(Val's POV)
Standing up on stage are Branch, Ablaze, Hype, Trickee, and Boom. John Dory, Clay, Bruce, and Floyd are watching with me, Poppy, and Viva. The crowd starts cheering as they sing.
Branch, Ablaze, Hype, Trickee, Boom:
Just let me take you to a better place
I'm gonna make ya kiss the sky tonight
Yeah, if you let me show the way
I'm so excited to see you excited
I'll take you to a better place, yoo-hoo
And, baby, you can love me on the way
We're flyin' up to outer space
I'm so excited to see you excited, yeah...
Branch dances on stage with the others. And at the front of the crowd, Branch's brothers are following the choreography with the song.
Branch, Ablaze, Hype, Trickee, Boom:
I like to see you lose control...
Floyd:
Yeah, yeah.
Branch, Ablaze, Hype, Trickee, Boom:
Ain't nobody better, we do it better
I know a place, say that you'll go with me
Ain't nobody better, we do it better.
Branch motions for his brothers to join him on stage. They don't seem to hesitate and run off. The lights go out for a few seconds, and they turn back on with John Dory, Bruce, Clay, and Floyd on stage as well.
Branch, Ablaze, Hype, Trickee, Boom, John Dory, Bruce, Clay, Floyd:
Just let me take you to a better place...
Bruce:
Better place.
Branch, Ablaze, Hype, Trickee, Boom, John Dory, Bruce, Clay, Floyd:
I'm gonna make ya kiss the sky tonight
Yeah, if you let me show the way...
Hype:
Show the way.
Branch, Ablaze, Hype, Trickee, Boom, John Dory, Bruce, Clay, Floyd:
I'm so excited to see you excited
I'ma take you to a better place, yoo-hoo
And, baby, you can love me on the way
We're flyin' up to outer space
I'm so excited to see you excited...
Bruce:
So excited.
Branch, Hype:
I like to see you lose control.
Floyd:
Yeah, yeah.
Branch, Ablaze, Hype, Trickee, Boom, John Dory, Bruce, Clay, Floyd:
Ain't nobody better, we do it better.
Branch:
I know a place, say that you'll go with me.
Branch, Ablaze, Hype, Trickee, Boom, John Dory, Bruce, Clay, Floyd:
Ain't nobody better, we do it better!
The song ends and everyone cheers for them. Poppy and Viva are literally screaming from beside me.
Branch walks to the edge of the stage and kneels down, looking at Poppy. "Poppy, I have a small proposal. Will you..."
I stare in anticipation, questioning if he is going to ask what I think he is going to ask.
Poppy immediately jumps up. "Join the band? Of course, I will. I thought you would never ask."
"You know me too well. Now get up here and sing with us," Branch says as he stands back up.
Poppy screams before looking at Viva and me. "Val! Viva! Get up here! We're in the band!"
As I chuckle to myself, Viva screams and shakes my shoulders. "This is my dream life!" she shouts.
The three of us jump on stage and start dancing with everyone else.
Branch:
The only rule is get on your feet
I don't wanna see nobody heatin' up their seat.
Poppy:
And if you believe it...
Val:
If you 'bout it...
Branch, Poppy, Val:
No matter where you're from
The apple don't fall far from it.
Branch, Poppy, Val, John Dory, Bruce, Clay, Floyd, Viva:
Now people wanna know when they see us dancin'
Wanna know how we got those moves
People wanna bottle it up, up, up, but no can do
People wanna know how to find that feeling
Wanna know how we got that groove
They're thirsty for the juice...
Branch:
But I'ma tell you the truth.
Branch, Poppy, Val, John Dory, Bruce, Clay, Floyd, Viva:
Ooh
It runs in the family
Ooh
It runs in the family
It's all about you and me!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After all that singing and dancing, I sit outside, leaning back on my hands that rest in the sand. It all feels so calming, especially with the beautiful sunset in front of me. Nothing can be better than this moment right here.
Footsteps approach, and I look up to see Floyd standing just a few inches away from me. "Hey, Floyd," I greet happily.
Floyd sits down and says, "Hey."
It's quiet for a minute or so. We just stare at the sun as it slowly lowers behind the horizon of the ocean. A breeze slowly picks up, brushing softly through our hair.
I notice how Floyd shakes a bit from how cold it is. So I take off my jacket and extend it out to him. "Here, put it on."
He looks at the jacket in surprise. "Are you sure?"
I nod. "Yeah. It's not that cold for me."
Floyd smiles as he takes the jacket and puts it on. Unlike me, where the jacket fits the top half of my body and the sleeves reach halfway down my arms, it fits him completely. "Thanks...I don't know how I can ever repay you," he mutters.
I turn back to the sunset and say, "Oh, you don't have to. It's just a jacket."
"No. I mean, thanks for helping me when I was trapped," Floyd clarifies.
I glance at him when he says that. My smile grows just a little as I say, "Oh, that. No problem. I'm just relieved you are safe now."
Floyd is silent for a while, probably thinking about something. "You did so much to help me. I think it's only proper that I give you something in return."
"No, it's all right--" I start to say as I sit up straight.
But Floyd grabs my shoulders, a determined look on his face. "No, I'll figure something out. It's the least I can do."
As I stare into his eyes, I nod my head in response. "Okay. But you can think about that later. Just sit back and feel free for once. You've been through a lot for a long while." I gently grab his hands from my shoulders and lower them reassuringly.
Floyd sighs before sitting back calmly. "All right. I'm keeping my promise, though."
I laugh softly at his last statement. "I believe you." The sun is already setting halfway behind the horizon, and I don't think about taking my eyes off of it.
That is until Floyd does something that catches me off guard. He leans closer to me and kisses my cheek.
My eyes widen and I feel a blush grow on my face. I barely see his face, because he looks away in a shy manner. I can't help but smile once again at that cute gesture.
Out of nowhere, my flower in my hair chimes and glows brightly. This brings Floyd's attention back to me. "What was that?" he asks curiously.
I grab my flower and say, "This goes off whenever it's hug time. Unlike myself, Poppy and the other trolls have hug time bracelets. But if you don't want to, I understand."
Just as I say that, Floyd immediately hugs me, almost knocking me back. His hug isn't tight, more like calm and soft. So I wrap my arms around him and return the hug.
After a few seconds, I let go and place the flower in his hair. "You're a pretty good hugger," I compliment, looking back at the sunset.
"You're not so bad yourself," Floyd says next.
I feel him rest his hand on mine as we both sit there quietly. Never before have I felt this way with someone. This is probably what love feels like.
And I'm definitely not going to forget this moment.
The End