the only exception // mc

4

Michael and I just ended up going to the bar I worked in. We knew it would be open late on a Sunday and it was familiar to both of us. We were both so good at being homebodies that we weren't sure of which bars were good and which ones weren't. I had even found out a few weeks into Michael and I hanging out that he'd only been in the bar that first night because Calum wanted to celebrate the fact that he had just been promoted at the record label he worked for. Michael had wanted to stay home and have a few beers to celebrate, but Calum had insisted on going out. I think we were both extremely glad that that had happened.

We ordered two shots of tequila each and downed them quickly. I fully intended to get extremely drunk; I didn't want to feel the pain that had been radiating in my chest for the past few hours.

I said a quiet hello to the bartender that was working. We weren't friends, but we were friendly in passing. Other than my father, Michael was the only person I considered a friend. Sure, I had acquaintances and in the past I'd had people I spent time with, but I didn't trust any of them. I believed that friendship was defined by trust, and trust had always been hard to come by.

"What do you want to drink?" Michael asked, tapping his fingers on the stained wood of the bar. "Pabst blue?" He joked. He knew I hated PBR. I shook my head.

"Just two more shots of tequila." I told him. He made a face at me but quickly agreed, motioning for the bartender. When he saw me he came back over quickly.

"What's up, Rosalie? What can I grab for you?" Michael rolled his eyes at being blatantly ignored by the bartender and ordered our drinks; two shots for me and a corona for himself. After he paid for the liquor he turned towards me with a serious look on his face.

"Don't go overboard tonight, kid. I know you think that getting absolutely trashed seems like a good idea, but it's not." I just sighed.

"Whatever, Michael." I downed my shots and then ordered two more.

"Will you please dance with me?" I asked, grinning wildly at my friend. I was standing beside his stool, practically right up against him. When I danced to the song, his eyes were wide when my body moved so close to his.

"Just for one song." He finally agreed. I pumped my fist in the air to celebrate my victory. I had been asking for a while, and finally he gave in. It took him five beers and another shot of tequila, but he finally said yes.

'When You Were Young' by The Killers was just ending when we made it onto the makeshift dance floor and Michael groaned as Big Sean started playing.

"This is not the kind of dancing I signed up for." He groaned.

"Are you sure?" I asked, wrapping my arms around his neck and pushing my body against his, moving my hips to the song. Michael's eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head, and I could feel myself grinning like an idiot.

'I Know' pumped through the speakers and I could tell Michael was shocked by how we were dancing, but I was too drunk to really care. Friends danced like this, right? It was friendly, drunken dancing. And if he questioned anything in the morning, I would blame it on my level of intoxication. I had already had eight shots of tequila and within a short amount of time. That seemed like a good enough excuse for anything.

Michael's hands made their way down my body and I could feel him hesitating to move his hands any lower than my hips. I rolled my eyes and removed my arms from around his neck to slide his hands down for him, then wrapped my arms around his neck again, this time even tighter.

"It's just dancing, Michael." I saw him gulp before nodding his head.

We danced for two more songs before going back to where we were sitting before. I could tell Michael was a little turned on by what had happened, but I didn't say anything about it. I just ordered myself two more tequila shots.