Maybe Tomorrow

Chapter 15 - Charlotte

All I knew was that I wanted to dance with her. And I wasn't about to let the opportunity pass when I knew no one could suspect anything due to my open fondness of dancing with my female friends.

Maybe dragging my sister and my female friends to the dance floor finally did something good for me. Because it wasn't unusual of me to dance with them. It wasn't unusual of me to dance with a woman. So naturally when I walked my sister back to Samuel, I decided to ask her.

Which leads us to now where she is staring at me as if I have three heads instead of just one at the moment.

"Pardon me?" She laughs out, holding her empty cup she has been nursing for a while now next to her head. "You want to dance? With me? Here with everyone looking your way every now and then?"

"That was my question so yes, I do want to dance with you, Alexandra."

"Why would you want to dance with me?" she scoffs as if that is the most ridiculous thing she has ever heard in her life.

"Do I need to say anything else other than what I said in the library?" I shared everything with her. Almost everything. I put my feelings on a silver platter and handed them to her, not knowing if she takes them from me or not with how dual her personality could sometimes be.

"I don't know what-"

"You know better than to lie to me, Alexandra," I spit out, clenching my jaw.

"Your Majesty," she clears her throat, turning her body towards me. "I do not think it is a great idea for me to dance with you. Any other lady with a dress would be all right but I am considered much less in these people's eyes. The rumours that could come-"

"And I do not care what they think. They have no right to judge my decision to dance with you. There are no rumours to be made as I am simply dancing with one of my new lady friends as usual," I cut her off. She will not get to speak of herself like that in front of me. I won't have her bringing herself down right in front of me where I can hear. As long as she says something like that in my presence, I need her to know the truth so she doesn't believe all the lies she tells herself.

She faces away, holding the cup to her lips. "You should," she whispers.

"Look, Alexandra..." I start, gaining her attention when I roll the 'r'. "May I ask you a question?" I wait for her hesitant nod before leaning closer to her, continuing. "I need to know something and I want you to tell me the truth.

"If we were somewhere else. Somewhere in a room where only the two of us are and the music is playing by itself. No one in our sight. Would you- would you want to dance with me then?"

She is looking forward but I see her eyes fill with an emotion I haven't seen many times. Only when she genuinely looked at me with a smile.

"I don't know, Charlotte," she whispers, giving me a chance to look at her face when she turns to me. "It is a very hypothetical situation. After all, music cannot be played without anyone playing on an instrument in our times."

Chuckle escapes from my lips before I once again compose myself. "That is true but besides that. Would you?"

"I...I don't-" she stops herself, looking into my eyes that are filled with hope. Her face softens, a barely-there smile but it was something I appreciated. Especially when she opens her mouth to speak again. "Yes. Probably."

A wide smile like I never had before without a laugh spreads on my lips, cheeks already hurting and it has been less than two seconds since she answered. But I can't contain it.

"I will go and ask your brother for a dance. Then come both of our mothers who are currently gossiping together on the right side from us," I point discreetly at the two women who are looking over the room, whispering together secrets. Mainly my mother as she knows things about everyone. The lady beside me lets out a chuckle when she notices them and I turn back to her. "But I will wait for you if you still want to dance with me. You can come up to me and I will ask for a dance if you don't want people to talk about you asking me. I wouldn't mind. I just- I would just like to dance with you."