𝐑𝐄𝐂𝐊𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐒 | 𝟏𝟖+

05

Whenever the beat drops, the partners change and then the music goes back to the song the band is playing. The song is slowly building up and the beats increasing with it. My heart beats in sync with the beats of the song and it is increasing as each second passes. 

Gowns and dresses twirl at the same time the partners change and the calculated steps of back and forth of each pair are in synchronisation with the other. The room spins in front of my eyes each time I spin and it makes me feel free in a way. I do not feel tensed and my mind relaxes as I loose myself in the music and dance and the happiness of it all.

The song has reached to its peak and we change partners for one last time. I spin from the arms of the unknown man and am landed in another pair of strong arms. The music thrums through my blood and I feel alive for the first time in a long while. My hands are on both the shoulders of the man and warmth radiates off his chest. 

My heartbeat spikes up and my body erupts in goosebumps. Its only the music I tell myself but our steps falter for a moment and I feel the arms around me tighten. My blood hums with a weird sense of recognition which only happens with him. I inwardly shake my head.

No, it can't be.

I feel his muscles beneath my palm tighten the same way my body has frozen on its own accord. Its what you feel in your gut way before your mind processes it. I hesitantly raise my head up and am met with the same striking light blue eyes. They look as clear as the water of the ocean on a sunny day but underneath them I see the recognition settle in his eyes too. 

I do not look away from his eyes, almost forgetting how to breathe. My heart constricts tightly and I almost want to rub a hand on my chest to reduce the ache. They still remind me of the sky and the ocean and everything allowed to be free and knowing no bounds, the opposite of me.

Looking into his eyes my breath slows down as if a curtain of tranquility has been thrown over us, protecting and hiding us away from the others. 

Our steps do not stop, gazing in each other's eyes the world fades away but we still dance because we know they are watching, always observing. He moves back and I move forward, he moves forward and I move back. We are the only ones in this room according to us.

We hold each other after years but his embrace still feels the same. His skin on mine feels like a hot brand but I do not shake away from him. Maybe my heart wants to steal away this moment and hide it away somewhere. Maybe that is the reason I am still looking into his eyes and scanning his face as if taking in everything about him. 

His shoulders are broader than they were the last time I saw him. He still looms over my by two or three inches. His hands are rough against my own hands marked with scars and his face. God, his face. He has a light stubble on his jaw and his cheekbones are more prominent. 

 My eyes finally look away from his only to land on his chest, the tattoos peeking out underneath his shirt and I realise he had been the one who had been looking at me from across the room. Now being close enough I take in the twists and curls of his rich chocolate brown hair that looked black from far away. 

His eyes look lost, taking in every inch of me as I do the same to him. Maybe he is comparing me to the girl he saw last time and how much has changed now. I am remembered of what changed me and who he really is and when our eyes meet again, the bitter truth settles in. 

I watch his jaw harden and his eyes go darker, not the same soft blue anymore but the darker shade of the storm rising in them. Someone else may not notice it but I know him better than anyone else. 

He twirls me around and then pulls me back again to his chest harshly. My fingers dig in his shoulder and his arm around my waist feels like an iron grip.