Trapped In Your Bleeding Heart (Riff x Reader)

Chapter Six - The Party (Part One)

Arms linked, Maria and I followed close behind Bernardo and Anita, who kept looking back to us, as if to check if we were still there. Chino trailed behind Maria and I, along with a few other young Puerto Rican couples. I felt a bit out of place– and not because I was the only non-Puerto Rican, but because I seemed to be the only one without a partner. Even Maria had Chino, but me? I had no one.

"Rose, when we get in there, just peel off from our group and go to the opposite side of the gym." Bernardo said.

I looked to Maria. She smiled somberly. "It will still be very fun." She said, "If we both go to the middle of the room, maybe we can even chat a little!"

Now that was tragic. I smiled back at her, but I wasn't happy. I didn't know any of the people that I would be dancing with, except...

The doors to the gym burst open, allowing swing music and laughter to flood into the air. Maria released my arm, and I did as Bernardo instructed, walking away from them– my friends– to the right side of the gym. I walked slowly, taking in the scene of couples being swung around while the sweet music danced through the atmosphere. I heard a distinct laugh from Anita, and looked over to see her dancing with Bernardo. On the opposite side of the gym stood Maria on the sidelines. Funny. Even with Chino by her side, she looked as lost as I did.

Suddenly I was distracted by another couple.

It was Riff.

He wore gray slacks and a blue polo shirt, paired with a gray and blue semi-formal jacket. Even wearing more formal clothing, you could tell he was still... disjointed. Still dangerous.

But god, looking at him now, in this lighting...

"Care to dance?" A voice broke into my thoughts.

I turned to the right of me, where a short boy stood with his hand out and head tilted down. Once he directed his gaze up to me, I saw the familiar face of the boy who tore the sign off of the Puerto Rican restaurant. He now wore navy blue slacks and a light gray dress shirt, but the most noticeable part about him was the black eye that Bernardo had given him. What was his name again? Snowboy? At least, that's what the younger Jet had called him the day prior.

What an odd name...

I hesitantly placed my hand in his. Did he not recognize me? He smiled and led me to the dance floor, where I noticed nothing but the fact that I was now closer to Riff. The idea of him spotting me made my heart quicken, though I wasn't sure why. Was I really that scared of him? "I'm glad you accepted my invitation." Snowboy said, shaking me out of my thoughts. "You're a swell bird."

I couldn't help but smile. He seemed very nervous, as if his friends had put him up to asking me to dance in the first place. He placed his arm around my back and led me into basic six-step swing moves. He was a fine dancer, but I was going to get bored quite quickly with such easy moves. If being in college had taught me anything, it was that dancing is something to take very seriously. Anita and Bernardo understood that very well– and it seemed like many of the other dancers knew too. "So, I've never seen you before." Snowboy added after a moment. "Where are you from?"

People started to form a circle of dancers, with girls on the inside and boys on the out. "I just moved here from the college dorms." I said. "But before that, I lived out west."

"Is that why you talk so weird?" He asked. "You were raised Western?"

I thought for a moment. "To me, you guys are the ones who talk weird." I said.

He looked shocked, as if this thought had never occurred to him. "Yeah, I guess that makes sense." He said after a minute.

Suddenly, the boys released the girls and turned to the left, causing everyone to switch partners. The new boy in front of me was taller than Snowboy, and beefier. He was blonde, and had a crystal clear grin that he was clearly not afraid to flash me with. "The name's Diesel." He introduced.

"I'm Rose." I replied with a small smile.

"Like the flower." He remarked, as if I didn't know.

I nodded along. Diesel spun me under him and dipped me efficiently, but his hands were so sweaty that I couldn't admire his dance skills. With another turn to the left, another boy was in front of me. He was a dirty blonde with slicked back hair. He didn't speak for a long while, at least until I smiled at him. "Hi." He said quickly.

"Hello." I replied.

"Um. What's your name?" He asked.

"I'm Rose."

"I'm Mouthpiece."

"...'Mouthpiece'?"

"Yeah."

"... Oh."

And just like that, our conversation was over. Man. What was it with the Jets and having weird names? After not too long, Mouthpiece spun away from me and to his left. Another boy spun into frame, his jacket swinging around him and settling after he landed in front of me. "Hiya, doll." He said.

My eyes darted to his face. He shot me a quick, uneven smile.

"I'm Riff."

Author's note: In the beginning, I wasn't too sure about how I would go about writing this romance. But uh. I'm very sure now. And very hyped. EHEHHEHEHEHE