Old, But Not That Old [Motough]

4. dancing [derek]

5 minutes till showtime. My heart pounds thinking about my rumba with Bethany tonight.
If we perform with as much passion as we did the past few runs, we're sure to do amazing.

I glance at Beth, who is sitting on one of the lovely red couches on the balcony talking with Janel. I smile, thinking about how beautiful she looks tonight. She catches my eye and smiles at me. I grin even wider.

Damn did I get lucky this year.

Suddenly Bethany shoots up from her seat and skips over to me.

"So remember that haunted house we were talking about going to with Janel, Val, Mark, and Sadie?"

A laugh escapes my mouth at how excited she is. I also seem to notice that her hands are on my forearm that is resting on the balcony railing. "Yes, I remember."

"Well Janel told me they officially got tickets, so we're going!!" Her eyes are wide and she opens her mouth in excitement.

"Yay..." I say, trying not to laugh.

She rolls her eyes. "Oh come on, Derek! You're excited. I see right through you."

"Oh do you?" I remark, stepping closer to her without thinking.

"Yes." She looks up at me with those big brown eyes and our gaze locks for a moment before we are distracted by the famous Dancing With the Stars theme song. The show is starting.

----

"And after our break we are joined with Bethany and Derek and their very beautiful and passionate rumbaaaa, stay tuned." Tom Burgeron's voice echoes through the theater as Beth and I wave for the camera that will send the audience to a brief commercial break. When the camera man indicates that the shot is over, I turn to Beth.

"You ready?"

She grins. "Hell yeah, I am."

A smile spreads across my face. "Good. Just like we practiced. Let's kill it!"

I lift my hands and she slaps them, high-fiving me before we walk down the stairs to the dance floor.

We wait for the cue to start, taking a moment to breathe and get into character. This character is easy though, since a boy who has feelings for the girl he's dancing with isn't something I have to think too much about. It's already pretty accurate.

I glance over at Beth who has her eyes closed, with her head up, getting into the zone. I wonder if she thinks about me while she dances the way I think about her.

The lights dim and I hear Tom's voice announce mine and Beth's names.  The music starts and our dance begins.

I think of the steps, obviously, but I mostly think about her. Every time we touch, I feel a rush. That sounds cheesy, but somehow it's true. We come together towards the middle of the dance and pause for a second, locking eyecontact. I feel my heart race as she gives me a small smile.

We move on through the rest of the dance, and by the time we reach our last pose, with our bodies pressed together and my hands on her cheeks, I feel the adrenaline and chemistry between us at an incredible high. I momentarily have the urge to kiss her again, but brush the thought aside when I remember we're on live tv.

The audience errupts in applause and Bethany and I look at each other, grinning from ear to ear.  I pull her into a hug and kiss her temple without thinking.  That felt amazing. I'm sure we did well. We nailed it, as far as I know, and the emotion and chemistry was most definitely there.

Grabbing each other's hands, we walk over to the judges.

"What a passionate and silky smooth performance!" Bruno proclaims, with his Italian accent, standing up and using his arms to gesture grandly, as per usual. "Your emotion and chemistry was perfect. You became a woman tonight, darling." He looks at Bethany and winks. The audience yells and cheers, and I squeeze Beth's hand. I'm so proud of her.