I Dare You (A Nancy Drew and Hardy Boys FanFiction)

I Dare You

"This is incredible," Bess said. She clutched Nancy's arm. They had just walked into the school gym, the cool night air falling behind them as they entered the crowded area. "How're we going to find Frank and Joe in this mess?" she mumbled.

George just rolled her eyes and smiled, "I'm going to go hang out with the DJ, see what he's got set up in his little corner of the world."

"And not even say hello?" Joe popped up behind the three girls. He was dressed smartly. The brothers had rented suits from a shop in Chicago. Joe looked quite adorable all dressed up. It wasn't everyday that Nancy saw him like this. It suits him, she joked to herself. His eyes got big, and he let out a low whistle, "You look great, George!"

Normally she would have retaliated with a sarcastic statement or just shrugged it off, but there had been something genuine in his voice that brought a deep rouge color to her cheeks. He looked Bess and Nancy up and down, "You guys do, too." George was about to make a go for it when Joe unexpectedly turned to her. "May I have this dance?" he asked as a new song started to play out over the crowd.

She was so startled that all she could do was stutter a, "Yes." She looked to Bess as if to ask if she minded, but her cousin just smiled encouragingly. The two stepped out on the floor only to disappear among the several couples already dancing.

"You gonna be okay? I mean, if I...?" Bess pointed over her shoulder toward the crowd.

"Yeah," Nancy nodded, "I'm going to head to the refreshment table."

"Okay," she shouted over her shoulder before hurrying out into the chaos.

At the refreshment table, Nancy poured herself a cup of punch. It was homemade punch, good homemade punch. She closed her eyes and sipped the red drink. She was finally starting to feel relaxed. She stood there, sipping her drink and listening to the upbeat song. When she finished her last swallow, she put her cup down on the table and turned to face the crowd. As she did so, she abruptly ran into someone else turning around.

"Oh, excuse me," he said, then he took a step back and gazed at her, "Nancy?"

"Frank! We saw Joe when we came in. I was starting to think that I'd never find you," she smiled.

"Wow," he breathed in, "I didn't even recognize you when I first came over. You look...amazing." His eyes were open wide in astonishment.

"You clean up nicely yourself, Hardy," she laughed.

Ah, he thought, to hear her laugh like that again. He cleared his throat, "Uh, you want to dance?"

"Sure," she slowly said with a giant grin.

He took her hand and led her out to the floor. She let herself become enshrouded in people. They danced for a few minutes until the song abruptly ended. A voice called over the crowd. It was the DJ, "All yall are in trouble now! A request has been made, and the rules have been established. No one is allowed to switch partners, and if you don't have one you must find one! If you try to leave or switch partners, we'll kick you out! Ha ha, enjoy a nice slooooow dance. LeAnn Rimes, yall with I Dare You."

Nancy looked up toward the DJ's stand. She saw George wave at her, a sly grin spread from ear to ear. "George!" Nancy mumbled under her breath with a smile. Her smile fell as she become conscious of what had happened. She looked up, realizing who she was dancing with, into Frank's eyes. He looked as if he wasn't quite sure what to do.

The DJ's voice boomed out once more, "Sorry for the wait, everyone, technical difficulties. We'll be up and running momentarily."

"We could slip out, if you want," he said uneasily.