The 10th Circle - Abyss [Complete]

14. Engram: Dance (3)

We walked the streets of the city, talking about everything and nothing, in a way I hadn't talked to anyone in years. We exchanged stories of our childhoods and families, and the time before we had entered the academy. Tales of the past turned into conversations about the future. I had always considered myself quite an uninteresting person with not much to say, but whenever I spoke, Blaze listened with rapt attention, and somehow, I easily found enough to talk about, without having to tiptoe around the aspects of my history I was trying so hard to avoid thinking about. And so we just talked and laughed and walked for hours, until the overcast sky grew darker, and the world first dimmed and then began to shine with the millions of brilliant lights of the cityscape.

I enjoyed getting to know Blaze, in a way that went much farther than a relationship based on secret, passionate kisses exchanged in a dark corner, and hushed whispers in the hallway. Perhaps I wasn't doing his intent towards me any justice by insisting on this secrecy, but even now I couldn't shake this feeling of being watched. From time to time it wouldn't leave me unless we turned around a corner and he distracted me again with a different story.

When another rain shower poured down, we sought shelter under the canopy of a street store. In the golden light that spilled out on the street through the display window, he took my cold hands, as if it was the most natural thing in the world, and put them into the pockets of his sweater to warm them. The feeling of a pair of invisible eyes staring at the back of my neck was gone as I found myself affixed by the alluring golden eyes right in front of me. He had fallen silent, but within less than a heartbeat the way he looked at me conveyed twice as much as the hours of talking we had spent until then. I felt a glowing warmth spread throughout my body, and realized with some bewilderment what this odd sensation really was.

I was happy.

For the first time in what seemed like an eternity, I was simply unconditionally happy. I felt like I had spent years thinking I couldn't walk, and had now woken up to find myself being able to dance. Despite everything else that had happened lately, it took only the warmth of his body as he pulled me closer, and the gentleness in his golden eyes to drown out all my gloominess and negativity. My heart was filled with so much sheer joy that I thought it might burst, and when he leaned in to kiss me, I couldn't suppress a giggle.

"What?" Blaze mumbled against my lips. "What's so funny?"

"Nothing. I just thought about an old song."

"Which one? Perhaps I know it."

"It's really, really old," I admitted.

He drew back and cracked a grin as he looked down on me. "Try me, you might be surprised. I did some research before I settled for VR dancing classes in the end..."

"Alright. If you insist."

I took my com from behind my ear, synced it with his, and then I put on the song. It was easy to find – it was old, but it had been popular back in the day. As soon as it began playing, I jumped out of our sheltered spot onto the walkway and into the rain. I spread my arms out and let the rain wash over my face as I sang along.

"I'm singing in the rain, yes, singing in the rain, what a glorious feeling I'm happy again!"

As I turned around I found Blaze staring back at me with a look of momentary puzzlement. I took his hand and pulled him out into the pouring rain with me, and he let out a laugh. He put his hand at the small of my back and led us in a dance across the wet concrete, in complete ignorance of the wide-eyed looks of confusion of the people we passed.

"I'm laughing at clouds, so dark up above, the sun's in my heart, and I'm ready for love-"

My tongue seemed to trip over the word, if just for a moment, and I could feel myself blush. But if Blaze had noticed, he didn't let on, and so I continued to sing. Not for the first time in my life, a song was able to convey what I was feeling much better than I could with my own words. However, for the first time in my life, I was pouring my heart out with a song to another person, and it was a strange but riveting feeling.