Half-heartedly she laughed at herself, though the light humor was not there. She could not bring herself to look into his eyes, so she settled for casting her own aside and concentrating on various objects in the dining area of the fast food restaurant. She could protect whatever she had left of her dignity if she avoiding staring into his depths. She could look other people in the eye, but when it was his eyes she had to look at, she couldn’t do it. The way his eyes insistently beckoned hers toward his, and when she did connect with him, all of her walls fell down. Allowing him to stare into her eyes, she felt completely exposed and vulnerable. It unnerved her that one person alone could completely throw her off guard by merely looking at her.

She sighed and stared at the floor, and then to her hands resting on the recently cleaned table. She absently picked at the white corsage with dark blue shadows, with an entanglement of white and blue ribbons hanging from it. The deep, smooth voice of her friend caught her attention and she tossed a brief glance at him, to prove that she acknowledged that he was speaking and that she was listening, then she looked back down at her hands. He was leaning against the counter where the soda and condiments were located.

“Are you alright?” he asked, his voice laden with concern and laced together with gentleness.

A small smile crept onto her lips.

“Yea. I’ll be okay,” she replied, risking a glance at him. The brief moment in which he stared back at her droned on for what seemed a minute. Unsure of herself she began to look away, but was drawn back to him as he began to move. He had straightened up and took a small step toward her. His eyes glowed and a lazy grin crept onto his face. She looked curiously up at him.

“Stand up.” He stood closer to her and offered his hands to her.

“What?” her voice dripped with curiosity. His grin grew wider.

“Just do it.”

She sl0wly took his hand and he helped her stand up from the chair. The moment she was upright she was dragged into the part of the dining area where the chairs had been stacked onto the tables. Soon they stood in the middle of the room, yet her small hands remained in his. His thumbs absently stroked her hands once or twice as he continued to grin down at her, his eyes alight. Now the grin and crept onto her face and she grinned back, trying to figure out what he was up to. Still holding onto her right hand, he guided her other hand to his shoulder, then let his own wander to the back of her waist. She giggled as she slowly began to realize what he was doing. His smile never lessened as he stared down at her.

“May I have this dance?”

Another giggle escaped from her and she turned her face away from him, looking at the soda machine. She could feel the blood slowly collect in her cheeks and turn them to a noticeable shade of pink. He chuckled and then put on a sarcastically offended face.

“What? Why are you laughing?”

She giggled again, her eyes wandering toward the ceiling, her smile revealing her white teeth as she laughed again.

“You said you were denied a last dance at the dance, so I’m offering you one here. Is that so crazy?”

Her giggling died down, though the smile still lingered on her face. Forgetting her embarrassment she threw caution to the wind, staring straight into his eyes and slowly shook her head. The lazy smile remained as they began to twirl around in a jumble of circles and rotations. She had eventually begun to laugh to the point where as she rested her forehead on his shoulder and giggled hysterically. They stopped moving and he looked down at her as best he could.

“What’s so funny?” he chuckled.

Regaining her composure and putting a slight restraint on her laughter she looked up and him and gestured to nothing in particular with her hands.

“This, you,” then she slid her arms underneath his and hugged him warmly. She smiled and innocently muttered with a slight giggle, “I love you.”

A soft smile crept onto his lips as he wrapped his arms around her small frame in return. He rubbed the bare skin of her back, exposed due to her strapless dress, and rested his head on hers and muttered into her hair.

“What did you say?” she asked, her head resting on his shoulder as she continued to hug him, basking in the warmth of his body heat. He smiled at the way she seemed to melt into him. He hugged her tighter, closed his eyes and allowed his body to remember every trace of her body against his own.

“Nothing. Forget about it.”