Everyone had been having the time of their lives. A lot of girls had been trying to circle around Vantae since the start of the night, and he had been trying to dance with most of them.
While on the other hand, a certain person hadn't danced with anyone but he who she had danced with at the start for the entirety of the ball.
It wasn't because no one wanted to, in actuality half of the males in the very room had been trying to sum up some courage to ask her out but, they either failed to be confident enough to dance with her or, had been politely rejected by her.
Sitting on her chair for the past 3 hours, she had been staring at the dance floor for quite a while and had fumbled with her hands quite often. It was something she never did and yet found herself doing at the moment, she didn't know why she felt so bothered.
The glass windows that overlooked the city was the shining glory of the Celestine ballroom and had always been a sight to behold, yet she found her mind occupied with other things.
The dance they had a few hours ago, she didn't know what to make of it, for all she knew they both probably said things at the heat of the moment and that was what all she could think about.
He was talking to her in such ways, ways that invoked some feelings yet she couldn't lie and say it didn't affect her.
When some girls were heading towards his way, they hadn't realised how he had been staring at one person all night long.
The current song was ending and he knew that the new one was about to begin. He looked at his watch.
Sitting on her chair, laying her head back and looking up at the ceiling and then averting her gaze towards her feet which had been rested all night long, a palm had been reached out in front of her.
She was about to deny this person like all the others she had denied when, "Would you give me the honor of having this dance with me, Miss Kim?" The voice..it sounded like-
She looked up to see him. Smiling down at her with such amusement and mischief in his eyes. She felt like something was stuck in her throat and found herself flushed.
He had barely looked at her all night. And when he did, there were no emotions that she could sense any trace of.
"I'm pretty sure a lot of other girls would befitting to be a better dance partner, Mr Kim" she replied back.
She had been looking at the girls who had been surrounding him all night long, clawing at him like leeches, she could feel how much they wanted to place their lips on any part of his skin, so she could already feel the stares they gave her when he had approached her.
And then when she was about to say once more, he had knelt on one knee, held her hand and kissed the back of it, looking straight at her eyes and said, "just this once, May I dance with you tonight? You may hate me for the rest of it all, just this once, will you?"
He looked like a fallen Angel. He looked like Ares, the god of war, kissing the hand of Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty, promising something that was forbidden, professing his love.
Everyone was now looking, it looked a whole lot like a marriage proposal, and she didn't know how to react or say anything in return.
She knew for a fact that the reason why her heart was beating incredibly fast and the presence of the butterflies that were swarming in her stomach wasn't because of the stares people were giving her but because of that light touch and look he gave her.
"Just this once" she says back in a cold voice.
"It's all I need" He replied in a tone that made her feel like her knees were going weak by the second. She was shouting at herself to keep it together, but she knew she couldn't.
The two walked in the middle of the ballroom. Their figures seemed to look so beautiful right next to each other.
"How sure are you that I'm not gonna kick you any moment right now" she says.
"Because you chose to dance with me even if you haven't danced with anyone else"
He bowed towards her and she curtsied in return, he then held out his hand for her and she took it, his touch gentle like a feather. Like a connection. A lightning strike that collided the touch. Sealing and covering their feelings of longing.
The song started, it was Latch by Daniela Andrade
(please do play this specific version/cover of the song when you read the parts right after the line symbol, you won't regret it,I'm begging you please or you may play it after reading it so that their feelings are made across :) )
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You..lift my heart up when the rest of me is down
His eyes were burning through hers. He didn't break the eye contact. His hands, one warmly holding onto hers and the other was grasping her waist.
You, you enchant me even when you're not around.
His touch was so gentle like a feather and yet she could feel how his finger burned through her gown. A step to the back. And then to the front. Her heart was out of her chest, wavering.
If there are boundaries, I will try to knock them down
A step forward. A step backward. The tension was so high, their eyes never broke the eye contact. Acting as if they were the only people in that room. The proximity between their bodies was closer than usual.
Another step forward, and his hands tightened around her waist ever so gently, her breath got stuck in her throat and she felt so restless.
Im latching on babe, now I know what I have found
He looked at her eyes and then, her nose and then her lips. Everywhere and everything that was her.
The way he held his gaze so deeply on her conveyed so many emotions. But, what was sure was that, the way he looked at her was the type of way every girl wanted to be looked at.
"You could've danced with any other girl, I'm pretty sure all of them are sending daggers with their eyes to my right now" she said.
He twisted her and her back was bent, his body was leaning towards hers, and his figure was on top of hers. He then brought her body up again.
"I wanted to dance with you"
For some odd reason their bodies were closer, and their faces were closer than a second ago. As if they were the only ones in that state. Blurring out every sound except the music.
I feel we're close enough. I wanna lock in your love, baby
"Youve been dancing with every other girl tonight, I'm surprised you remembered that you had to dance with your fellow house head, or did doing the first dance with me suck that bad?"
I feel we're close enough, could I lock in your love?
"I wanted to dance with all of them already, so that I could spend the rest of the night dancing with you"
She could feel the shudder of his hot breath on her skin, his face, so heartbreakingly beautiful that she wished the moment would stop forever.
He was hesitating, he lightly tightened his hands that were holding onto hers, as if to ask if he could..
Now I've got you in my space, I won't let go of you.
She felt like his touch was melting her, her knees were going weak from his stare, his eyes that were filled with mischief a little ago were now gentle, full of emotions that were completely opposite of the eyes she saw a few moments ago. Another step closer, so hesitant that she found herself stepping a little closer as well.
I'm so encaptured, got me wrapped up in your touch. Feel so enamoured, hold me tight within your clutch.
A twist, he twisted his arms as she turned and went farther from him, then he pulled her back, and she was locked up in his arms, him behind her, and his breath was warm at her nape, his face was so close to her neck.
How do you do it? You got me losin' every breath. What did you give me to make my heart beat out my chest?
He pulled her again so that they were once again face to face, and her eyes were in pure shock, face blushing as much as she ever did, that brought such a warm and calm feeling that made his eyes so tender and loving when he looked at her.
She was breathtakingly beautiful, since the moment he saw her for the first time, since she first talked to him, since she first stepped into the room, since she first glared at him. But when she first blushed before, that was when it had struck him dumbfounded.
Just exactly as he was right this moment. Dumbfounded at how her usually cold face, was blushing once again, just like before. His eyes were a bit wider. He was in love.
She felt it when his hands went tighter but tender that made her feel even more flustered yet so safe in his touch.
I feel we're close enough. I wanna lock in your live baby. I think we're close enough, Could I lock in your love.
Their bodies then went to a position that was so close it looked like they were hugging, their faces at each other's necks, her hands were now both on his nape, and his were both on her waist.
"I...I think...I think I'm falling for you all over again" He whispered to her ear ever so gently, unlike to the other girls he had ever talked with.
His voice and demeanour wasn't the charming, seductive or playful act he usually had. It was the fragile, open and bare voice that seemed as if a lump was stuck in his throat. And that shocked her so vividly. His heart was beating so calmly.
It is believed that when you find the one, you don't feel as though your heart is beating off of your chest, but rather, despite the butterflies, your heart is calm because they make you feel safe. Make you feel calm. Make you feel home.
Got you shackled in my embrace. I'm latching on to you. And I don't wanna let, don't wanna let go. And I don't wanna let, don't wanna let go.
"Could you stay in my arms forever?" He says to her as he places his forehead against hers looking at her directly, their noses touching, their breaths uneven at the presence of the other.
"Would fate allow us?" She asks jokingly and yet anyone could notice how there was hurt and hope beneath those words.
"You should joke more often, you look so beautiful jen" he said smiling at her as he stepped back to look at her properly.
She was surprised at the comment but then her eyes softened at the words and for that specific moment, she allowed herself to fall head first into the warm sensation of love. Just for one night.
Vantae had been dancing with every girl that asked him for most of the night, and yet every time he did that, his eyes had been on her for the whole of it all.
He watched all night how she rejected every male who tried to ask her. He watched how she was sitting alone, at times with Rosie and at times with Jisoo but then she'd go all alone again.
She held his attention all night unknowingly and her existence itself would enable him to burn the world to ashes for one gaze from her.
The song ended. And their hearts, beating against each of their chests.
Their eyes were melancholic and glossy under the bright full moon that illuminated the room through the glass windows of the room.
"It's 12:05 am, midnight" He says to her smiling.
He. He...he had wanted to dance with every girl for the night so that he wouldn't have any other responsibilities...so that when midnight had struck, when the moon would be at its peak, he'd be dancing with her and no one else. She would be in his arms all night.
The belief that whoever you danced with at the struck of midnight, where the moon is at the highest...
She realised what he did and it made her place her mouth across her lips in shock. "You..." tears and disbelief were forming in her eyes.
And yet there he was.
Smiling softly at her like she was the world to him. Like it was something that he had been doing so causally since the start of time. Since their previous lives.
And so they danced. To the next song after that, and to the next, and then the next one after that. Speaking barely but words of nodding for the next dance. A careless whisper and then nothing more. It was if their hearts had beaten together, in sync, and they didn't need words.
Even if they felt like their legs and their toes had gone sore, even if the people dancing were becoming lesser and lesser, they continued to dance for the rest of the night.
Because, this was one night, one night where everything was alright. One night given by the lady of fate, for them to spend and cherish for the rest of their lives because, soulmates usually never end up together.
And those two souls, dancing together like there was no tomorrow knew that deep down, they felt careless and restless enough to disregard it and take a chance in love.
And once the party continued to rush and become loud, people were going straight to bars and private areas, Kim Taehyung and Jennie Kim looked at each other like they have for the rest of their lives.
It was a look you give you someone you're longing for. A look you give to someone you're hopelessly in love with with, that wasn't a look you gave someone who you considered an "enemy" or someone who annoyed you.
Most of the students were either going to other clubs and bars, others going to hotels and others going home.
The two left the dance floor and went to their friends. Jennie talking with Nayeon and Rosie. And Taehyung had gone with Minho and the other silvers.
And yet, despite them being in respective conversations, the two kept noticing the glances they gave towards each other, even if they were talking to other people, across the room from each other.
Jennie was smiling softly, thinking of the what has just happened as she was in her car as her driver drove her. Smiling.
It was raining which provided her a sense of comfort. When she had arrived at the hotel near the academy where the school had provided each student a room for the night, head students had their own private solo suites while regular students would share a room with one classmate.
She headed to her own private room, which was on the floor of the head students, she was in the hallway where the other head girls were, which were her friends.
When she had finally reached the floor level, once the elevator door had opened, the elevator that was across from hers had opened a second later and revealed him with Park Jimin, conversing, and yet he had immediately noticed her.
They both kept the eye contact, he was already blocking out the words Jimin was saying to him or maybe he didn't realise that Jimin had stopped talking when he saw him go silent and saw Jennie standing across.
Jimin could only smirk at his two friends, winked to jennie, clasped his hands on Taehyung's shoulders and then left the two alone.
They didn't break eye contact, not until they had already reached the middle where the floor separated into two different hallways. One to the girls suite and one to the boys.
And as they separated, neither of them could see how whenever the other looked back, the other was facing forward from looking at them and vice versa.
When Jennie opened her suite with her card, she removed her heels, stretched her arms and legs, took a long long long bath filled with peony and freesia smell.
She was drinking champagne in her tub, and once she finished that warm and long bath, she had worn her a robe with a silk nightgown underneath, and she was probably too tired when she had first gone inside the room to notice the huge bouquets of roses at the circular glass table in the middle of her suite.
There were 200 roses in her room's island and she was surprised. She then saw a letter beside it, and opening it, there it stated
"For as long as I can doll, Even if my heart stops beating, I want to spend the rest of my nights, dancing with you
- the man who's heart you have in your grasps"
She didn't know what she was doing but despite what she was wearing, she hurriedly went to her front door, she had to go to him, she didn't know why, she didn't if it was even logical, but here she was rushing out of her suite to go to his in a night gown and bare feet.
She clearly wasn't thinking straight because the usual Jennie Kim would never do this.
And as she reached her suite's door and opened it in a rush, there he was, the person she was going to, the person who made her heart beat, the person who made her feel so euphoric, there he was, standing outside of her door, surprised, as if he was just there to stay outside her door all night, contemplating if he was gonna knock or not.
His eyes were the symbols that showed how he was surprised and before he could process what she was wearing, he went, "Jen-"
He was cut off when Jennie pulled his collar and kissed him. For the first time. And just like it will be, it was as if they melted into each other, he placed his arms on her waist and pulled her closer, and she placed her hands on his nap, pulling him even more.
So close.
"I feel we're close enough, could I lock in your love, baby?" Maybe it was their song, or maybe it wasn't, but for that night, for those seconds of touch, for those two souls, it meant the world to them, and not a single moment or memory could ever succeed that.
For forbidden love was the heaviest burden of a loving heart.
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For my biggest taennie supporters
vxntangel taennie_stan kjscastle taennieperiodt bngpnksupremacy @stupididiotdotcom66 @mandutae @marygracelinayoutsey @jentaeaf
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If it doesn't tag you, I'm sorry I don't how this works :") but as always, love you all, I'm sorry if I wasn't able to include your name but know that I dedicate this to you if you love taennie! <3 I always love hearing your opinions!! 🥰
This was a very special chapter for me that I wrote ahead of time I think when I was in the middle of writing chapter 21?? Wow