die happy. Frederick was an accomplished dancer, but Anthony ... well, Anthony was on an entirely different level. sta had been dancing for years, but never had she been able to dance so well. It was as if they had been partners for years, running through choreographed routines. The connection between them was indescribable.

she stopped wondering where Frederick was. she stopped thinking altogether. she and Anthony moved like one person, and together they became the physical manifestation of the music. she was in a dream. No, not a dream; the dream. The dream where she is floating on clouds, lighter than air, and being effortlessly moved here and there. There was no thought. No deliberation. Just the pure joy of being in the moment.

The music wound down to its conclusion, and the pair wound down with it. sta immediately knew she couldn't let this conclude, too. But, Anthony was already leading her back to her table. Fear of losing the pleasure she had just found rose up and sta blurted out a bit more anxiously than she had intended, "Would you please sit and have a drink with me?"

"Of course? Are you alone tonight?"

Suddenly, sta remembered Frederick. "Someone will be meeting me, but would you mind keeping me company until then?"

They both knew sta was omitting relevant information about who would be meeting her. Regardless, Anthony decided to play along. "It would be my pleasure," he said as he warmed her with a smile, waited for her to sit, and then took a seat himself.